Beyond the Millennium Development Goals: Towards an OECD contribution to the post-2015 agenda

This overview paper outlines a preliminary proposal for a contribution to the post-2015 era which reflects the OECD mission of supporting governments in designing “better policies for better lives”. The proposal consisting of 11 elements intends to help provide a global, holistic, measurable and meaningful development framework. This proposal is not intended to be an exhaustive list of OECD contributions, but a draft list of ideas for where the OECD could best start to get involved.

Listen to a summary from one of the authors, Hildegard Lingnau. 

Post 2015: Keeping the multiple dimensions of poverty at the heart of development

The global economic and poverty landscape has changed, and with it our understanding of what development and poverty are all about. As the United Nations and its partners shape a new global framework to take the place of the MDGs in 2015, they face the urgent challenge of keeping poverty at the heart of development. For the success of the post-2015 agenda, it is crucial to determine how the multiple dimensions of poverty and inequality should be defined and measured.

The OECD's contribution on education to the post-2015 framework: PISA for development

The OECD supports the emerging consensus that post-2015 education goals should retain a focus on access and equity while emphasizing the quality of learning from early childhood through primary and secondary education.  The OECD is well placed to contribute to the definition of learning goals and targets, based on the experience of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).  More than 70 countries participate in PISA and a new initiative will seek to make it more relevant for developing countries.  PISA could provide a means for all countries to measure progress towards national and international post-2015 education goals.

Listen to a summary from one of the authors, Michael Ward, a Development Analyst for the OECD.  

Gender equality and women’s rights in the post-2015 agenda: A foundation for sustainable development

The post-2015 framework presents a unique opportunity to build on the achievements of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), while also addressing the dimensions that lag behind. It is time to act now – to increase both the political will and the resources to achieve full and lasting gender equality, women’s empowerment and women’s rights. This paper reiterates the call for a post-2015 framework that retains a strong, standalone goal on gender equality and women’s empowerment, and integrates gender-specific targets and indicators in the other goals.

Enabling Investment in sustainable energy infrastructure

Universal access to sustainable energy is essential to support the post-2015 agenda. Achieving universal energy access is essential to the post-2015 goals framework that will replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Access to energy is central to human well-being and a key factor in poverty reduction. Although energy was not explicitly featured in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), there has been a growing recognition that access to sustainable and reliable energy is critical to achieving them: improving women’s and children’s health, broadening the reach of education, allowing households to cook and heat their homes, and enhancing agricultural development and food security. As the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General has said, “Universal energy access is a key priority on the global development agenda. It is a foundation for all the Millennium Development Goals” (UN, 2010).

Listen to a summary from one of the authors, Geraldine Ang. 

Global and local environmental sustainability, development and growth

The post-2015 framework will need to reflect the linkages between poverty reduction, natural resource management and development, as well as local and global environmental challenges. A key element will be to identify and address a common agenda to collectively manage shared global environmental risks and to build resilience across all types of countries to contribute to inclusive and sustainable development, taking into account complex issues such as the interactions between food, water and energy security.

 Listen to a summary from one of the authors, Jan Corfee-Morlot. 

Listen to another summary from one of the authors, Juan Casado Asensio. 

 Strengthening National Statistical Systems to Monitor Global Goals

The new development framework that will replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) after 2015 will require a “data revolution”. PARIS21 (the Partnership in Statistics for Development in the 21st Century) offers a ready-made structure on which to found such a global partnership and begin co-ordinating a participatory debate on the data and capacity needed worldwide to rise to the challenge of monitoring the post-2015 development framework.

Listen to a summary from one of the authors, Johannes Jütting, Manager of the PARIS21 Secretariat within the OECD's Development Co-operation Directorate.

Building more open, effective and accountable institutions for all. 

As we approach the 2015 deadline for the Millennium Development Goals, there are growing calls for the new post-2015 framework to include goals for more effective, open and accountable institutions for all. It is not just politicians and leading experts who are pushing for this change; citizens are also weighing in. In post-2015 consultations, “honest and responsive governments” is one of the most widely-cited priorities of people from around the world. This Post-2015 Reflections Paper outlines the importance of effective institutions for sustainable development and examines what steps are being taken to achieve the change required.

Forthcoming.

Development Co-operation Directorate

With the OECD Strategy on Development, the organisation and its members have taken an important step forward on how to approach policy coherence for development in a rapidly changing and more complex global context. The OECD can make full use of its multidisciplinary expertise, evidence-based approaches to policy making, and peer learning working methods. This will contribute to better informed policies and provide decision makers with the necessary tools and instruments for achieving greater policy coherence for development in the post-2015 development agenda and framework.

Listen to a summary from one of the authors, Ernesto Soria Morales. 

Policy dialogue, Knowledge sharing and engaging

Economic powers are shifting, while at the same time social inequality threatens to destabilise the political and economic outlook for many societies. Many pressing concerns – climate change, health, peace and stability – are universal, and can only be tackled by cross-border collaboration and sharing mechanisms. Knowledge sharing for the post-2015 framework needs to include concrete elements beyond datasets – chiefly, new substance, new processes and new partnerships – to provide countries of all types with the know-how needed to face global challenges and opportunities today.

Effective development co-operation: an important enabler in a post-2015 global development framework

The widely-endorsed Busan Partnership agreement (2011) offers helpful principles that could underpin the “how” of a post-2015 development framework. The Global Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation provides a broad political coalition of stakeholders to advocate for effective development partnerships, and drive progress in developing countries where it matters the most. The OECD is committed to supporting the Global Partnership. In addition to its role in monitoring progress, the OECD is well placed to share its tools and knowledge in other areas of relevance to the Partnership – for example, work on tax and development, effective institutions, and tackling illicit financial flows.

 Listen to a summary from one of the authors, Robin Ogilvy. 

Flyer: Measuring and Monitoring External Development Finance (2014)

As the international community develops a new framework to replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) after 2015, a funding strategy will need to be put in place to support them. This will require a sustained global effort that maximises both public and private sources of finance. The DAC is already working to modernise its statistical system for monitoring and measuring external development finance and is working with the United Nations and the wider international community so that the revised system is well placed to support the attainment of post-2015 goals. 

Listen to a summary from one of the authors, Jean Touchette. 

Strengthening Tax Systems to Mobilise Domestic Resources in the Post-2015 Development Agenda 

Strengthening domestic tax collection will be essential to provide governments with sustainable revenue sources to finance the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals. The OECD stands ready to support developing countries to ensure they share in the benefits of major international initiatives like the Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting to address profit shifting by multinational enterprises or the new single global standard for Automatic Exchange of Information to curb tax evasion and illicit financial flows. With only an estimated 0.1% of total ODA dedicated to tax matters, the international development community could do more to strengthen tax systems in developing countries.

Investment for Sustainable Development

How to finance development is one of the most pressing questions in the reflections on the Sustainable Development Goals for the post-2015 development agenda. Key to answering this is finding ways to involve the private sector in delivering development. Private finance already accounts for the lion’s share of capital inflows to developing countries.