5th Session of the Post-2015 Intergovernmental Negotiations (Follow-Up and Review)

The 5th Session of the intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda concluded on Friday, 22 May 2015, at UN Headquarters in New York. In the morning, Co-Facilitator Macharia Kamau called on delegates to agree on how to take the process forward during the three remaining sessions and announced that the zero draft of the outcome document would be circulated on or about 1 June 2015, which will give delegations time to consult before the sixth session of the intergovernmental negotiations that begins on 22 June. He informed participants that an important missing piece in the zero draft will be coming from the Third International Conference on Financing for Development, which will convene in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in July. Co-Facilitators Macharia Kamau and David Donoghue both expressed confidence that the content of the zero draft will be received with wide support and be regarded as a good basis for future work. 

During the morning, delegations expressed their views on the way forward.  A number of developing countries commented on the Co-Facilitators “Food for thought paper on a possible Technology Facilitation Mechanism” (TFM), and requested that the TFM be included in the outcome document. Many countries called for the declaration and the outcome language to be easily communicated to the “citizen on the street,” and to stop “recycling UN language to inspire a global audience.” Many also called for the negotiations to continue to be open and transparent as they have been so far.

In the afternoon, delegates adopted a revised proposal for the themes of the interactive dialogues for the Post-2015 Summit. The proposal that will be transmitted by the Co-Facilitators to the President of the General Assembly includes six themes but no additional details. The themes are:  ending poverty and hunger; tackling inequalities, empowering women and girls and leaving no one behind; fostering sustainable economic growth, transformation and promoting sustainable consumption and production; protecting our planet and combatting climate change; building effective, accountable and inclusive institutions to achieve sustainable development; and delivering on a revitalized Global Partnership.

The meeting was adjourned at 4:05 pm.