Eurocommissaris Piebalgs benoemd tot lid VN-panel millenniumdoelen (en)

Today the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, announced the nomination of Andris Piebalgs, European Commissioner for Development, as a member of the High Level Panel on the post-Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) agenda beyond 2015. The Panel will be co-chaired by David Cameron, UK Prime Minister, Ellen Sirleaf Johnson, President of Liberia, and Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, President of Indonesia. The 26-member advisory panel includes representatives from the UN organisations, governments, private sector and civil society. The panel will advise on the global development agenda, taking into consideration new global challenges and reflecting on the experience gained in implementing the Millennium Development Goals.

EU Commissioner Piebalgs said: "I'm honoured to be a member of the Panel advising the Secretary General on the next milestones of development agenda. This is a recognition of the European Union's firm commitment to freeing people from the grip of poverty. The Millennium Development Goals have been instrumental in mobilising the international community towards key targets to fight poverty. We have achieved good results but we should not rest on our laurels and we must now come together to prepare the way forward. Together with other members of the Panel I will work on recommendations to provide a new vision and concrete proposals to support the world, and above all the developing countries, on the track of sustainable and inclusive growth."

Commissioner Piebalgs will attend the first meeting of the Panel during the UN General Assembly week in September 2012.

The Panel is part of the United Nation's initiative to advance the development agenda beyond 2015 and its work will be closely coordinated with international working group on Sustainable Development Goals, agreed at the Rio+20 conference.

The European Commission has already launched a public consultation on "Towards a Post-2015 Development Framework" on 15th June for a three months period.

Background

The global political and economic landscape has changed significantly in the years since the turn of the millennium. Many emerging economies are now thriving, disparities within and between developing countries are increasing and new challenges such as climate change are high on the global agenda. In this context, our way forward must reflect new global realities and trends.