GROUP OF 77
NAIROBI

Statement by H.E. Mrs. Bibiana L. Jones, Ambassador of the Argentine Republic to the Republic of Kenya, and Permanent Representative to UNEP, UN-HABITAT and UNON, Chairperson of the Group of 77 Chapter in Nairobi Chapter, at the 61th regular meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives to the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) (UNON, Nairobi, 15 June 2016)

Mr. Chairman,
Mr. Executive Director,
Distinguished delegates and colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

The Group would like to welcome the Executive Director´s Briefing to the Committee of Permanent Representatives, the Quarterly report on the Financial Status of UN-Habitat and the Report on the work of the Subcommittees.

We also welcome the report of the Group on Programme of Work and Budget and its recommendations. Member States of the G77 and China have actively participated in the Group and we hope these recommendations will guide UN-Habitat work.

Regarding the engagement of UN-Habitat in the monitoring and implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development it should be taken into account that Member States have the primary responsibility for follow-up and review, at the national, regional and global levels in relation to the progress made in implementing the Goals and targets over the coming 15 years.

We would also like to highlight that the High Level Political Forum under the auspices of the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council will have the central role in overseeing follow-up and review at the global level.

Having said this, the Group believes that duplication of efforts as well as prejudging the ongoing negotiations that are taking place in the General Assembly and the High Level Political Forum should be avoided.

Un-Habitat as well as other UN Agencies and Programmes have a central role to play in assisting Member States in the implementation of goals and targets and in the identification of indicators, as appropriate.

Mr. Chairman,

We would like to share our preliminary views regarding the "Zero Draft of the New Urban Agenda":

- The Group is of a firm belief that sustainable urbanization and human settlements can be a key driver of sustainable development in national and subnational development plans. We therefore reiterate the need to advance towards an inclusive agenda to be founded on relevant international agreements including the 2030 Development Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, the Paris Agreements and the UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction.

- A stand alone SDG Goal 11 on making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable shall contribute to our efforts towards the effective management of the challenges or rapid urbanization, and provide an opportunity to promote a positive mutually reinforcing relationship between cities and their surroundings across the human settlements continuum.

- It is important to reduce the disparity along the rural-urban continuum in order to achieve a more balanced integration of the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development.

- In this regard, the outcome document should address the developmental challenges that accompany the management of sustainable cities and human settlements and explore new innovative methods of coping with recent demographic trends and rapid rates of urbanization that are constantly placing tremendous pressures on cities, especially in developing countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

- The most critical constraint remains the provision of adequate financing. We therefore reiterate the need for developed countries to fulfill their commitments to support developing countries efforts through the provision of the necessary means of implementation, including resources, capacity building and technology transfer, as well as the creation of an international enabling environment for sustainable development.

- The Group would like to take this opportunity to reiterate its support to the Government of Ecuador as the host of HABITAT III conference as well as to the Government of Indonesia for hosting the third session of the HABITAT III PrepComm.

- That said Mr. Chairman, we reiterate the need to provide financial support for delegates from Regional Groups based in Nairobi to participate in PrepCom III and in HABITAT III Conference itself. This participation is essential to guarantee an inclusive preparatory Committee meeting. An agreement in PrepCom III, and eventually in HABITAT III Conference, is primarily dependent on this participation. Furthermore, the Group of 77 and China would like to have a detailed account of the Habitat III Trust Fund. We firmly believe that our contributions will enrich the discussions and will also provide an insight form the perspective of the daily work of UN-HABITAT.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.