Honorable Heads of State and Government,
Honorable Ministers,
Secretary General of the United Nations,
Distinguished President of the 65th Session of the General Assembly.
Distinguished President of the 64th Session of the General Assembly.
Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am pleased to deliver this statement on behalf of H.E. Ali Abdullah Saleh, President of the Republic of Yemen, Chairman of the Group of 77 and China, on this auspicious occasion.

Ten years ago, the world joined forces here at the United Nations Headquarters to commit to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, combat inequalities, ensure primary education for all, promote gender equality and the empowerment of women, strengthen global public health and promote sustainable development. To that effect, a global partnership for development was established to harness global solidarity and promote national and international commitments in favor of development. The Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals represent worthy commitments by the United Nations and its Member States.

With less than five years to go until 2015, today's High Level meeting is a timely opportunity for all of us to highlight effective development strategies and initiatives that can be serve as guideline in our countries and regions, as well as to reflect on shortcomings and challenges that need to be urgently overcome. Indeed, one of the main goals of this Summit is to scale up the global partnership to mobilize the additional resources urgently needed to address the remaining gaps and continuing challenges. It is incumbent on all of us to ensure that no country will fall short of the MDGs simply because of lack of resources.

In this regard, we must be fully committed to assist those countries that are lagging behind, especially the least developed countries (LDCs), the Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDC) and the small island developing states (SIDS), as well as Africa. The Group of 77 and China believes that a strong Global Partnership for Development should be the centerpiece of international cooperation, with a view to ensure the timely achievement of the MDGs.

We also must be committed to fulfill our obligations in conformity with international law through taking further collective and concrete actions to remove all obstacles to the full realization of the rights of peoples living under foreign occupation, which continue to adversely affect their economic and social development, and are incompatible with the dignity and worth of the human person and must be combated and eliminated.
Mr. President

The development challenges that we face today should not be underestimated. We express deep concern over the multiple inter-related and mutually exacerbating current global crises, in particular the world financial and economic crisis, the volatile energy prices and the ongoing concerns over food security, as well as the challenges posed by climate change, which could further undermine the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals.

The ongoing world financial and economic crisis has reversed many important developmental gains in developing countries and threatens to seriously undermine the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. Two years after the outbreak of the global financial crises, developing countries have still not fully recovered from the social and economic effects of the crisis.

Mr. President,

We recognize that all developing countries have made significant efforts towards the achievement of the MDGs. Nevertheless, progress has been uneven from country to country and between MDGs. Despite positive developments, there are still more than 1 billion people living in situations of extreme poverty. The FAO has recently noted a reduction in world hunger, but the numbers of malnourished and undernourished people are still staggering. Progress has also been slow in improving maternal health and reducing maternal mortality. There has been insufficient advance on gender equality and the empowerment of women. Almost half of the people in the developing world continue to live without access to basic sanitation. Too many people remain jobless or under-employed. And more attention needs to be given to sustained growth and sustainable development.

The G77 and China stresses the critical importance of Official Development Assistance (ODA) as both a complement to other sources of financing and as a catalyst for development, facilitating the achievement of national development objectives, including the MDGs. The global crisis cannot be an excuse to avoid existing aid commitments. On the contrary, today more than ever, developed countries must meet and scale-up their existing bilateral and multilateral official development assistance commitments and targets, in particular the commitment to reach the target of 0.7 per cent of gross national product for official development assistance to developing countries by 2015 and to reach the level of at least 0.5 per cent of gross national product for official development assistance by 2010, as well as a target of 0.15 to 0.20 per cent of gross national product for official development assistance to least developed countries.

Mr. President,

We reaffirm the importance of the United Nations Millennium Declaration and underscore the continuing relevance of the outcomes of all major United Nations conferences and summits in the economic, social and related fields, as well as the important commitments contained therein. Together, they constitute a coherent development agenda, providing the backbone of international development efforts. We stress that the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals including the MDGs should continue to be the over-arching framework of the development activities of the UN system.

The G77 and China believes that the United Nations, given its universal membership, legitimacy and comprehensive mandate, must play a vital role in the promotion of international cooperation for development and the support to the acceleration of the implementation of the internationally agreed development goals. We stress the pivotal role of the UN in promoting coherence and coordination in global economic governance. We stress the need to increase the UN development system commitment to support national efforts to achieve the MDGs. The United Nations needs strengthened capabilities and capacities to fully implement its mandates and to ensure the effective delivery of its activities for development.
 
Mr. President,

The current High Level Meeting is an important step towards accelerating development efforts towards the achievement of the MDGs, but much more remains to be done. The international community must now focus on implementing agreed commitments and scaling up the global partnership for development. It is clear that economic growth is a critical factor, but it alone cannot overcome the profound structural problems that beset most developing countries. In order to ensure effective results, development strategies must be pursued in the context of a supportive international environment with global institutions that fully take into account the needs of developing countries.

We have seen that wherever progress has been made towards meeting the MDGs it has been possible only with combined efforts of national commitments, effective programmes, resources and international support. In order to support national efforts of developing countries, scaling-up MDG8 is critically important for the achievement of all MDGs.

Mr. President,

The G77 and China stands ready to do its part to promote development and foster growth in developing countries with a view to ensure the timely achievement of the MDGs everywhere.

Thank you.