Statement at the International Forum on Partnerships for Sustainable Development by Mr. Børge Brende,Rome 4 March 2004

International Forum on Partnerships for Sustainable Development

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Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen;

Early this year I was invited to participate in the launching of the SEED price in Berlin on partnerships for sustainable development between the UN organisation, the private sector and local groups. The price will be handed out for the first time during the forthcoming session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development in New York in April.

Today, I have the honour to participate in an event, which again highlights the potentials of partnerships.

As chairman of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, I would like to congratulate our Italian host on a very timely initiative. I am very grateful that you have given me this opportunity to take part at this important conference.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Partnerships for sustainable development emerged as an important package of outputs from the Johannesburg Summit one and a half year ago. These outputs came in addition to the new commitments made, and old commitments confirmed, by governments.

Why were these outputs so important?

Because, if we look at the realities of today, if we consider the needs of billions of people, if we consider the continuing degradation of environmental resources - then we cannot afford to exclude any parties who are in a position to provide competence and capital. The challenges of sustainable development are far too great.

Developing countries cannot alone fulfil the needs. Neither can development aid alone compensate for the shortcomings. There is an urgent need for investments and cost-effective solutions. There is an urgent need to seek alternative sources of funding. There is an urgent need for partnerships!

• Partnerships can encourage participation and transparency and contribute in building much-needed capacity.

• Partnerships can bring about innovation and contribute in transferring much-needed technology.

• Partnerships can involve new actors and contribute in mobilising much-needed additional funds.

Water is a case in point: The primary responsibility for ensuring equitable and sustainable management of water rests with the governments. However, many services are increasingly being provided and managed by actors other than governments and the public sector. There is a growing trend for community – based organisations, user groups, local private sector and autonomous utilities to assume a greater direct role in the management, operation and maintenance of services. The public roles today are more those of facilitator, enabler, and regulator. To ensure that the interest of the poor are safeguarded, it is important to obtain the optimum mix of public sector legal and regulatory mechanisms, service delivery and private participation.

I mentioned that partnerships can encourage participation and transparency and contribute in building much-needed capacity.

In the city of Pune in India, a partnership between the municipal corporation, NGOs and community based organisations has resulted in the construction of more than 400 community toilet blocks - improving access to sanitation for more than half a million people. The partnership involved the inhabitants of Pune - not only in the design and construction of the toilets - but also in the process of maintenance. In the planning, regular meetings between all stakeholders were held, and financial aspects of the partnership were made publicly available.

I mentioned that partnerships can bring about innovation and contribute in transferring much-needed technology

This also goes for partnerships among developing countries. One example is the Water Utility Partnership between the Union of African Suppliers and training centres, supported by the World Bank and other donors. The purpose of this imitative is to improve the performance of water supply and sanitation facilities in Africa, in terms of service delivery, cost recovery, operation and maintenance. Their projects on institutional reform, performance improvement and benchmarking, improved management and improved access to water supply and sanitation for the urban poor, all make important contributions to the achievement of the MDGs and Johannesburg targets.

I mentioned that partnerships can involve new actors and contribute in mobilising much-needed additional funds.

In Johannesburg the European Union launched a new water partnership. The EU water initiative will contribute to the 2015 water and sanitation targets. It will coordinate all the various water-related activities that are now going on in parts of Africa and Central Asia. It will open up for private sector investment and the development of a framework encouraging integrated water resources management. And I have been informed that a process is well underway to bring in new and additional funds.

New and additional funds have also been brought into a partnership in Egypt where a partnership involving the USAID seeks to improve service delivery in the water and wastewater sector. Through guarantee mechanisms US funding of 700. 000 USD will leverage the Egyptian pound equivalent of 50 million USD in loans from local private banks to locally based business.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

At the Millennium and Johannesburg Summits we have commonly agreed to halve the number of people living without safe drinking water and basic sanitation by 2015 and we have agreed to significantly improve the conditions for at least 100-million slum dweller by 2020. These goals and time-bound targets are of fundamental importance to poverty eradication and sustainable development.

The main purpose of the forthcoming review-session of the CSD is to identify the obstacles we face and the opportunities we have in the implementation of these particular targets. Our main task will be to prepare for on-the-ground action necessary to meet the targets on water, sanitation and human settlements.

At the upcoming CSD session, the CSD 12, we will have a broad perspective in mind. All stakeholders are included in this perspective. We will think and act in terms of partnerships. We have to focus on best practices and lessons learned.

In line with the Bali Guiding Principles that were discussed in the run up to Johannesburg we must pave the way for partnerships to serve in addition to - and not in any way become a substitute for multilateral commitments. We must get the balance right between the roles of government and the roles of the private sector, business and other actors.

The 12th session of the CSD will include a Partnerships Fair, highlighting concrete cases of partnerships that have been established with that objective in mind. As part of what we hope will contribute to a revitalisation of the Commission, the high-level segment of the CSD 12 will include a discussion on how to release the energy of local entrepreneurs and partnerships.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am convinced that the time bound targets we have set for ourselves are doable. They are specific, practical and realistic. They are technically feasible. They are financially affordable. But only with the right combination of political commitments and partnerships.

Still - we have to do better than what we are doing at the moment. In Johannesburg it was agreed that all countries should develop integrated water management plans by 2005. The figures in a report by Global Water Partnership soon to be published are a cause of worry. Of the more than 100 developing countries surveyed around 15 % have made good progress and are on track to meet the 2005 target. 50 % have initiated these processes and need to increase their efforts to meet the target. The remaining 1/3 of the countries have a significant way to go.

So, although it is doable we definitely have the work cut out for us.

To conclude, I am confident that partnerships will be an important means of transforming political commitments into concrete action that successful partnerships will demonstrate our ability to move from concepts to action on the ground.

And I can assure you therefore: I am equally confident that this Forum will provide highly valuable inputs to the 12th session of the CSD.

I look forward to learning more about the outcomes of the discussions here today and tomorrow. I wish you the best of luck with your important work.

Thank you for your attention!