The Presidency of the Leading Group on Innovative Financing is a very important event for the Spanish cooperation policy towards a more mature, efficient and inclusive system to fight against hunger and poverty. Spain has done progresses in its way to achieve its international commitments in order to reach 0,7% ODA. Nevertheless, we are aware that this goal is not enough. Reports about the necessary financing to accomplish the MDGs say that the financing gap is near 324 billion and 336 billion a year for 2012 and 2017 (156 billion for climate change and 168-180 billion for ODA), while ODA in 2010 was around 130 billion).
Spain, which hosts the Presidency of this Leading Group of Innovative Financing, is determined to do its best to foster the mechanisms already in place within the frame of this leading group, such as IFFm, UNITAID, AMC, debt2health, and also politic mechanisms discussed in forums as G20, such as remittances, fight against illicit financial flows and the implementation of a currency transactions tax, a very powerful tool to raise funds and lead us to the way to reach MDGs. At this moment, this mechanism is being discussed by the European Union, G20 and IMF, with a less opposition each year. The international finance crisis that has caused extreme poverty to around 90 million people arises the role of the financing system and its contribution to human and sustainable growth, to a globalization that may foresee financing crisis in the future and to prevent people to go from poverty to extreme poverty.
Also, the Presidency will highlight the progresses inside the leading group, which is fighting against poverty by means of a more stable, predictable and long term financing. The leading group is also involving the member countries in this fight according to Paris Declaration and Accra. Spain will focus in the convergence of the innovative finance and effective aid agendas in a common vision and a strategy to relate to developing countries.
Spain would like to thank for the confidence this leading group has given our country by recalling the declaration of the Initiative Against Hunger and Poverty “it is appropriate and timely to give further attention to innovative mechanism of financing – public or private, compulsory and voluntary, of universal or limited membership – in order to raise funds urgently needed to help meet the MDGs and to complement and ensure long-term stability and predictability to foreign aid.”
15 July 2011