 By Ronald Joshua
IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis
BERLIN/PARIS (IDN) - Though developed and developing countries decided about one-and-a-half years ago to take bold steps to reform the way aid is given and spent, the agreement has yet to be put into practice.
Now fresh impulses for more effective co-operation architecture are anticipated from the High Level Event on South-South Cooperation and Capacity Development to be hosted in Bogotá by the Government of Colombia March 24-26, 2010.
The so-called HLE Colombia is expected "to generate consensus on specific actions to be implemented, in order to implement agreements enshrined in the Accra Agenda for Action, and accelerating the exchange and peer learning processes between partner countries and international/regional organisations", according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
In the so-called Accra Agenda for Action decided after intense negotiations in September 2008 in the Ghanaian capital, developing countries committed themselves to take control of their own futures. Industrialised nations said they would co-ordinate better amongst themselves. Both parties to the Agenda pledged to account to each other and their citizens.
Though the Accra Agenda emerging from the Third High Level Forum (HLF3) on Aid Effectiveness is the product of an unprecedented alliance of development partners – developing and donor countries, emerging economies, UN and multilateral institutions, global funds and civil society organisations – it is in practice a paper tiger.
Knowledgeable sources at the 30-nation OECD in Paris, which organised the HLF3, jointly with the World Bank, admit that "there is a long way to go for the Agenda for Action to become a reality".
Forum participants used as a baseline the development goals set out in the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness signed in 2005. Their discussions on the need to make aid more effective were based on consultations with more than 80 developing countries, all OECD donors and a large number of civil society organisations from around the world.
The High Level Event on South-South Cooperation and Capacity Development (HLE Colombia), to be hosted by the Government of Colombia is one of the key milestones to implement the key commitment for more inclusive partnerships for development as contained in the Accra Agenda for Action commitments.
HLE Colombia is considered as one of the key stepping stones for the preparations for the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness (HLF4) in Korea in late 2011. The meeting will look at 65 case reports from Asia, Latin America and Africa with the aim of culminating in a 'Bogotá Statement'.
According to the OECD, in the lead-up to the HLF4, the meeting in Colombia offers a unique opportunity for exchange and learning between DAC members (Germany, Ireland, Japan, Korea and Spain), key OECD 'South-South co-operators' (Colombia, Peru, Thailand, Vietnam), other global players and emerging economies (Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, South Africa), developing countries (Bangladesh, Cambodia, Guatemala, Niger), and multilateral organisations (World Bank, Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, Organization of American States, SEGIB – Secretaría General Ibero-Americana and the UN Development Programme).
Among the main objectives of the meeting in Bogotá is to provide and share evidence on South-South co-operation. According to the OECD, the HLE will take an evidence-based approach in order to deepen knowledge and analysis of key relevant issues by sharing experiences of South-South Co-operation in the context of aid effectiveness, including those specifically contributing to capacity development.
The meeting in Colombia is also expected to strengthen southern voices in the aid effectiveness context. "The HLE expects to boost the voice of developing countries – as both providers and recipients – within the global aid architecture, showing their practical contributions to an inclusive global development agenda," says the OECD.
But how effective is aid at helping countries meet their own development objectives? Some of the answers can be found in the 2008 'Survey on Monitoring the Paris Declaration: Making Aid More Effective by 2010' which presents the results from the second, follow-up survey on monitoring the Paris Declaration on aid effectiveness.
The survey assesses progress in 55 developing countries and analyses the challenges in making aid more effective. "The findings are clear: progress is being made, but not fast enough. Unless they seriously gear up their efforts, developing countries and their external partners will not meet their international commitments and targets for effective aid by 2010. Action is needed now. This report makes three high-level policy recommendations that will help accelerate progress and transform the aid relationship into a full partnership," highlights the survey.
SOUTH-SOUTH MOMENTUM
A strong driver behind the South-South momentum is the increasing role and leadership of middle-income countries in the international system. Such developments, and others brought on by globalization in the last 50 years, have been seeing the rise of “a new aid architecture”.
Foreign assistance is becoming part of an integrated multilateral system. Twenty years ago, the 22 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development with the Development Assistance Committee (OECD/DAC) accounted for 95 percent of total aid to developing countries.
Today, aid to developing countries is delivered through more than 150 multilateral agencies, 33 bilateral members of the OECD/DAC, at least 10 non-DAC governments and a growing number of global theme or issue specific ‘Vertical Funds’.
Developing nations are increasingly looking towards their ‘southern’ counterparts, whether they be middle or low income countries, fragile states, or OECD countries, for knowledge, expertise and advice. These developments, coupled with the growing number of organizations dedicated to learning and education, as well as growing access to new technologies in the developing world, has brought South-South Knowledge Exchange to the forefront of conversations in the South-South community.
There are numerous challenges to strengthen South-South cooperation at the operational level. How to cope with growing demand? How to increase effectiveness and impact? How to design South-South knowledge exchanges? What are viable business and financing models? How to capture and share best practices? How to increase coordination amongst the various actors? This site aims to explore, develop and advance the growing work in South-South cooperation, knowledge exchange and learning by bringing together a diverse range of actors and experts to discuss emerging topics, share best practices, explore design and methodological considerations of learning, and connect with colleagues in the wider South-South community.
Some of these issues will also be discussed at the Colombia conference. (IDN-InDepthNews/19.03.2010)
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