President calls on UN to craft global accountability indicators

Speaking at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly’s annual high-level debate
yesterday, President Bharrat Jagdeo called on the UN to establish global
accountability indicators to assess whether the implementation of policies is in accordance with the international responsibilities.
The Guyanese Head of State believes that there is need for enhanced accountability so that countries can act responsibly, rather than merely with regard for national interests.

“Accountability indicators where we can transparently monitor whether the
members of the international community are pursuing policies that in a holistic
sense help them to discharge their global responsibilities would therefore be
helpful,” President Jagdeo said.

The provision of aid, climate, trade and other key issues were some of the
indicators which President Jagdeo said have already been developed through the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
“As we enhance them further, I believe that we will see that better
accountability, properly understood, can help us rise to the challenges we
face.” President Jagdeo said.
He reiterated the call for affluent countries to also recognise their responsibilities even as developing countries such as Guyana should also be accountable for their actions towards the MDGs.

“Aid flows are appreciated and valuable, but they sometimes pale into insignificance when the same countries that promote how their aid is helping the achievement of, for example, the Millennium Development Goals, are also pursuing
unjust, narrow-minded trade or climate policies,” President Jagdeo said.
He said there are times when the international system seemingly sets out to put hurdles in the path to overcome challenges. Evidence of this is usually the inconsistencies and a lack of coherence among aid, trade and climate policies
in the developed world.
President Jagdeo is at present in New York at the UN Summit called by UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon; and while speaking at the 65th session, he alluded to the global efforts towards the halving of poverty and the achievement of the
MDGs by 2015, global financial crisis that threatens to undo much of the progress made in lifting people out of poverty, and a climate crisis that runs the risk of planet-wide disruption that endangers entire nations Such challenges, the President believes, are all a function of the dominant characteristic of the modern world and must be countered with an inter-connected response.

“The notion that we can protect our national and global interests through inward-looking national responses is no longer valid. Instead, it is in all our interests for the United Nations to provide the platform that facilitates globally inter-connected responses,” President Jagdeo said.
Speaking specifically to the contents of the MDGs, President Jagdeo said although progress has been made, connecting rhetorical support from the developed world for delivery has not been met.
Alluding to the financial crisis, the President explained that there is no connect to the globally open financial systems to measures that protect against the risks that these systems create.
In the area of climate change, he said there is the absence of scientific evidence to global policy responses that mitigate the worst extremes of climate change.(GINA)