Group of 77 and China statement during the IAEA Board of Governors,
23-24 November 2017, delivered by H.E. Ambassador Reza Najafi, Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran
23 November 2017
Agenda Item 6: Any other business - Ministerial Conference
Mr. Chairman,
1. The Group of 77 and China stresses the need for furthering the work of the Agency in promoting nuclear science, technologies and applications for peaceful uses, and their delivery to Member States through the Agency’s Technical Cooperation Programme, and the role of convening regular ministerial conferences in this regard.
2. The G-77 and China believes that such ministerial conferences, focusing on nuclear science, technologies and applications for peaceful uses, as well as on the IAEA Technical Cooperation Programme, to be held on a regular basis and at the Ministerial level, should be organized in close consultation with Member States, and result, inter alia, in concrete outcomes with the aim of further strengthening the Agency’s technical cooperation activities, promoting the visibility of the Programme and helping to further strengthen, as appropriate, the commitments by both the donors and recipients of technical cooperation.
3. The Group would like to reiterate the request to the Secretariat to initiate consultations with Member States on the preparation of the 2018 Ministerial Conference on nuclear science, technologies and applications for peaceful uses, and their delivery to Member States through the Agency’s TC programme, while highlighting their future contribution to sustainable development. In this regard, the Group notes with concern the recent circulation of an announcement relating to the Conference with provisional information on the structure, content and other modalities without due prior consultation with Member States. The Group looks forward to actively participating in an open-ended, inclusive and transparent consultation process, which should begin as early as possible. The Group welcomes the announcement by the Director General with regard to the availability of the Ambassadors of Costa Rica, an active member of the Group, and of Japan to lead the preparatory work for this important Conference. The Group looks forward to working with them in the preparatory process.
4. The Group is of the view that this Ministerial Conference should equally emphasize on nuclear science, technologies and applications for peaceful uses (centrally carried out by the Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications), as well as their delivery (done through the Department of Technical Cooperation), and therefore expects that the organization and coordination be done jointly by both Departments with the collaboration of any other relevant technical departments.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Agenda item 6: Any other business - Report on the Implementation of Strategic Guidelines on Partnerships and Resource Mobilization
Mr Chairman,
1. The Group of 77 and China thanks the Director General for the preparation of the report on the Implementation of Strategic Guidelines on Partnerships and Resource Mobilization, as contained in document GOV/INF/2017/13.
2. The Group notes that since the approval of the Strategic Guidelines, in June 2015, the Secretariat has started to strengthen partnerships and resource mobilization (PRM) coordination mechanisms and has undertaken additional PRM efforts, particularly with non-traditional partners. The Group also notes that, in order to implement the Strategic Guidelines with a one-house approach, the Secretariat implemented some measures to strengthen internal information sharing and coordination mechanisms related to PRM activities, such as .the establishment in November 2016 of the Partnerships and Resource Mobilization Coordination Committee (PRMCC). In the area of development of tools and processes, the G-77 notes that, to further strengthen the Agency’s one-house approach to PRM, the Secretariat has revised its existing PRM processes and mechanisms in order to align them with the Strategic Guidelines.
3. The Strategic Guidelines approved by the Board of Governors in 2015 take into consideration the additional complexities of PRM referred to in paragraph 10 of the Report. The Group looks forward to receiving additional information on the development, by the Secretariat, of a comprehensive PRM due diligence and vetting tool and on its effectiveness to ensure that those additional complexities and potential risks are adequately addressed in advance. The Group would also be interested in learning more about the efforts made by the Secretariat to enhance the partnerships content of Country Programme Frameworks (CPFs), the results of these efforts and the assessment thereof by Member States concerned.
4. The Group of 77 and China notes other actions referred to in the document, such as capacity building of staff members in partnerships and resource mobilization, as well as the concerted effort to reach out to external stakeholders, and to develop opportunities for partnerships and resource mobilization. With regard to the latter, the Group notes the convening of the International Conference on the IAEA Technical Cooperation Programme: Sixty Years and Beyond — Contributing to Development, and that it enabled partners to share their experiences of working with the Agency, allowed for the exploration of opportunities for future activities under the technical cooperation programme, and built a solid understanding among TC Programme stakeholders of the contribution the programme can make to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The G-77 looks forward to the 2018 Ministerial Conference, which will be an opportunity to highlight the important work of the IAEA on nuclear science, technologies and applications for peaceful uses, as well as under the Agency’s TC Programme.
5. Furthermore, the Group notes the actions to support Member States in partnerships and resource mobilization, such as actions related to partnerships with Member State institutions to promote technology transfer, and partnerships with international financial institutions.
Mr. Chairman,
6. The Group would like to reiterate its opinion that the Strategic Guidelines on Partnerships and Resource Mobilization has the potential to strengthen the Agency’s capacity to tap into new and additional resources through resource mobilization and public-private partnerships, and that, in the case of Technical Cooperation, these resources would complement the sources of funding to the TC Programme.
7. The Group stresses its principled position that additional sources of funding, such as public-private partnerships and extra-budgetary funding, cannot replace the Technical Cooperation Fund, which is essential for a sustainable and strategic TC Programme. In this regard, the Group is of the view that the language in the Report does not reflect adequately the complementary nature of those resources.
8. The Group looks forward to receiving periodic updates on the activities undertaken on the implementation of the Strategic Guidelines every two years.
