Finance Minister Jin Renqing and British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown on Friday issued a joint statement on global development, calling on the world to fulfill the commitments they made in Monterrey in 2002 on aid, debt relief and trade, and set urgent targets to increase their official development assistance (ODA) to 0.7 percent of their gross domestic product. 

The following is the full text of the joint statement:

Joint Statement by the Finance Ministers of China and the UK on Global Development

April 15, 2005

1. The year 2005 is a critical year for the international community, which will see the 60th anniversary of the founding of the UN and the Bretton Woods Institutions. The year will also witness the Millennium Review Summit at the UN and the WTO ministerial meeting in Hong Kong, China, which will assess the progress of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Doha Development Round respectively. In 2005 China and the UK hold the presidencies of the G20 and G7 respectively.

2. World leaders committed in 2000 to meet the MDGs by 2015. But progress so far has been too slow and uneven. In advance of the joint spring meeting of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is a key step in making progress on this agenda, China and the UK recognize that meeting the MDGs is vital for sustainable economic growth and poverty elimination. Progress on meeting the MDGs is therefore one of the key elements of the G20 and G7's agendas in 2005. We believe that our joint efforts will be conducive to reaching that goal, and we call upon the international community to fulfill the commitments they made in Monterrey in 2002 on aid, debt relief and trade.

Aid

3. Constraints on financing for development are a major obstacle toward meeting the MDGs as scheduled. To meet this challenge, the international community should set urgent targets to meet 0.7 percent ODA.

4. Even with an international commitment to 0.7 percent, there would be an unacceptable delay in raising the required resources. Innovative financing mechanisms for development are therefore very important for relieving the constraint on development financing. China supports the International Financial Facility (IFF) proposed by the UK. Both China and the UK welcome, and are committed to exploring the other proposals related to increasing financing resources for development.

5. Action is also needed to ensure that international aid is provided in the most effective way. Donors should target aid on the poorest countries, harmonize aid around country-owned poverty strategies, provide aid in a more predictable, long-term way; and deliver aid in a way that imposes the minimum burden on developing country systems. All countries should also support and enhance efforts and initiatives, such as untying aid, to make aid more effective.

Debt relief

6. The HIPC initiative is having a positive impact on reducing the debts for many of the poorest countries. We reaffirm our commitment to a complete and successful implementation of the initiative in order to further enhance the debt relief of eligible countries. We welcome the successful conclusion of IDA14 negotiations.

7. But too many countries still have to choose between debt repayments and vital investments in future growth and the achievement of the MDGs. Eighty percent of the debt of some low income countries is owed to the multilateral institutions.

8. Further debt reduction of HIPCs should be an international priority. We call upon the shareholders of the MDBs to finance their share of the debts owed by HIPCs and other eligible low-income countries. This debt relief will give countries the confidence in predictable flows of income over the long term they need, in order to invest in future growth and poverty reduction.

Trade

9. China and the UK recognize that it is through trade that developing countries will drive their economic growth in future. However, there are many obstacles to trade that urgently need to be removed.

10. We recognize that the top priority for trade is to achieve an ambitious outcome to the Doha Development Round that delivers real benefits to developing countries. China and the UK will work together to achieve this. 

11. Developed countries should also encourage knowledge and technology transfer to developing countries. 

12. It will be important to remove barriers to developing country exports in the developed world, including unfair subsidies and tariffs, especially in agriculture. It will also be important to simplify and liberalize rules of origin, so that countries can source the products they need from the most competitive sources. However, other action is also required. We call on the international community to invest in the capacity and infrastructure developing countries need in order to take advantage of the opportunities for more open trade.

13. It is also important that developing countries themselves are able to manage trade liberalization in a way that does not harm the vulnerable. To ensure this, we call on the international community to ensure that countries are allowed the flexibility to sequence trade reform within their own development plans. We further call upon the international community to provide transitional support to developing countries adjusting to a globalized world.

The Bretton Woods Institutions

14. The Bretton Woods Institutions will play a vital role in helping the international community meet the MDGs. The IMF has a key role to play through independent surveillance in minimizing potential risks to the global economy. We believe that the World Bank should fulfill its commitment to global poverty reduction and long-term economic development. It should strengthen its role as the "knowledge bank," and enhance the surveillance on the implementation of the Monterrey Consensus. The bank should develop more effective lending instruments, simplify its operating procedures, and reduce the cost of doing business. 

(Xinhua News Agency April 16, 2005)