115^th Assembly of the Inter - Parliamentary Union

Second Standing Committee - Sustainable Development, Finance and Trade

 

 

The role of parliaments in overseeing the achievement of the Millennium

Development Goals, in particular with regard to the problem of debt and the

eradication of poverty and corruption

 

Deputy Andrei Dominic GEREA

Romanian IPU Group

 

 

Mr. Chairman,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

The MDGs place human-centered development at the core of the global, national and local agendas. It could never be overstated that, far from being a problem for the poor, poverty concerns us all.

 

Romania is an active participant in efforts aimed at placing the MDGs at the heart of international cooperation. We had the great privilege to host, just two weeks ago, the 11^th Summit of la Francophonie, a partner Organisation of the United Nations, whose  Strategic Framework of action is built around the MDGs. The document adopted on this occasion emphasizes the renewed commitment of the 68 member States to furthering the development agenda, with a special focus on education and information technologies.     

 

An MDGs-oriented parliamentary action should encompass the integration of the Goals into legislation, the allocation of adequate budgetary resources, a close government scrutiny and, last but not least, the building up of public support and action, through dialogue and exchanges with the citizens and the civil society. To put it in fewer words, MDGs must be mainstreamed in the parliamentary work, in all of its aspects.

If they are to make use of their full potential as part of an interlocking system in advancing the MDGs, parliaments themselves need to develop their institutional capacity. From this perspective, all the IPU technical assistance programs have an important contribution and should be further developed.

 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

In Romania in the recent years parliamentary support to national development policies and the corresponding legislative and budgetary processes have focused on the reduction of severe poverty, education, gender equality and the advancement of women, health, information technology and communications.

 

As a future member of the European Union starting with 2007, Romania will gradually undertake the status of ODA donor. Consequently, priority is being given now to defining the legislative and institutional framework for the national policy of international cooperation for development. In line with the relevant EU commitments and within a realistic and sustainable perspective, Romania will make efforts to achieve the target of 0.33 per cent of gross national product for official development assistance by 2015.

 

Thank you.