1. Contemporary challenges for the realization of the right to development and the SDGs
20th Session of the WG on RTD
30 April 2019, Room V, Palais des Nations, Geneva
Vicente Paolo Yu III

2. Climate change, poverty, and vulnerability
Indicators of a changing global climate
Increase in climate change-related events

3. Global Economic Uncertainty
Item
2017
2018
2019
2020
World Output
3.8
3.7
3.5
3.6
AE Growth
2.4
2.3
2.0
1.7
Developing Asia
6.5
6.3
6.4
LAC
1.3
1.1
2.5
MENA
2.2
3.0
SSA
2.9
LDCs
4.7
4.6
5.1
Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook Update Jan 2019,

4. Factors for Global Economic Uncertainty
Fiscal consolidation (austerity policies) in developed countries after quantitative easing post crisis – reduction of public sector services, privatization, increase in interest rates
Wage stagnation and rising inequality despite falling unemployment – wage shares have stagnated or fallen relative to national incomes (rich becoming richer, poor remaining poor)
Excessive asset-price inflation – overheating of asset (bond, stock, property, credit) markets due to post-crisis liquidity boom given to banks
Volatile currency movements – net positive capital flows (through FDI and portfolio investments) to developing countries post-2010 turned steeply negative from 2014 to the present as developed country fiscal policies turned off quantitative easing (higher interest rates)
Depressed real investment (increased M&As) despite high corporate profits – Access to liquidity allowed corporates to increase asset consolidation and acquisition rather than real productive investment
Debt dependence, vulnerability and unsustainability in developing countries – Developing country debt stock is now around ¼ of total global debt ($62.5Tr of $250Tr), of which external debt is $7.64 Tr growing at 8.5%/year, largely due to rapid and often premature integration into international financial markets and exposure to private sector lending in developing country debt
Trade protectionism and trade wars
Source: UNCTAD, Trade and Development Report 2018,

5. Impact of US pullout from PA
fast and ambitious climate action in all countries of the world (rapid and immediate emission reductions + adaptation)
the full availability of all required emissions reduction and carbon removal technologies (including BECCS  “hugely expensive, unproven, speculative”)
aggressive energy demand reductions across the globe (shift from FF to RE/EE)
Amount
Remaining:
Total Carbon
Budget: ?
Impact of US pullout from PA
Climate finance and investment (>$1.2 Trillion p.a. to developing countries)
Technology development in and transfer to developing countries; no cost barriers to transfer, endogenous development, and adoption
Sustainable consumption and production (reforms to trade, etc)
Institutional changes at all levels
Excellent graphic and focused communication—succinct message! 5

6. Other contemporary issues relevant to RTD and the SDGs
Technological change and its impact on economic productivity and employment
Migration – brain gain/brain drain; socio-cultural impact
Global population growth – stagnating in developed countries; growing in developing countries
Urbanization
Biodiversity loss, environmental degradation (land, sea, air), natural resource depletion

7. Sustainable Development Opportunities in the context of climate change
Focusing on active and sustainable industrial policy to develop domestic industrial base, robust local markets, and dynamic enterprise sector (subsidies and regulations to support domestic productive capacity, SOEs where appropriate, public sector procurement, regulate ownership of productive assets (including IPR), address inequalities, develop sustainable physical infrastructure for communities; renewable and clean energy
Fostering rapid technology diffusion, transfer, and innovation, in both North and South, to maximize income and industrial productivity potential arising from automation, internet connectivity, and climate change mitigation (RE/CE, EE) and adaptation (land, marine) actions;
Harnessing the productive capacity of growing younger populations in the South, for increased industrial and agricultural productivity in the South and in the North (including through managed labour mobility/migration);
Enhancing protection and regeneration of global environmental public goods (oceans, reefs, biodiversity, land, Arctic/Antarctic, mountains, forests, etc) through strengthened national and international regulatory cooperation and increased local community resource tenure security where needed
Generating and channeling financial resources (domestic and external resources) into climate-adapted infrastructure development and productive capacity development in the South, and climate retro-fitting infrastructure in the North, and to provide social security floors; increased ODA, effective tax cooperation, curb illicit flows, debt restructuring, strategically-regulated FDI for development
Regulatory flexibility and policy space through more coherent and coordinated domestic and international policy regimes consistent with sustainable development priorities and objectives
Reforms and more effective participation in global governance institutions for developing countries to be able to develop nationally-appropriate and strategic industrial economic policies
South-South multilateral and regional cooperation together with North-South engagement; SSC in strategic political/policy coordination in various multilateral policy areas (trade, climate, health, IPR, science, environment, etc.), economic engagement, technology development, resource mobilization, industrial and infrastructure development 7

8. Sustainable Development Solutions – Networking the Silos8

9. Thank You