tax abuse

Economic Empowerment of Women in Rural India

Join us for this HLPF side event featuring a lively panel discussion followed by an entrepreneurial showcase.

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZApcu2tpjoiGdMZpmkCuFutzIkkr9mdBP3N?mc_cid=13e5b4d572&mc_eid=e1bba69d46

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship at the United Nations, please visit  ngocsw.org. Likewise, for more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Migration, please visit ngo-migration.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee to Stop Trafficking in Persons, please visit ngocstip.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit  ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. 

Financing for Universal and Crisis-Responsive Social Protection and Decent Work: Proposals of 2021 UN Inter-Agency Working Group

Join the NGO Committee on Financing for Development on Tuesday, April 26, from 8 – 9:30am EST for an official side event of the 2022 ECOSOC Financing for Development Forum on Financing for Universal and Crisis-Responsive Social Protection and Decent Work: Proposals of 2021 UN Inter-Agency Working Group

Speakers:

  • H.E. Mr. Phillippe Kridelka, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Belgium to the United Nations
  • Mr. Helmut Schwarzner, Senior Social Security Specialist for the Americas, Social Protection Department, ILO Geneva
  • Mr. David Stewart, Chief of Child Strategy and Social Protection, UNICEF
  • Dr. Santosh Mehrotra, Research Fellow, IZA Institute of Labor Economics, Bonn, Germany
  • Ms. Tikhala Itaye, Director, Global Movement Building, Women in Global Health

Moderator: Dr. Barry Herman, Member Advisory Board, Social Justice in Global Development

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYsfuqqrjwiHtLVutntuRo0xgsa9K_vEKxP

Co-sponsors: Vivat International, Women First International Fund, Salesian Missions, International Labour Organization, World Vision, Social Justice in Global Development

Background: Social protection refers to assuring a basic income floor and access to basic healthcare throughout the life cycle. It should be provided universally to all people in need, but that is far from current practice. While decent jobs, including self-employment, are mainly in the private economy, meeting the qualifications for most jobs usually requires education and good health, which are primarily public service functions. Thus, programs to promote social protection and decent jobs entail adequate, effective, and fair national systems of taxation, complemented by international assistance, often in the form of technical assistance but also sometimes in aid-financed budget support, as for low-income countries.

The experience of the pandemic laid bare inadequate systems to deliver cash transfers to compensate for the economic costs of the crisis and inadequate public health systems to deliver vaccines, tests, and protective equipment, along with the very limited capacity, especially in developing countries, to maintain employment during the crisis-induced economic contraction. The pandemic experience requires us to think about preparing better “shock responsive” social protection and health systems and stronger counter-cyclical policies. Preparation, in turn, requires consideration of ways to mobilize the necessary domestic and international financial resources on an ongoing basis and with the capacity to meet the higher expenditure needs at times of crisis.

While the inter-agency report concluded with 21 separate proposals, speakers in the side event will be asked to discuss one or more of the proposals. There is no expectation that all 21 proposals would be covered, nor is that necessary. What is necessary is to bring the attention of the FfD Follow-up Forum for consideration by policymakers the work of the 16 cooperating agencies in the task force and the civil society, labor, employer, and youth stakeholders that were consulted in preparing the report.

______________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Financing for Development is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations.

Financing for Universal and Crisis-Responsive Social Protection and Decent Work: Proposals of 2021 UN Inter-Agency Working Group

Join the NGO Committee on Financing for Development on Tuesday, April 26, from 8 – 9:30am EST for an official side event of the 2022 ECOSOC Financing for Development Forum on Financing for Universal and Crisis-Responsive Social Protection and Decent Work: Proposals of 2021 UN Inter-Agency Working Group

Speakers:

  • H.E. Mr. Phillippe Kridelka, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Belgium to the United Nations
  • Mr. Helmut Schwarzner, Senior Social Security Specialist for the Americas, Social Protection Department, ILO Geneva
  • Mr. David Stewart, Chief of Child Strategy and Social Protection, UNICEF
  • Dr. Santosh Mehrotra, Research Fellow, IZA Institute of Labor Economics, Bonn, Germany
  • Ms. Tikhala Itaye, Director, Global Movement Building, Women in Global Health

Moderator: Dr. Barry Herman, Member Advisory Board, Social Justice in Global Development

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYsfuqqrjwiHtLVutntuRo0xgsa9K_vEKxP

Co-sponsors: Vivat International, Women First International Fund, Salesian Missions, International Labour Organization, World Vision, Social Justice in Global Development

Background: Social protection refers to assuring a basic income floor and access to basic healthcare throughout the life cycle. It should be provided universally to all people in need, but that is far from current practice. While decent jobs, including self-employment, are mainly in the private economy, meeting the qualifications for most jobs usually requires education and good health, which are primarily public service functions. Thus, programs to promote social protection and decent jobs entail adequate, effective, and fair national systems of taxation, complemented by international assistance, often in the form of technical assistance but also sometimes in aid-financed budget support, as for low-income countries.

The experience of the pandemic laid bare inadequate systems to deliver cash transfers to compensate for the economic costs of the crisis and inadequate public health systems to deliver vaccines, tests, and protective equipment, along with the very limited capacity, especially in developing countries, to maintain employment during the crisis-induced economic contraction. The pandemic experience requires us to think about preparing better “shock responsive” social protection and health systems and stronger counter-cyclical policies. Preparation, in turn, requires consideration of ways to mobilize the necessary domestic and international financial resources on an ongoing basis and with the capacity to meet the higher expenditure needs at times of crisis.

While the inter-agency report concluded with 21 separate proposals, speakers in the side event will be asked to discuss one or more of the proposals. There is no expectation that all 21 proposals would be covered, nor is that necessary. What is necessary is to bring the attention of the FfD Follow-up Forum for consideration by policymakers the work of the 16 cooperating agencies in the task force and the civil society, labor, employer, and youth stakeholders that were consulted in preparing the report.

______________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Financing for Development is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations.

Exploring Digital Finance’s Real Promises and Challenges for Development

Exploring Digital Finance’s Real Promises and Challenges for Development

Join the NGO Committee on Financing for Development on Wednesday, 27 April 2022, 8:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. EDT for this official side event to the 2022 ECOSOC Financing for Development Forum.

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0qc-6orjsuGdFhyWHfljp7ZNxV526Onoc7

Speakers:

  • Ms. Cina Lawson, Minister of Digital Economy and Transformation of the Republic of Togo (TBC)
  • Dr. Purva Khera, Economist, International Monetary Fund
  • Mr. Johannes Ehrentraud, Senior Advisor, Financial Stability Institute, Bank for International Settlements
  • Ms. Sofie Blakstad, CEO of hiveonline and author of Fintech Revolution: Universal Inclusion in the New Financial Ecosystem
  • Ms. Anneleen Vos, Seionr Economic Policy Officer, International Rescue Committee
  • Mr. Prabhat Labh, CEO, Grameen Foundation India
  • Ms. Mercy Buku, Program Leader, Toronto Center

Moderator: Mx. Anita Thomas, Chair, NGO Committee on FfD, Representative to the UN, Women First International Fund

Co-sponsors: ManUp Campaign, Change Management Solutions, Sisters of Charity Foundation, African Development Interchange Network, IBVM

Background:

The UN Secretary General’s task force on digital finance in its report titled “People’s Money: Harnessing Digitalization to Finance a Sustainable Future,” spells out the transformational impact digital finance can have on sustainable development. Providing relief for millions around the world, supporting businesses, and protecting jobs and livelihoods, digital finance served as a lifeline during the COVID-19 pandemic. A World Bank tally of policy responses to the pandemic finds that at least 58 governments in developing countries used digital payments to deliver COVID-19 relief, of which 36 countries made payments into fully transactional accounts that were being used for saving beyond simply withdrawing cash. According to the GSMA, international remittances processed via mobile money increased by 65 percent in 2020.

Proponents of digital finance highlight its strong capabilities to reduce transaction costs, the potential of Artificial Intelligence to provide fair and equitable treatment of credit applicants, and the scalability of cloud technology, through the use of blockchain technology, to allow consumers to transact remotely and seamlessly across multiple platforms.

While the experience of COVID-19 has proven that digitalization can transform economies and lives, it needs to be shaped with both its advantages and potential risks in mind in order to bring everyone into the digital age. For technology to benefit everyone, private sector innovation must be supported by the appropriate public goods such as the public provision of foundational infrastructure, access to electricity, mobile and internet coverage.

As in the case of any disruptive technology, without combining technological advances with sound policy measures, digital technology cannot deliver on its potential to meaningfully advance financial inclusion for everyone, including the more than 2 billion unbanked people globally. Delivering on promises to advance financial inclusion can only be considered meaningful when the account holder has a fully functional account that they utilize to save, make payments, obtain manageable credit, and mitigate economic risks and is simply not utilized to withdraw cash from cash transfers from the government, which is overwhelmingly the case at this time.

By examining successful strategies that maximize digital finance’s potential while minimizing risks to the financial sector, government revenues, and at-risk populations, attendees will gain a better understanding of how digital finance can sustainably advance development objectives.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Financing for Development is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations.

Exploring Digital Finance’s Real Promises and Challenges for Development

Exploring Digital Finance’s Real Promises and Challenges for Development

Join the NGO Committee on Financing for Development on Wednesday, 27 April 2022, 8:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. EDT for this official side event to the 2022 ECOSOC Financing for Development Forum.

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0qc-6orjsuGdFhyWHfljp7ZNxV526Onoc7

Speakers:

  • Ms. Cina Lawson, Minister of Digital Economy and Transformation of the Republic of Togo (TBC)
  • Dr. Purva Khera, Economist, International Monetary Fund
  • Mr. Johannes Ehrentraud, Senior Advisor, Financial Stability Institute, Bank for International Settlements
  • Ms. Sofie Blakstad, CEO of hiveonline and author of Fintech Revolution: Universal Inclusion in the New Financial Ecosystem
  • Ms. Anneleen Vos, Seionr Economic Policy Officer, International Rescue Committee
  • Mr. Prabhat Labh, CEO, Grameen Foundation India
  • Ms. Mercy Buku, Program Leader, Toronto Center

Moderator: Mx. Anita Thomas, Chair, NGO Committee on FfD, Representative to the UN, Women First International Fund

Co-sponsors: ManUp Campaign, Change Management Solutions, Sisters of Charity Foundation, African Development Interchange Network, IBVM

Background:

The UN Secretary General’s task force on digital finance in its report titled “People’s Money: Harnessing Digitalization to Finance a Sustainable Future,” spells out the transformational impact digital finance can have on sustainable development. Providing relief for millions around the world, supporting businesses, and protecting jobs and livelihoods, digital finance served as a lifeline during the COVID-19 pandemic. A World Bank tally of policy responses to the pandemic finds that at least 58 governments in developing countries used digital payments to deliver COVID-19 relief, of which 36 countries made payments into fully transactional accounts that were being used for saving beyond simply withdrawing cash. According to the GSMA, international remittances processed via mobile money increased by 65 percent in 2020.

Proponents of digital finance highlight its strong capabilities to reduce transaction costs, the potential of Artificial Intelligence to provide fair and equitable treatment of credit applicants, and the scalability of cloud technology, through the use of blockchain technology, to allow consumers to transact remotely and seamlessly across multiple platforms.

While the experience of COVID-19 has proven that digitalization can transform economies and lives, it needs to be shaped with both its advantages and potential risks in mind in order to bring everyone into the digital age. For technology to benefit everyone, private sector innovation must be supported by the appropriate public goods such as the public provision of foundational infrastructure, access to electricity, mobile and internet coverage.

As in the case of any disruptive technology, without combining technological advances with sound policy measures, digital technology cannot deliver on its potential to meaningfully advance financial inclusion for everyone, including the more than 2 billion unbanked people globally. Delivering on promises to advance financial inclusion can only be considered meaningful when the account holder has a fully functional account that they utilize to save, make payments, obtain manageable credit, and mitigate economic risks and is simply not utilized to withdraw cash from cash transfers from the government, which is overwhelmingly the case at this time.

By examining successful strategies that maximize digital finance’s potential while minimizing risks to the financial sector, government revenues, and at-risk populations, attendees will gain a better understanding of how digital finance can sustainably advance development objectives.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Financing for Development is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations.

NGO Committee on Financing for Development monthly meeting

Dear NGO Committee on FfD members & interested NGO colleagues,

The next  NGO Committee on Financing for Development meeting will take place by Zoom on December 8 from 1:00 – 3:00 pm EST.  The agenda and minutes of the meeting are posted to the meeting folder, which can be accessed here. Additional documents will be posted over the weekend. Kindly review the documents before the meeting. 
The Zoom invitation is included below. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Financing for Development is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations. Likewise, for more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com.

NGO Committee on Financing for Development monthly meeting

Dear NGO Committee on FfD members & interested NGO colleagues,

The next  NGO Committee on Financing for Development meeting will take place by Zoom on December 8 from 1:00 – 3:00 pm EST.  The agenda and minutes of the meeting are posted to the meeting folder, which can be accessed here. Additional documents will be posted over the weekend. Kindly review the documents before the meeting. 
The Zoom invitation is included below. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Financing for Development is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations. Likewise, for more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com.

Revisiting Financing for Development

In preparing to mark the 20th  anniversary of the first United Nations International Conference on Financing for Development held in Monterrey, Mexico in March 2002, a process that promised so much, it is only prudent to reflect on the history of the Financing for Development (FfD) processes, especially considering the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on efforts to curb the widening of the gap between the rich and poor, both within and among countries. During these trying times, the poor and the most vulnerable are left at the mercy of ineffective regional and global policies. We are also witnessing the erosion of personal freedoms, even within the so-called bastions of democracy. Individual and corporate greed seems to be dictating the direction of these financial policies.

In light of the pandemic and a looming global recession, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres sounded the alarm: “We must act quickly and decisively to protect people and strengthen societies in the face of this shock, which comes on top of a global climate emergency, soaring inequality and growing discontent with the economic and social order in general.”

The premise of the FfD process has been to eradicate poverty, achieve sustained economic growth and promote sustainable development in an inclusive and equitable global economic system. There needs to be a systemic transformation of the global financial architecture and global division of labor towards achieving a just, green, equitable and gender-sensitive recovery in the current and post-COVID-19 scenario.

Financial regulations that turn a blind eye toward tax-havens are indicators of the extent to which the privatization of wealth has generated today’s culture of shortsightedness. Morality is not arbitrary. The well-being of our planet and its 7.5 billion human inhabitants require a readjustment of perspective that justly distributes wealth, recognizing that shared prosperity sustains life.

As civil society organizations, we have the moral obligation, the responsibility and needed insights, and opportunities to join in advocating to change this narrative. This moment calls for a greater vision of the world that ought to be, than the empty promises of our current global social compact.  This is the time to join forces to remove the malignant growth of addiction to individual/private gain/profit and promote communal gains and wellbeing by advocating for financial structures that support collaboration, transparency, and accountability.

We, as civil society, have the ability and insight to change the narrative. Let us start by reviewing our individual and collective roles and the prospects of the FfD process to invigorate our plan of action to bring about the change for which we have been clamoring.

Register here!

__________________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, an official Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations, please visit ngosonffd.org. Likewise, for more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com. 

Revisiting Financing for Development

In preparing to mark the 20th  anniversary of the first United Nations International Conference on Financing for Development held in Monterrey, Mexico in March 2002, a process that promised so much, it is only prudent to reflect on the history of the Financing for Development (FfD) processes, especially considering the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on efforts to curb the widening of the gap between the rich and poor, both within and among countries. During these trying times, the poor and the most vulnerable are left at the mercy of ineffective regional and global policies. We are also witnessing the erosion of personal freedoms, even within the so-called bastions of democracy. Individual and corporate greed seems to be dictating the direction of these financial policies.

In light of the pandemic and a looming global recession, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres sounded the alarm: “We must act quickly and decisively to protect people and strengthen societies in the face of this shock, which comes on top of a global climate emergency, soaring inequality and growing discontent with the economic and social order in general.”

The premise of the FfD process has been to eradicate poverty, achieve sustained economic growth and promote sustainable development in an inclusive and equitable global economic system. There needs to be a systemic transformation of the global financial architecture and global division of labor towards achieving a just, green, equitable and gender-sensitive recovery in the current and post-COVID-19 scenario.

Financial regulations that turn a blind eye toward tax-havens are indicators of the extent to which the privatization of wealth has generated today’s culture of shortsightedness. Morality is not arbitrary. The well-being of our planet and its 7.5 billion human inhabitants require a readjustment of perspective that justly distributes wealth, recognizing that shared prosperity sustains life.

As civil society organizations, we have the moral obligation, the responsibility and needed insights, and opportunities to join in advocating to change this narrative. This moment calls for a greater vision of the world that ought to be, than the empty promises of our current global social compact.  This is the time to join forces to remove the malignant growth of addiction to individual/private gain/profit and promote communal gains and wellbeing by advocating for financial structures that support collaboration, transparency, and accountability.

We, as civil society, have the ability and insight to change the narrative. Let us start by reviewing our individual and collective roles and the prospects of the FfD process to invigorate our plan of action to bring about the change for which we have been clamoring.

Register here!

__________________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, an official Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations, please visit ngosonffd.org. Likewise, for more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com. 

Episcopal Church Climate Advocacy at the UN: COP26 Kick-Off with Bishop’s Delegation

Dear UN faith-based and civil society partners in climate action at COP26,

You are warmly invited to “Episcopal Church Climate Advocacy at the UN: COP26 Kick-Off with the Presiding Bishop’s Delegation,” this Thursday, October 28th, 1 – 2:30 pm Eastern, as well as our subsequent events on November 6th and 12th.

Find all the information here: The Episcopal Church’s presence at COP26.

Kind regards,

Lynnaia Main |  OFFICER, EPISCOPAL CHURCH REPRESENTATIVE TO THE UNITED NATIONS  | Mission | The Episcopal Church

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, please visit facebook.com/NGOCoRIP. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. 

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