Second International Forum on Partnerships for Sustainable DevelopmentJohn F. Turner, Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific AffairsRemarks Marrakech, Morocco March 20, 2005 Thank you, Minister El Yazghi (EL YAZGI) for your kind introduction. It is a truly a pleasure to be here in Marrakech and I want to thank the Government of Morocco for hosting this Forum. The United States appreciates the excellent relations we have with Morocco, particularly as the western pillar of the Middle East Free Trade Area envisioned by President Bush through our recently signed Free Trade Agreement. Many thanks as well to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs for their assistance in developing a first-rate agenda. And my thanks to all of you who have worked so hard to make this week’s Forum a success.
We are here because we understand that the global family is facing staggering challenges: 2.8 billion people --- nearly 40% of the world’s population -- live on less than $2 a day; 1.1 billion people lack safe drinking water; 2.3 billion people lack access to sanitation. A child dies every 15 seconds from a water-borne disease. Two billion people lack access to modern energy supplies. With your efforts, you’re tackling these challenges and helping poor societies develop and prosper. In doing so, you are working to build a more hopeful, just, and secure world. Since the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the development community has rallied around the model of partnerships to reach these ambitious development goals. This represents an exciting new way of doing business. Partnerships provide a critical link between internationally agreed development goals and the on-the-ground ideas, efforts, and resources of governments, civil society, and the private sector. Governments alone cannot solve the world’s problems. So we are extremely appreciative that we are joined today by representatives of the private sector and civil society groups, who have joined forces with us. You can fill gaps and niches that more "traditional" official development aid is unable to reach. And together, this partnerships creates a powerful energy. We are here in Marrakech to advance the implementation of water and energy partnerships, two vital sectors for sustainable development. These infrastructure services are essential to improved literacy, health, gender equity, and job creation. The provision of energy and water services also spurs the political development of communities by fostering participatory decision-making and building transparent, accountable institutions. In this regard, we truly promote democracy and good governance when we promote water and energy partnerships. Partnerships have now emerged to help us reach our goals in these areas. Let me give you two examples: The Global Water Partnership, a coalition of donor and recipient countries, non-governmental organizations, and international organizations such as UNDP and the GEF, is helping developing countries formulate and implement Integrated Water Resources Management plans. As many of you know, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation calls for countries to craft IWRM plans by 2005. We expect that 18-20 countries throughout the world will receive support through this mechanism. IWRM, if done well, brings all stakeholders to the table in a participatory, decision-making mode. This in turn makes institutions accountable to their constituents. These are the hallmarks of good governance in general and good water governance in particular. The Global Village Energy Partnership is another example of a public-private partnership that is starting to yield results. In the first six months of 2004, for example, USAID spent about $7.2 million to provide more than half a million people with access to clean, efficient, and healthier forms of energy. You can bet that this made a real difference in the lives of individuals who live in areas either not served or underserved by current energy delivery systems. As we continue our discussions over the next few days, let’s consider the following three challenges: First: Let’s make the most of this opportunity here in Marrakech. This forum offers resources to help you with issues at the core of building and operating a partnership. We are fortunate to be joined here by a number of partnering process experts. I want to thank them for coming, and I encourage all of you to seek them out during the Forum. I also hope you sign up for Wednesday’s innovative Marrakech Place event. Second: Let’s look for ways to continue our conversation beyond this Forum. Our partnership efforts are still new. We are still learning how to work together, how to strengthen our initiatives and how to advance implementation of internationally agreed goals. Given this landscape, this week’s Forum will be especially useful in furthering our work. I hope Forums such as this one will continue. Third: Let us work to publicize our successes. We have a good story to tell and it is important to share it with our own community and the public at large. Why? We can learn from one another’s experiences. And, when we trumpet our results to the general public, we encourage others to join our ranks and concentrate even greater energy toward solving these very complex problems. Publicizing our progress also provides valuable data for those in the research community who are beginning to analyze our work. These kinds of objective evaluations of our efforts will demonstrate what works and what doesn’t. Ultimately, it will help all of us strengthen the partnership paradigm. So I urge those of you with partnerships to make your data available, and encourage those of you in the research community to examine our results. Reflecting on our progress since Johannesburg, it is clear that we have made great strides in developing the partnership paradigm. On a human scale, this means we’re putting clean water in the mouths of thirsty boys and girls; it means we’re helping women breathe cleaner, healthier air as they prepare meals for their families; it means we’re helping young girls stay in school by building adequate sanitation facilities. And that is what we’re all about. I look forward to hearing your ideas and perspectives over the course of the next few days. Keep up the good work. Thank you. Released on April 4, 2005 |
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