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Rethinking development policy beyond 2015
Andy Sumner - 19 June 2009
Shouldn't we focus on meeting the MDGs and on mitigating the impacts of the global economic crisis rather than discuss what will happen after the 2015 target date? Yes and no. One result of the economic crisis is that ‘business as usual' is unlikely to continue. And as 2015 approaches, there will be more room to rethink international development in terms of what, if anything, might form an ‘MDG-plus' agenda. The question of how to proceed post-2015 will likely emerge on the agenda at the United Nation's MDG +10 conference in 2010.
This is just the beginning. It will take a considerable amount of work to set up a sufficient global debate on any post-2015 architecture, and to ensure that the voices of the poor and marginalized are heard and inform the discussion. A truly global and participatory discussion through a series of roundtables, public events, research and debate is needed.
Where do we go from here?
Agreeing on a post-MDG architecture is not just a question of choosing which indicators of well-being or poverty to emphasize, or on which targets to focus, but also of deciding on the process we should promote to produce any new set of targets. There are three possible ways forward:
• More of the same. We continue with the same MDGs, with or without a timeline. Economist Jeffrey Sachs has argued for a timeline of 2025, while others press for 2020. But is another 5-10 years enough to make progress?
• Something a bit more radical. We create new targets, perhaps locally defined, with or without a timeline.
• Combine the MDGs with something new. We pursue an ‘inner core' of the existing MDGs, but add new and locally defined targets as an ‘outer core'.
The answer to the question of ‘what next' depends on several fundamental choices that emerge from the following three questions:
• What has been the impact of the MDG approach on poverty reduction to date, and what does it mean for any MDG-plus agenda?
• What key meta-processes are likely to shape development over the next 10-15 years, and what do they imply for an MDG-plus agenda?
• What, if anything, should replace the MDG approach and thus form an MDG-plus agenda?
We could be bolder about heralding a new development agenda that is wider in scope, but which is still anchored around the MDGs. However, more work is needed, and soon, in order to have sufficient time for a global discussion on any post-2015 architecture. However, more work is needed in order to have sufficient time for a global discussion on any post-2015 architecture - and soon.
Andy Sumner is a Research Fellow with the Vulnerability and Poverty Reduction Team at IDS.
A longer version of this article, with notes and references can be found on The Broker website.
After 2015: Promoting pro-poor policy after the MDGs is a high level policy forum jointly hosted by DFID/ActionAid/DSA/EADI/IDS taking place at the Residence Palace, Brussels on Tuesday 23 June 2009. Please note that this event is now full. We will be covering the forum through online discussion, blogging, video and podcasts with Web 2.0 specialists Euforic and our media partner The Broker.
To access the forum programme, please visit the EADI website.
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Related Events
After 2015: Promoting pro-poor policy after the MDGs
Dates: 23 Jun 2009
What happens when we no longer have the MDGs? How will we promote pro-poor policy after 2015?
Just some of the questions to be answered at this high level policy forum in Brussels.
Related Publications
- Sumner, A. et al (2009) 'After 2015: Promoting Pro-Poor Policy After the MDGs', IDS In Focus Policy Briefings 9, Brighton: IDS
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