The 2015 deadline for the current Millennium Development Goals has led to a flurry of activities on what the post-2015 development agenda should look like. Should the MDGs be retained in their current configuration with an extended deadline, reformulated, or replaced by an alternative framework? Underlying all these is the question of which option is likely to have the greatest impact on poverty eradication in Africa.
Ministers, parliamentarians, policy-makers, members of the Secretary-General's High Level Panel on the post-2015 agenda, as well as representatives from civil society, youth organizations and the private sector, will attend the third and final regional consultation to define Africa's position on the post-2015 development priorities, and review Africa's progress on reaching the MDGs, on March 11-14, 2013 in Hammamet, Tunisia.
The meeting is hosted by the African Development Bank (AfDB), in partnership with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the Africa Union Commission (AUC) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The consultations, running on March 11 and 12, will include panel discussions and several breakout sessions on key development issues such as inclusive and sustainable growth, human development, education and technological innovation.
An African position on the post-2015 development agenda will be endorsed by African Ministers and ratified by Heads of State at the African Union Summit in May 2013.
The sessions on March 13-14 will focus on validating the 2013 draft report, Assessing Africa's Progress toward the MDGs, which is being produced by the four institutions, namely the AfDB, the African Union, UNDP and UNECA.
Objectives:
The objectives of the meetings are:
Broaden consensus within Africa on the post-2015 development agenda, drawing on the views and contribution of all stakeholders;
Review the outcomes of the two sub-regional consultations;
Facilitate convergence between the post-2015 agenda and the Rio+20 principles of economic, social and environmental sustainability;
Propose key elements, issues and recommendations that will inform the continent's common position on the post-2015 development agenda;
Validate the 2013 draft report, Assessing Progress in Africa toward the MDGs.