220. Accountability and coherence at the international level are also indispensable for advancing sustainable development. International institutions can make a crucial difference in coordinating and facilitating collective action, and in leveraging decisions taken and implementation carried out at the national level.

221. Where collective action is necessary, trust and mutual support are essential. This means finding fresh and productive ways of accommodating the diverse capabilities and circumstances of various countries and regions. It also means reinvigorating action and commitments relating to critical and agreed development goals, such as the official development assistance target of 0.7 per cent of gross national income.

222. Equity, both between and within countries, is central to sustainable development. The Earth Summit principle of common but differentiated responsibilities needs to be honoured in practice rather than in rhetoric alone, as is too often the case at present, with one side insisting on the common and the other on the differentiated part of the principle.

223. Honouring commitments is crucial for building trust. Too often, Governments and the private sector are allowed not to live up to their promises, without consequence. More effective accountability mechanisms should be put in place to address current deficits in implementation.

224. While institutional fragmentation may begin at the national level, it is endemic at the international level, where numerous agencies and multiple coordination mechanisms lack effective mechanisms for aligning their efforts with the bigger picture. Such fragmentation often leads to sectoral development programmes and policies that fail to take the broader sustainable development perspective adequately into account. Economic adjustments, for instance, can have strong impacts on social and environmental issues. Bilateral donors, international institutions and development banks must therefore strive for a holistic approach to sustainable development and adequately monitor the consequences of their policies.

225. Recent years have seen a number of important innovations in addressing this issue. Many Governments began some years ago to strive for “whole-of- Government” approaches to certain development priorities, particularly regarding countries affected by conflict. The “Delivering as one” United Nations approach, which is aimed at improving the coordinated delivery of services by various United Nations system entities operating in developing countries, is now part of a broader global push towards increased aid effectiveness and donor harmonization. This and other initiatives undertaken within the framework of the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination have sought to improve inter-agency coherence at the policy, management and operational levels within the United Nations system (which includes the Bretton Woods institutions). But institutional fragmentation remains the rule rather than the exception, and a great deal more needs to be done.

226. A critical new governance challenge is to bring non-State actors, including the private sector and civil society organizations, closer to the heart of decision-making at the international level. Giving them a place at the table in consultation and decision-making processes is especially important in the area of sustainable development, where successful solutions depend on harnessing the commitment and resources of a wider set of players.

227. Of course, this is not a one-size-fits-all proposition: these actors will be less relevant with regard to some issues and more relevant with regard to others. In addition, multi-stakeholder platforms must find ways to address questions of mutual obligation, monitoring, accountability and legitimacy. Examples of such an integrative approach are the Secretary-General’s “Every Woman, Every Child” and “Sustainable Energy for All” initiatives, both of which involve public sector, private sector and civil society participants, with the aim of mobilizing significant new resources and joint ways of working.

228. Regional and subregional initiatives and mechanisms, such as the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Single Market and Economy, and the Economic Commission for Europe Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision- Making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Aarhus Convention), are sources of innovation with great potential to contribute to sustainable development.

229. While sustainable development is fundamentally about recognizing and acting on interconnections, its three so-called pillars — economy, society and environment — have too often become silos themselves, with a lack of coherence even within them.

230. In terms of economic policy, effective collaboration between finance- and economy-related ministries, central banks and international institutions cannot be taken for granted. The global financial crisis may have a positive effect in this regard, with the Financial Stability Board playing an important role in fostering cooperation and reforming the financial sector in order to make it more resilient. The reforms needed include ensuring greater transparency in the financial markets, filling gaps in the regulation and supervision of some financial products and activities, and ensuring that banks hold capital reserves appropriate to the risk to which they expose themselves.

231. Social policy, meanwhile, has been fragmented into secondary silos, including health, education, labour, human rights and gender issues — all of which are areas with at least one United Nations agency (and sometimes several) devoted to them — but there is no single entity connecting the dots. In addition, while there are clearly critical linkages between these areas — and between social and economic and environmental policy — those linkages are poorly recognized in the international system and, as a result, they have not been operationalized.

232. Finally, environmental policy is similarly fragmented, and the environmental pillar is weak. Environment-related issues often fall under the purview of various authorities or departments and lack coherent attention at the national level. Analogous challenges exist at the international level. There are hundreds of environmental agreements covering various issues and a wide range of institutions with overlapping roles. There is growing consensus regarding the need for a strengthened and simplified environmental institutional architecture. This will need to be supported by adequate financial resources; a system-wide strategy for the environmental dimensions of sustainable development; greater synergies and efficiencies between compatible multilateral environmental agreements; enhanced capacity-building; better science-policy interfaces; and strategic engagement at the regional level.

233. Much of this could be achieved by strengthening UNEP, an idea that has gained support in recent years, accompanied by a number of institutional options. One option is the possible transformation of UNEP into a specialized agency of the United Nations. A strengthened UNEP could enhance coherence between relevant multilateral environmental agreements, and better integrate its work with the activities of development institutions, especially the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Recommendation 45
234. The Panel recognizes the universal aspiration to sustainable development. It also recognizes the diversity of national circumstances and of social, economic and environmental challenges. The Panel calls for a process to explore the concept and application of the critical issue of equity in relation to sustainable development, with a view to feeding the outcome into the Rio+20 process and its follow-up.

Recommendation 46
235. Bilateral donors, international institutions and development banks should step up their efforts to promote sustainable development in a comprehensive way and should monitor and report on the impact of their sustainable development policies on a regular basis.⁴

Recommendation 47
236. As international sustainable development policy is fragmented and, in particular, the environmental pillar is weak, UNEP should be strengthened.

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4 A similar recommendation is made in sect. IV above. Nevertheless, this recommendation is included in the present section owing to its relevance to governance and accountability at the global and regional levels.