UN Ignores Eurasian Big Three on Sustainable Development

New Delhi (Sputnik) — The composition of a 15-member UN panel to draft the Global Sustainable Development Report has not gone down well with India. Its Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin has pointed out the need for wider representation on this key UN committee.

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had appointed 15 scientists and experts from countries such as Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Jordan, South Korea, Switzerland and the US to the panel. But scientists from key countries like Russia, India and China do not find place in the panel. The three BRICS countries have close to 20 per cent share in global GDP while it represents close to 40 per cent of the global population.

“Equitable? 10 of the 15 members of UN panel on Sustainable Development are from the 35-member OECD,” tweeted Syed Akbaruddin, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN.

​However, the UN has claimed that panel members were selected after an extensive consultation process with member states and the relevant United Nations organizations.  “The group is diverse, seeking to balance a wide range of relevant scientific disciplines, expertise and regional perspectives,” claims the UN.

“So, Ban Ki-moon was following up essentially on the request of member states. Regarding specific memberships, the effort was made to reach out to people across a variety of regions. I wouldn’t have anything further to say about how the different members were chosen,” said the Secretary General’s Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq.

The next Global Sustainable Development Report will be published in 2019 and will be the first of a quadrennial series that will inform the high-level global reviews of the 2030 Agenda at the United Nations in those years.

“The report is a key component of the mechanism to follow up and review progress on the recently agreed 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals. It aims to strengthen the science-policy interface and provide a strong evidence-based instrument to support policymakers in promoting poverty eradication and sustainable development,” read a statement released by the UN.