G8 and G20 Summits - Major Outcomes
So, what actually came out of the G8/G20 summits? Well, the following documents, of course!
- The 2010 G8 Muskoka Accountability Report – Following the 2009 L’Aquila G8 commitment to develop “a full and comprehensive accountability mechanism” by 2010 to monitor progress on promises, effectiveness and improve transparency, G8 leaders released the Muskoka Accountability Report. The report identifies progress on commitments made on aid and aid effectiveness, economic development, health, water and sanitation, food security, education, governance, peace and security, and environment and energy.
- The Muskoka Initiative on Maternal, Newborn and Child Health - A total contribution of $7.3 bn was committed. $5 bn of this came from G8 governments, with the remainder coming from the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Republic of Korea, Spain, Switzerland and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Canada announced that its contribution will be $2.85 bn over five years, $1.1 bn of which will be new money. It’s unclear whether Canada’s portion of the initiative will include access to abortion.
- Fiscal Deficit Targets - Pittsburgh’s commitment to withdraw financial stimulus packages in a “cooperati[ve] and coordinated way” played itself out at the G20 Summit in Toronto with the adoption of an exit strategy. In Toronto, advanced economies committed to halve deficits by 2013 and to stabilize or reduce government debt-to-GDP ratios by 2016.
- Bank taxes and the Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) – Disappointingly, but not surprisingly, the most progress that was made on the taxation of the financial sector was an agreement that countries can pursue their own strategies, in accordance with a set of agreed principles. Groups hope the FTT will find support at the 2011 Summit in France.
- Subsidies to the Fossil Fuel Industry - Leaders at the Pittsburg G20 Summit in September declared their intent to phase out subsidies for fossil fuels “over the medium term”. Implementation plans and timetables were to be submitted for the Toronto meetings. However, the Toronto Declaration fell short by instead encouraging “country-specific strategies” with no common definition of “subsidies”, no common target, timelines nor deadlines for phase out. Some of these elements were developed, but not disclosed. Canada pays $2 bn in annual subsidies to the oil and gas sectors.
- G20 Working Group on Development – In an effort by South Korea to put development on the G20 agenda in Seoul in November 2010, a Working Group on Development was formed to elaborate “on measures to promote economic growth and resilience, a development agenda and multi-year action plans to be adopted at the Seoul Summit”.
Comment moderation???
Ha.
Is this your commentary on
Is this your commentary on each item or someone else's?? if yours, why the disappointment with how the bank tax turned out??
Also, outcomes? really?? that's what you consider these?
-H.
Interesting...
"It’s unclear whether Canada’s portion of the initiative will include access to abortion."
As far as Canada go it's also hard to reconcile the fact that we are freezing aid after one more 8% increase. This will plummet us to below 0.3% of our GNI. This 7.3 bn will be over 5 years correct?
Cheers,
Scott Andrews