Delivering
‘Leave No-one Behind’
David Hulme
Brooks World Poverty Institute, and
Effective States & Inclusive Development Centre
University of Manchester
Key Message – It’s up to you
• Main lesson of the MDGs is that they were too global and too
focussed on foreign aid
• What really makes the difference is reform and action at the
national level – moving from policy promises to implementing
programmes
• That needs leadership from political, administrative and
business elites
• Parliamentarians are central – they make or break the Post2015 Agenda at national level
Ensuring National Ownership
• The Post-2015 Development Agenda must not/will not be
driven by ‘rich countries’ and foreign aid agencies
• When countries develop rapidly (growth and human
development) almost always this is driven by national reforms
and action
• High level leadership (political, religious, civil society and
coalitions) is essential – ideally with a national vision and/or
public debate
Strengthening National Policy,
Planning and Implementation
• The MDGs focussed on policy – the Post-2015 Development
Agenda must focus on delivery
• Converting global goals into national goals… into national
plans…into local/organisational plans…into implementation
plans (eg Brazil)
• National governments providing vision and resources
• Public sector, local authorities and partners delivering services
and enabling growth
Using Post-2015 to Mobilise
Governments and
Parliamentarians I
• You are at the centre – promoting a vision; driving the
government and public service forward; and, mobilising the
people
• Some of this may be easy – speeches, meetings, launching
new projects
• Some of it will be very hard – tackling vested interests,
persuading people that ‘business as usual’ will be bad for
everyone – negotiating…but, that is your speciality
Using Post-2015 to Mobilise
Governments and
Parliamentarians II
• Leadership – promote a vision of a fair country and locality ;
design real world plans
• Pressure to perform – demanding performance from
agencies…with fancy data and by listening to poor
constituents
• Accountability – ask ‘what has been achieved, what did it
cost, how will you do better next year…’. Analyse – personally,
comparisons, peer reviews. Demand improvements.
Conclusion
• Extreme poverty was acceptable for our parents…they could say
they lived in a poor world
• It is morally unacceptable today in an affluent world…all our
national capitals show that affluence
• Push forward – especially with demanding that services be
delivered to the poor and that they benefit from economic growth
• Sometimes as an idealist…and as a pragmatist