Introducing the New Dealfor engagement in fragile statesWani Buyu DyoriUndersecretary for Economic PlanningMinistry of Finance and Economic Planning

Overview of Presentation

This fragility assessment workshop is part of our work to implement the New Deal for Engagement in Fragile States ,here in South Sudan.As some of you are unfamiliar with the New Deal, I will now provide a brief overview before we commence our deliberations:

1. Where does the New Deal come from?

2. What does it say?

3. How is the Republic of South Sudan involved?

The Origins of the New Deal: the role of the g7+

• The New Deal was developed by the g7+, a group of 17 fragile and conflict-affected countries, of which South Sudan is a founding member.• Despite diverse political, cultural, religious, and social

contexts and histories, the g7+ have discovered innumerable commonalities with each other. • Through peer sharing and lessons learned, their successes

and failures inform a better understanding of the necessary steps for transitioning from fragility to stability.• By speaking through a unified voice, the g7+ has given post-

conflict countries a new platform for engaging with international actors.

The Origins of the New Deal:Busan Forum on Aid Effectiveness• Every three years since 2002, donor and recipient Governments have

gathered together at the High-level Forums on Aid Effectiveness. These forums are decisive in building international consensus on how aid should be delivered.

• The fourth and latest forum was held in Busan, South Korea, in November 2011. Representatives from MOFEP and MOFA&IC were in attendance.

• In Busan, it emerged that whilst significant global progress had been made towards aid effectiveness targets, the worlds poorest and most fragile countries were being left behind. They require special consideration. • Through their advocacy efforts, the

g7+ secured the endorsement of the New Deal for engagement in Fragile States by over 40 countries and international organisations.

The New Deal – what does it say?

• Although many of the g7+ countries are rich in resources, they remain the poorest and most vulnerable to internal and external shocks, have the lowest indicators of all developing countries, and will not achieve any of the Millennium Development Goals

• In these countries, processes of political dialogue often fail due to lack of trust, and international partners can often bypass Government systems and provide aid in a way that supports short-term fixes at the expense of long-term capacity building & systems strengthening.

• Transitioning out of fragility is a long, political process that requires country leadership and ownership.

• The New Deal therefore asserts that Peacebuilding and Statebuilding should form the cornerstone of all development efforts in fragile and post-conflict countries.

The Peace- and Statebuilding Goals: As a prerequisite to achieving the MDGs, the New Deal says that development assistance in fragile and post-conflict countries should focus on achieving 5 peace- and statebuilding goals (PSGs):

I. Legitimate Politics

II. Security

III. Justice

IV. Economic Foundations

V. Revenues & Services

The TRUST commitments

Transparency

Risk Sharing and Risk Management

Use and Strengthen Country Systems

Strengthen Capacities

Timely and predictable aid

The New Deal also proposes a set of TRUST commitments:

These promote better management of resources on the part of donors and Governments.

FOCUS: tools for implementing the New DealThe New Deal proposes a set of tools and strategies for implementing the New Deal.

Fragility Spectrum

One vision, one plan

Compacts

Use PSGs to monitor progress

Support political dialogue and leadership

Will be developed through the fragility assessment, Aug 21-22

The South Sudan Development Plan (SSDP) serves as our plan

A compact will be developed from Sept-Dec

Indicators will be identified through the fragility assessment

South Sudan is committed to political dialogue

The New Deal in South Sudan• South Sudan is a founding member of the g7+ and has been actively

involved ever since. In October 2011 we hosted an international g7+ retreat in Juba, where the key components of the New Deal were agreed upon.

• South Sudan is now one of the pilot countries for New Deal implementation, and for developing indicators to measure fragility. This means we will be working with our partners to put the New Deal into practice, and will report on our findings to the international community.

• We held a launch workshop on 10th August to begin to build awareness of the new deal among a variety of stakeholders.

• We are now undertaking a fragility assessment, to identify the causes, features and drivers of fragility and conflict and the sources of resilience within a country.

• Consulting a wide range of stakeholders is essential if the fragility assessment is to be truly representative, which is why we are holding this workshop.