Distinguished Fellow Heads of State and Government,

Mr. Secretary-General,

Excellencies,

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am honored to address this meeting of world leaders on behalf of the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

Allow me to extend my congratulations to the Presidents of Brazil, Chile, France and Spain for their initiative in organizing this important meeting, which provides us with a valuable opportunity to galvanize the international commitment to fight hunger and poverty, and to increase financing for development.

The fight against hunger and poverty is inextricably linked to progress in economic and social development. Thus, in order for developing countries to win the fight against hunger and poverty, a renewed political commitment is required to make economic and social development our highest priority, both at the national and international levels.

We are all well aware that the goals that we agreed on at the Millennium Summit will not be met without a concerted effort to increase aid levels by a substantial amount.

In this regard, the Marshall Islands government calls upon the international community to fully implement the commitments made in the Monterrey Consensus, including the target of increasing ODA levels to 0.7% of gross national products.

The Monterrey Consensus is based on the concept of partnership. While each country has the primary responsibility for its own economic and social development, the national efforts of developing countries must be supported by the international community. The international trading system must be free and equitable, in order to enable real growth in developing countries. The international community must work to provide support for national sustainable development and poverty reduction efforts, and to increase donor coordination and the predictability of aid.

The fulfillment of the commitments made at Monterrey is essential to assist developing countries in our pursuit of economic growth and sustainable development, which in turn enables us to fight hunger and poverty in our societies.

Other new and innovative financing mechanisms should also be devised, and in this regard the Marshall Islands government welcomes the release of the Report of the Technical Group on Innovative Financing Mechanisms.

We join in the adoption of this important declaration today, and we express our full support for this international effort to take urgent action against hunger and poverty.

Thank you.