Minister for Development Cooperation Christian Friis Bach has initiated the founding of an international club to be launched at the Rio summit today. Members of the club are the - regrettably - all too few governments who achieve the 42 year old goal of paying at least 0.7 percent of GNI to development assistance.
The group is called g07 and is launched today with a website and a campaign at the Rio+20 summit.
The goal of giving 0.7 percent of GNI to development assistance has been reiterated and confirmed numerous times in different circumstances, but despite this only a handful of countries have achieved the goal. And while world leaders gather in Rio to discuss sustainable development, the sad reality is that the world's combined development assistance is decreasing.
Together with Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, Denmark has formed the g07 club to bring attention to the glaring absence of wealthy countries living up to their responsibilities to the poor of the world.
In launching the g07 campaign, Minister Friis Bach says:
"In spite of having had four decades to reach 0.7 percent of GNI for development assistance we can only muster five countries in this club. We certainly do not hope it will remain this exclusive and I will celebrate each new member."
"We have made a political choice because development assistance is a beneficial and far-sighted investment. First and foremost it is an investment in helping poorer people to a better and more fulfilling life. But it is also an investment in a safe and more peaceful world that will benefit Denmark in the shape of fewer refugees, fewer conflicts, more export opportunities, and more jobs,” says Minister Friis Bach.
The name of the club is a rewriting of the powerful financial group G7.“Most countries are very interested in becoming a part of the G7. It would be nice if they were as interested in joining g07,” says Minister Friis Bach.