Informal interactive dialogue on commodity markets

16 May 2016

On the 16 May 2016, the President of the 70^th session of the UN General Assembly convenes an one-day special thematic event at the UN Headquarters in New York on commodity markets, with the participation of Member States, non-governmental organizations, civil society, the private sector and academic institutions, in order to stimulate a much needed debate aimed at providing inputs for a wideranging assessment of the current stage of the commodity cycle, as well as consolidating the United Nations as a platform for sharing best practices, policy recommendations and successful experiences regarding commodity wealth management.

As most developing countries are to some extent dependent on commodity exports, commodity wealth management becomes a strategic element in their national planning and strategies, especially if we take into consideration the amount of resources required to finance a much more complex and broad-ranging agenda as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the SDGs. Drawing on commodity-based revenues represents an opportunity to kick-start the implementation of the SDGs in producing economies, but it also poses a challenge for those countries to overcome their commodity dependency and the related constraints this can pose on sustained and inclusive growth. Mandated by General Assembly Resolution 70/191, the one-off one day event intends to provide a space to discuss policy options, at both the national and international levels, share experiences and analyze hard evidence and data on how to best navigate the end of the commodity super cycle, as well as explore possible cushions against the adverse impacts of current commodity trends on global sustainable development efforts. The interactive debate will also aim at building common ground and at providing concrete policy recommendation and tools on how best deal with high price volatility in com modity prices, including through international cooperation .