While not a new proposal, country platforms are gaining traction for their potential as a key coordination and implementation mechanism for catalysing finance and technical support towards national priorities. Building on the stock of thought leadership, research and policy contributions that have advanced the resurgent discussion on country platforms, this policy brief seeks to chart a course for moving toward effective implementation, with a focus on the role of the G20.
There is an urgent need to shift gears in the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including climate action at the national level. The next generation of country platforms (CPs) have the potential to be a central lever for facilitating this shift. To do so, they must be both context-specific and anchored in a set of core principles. If designed well, they can enhance country-level collaboration across the full range of national and international development and climate actors, improve access to all forms of finance, and ultimately serve as a key implementation mechanism for national transition planning and climate positive growth.
This policy brief reiterates the opportunity and value-add of next generation CPs, sets out key principles for maximising their effectiveness, outlines important considerations for their implementation and the roles of different key actors, and suggests the actionable steps needed by the G20 to support their development.
By the upcoming G20 Leaders’ Summit in Rio, G20 countries, including finance ministers and leaders, are recommended to consider the following actions to lay the groundwork for implementing a first set of high-quality next generation CPs.
This should include:
- Developing, adopting and promoting the uptake of a set of common design principles for next generation country platforms to maximise their impact.
- Streamlining and enhancing capacity building efforts to improve co-ordination and tailor support in response to gaps in countries’ coordination and policy environments for effective CP implementation (e.g. through a dedicated CP preparedness function).
- Using the G20 as a forum to coordinate and exchange lessons learned for the design of effective CPs.
- Supporting the establishment of three to five next generation CPs in countries with different economic profiles outside the G20 (e.g. Small Island Developing States, Least Developed Countries, Lower- and Middle-Income Countries, etc.) to demonstrate flexibility and applicability across contexts.
Recognizing that robust and ambitious national plans are the foundation on which country platforms should be built, G20 countries should also:
- Lead by example by agreeing both at finance minister and leader level to the principle that all G20 members need to develop short to medium-term development and economic transition plans in support of their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
- Act to support other countries in generating similar plans to inform next generation CPs.
