Post-2015 Consensus: IFF Viewpoint, Me

Viewpoint Paper

Angela Me from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) notes that Cobham’s paper presents some valid arguments for considering IFF in the global development agenda, although the arguments are not specific enough to point to a direct link and there is some lack of clarity in the terminology relating to legality. The paper also displays a misunderstanding of the MDG/post 2015 agenda framework and the role of its elements (goals, targets and indicators). The alternative targets proposed are in fact not alternatives but a sub-set of those put forward by the HLP and could fit better as indicators or suggested actions. The role of the targets in the MDG framework is not to identify actors or processes, but simply to give output-oriented and measurable targets. The paper has a substantive gap in the coverage of IFF, which tackles only business transparency and elimination of tax evasion, but ignores the proceedings of crime.