BHOS-beleidsnota

Reactie

Naam	Anoniem
Plaats	Amsterdam
Datum	14 april 2022

Vraag1

(see english below)
Nexus (samenhang) Ontwikkelingssamenwerking & Buitenlandse Handel

Het Nederlandse bedrijfsleven kan door middel van handel, investeringen en marktkracht een belangrijke rol spelen bij een aantal van de grote wereldwijde uitdagingen van deze tijd. Om de Nederlandse inzet richting het bedrijfsleven een focus mee te geven wordt gekozen voor een focus op de “twin-transities”; de digitale transitie (via onder meer artificiële intelligentie) en de verduurzamingtransitie. Deze twin-transities op digitale innovatie en verduurzaming zullen de komende jaren een grote rol spelen om de Parijs en Glasgow-doelen voor klimaat te halen. Die doelen moeten we in Nederland halen, maar ook wereldwijd. Hoewel er een grote behoefte is aan Nederlandse expertise en investeringen, zien we dat meer nodig kan zijn om het Nederlandse bedrijven te betrekken bij deze transities in (lage en) midden-inkomenslanden.

1. Hoe kan het Nederlandse bedrijfsleven meer betrokken worden bij de twin-transitie in (lage en) midden-inkomenslanden?


(EN)
Nexus between development cooperation and foreign trade

Through their trade, investment and market position, Dutch businesses can play a key role in tackling some of the major challenges facing the world today. The focus of Dutch policy vis-a-vis the private sector will be on the 'twin transitions' of digitalisation (including artificial intelligence) and sustainability – both of which will be key to achieving the Paris and Glasgow climate goals in the years ahead. We must achieve these goals not only in the Netherlands, but across the world as a whole. While Dutch expertise and investment funding are in great demand, we also see that more may be needed when it comes to getting Dutch companies involved in these transitions in low- and middle-income countries.

1. How can we increase the involvement of Dutch companies in the twin transitions in low- and middle-income countries?

At Population Services International (PSI), we believe that Dutch companies can play a role in these twin transitions. At the same time, we know from experience that it is important to embed the work of Dutch companies in existing systems and national frameworks.
To ensure this, it is important for Dutch companies to work with civil society organizations like PSI that understand the market, understand consumers and respond to the real needs of the consumer in a rights-based manner; and understand systems (including health systems where digital solutions are applied) as well as the (medical) rules and regulations of a country to allow for the roll out of the (digital) services and products Dutch companies aim to offer/sell.
PSI sees and leverages a lot of opportunities in digitalisation, and believes that Dutch companies can play a role in bringing digital solutions to low- and middle-income countries. Again, we believe that this role could be enhanced by ensuring that these digital solutions are always geared towards the real needs of the consumers and are user-designed, and towards systems strengthening - and not rolled out in silo. International evidence (e.g. USAID, 2020) indicates the need to build countries' digital health capacities and strengthen national digital health architectures, as well as urges for an aligned response in support of digital technologies to avoid harm due to an uncoordinated response. In some cases, it might be better to leverage existing digital solutions, and for Dutch companies to support these existing solutions - as opposed to offering new - to enhance health architectures.
Digital solutions should also not further increase the gender divide - they should rather aim at closing the divide. We encourage Dutch companies to not solely focus on innovation in high-tech digital solutions but also work on low-tech solutions that can increase access to digital products. Again, we see value in a collaboration between Dutch digital companies and civil society organizations in-country that work in low- and income-countries to understand the consumer and develop solutions that meet the real needs of the consumers and particularly those who are left behind.

Vraag2

Nederland kent een lange traditie van publieke private samenwerking. Nu de mondiale uitdagingen steeds groter worden, is het van belang deze publiek-private samenwerkingen te verdiepen en te versnellen. De duurzame ontwikkelingsdoelen zijn in 2015 vastgesteld als actieplan voor overheden, bedrijven, kennisinstellingen en burgers om duurzame ontwikkeling te verwezenlijken wereldwijd.

2. Hoe kunnen overheid, bedrijfsleven en kennisinstellingen beter samenwerken om de duurzame ontwikkelingsdoelen te halen?

(EN)
The Netherlands has a long tradition of public-private partnership. As the global challenges grow ever bigger, it is important to deepen and accelerate these partnerships. The Sustainable Development Goals were presented in 2015 as a plan of action for governments, companies, knowledge institutions and private individuals to achieve sustainable development worldwide.

2. How can government, the private sector and knowledge institutions work together better to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals?

Please see above.

Vraag7

Ontwikkelingssamenwerking
Development cooperation

Nederlandse inzet op Ontwikkelingssamenwerking

Nederland is op verschillende thema’s actief op gebied van ontwikkelingssamenwerking. Zo investeren we in het realiseren van de Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) en zetten we extra in op opvang in de regio, toegang tot vaccins, klimaatadaptatie en -mitigatie. Nederland gaat door met wat goed gaat en focust op waar Nederland goed in is, zoals verbinding tussen diplomatie en ontwikkelingssamenwerking. Meer informatie over het ontwikkelingssamenwerkingsbeleid van Nederland is te vinden op www.nlontwikkelingssamenwerking.nl.

7. Waar is Nederland op het gebied van ontwikkelingssamenwerking volgens u goed in? Op welke thema’s zou Nederland een aanjagende rol kunnen vervullen?

(EN)
Dutch development cooperation activities

The Netherlands is actively pursuing a number of policy themes in the area of development cooperation. For example, we're investing in efforts to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), reception in the region, access to vaccines, and climate adaptation and mitigation. The Netherlands will continue its efforts in areas where progress is being made and will focus on its strengths, such as linking diplomacy and development. For more information about Dutch development policy, go to www.nlontwikkelingssamenwerking.nl.

7. In your opinion, what are the Netherlands’ strengths when it comes to development cooperation? In which policy themes could the Netherlands play a leading role?

The Netherlands has a solid reputation in: SRHR, including HIV, tuberculosis and WASH. And more recently in working on access to vaccines in the COVID-19 response. We believe the Netherlands should continue to play a steward role in these fields and enhance the Dutch response by including a stronger focus on (health) systems strengthening, so that the government can become more responsive towards broader global health topics.
For example, to amplify the Netherlands’ role in access to safe abortion (as part of SRHR), the government could provide organizations that are directly involved in strengthening the capacity of health care workers in the delivery of safe abortion and post-abortion care and that contribute to the development of the market for medication abortion. The focus of the previous government was very much on advocacy for safe abortion - however, the COVID-19 pandemic has shown how weak health systems jeopardise access to SRH care. And thus, advocacy needs to go hand in hand with service delivery and rights-based systems strengthening for broader global health promotion.
Another example is in the field of HIV, where the Netherlands plays a strong role in the international arena. There are opportunities to leverage interventions in the HIV sector for broader health systems strengthening. PSI’s HIV self-testing project STAR, a Unitaid-funded initiative to catalyze the global market for HIVST, generate evidence for decision-making and create an enabling environment for HIVST scale-up, is now building on its strong foundation to expand to other health areas, including COVID-19 diagnostics.
Furthermore, in the area of WASH, a lot of the Dutch efforts are towards water while 4.2 billion people globally go without safe sanitation services and three billion lack basic handwashing facilities. Again, the Netherlands could play a leading role in combining community led total sanitation approaches with market based approaches to address systemic problems in sanitation through a rights-based lens.

Vraag8

Innoveren op OS

Nederlandse internationale samenwerking is flexibel en kennisintensief, we zijn vernieuwend. Zo ontwikkelt Nederland nieuwe manieren van werken en partnerschappen die daarna door bijv. de Europese Commissie en Wereldbank worden opgepakt of opgeschaald. De Nederlandse internationale samenwerking fungeert dus veelal als een creatieve en kennisintensieve incubator (een broedplaats voor nieuwe ideeën. Nederland is een relatief kleine donor, maar als lidstaat van de EU en via bilaterale hulp kan Nederland de zichtbaarheid van EU-hulp vergroten en additionele relevante kapitaalstromen generen.

8. Op welke manier en op welk vlak kan de Nederlandse ontwikkelingssamenwerking nog meer innoveren?

(EN)
Innovative development cooperation

Dutch international cooperation is flexible and knowledge-intensive. We are also innovative, developing new ways of working and new types of partnership that are subsequently adopted or scaled up by others, like the European Commission and the World Bank. In this respect, Dutch international cooperation is like a creative and knowledge-intensive incubator. We are a relatively small donor, but as an EU member state and through bilateral aid we can make EU aid more visible and generate additional, relevant capital flows.

8. In what other ways and areas could Dutch development cooperation innovate more?

The Netherlands could innovate more in under-represented and under-resourced topics within the priority areas of the Dutch, including SRHR/HIV and WASH. Within SRHR and WASH, there are opportunities to invest more in innovations that could lead to better SRHR and WASH outcomes, for example in the area of menstrual health & hygiene. While the Dutch Government does support menstrual health & hygiene, the topic is still heavily underfunded globally whereas there is strong initial evidence that integrating menstrual health in SRHR and WASH will lead to better SRHR and WASH outcomes. Since the Netherlands is a bold donor, not shying away from sensitive topics like menstruation, we strongly encourage the government to take a steward role in promoting the menstrual health agenda (among other donors) to advance the SRHR and WASH agenda, as part of a strong feminist foreign policy and as part of working towards gender equality.

Vraag9

Een donor met durf

De Nederlandse internationale inzet is gedurfd, omdat we financiële investeringen koppelen aan onze diplomatieke inzet en expertise. We continueren thema’s waar we traditionele meerwaarde hebben: seksuele en reproductieve rechten en gezondheid (SRGR), water, voedselzekerheid en veiligheid & rechtsorde. Daarbij kunnen we nog meer gebruik maken van het diplomatieke gewicht van o.a. de EU. We investeren in systeemverandering om te zorgen dat we de SDG’s in 2030 realiseren. Met systeemverandering bedoelen we dat we de systemen die armoede en ongelijkheid in stand houden aanpakken.

9. Op welke manier/welk vlak kan Nederland als donor nog meer durf te tonen?


(EN)
A bold donor

Dutch international efforts can be characterised as bold, because we link financial investment to diplomatic efforts and expertise. We will continue our work on themes where we have always added value: sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), water, food security, and security and the rule of law. We will also make better use of the diplomatic weight of the EU. To ensure we achieve the SDGs by 2030, we will invest in systemic change, i.e. tackling the structures that maintain poverty and inequality.

9. In what ways or areas could the Netherlands, as a donor, be even bolder?

See above. In addition: The impact investment culture in the Netherlands could be bolder. One of the key findings of the Netherlands Advisory Board “The State of Dutch Impact Investing” (KPMG) is that Dutch impact investing culture can be characterized as “excessively conservative” and Dutch institutional investors should at least double their investments by 2025. At PSI we look forward to working with institutional investors to get more (Dutch) healthcare innovations to the consumers in low -and middle income countries and to help catalyze additional funding to achieve sustainability .

Vraag10

Afrondende algemene vraag

10. Heeft u nog andere punten van aandacht die u vindt dat meegenomen dienen te worden in de nieuwe beleidsnota?


(EN)
General closing question

10. Are there any other points that you believe should be included in the new policy document?

There is a need to put some specific focus on sanitation with WASH. WASH funding – especially a focus on financing – tends to leave out sanitation because sanitation investments are not “investor ready” yet. Sanitation tends to need more pipeline development. Also, sanitation is in a shift from Community led Total Sanitation approaches towards Market Based Approaches. While finance for WASH is critical it is important to track how much is going to water vs. sanitation. Also, it is important to realize that to unlock large finance for market-based sanitation will require more evidence building on models that can be scaled. The Netherlands, as a knowledge-intensive incubator, could support these evidence generating efforts. It is important to accelerate efforts to build that evidence, so we can more quickly move along the pathway to scale in market-based sanitation to models that can make use of finance in the way water does.