With the UN working on an ambitious post-2015 development agenda, India has said it must be built around universality of issues and should ensure that developed countries are made accountable for their specific actions and commitments. “In our view, there is no contradiction between the principle of differentiation and the notion of universality. Both complement each other and a balance of both is well captured in the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities,” India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Asoke Kumar Mukerji said during the first session of the Intergovernmental Negotiations on Post-2015 Development Agenda here on Monday.
He said the universality demands an agenda that is equally relevant as well as applicable to both the developing and developed countries. “Unlike in the past, this time the developed countries will also be called into account for their specific actions and commitments,” Mukerji said, adding that the ambitious global agenda must also be built around universality of issues and differentiation in action.