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The country’s debt relief strategy is contained in the document, Debt Relief for Development: A Plan of Action (the Plan of Action).5 This is an update of the document, Towards the Year 2000 and Beyond: The Norwegian Debt Relief Strategy, the country’s first coherent plan of action which was launched in October 1998. (...) With regard to Ecuador, Norway planned to “conduct negotiations, within its Plan of Action”, on “a multilaterally coordinated debt swap with Ecuador”. (...) In addition to the above provisions, the National Development Plan 2009–2013 of Ecuador contains several policies concerning external debt.

In April 1991, the Menem Government introduced the “convertibility plan” with the aim of addressing the chronic inflation which plagued the country. The plan legally guaranteed the convertibility of pesos to United States dollars at a one-to-one fixed rate. (...) A toxic combination of cuts in public spending, public sector wages and jobs deepened the recession.

Local authorities cut net spending on services in real terms by 19 per cent from 2010–2011 to 2016–2017 and focused remaining spending on statutorily mandated social care and child protection services, demand for which has increased.50 The leader of one city council explained that while being forced to cut preventive services, local governments have faced increased demands for even costlier crisis interventions. Between 2011–2012 and 2016–2017, cash-strapped local authorities reduced spending on preventive housing services by £590 million or 46 per cent, but increased crisis spending on housing by £360 million or 58 per cent.51 42. (...) This figure excludes spending on schools and public health. 51 Adam Tinson, Carla Ayrton and Issy Petrie, A Quiet Crisis: Local Government Spending on Disadvantage in England, New Policy Institute and Lloyds Bank Foundation for England and Wales, September 2018, p. 29. 52 Patrick Butler, “Task force to be sent to protect vulnerable children in Northamptonshire”, Guardian, 13 November 2018. 53 National Accounting Office, “Financial sustainability of local authorities 2018,” pp. 10–11. 54 Gavin Aitchison, “Compassion in crisis: how do people in poverty stay afloat in times of emergency?”

Pre-crisis inequality and poor public spending ..................................................................... 13 C. (...) They include devising an economic recovery plan centred on social justice by acknowledging and distributing the Banque du Liban losses fairly and transparently; increasing and improving spending on social protection and public services as key investments in the country’s future; addressing wealth inequality by reforming the tax system for a better redistributive impact and less fraud and avoidance; and reforming the electricity sector to ingrain transparency and fair pricing systems. (...) Although they can attend afternoon-shift classes in public schools, as part of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education plan entitled “Reaching All Children with Education”, structural barriers prevent them from accessing quality education.

To this end, our submission makes specific recommendations which we believe can support the UK Government in this task over the next two years. 1.7 National Action Plan for Human Rights 19. We believe the UK Government would benefit from adopting a National Action Plan for Human Rights, as we believe a National Action Plan would enable the UK Government to13: • operate far more strategically, ensuring its efforts were streamlined and better co- ordinated across Whitehall and at a local level • facilitate the sharing of best practice initiatives • improve the way it measures and evidences human rights progress on the ground, and • improve coordination, preparation and timely submission of state reports to the Human Rights Council and treaty bodies. 20. We commend the Scottish Government for implementing the Scottish National Action Plan (SNAP) on human rights and look forward to understanding how it has supported the Scottish Government in co-ordinating and fulfilling its human rights responsibilities. (...) (Recommendation 74) 13 Recommendation 46 which the UK accepted: Adopt and implement a concrete plan of action realising recommendations of treaty bodies and UN human rights mechanisms, and international human rights obligations: UPR Recommendations to the UK.

In addition, the National Development Plan 2002-2006 (Act No. 812/2003) instituted a “rationalization of the justice service”. (...) The National Development Plan 2002-2006 makes the “education revolution” a priority in the social sphere. (...) The fact that military spending takes priority over social investment in Colombia is illustrated by the increase in military spending from 3.5 to 5.8 per cent of GDP in 2006,33 notwithstanding the constitutional obligation to give priority to public-sector social investment over any other kind of spending.

The regulations do not, on their face, prohibit the spending of funds on institutions – or on trans-institutionalization. (...) In any event, if European Union additionality is understood to mean genuine innovation (in spending taxpayers’ money) then there can be no value in spending that money to reinforce outdated policy solutions. 46. (...) The European Union Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy, 2020–2024, contains many references to disability, including encouraging the ratification of the Convention by third countries.

This could be complemented by the adoption of a national human rights action plan and by ensuring that the Sustainable Development Vision 2030 explicitly refers to international human rights law. 9. (...) This plan included a range of measures, from fiscal consolidation to changes in the social programme architecture. (...) This also means that when it comes to the health and education sectors, while the level of spending has remained relatively similar during growth peaks,19 the Government acknowledges that it has not increased sufficiently over that period.20 Public spending on education increased from 14–16 per cent of total government spending in 2006–2010 to 18– 19 per cent in 2013–2014, but declined to 13 per cent in 2016.21 20.

Despite their limitations, these schemes have afforded some heavily indebted poor countries fiscal space to increase spending on basic social services such as health and education. (...) In this context, foreign assistance provides much of the budget revenue and funds for capital spending, sustaining a large portion of the country’s economy. 40. (...) However, there is widespread concern that a recent freeze on public sector spending (including a halt in recruitments and wage spending) may be linked to fiscal requirements of this programme and that such policy may undermine the efforts of development partners to build the human resources capacity of the Government.

However, they do not yet add up to a coherent or comprehensive plan to achieve social protection for all those in need. (...) According to the authoritative Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) database, Saudi Arabia spent 13.7 per cent of its GDP on military expenditure in 2015, which equals US$ 2,778 per capita.27 In meetings with government officials, the Special Rapporteur was told that the 2016 social security budget of Saudi Arabia was around SRI 31 billion, which is only 15 per cent of the SRI 205 billion that Saudi Arabia acknowledges spending on the military in 2016.28 Independent observers suggest that the figure is actually much higher, and that social spending is less than 10 per cent of defence spending.29 In a context of vast and relatively reliable oil revenues, lavish military spending might be seen to be less problematic. (...) A/HRC/35/26/Add.3 12 GE.17-06857 equitable, sustainable and community-supported economic and social structures, social spending will need to be accorded much higher priority.