UofT G8 Information Centre: 2007 Heiligendamm Interim Compliance Report

Prepared by Allison Martell, Sarah Yun, Erin Fitzgerald andKatya Gorbunova
with Jenilee Guebert,
the University of Toronto G8 Research Group
and the State University Higher School of Economics (Moscow) G8 Research Centre

The 2008 Hokkaido-Toyako G8 Summit Interim Compliance Report reviews progress made on selected commitments set out at the 2008 Hokkaido-Toyako Summit for the period of 10 July 2008 to 15 January 2009. The preface and summary of the findings are listed below. The 2008 Interim Compliance Scores and Summary Compliance Scores since 1996 are also listed below.

The report contains the following sections, which can be downloaded separatedly:

Preface

Each year since 1996, the G8 Research Group has produced a compliance report on the progress made by the G8 member countries in meeting the commitments issued at each leaders’ summit. Since 2002, the group has published an interim report, timed to assess progress at moment of the transition between one country’s year as host and the next, and then a final report issued just before the leaders meet at their annual summit. These reports, which monitor each country’s efforts on a carefully chosen selection of the many commitments announced at the end of each summit, are offered to the general public and to policy makers, academics, civil society, the media and interested citizens around the world in an effort to make the work of the G8 more transparent and accessible, and to provide scientific data to enable the meaningful analysis of this unique and informal institution. Compliance reports are available at the G8 Information Centre at www.g8.utoronto.ca/compliance/.

The G8 Research Group is an independent organization based at the University of Toronto. Founded in 1987, it is an international network of scholars, professionals and students interested in the activities of the G8. The group oversees the G8 Information Centre, which publishes, free of charge, analysis and research on the G8 as well as makes available official documents issued by the G8.

For the 2008 Interim Compliance report, 20 priority commitments were selected from the total 296 commitments made at the Hokkaido-Toyako Summit, hosted by Japan from 7-9 July 2008. This report assesses the results of compliance with those 23 commitments as of 15 January 2009. Once again, the G8 Research Group in Toronto has collaborated with a team at the State University Higher School of Economics (HSE) in Moscow led by Katya Gorbunova, specifically on the reports for Russia and Italy, which will host the La Maddalena Summit in July 2009. This collaboration builds on the work the two teams did in 2007 and 2008, and will continue for the final compliance report, which will be released in May 2009.

To make its assessments, the G8 Research Group relies on publicly available information, documentation and media reports. In an ongoing effort to ensure the accuracy, integrity and comprehensiveness of these reports, we encourage comments and suggestions. Indeed, this is a living document, and the scores can be recalibrated if new material becomes available. Any feedback remains anonymous and is not attributed. Responsibility for this report’s contents lies exclusively with the authors and analysts of the G8 Research Group.

The work of the G8 Research Group would not be possible without the steadfast dedication of many people around the world. In particular, this report is the product of a team of energetic and hard-working analysts directed by Sarah Yun and Erin Fitzgerald, chairs of the student executive, as well as Allison Martell, Director of Compliance, with the support of Dr Ella Kokotsis, Director of Analytical Research, and Jenilee Guebert, Senior Researcher.

Summary

The University of Toronto G8 Research Group has completed its seventh annual Interim Compliance Report. It is based on an analysis of compliance by G8 member states and the EU with 20 priority commitments from the 2008 Hokkaido-Toyako Summit and covers the period from 10 July 2008 to 15 January 2009. This timeframe allows for an assessment of compliance approximately contemporaneously with the transfer of the G8 Presidency from Germany to Japan, which occurred on 1 January 2008.

The Interim Compliance Scores are contained in Table A. Individual country and issue assessments are contained in the sections below. This report is intended to provide a midterm assessment of the parties' progress toward compliance and to follow the transition in the presidency of the G8. The observations contained in this report are therefore based on relevant information available as of mid-January 2009. The Final Compliance Report, which is scheduled to be published immediately prior to the 2009 La Maddalena Summit, will provide more comprehensive analysis and updated compliance scores.

The results of the G8 Research Group's assessments indicate that, for the period July 2008 to January 2009, the G8 member states and the European Union received an average compliance score of +0.13. Individual scores are assigned on a scale where +1 indicates full compliance with the stated commitment, 0 is awarded for partial compliance or a work in progress, and -1 is reserved for those countries that fail to comply or that take action that is directly opposite to the stated goal of the commitment. The average interim score of +0.13 is substantially lower than in previous years, when overall scores have never dropped below +0.27. It is also significantly lower than last year’s interim compliance score of +0.33.

Although average compliance scores are lower than previous years, G8 members’ rankings are roughly in line with past interim reports. The United Kingdom is ranked first this year, and second overall. Canada, historically tied for third, slips down to fourth place in this interim report. The United States, Japan, Italy and France are all within one rank of their historical average. The European Union, on the other hand, historically ranked second for interim compliance, places fourth in this report. On average, Russia has been ranked last for compliance in past years. In last years’ interim report, however, Russia was in sixth place, and this year Russia is in fifth place.

The difference between the highest and lowest G8 member compliance scores is 0.80. This is a slight increase from last year’s gap of 0.74, but it is lower than the highest interim compliance gap of 0.90 after the Gleneagles Summit.

This year, overall compliance by commitment is almost uniformly distributed from -1 to +1, so it is difficult to identify outliers. Seven commitments were scored above +0.50, which is not inconsistent with past years. Four commitments received a score of zero. The main difference between this report and past reports is the preponderance of commitments scored below zero. There are five zero scores this year, compared to one last year, and none the year before.

Three of Japan’s priority issue areas going into the Hokkaido-Toyako Summit were climate change, the world economy and African development. This report assesses a number of commitments in the documents that correspond to these priorities. Among the priority issues, compliance scores varied widely. Compliance with commitments drawn from the World Economy communiqué averaged a score of +0.58, well above the overall compliance score. Commitments on the Environment and Climate Change also showed higher than average compliance, at +0.39. Commitments drawn from Development and Africa, however, show very low scores, averaging -0.42.

The information contained within this report provides G8 member countries and other stakeholders with an indication of their compliance results in the post-Gleneagles period. As with previous compliance reports, this report has been produced as an invitation for others to provide additional or more complete information on country compliance. As always, comments are welcomed and would be considered as part of an analytical reassessment. Please send your feedback to g8@utoronto.ca.

Table A: 2008 Hokkaido-Toyako Interim Compliance Scores

Commitment	Commitment Name	CDN	FRA	GER	ITA	JPN	RUS	UK	US	EU	Average
1	Finance [3]	+1	+1	+1	+1	0	+1	0	+1	0	0.67
2	Energy: Efficiency and Diversification [26]	0	0	+1	0	0	+1	+1	+1	+1	0.56
3	Intellectual Property Rights [38]	0	0	+1	+1	+1	0	0	+1	+1	0.56
4	Corruption [43]	+1	+1	0	0	0	+1	+1	+1	+1	0.67
5	Climate Change: Mid-term Goals [55]	+1	+1	+1	+1	-1	0	+1	-1	+1	0.44
6	Energy Efficiency [59]	-1	+1	0	0	-1	+1	+1	+1	+1	0.33
7	Climate Change: CCS [72]	+1	-1	0	-1	+1	-1	-1	+1	+1	0.00
8	Biodiversity [89]	+1	+1	+1	-1	+1	+1	+1	+1	+1	0.78
9	Africa: Official Development Assistance [97]	-1	-1	+1	-1	-1	0	-1	-1	-1	-0.67
10	Health Systems and Infectious Disease [118]	+1	-1	+1	0	-1	-1	+1	+1	-1	0.00
11	Health: Neglected Tropical Diseases [127]	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1	0	-1	-1	-0.89
12	Education [142]	-1	0	0	-1	0	0	+1	-1	0	-0.22
13	Africa: Trade [154]	0	0	0	0	0	-1	+1	+1	0	0.11
14	Nonproliferation [183]	0	-1	+1	-1	-1	+1	+1	0	0	0.00
15	Africa: Peace Support [203]	+1	0	-1	-1	+1	0	+1	+1	0	0.22
16	Africa: Food and Agriculture [220]	0	-1	+1	+1	0	-1	0	0	0	0.00
17	Biofuels [229]	0	0	+1	-1	+1	+1	+1	+1	+1	0.56
18	Terrorism [246]	-1	-1	-1	0	-1	-1	-1	-1	0	-0.78
19	Regional Security [248]	0	0	0	-1	-1	0	0	+1	-1	-0.22
20	Climate Change: Developing Countries [265]	+1	+1	+1	-1	+1	0	+1	+1	0	0.56

	Country Average	0.15	-0.05	0.40	-0.30	-0.10	0.05	0.45	0.40	0.20

	2008 Interim Compliance Average										0.13

	2007 Final Compliance Average	0.65	0.52	0.57	0.17	0.30	0.30	0.70	0.91	0.48	0.51
	2007 Interim Compliance Average	0.22	0.17	0.48	0.13	0.04	0.17	0.61	0.78	0.39	0.33

Table B: G8 Compliance by Country, 1996–2008

Summit Location	Lyon	Denver	Birmingham	Cologne	Okinawa	Genoa	Kananaskis	Kananaskis	Evian	Evian
Summit Date	96-97	97-98	98-99	99-00	00-01	Feb-01	Mar-02	May-02	Apr-03	Apr-03
Report Type	Final	Final	Final	Final	Final	Final	Interim	Final	Interim	Final
Canada	0.47	0.17	0.50	0.67	0.83	0.82	0.77	0.82	0.58	0.83
France	0.28	0.00	0.25	0.34	0.92	0.69	0.38	0.64	0.50	0.75
Germany	0.58	0.17	0.25	0.17	1.00	0.59	0.08	0.18	0.42	0.50
Italy	0.43	0.50	0.67	0.34	0.89	0.57	0.00	-0.11	0.38	0.25
Japan	0.22	0.50	0.20	0.67	0.82	0.44	0.10	0.18	0.42	0.42
Russia	N/A	0.00	0.34	0.17	0.14	0.11	0.14	0.00	0.42	0.33
United Kingdom	0.42	0.50	0.75	0.50	1.00	0.69	0.42	0.55	0.58	0.50
United States	0.42	0.34	0.60	0.50	0.67	0.35	0.25	0.36	0.50	0.50
European Union	N/A	N/A	N/A	0.17	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
G8+EU	0.40	0.27	0.45	0.39	0.78	0.53	0.27	0.33	0.48	0.51
Number of Commitments:	19	6	7	6	12	9	13	11	12	12

Summit Location	Sea Island	Sea Island	Gleneagles	Gleneagles	St. Petersburg	St. Petersburg	Heiligendamm	Heiligendamm	Hokkaido-Toyako
Summit Date	Jun-04	Jun-04	Jul-05	Jul-05	Jul-06	Jul-06	Jun-07	Jun-07	Jul-08
Report Type	Interim	Final	Interim	Final	Interim	Final	Interim	Final	Interim
Canada	0.50	0.72	0.52	0.81	0.45	0.60	0.22	0.65	0.15
France	0.39	0.50	0.48	0.57	0.30	0.40	0.17	0.52	-0.05
Germany	0.50	0.67	0.33	0.88	0.45	0.55	0.48	0.57	0.40
Italy	0.39	0.44	0.43	0.29	-0.10	0.05	0.13	0.17	-0.30
Japan	0.33	0.39	0.52	0.52	0.30	0.40	0.04	0.30	-0.10
Russia	0.00	0.06	-0.14	0.14	0.25	0.45	0.17	0.30	0.05
United Kingdom	0.50	0.67	0.67	0.95	0.55	0.60	0.61	0.70	0.45
United States	0.44	0.72	0.71	0.81	0.35	0.60	0.78	0.91	0.40
European Union	0.50	0.72	0.75	0.89	0.58	0.58	0.39	0.48	0.20
G8+EU	0.39	0.54	0.47	0.65	0.35	0.47	0.33	0.51	0.13
Number of Commitments:	18	18	21	21	20	20	23	23	20

Research Team

Research Team
Professor John Kirton, Director, G8 Research Group
Professor Marina Larionova, Chair, HSE Research Team
Dr. Ella Kokotsis, Director of Analytical Research, G8 Research Group
Sarah Yun, Chair, G8 Research Group
Erin Fitzgerald, Vice-Chair, G8 Research Group
Allison Martell, Chair, Compliance Unit
Jenilee Guebert, Senior Researcher, G8 Research Group
Katya Gorbunova, HSE Research Team Leader
Netila Demneri, Assistant Chair, Compliance Unit
Mila Khodskaya, Assistant Chair, Compliance Unit

Nike Adebowale	Sahar Kazranian
Sandro Gianella	Denitza Koev
Kenta Hatamochi	Miranda Lin
Ivana Jankovic	Conrad Lochovsky

Amina Abdullayeva	Krista Gallagher	Sam Plett
Larissa Adameck	Naregh Galoustian	Kayla Pries
Natalie Antonowicz	Daniel Gatto	Shakir Rahim
Mickal Aranha	Dmitry Goldman	Maria Robson
John Ashbourne	Igor Gontcharov	Adam Romanov
Charlene Barker	Colum Grove-White	Julien Russell
Meaghan Barrett	Erin Haines	Brunet Luca Sarcanin
Jesse Beatson	Jasmine Hamade	Andrei Sedoff
Aberdeen Berry	Kabilan Kanagalingam	Alicja Serafin
Vanessa Bertone	Tala Khoury	Hiba Sha'ath
Amartya Biswas	Margaret Kim	Hélène Smertnik
Sofi Blazeski	Marianne Madeline Lau	Jesse Sperling
Stephan Bundi	Lucy Isabel Leiderman	Catherine Tsalikis
Nicole Cargill	Chiara Magboo	Harlan Tufford
Ailsa Chau	Adriano Marchese	Jayme Turney
Claire Chow	Leroy Massey	Fatima Ul-Haq
Christopher Cosack	Alex Meers	Liliane Vicente
Nikola Cvetkovic	Rukshan Mehta	Julienne Vipond
Adrienne Davidson	Amelie Meyer-Robinson	Sabina Voicu
Isabel Dimitrov	Jim Mylonas	Steven Wang
Danara Dourdoussova	Shiva Logarajah	Yinsey Wang
Sarah Ellis	Egor Ouzikov	Amy Willis
Geneva Fong	Ryerson Neal	Andrew Wright
Nicole Formosa	Miyoun Oh	Joshua Xiong
Charlotte Freeman-Shaw	Djastin Park	Tatjana Zalar
Daniel Fusca	Surkhab Peerzada	Sam Zhao

Igor Churkin	Yulia Ovchinnikova	Yuriy Zaytsev
Natalia Churkina	Mark Rakhmangulov
Tatiana Lanshina	Arina Shadrikova

John Ashbourne	Adrienne Davidson	Conrad Lochovsky
Jane Bao	Geneva Fong	Miranda Lin
Charlene Barker	Daniel Fusca	Lauren Peruzza
Vanessa Bertone	Colum Grove-White	Hiba Sha'ath
Ailsa Chau	Jasmine Hamade	Samir Siddiqui

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	Please send comments to: g7@utoronto.ca This page was last updated August 15, 2024.