commitment by developed countries to maintain their Official Development Assistance (ODA) targets irrespective of the current financial crisis, and a decision to hold a UN Conference at the highest level on the impact of the current financial and economic crisis on development. Other main highlights of the Doha Declaration are: Domestic resource mobilization: the importance of national ownership of development strategies and of an inclusive financial sector, as well as the need for strong policies on good governance, accountability, gender equality and human development. Mobilizing international resources for development: the need to improve the enabling environment and to expand the reach of private flows to a greater number of developing countries. International trade as an engine for development: the importance of concluding the Doha round of multilateral trade negotiations as soon as possible. External debt: the need to strengthen crisis prevention mechanisms and to consider enhanced approaches for debt restructuring mechanisms. Addressing systemic issues: the need to review existing global economic governance arrangements, with a view to comprehensive reforms of the international financial system and institutions. Plenary meetings The Conference was chaired by the Emir of Qatar and included seven plenary meetings. A total of 133 Governments made statements to the plenary. The Secretary-General of the United Nations, the President of the General Assembly, the Director-General of WTO, the Secretary-General of UNCTAD and the Administrator of UNDP spoke at the opening. In their statements, Member States took stock of the progress made in the implementation of the Monterrey Consensus, identified obstacles and constraints encountered and put forward ideas and proposals to overcome these difficulties. Many statements focused on the consequences of the global financial crisis for development and the need for bold and urgent measures to address them. Much attention was also devoted to the food and energy crises and to the untapped potential of innovative sources of finance. Amb. Oscar de Rojas, a former Venezuelan diplomat and Director of the U.N.'s Financing for Development Office, served as Executive Secretary of both the Doha and Monterrey conferences. Round tables Six interactive multi-stakeholder round tables were held concurrently with the plenary meetings, centering on the six thematic areas of the Monterey Consensus. Each round table was co-chaired by two Heads of State or Government and ministers from developing and developed countries and moderated by a high-level official of the major institutional stakeholders. Panelists included HRH Princess Maxima of the Netherlands; S-G’s