Manuel Montes, however, senior adviser on finance and development at the South Centre in Geneva and one of the architects of the financing for development process, felt developing countries had lost more than they had gained.
Last week's negotiations in the UN's financing for development (FfD) process, which will lead to a high-level conference in Addis Ababa in July, showed exactly how tough the battle is going to be.
Start by asking the tough questions: This year sees several important negotiations processes coming to a head – the post-2015 proness on the SDGs, the UNFCCC process on climate change, the UN's third Financing for Development conference in July.
From the perspective of health, WSSD must be seen as a reaffirmation of the central place of health on the sustainable development agenda, and in the broader context of a process which began in Rio and was given added impetus with the Monterrey Financing for Development conference and the World Trade Organisation meeting held in Doha.
It must also be seen in the broader context of a process which began in Rio and which was given added impetus with the Monterrey Financing for Development Conference and the World Trade Organization meeting held in Doha.
The Third Financing for Development Conference (FFD3) is supposed to deliver a strong financing framework, but unless more world leaders engage with the process and commit to meaningful reforms of the international tax system then Addis won't meet expectations.
The new chapter of Financing for Development goes much further.
This common strategic perspective is especially critical for the Financing for Development, SDG, and climate change negotiations later in 2015.
The emphasis on finance for SMEs at the recent Financing for Development conference in Addis Ababa was an important step.
