4th International Conference on Financing for Development

It is an honour to address the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development. 

I thank the Government and people of Spain for hosting us in Seville. 

Despite the challenges the world face, we meet today at a determining point in history. 

Both for the United Nations, now in its eightieth year, and for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which is central to achieving the United Nations’ most foundational aims. 

We are at a unique moment to take the actions necessary to realise our aspirations. 

We have both challenges and opportunities. First and foremost, we need to renew trust in multilateralism with the United Nations at its centre. 

And secondly, we must lay the necessary groundwork to fully achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. 

And to do so, we need, 

The political will of all of us gathered today,

Global solidarity across peoples and nations,

The financial resources that exist and can be channelled towards progress,

but above all, we need leadership.

We need Leadership, to guide us forward into a brighter, more prosperous future for everyone, everywhere. 

This is what this Conference is about. 

We are now just five years away from the 2030 deadline to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. 

Yet, the gap to finance them remains vast. 

Global financing needs have grown dramatically since 2015. 

This is especially true for developing countries, which require $4.2 trillion annually to close the financing gap. 

These developing countries are walking a tightrope between

• Defaulting on debts,

- Defaulting on their efforts to achieve sustainable development,

- And defaulting on the promise to provide acceptable standards of living to their people. 

The consequences are serious: 3.3 billion people live in countries that spend more on debt service than on health or education.

Without urgent action, our promise to leave no one behind will remain unfulfilled. 

We cannot afford to lower our ambition. 

The Pact for the Future adopted in September 2024 by Heads of State commits us to closing the financing gap in developing countries. 

In tandem, the “Compromiso de Sevilla”, and the Sevilla Platform for Action, set a framework of renewed global partnership for the decade to come. 

Going forward, we must focus on the debt burdens which are derailing countries from the future they deserve. 

Reform of the international financial architecture, as called for in the Pact for the Future, and reinforced in the “Compromiso”, presents options for creating more sustainable debt environments.

The creation of a twenty-fifth chair at the International Monetary Fund dedicated to sub-Saharan Africa is a welcome step. 

But more must be done. 

 We must strengthen the voice and representation of developing countries, not as beneficiaries but as equal partners in shaping their destinies and shaping their future. 

We must enhance fiscal space and lower the cost of capital. 

And we must strengthen cooperation on international tax matters. 

These efforts must include the finalisation of a United Nations framework convention on international tax cooperation. 

An important aspect of this convention is to tackle illicit financial flows which deprive developing countries of $88.6 billion annually. 

Throughout our efforts, scaling up climate finance will be critical to our success. 

Climate funds must be additional to rather than diverted from other development priorities. 

Projections show developing countries need more than $1 trillion annually to build resilience. 

Each Member State has something to contribute – whether financing and partnerships, capacity building or even best practices. 

To this end, I urge Member States to follow through in providing 0.7 percent of national income as Official Development Assistance. 

This target was exceeded by only four countries last year namely: Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, and Sweden. 

I call on others to match this level of commitment. 

If fulfilled, these funds could translate into: 

• Fewer people going hungry, in a world of plenty.
• Fewer people lacking access to education, amid a revolution in online learning.
• And fewer people falling behind in the global pursuit of progress. 

It is time to keep our promises. 

Let us ensure that Seville is remembered for what was set in motion: 

Collective action to provide

additional,

innovative,

adequate,

affordable,

predictable,

and accessible financing for development from all sources, including the private sector. 

In fact, we have no shortage of solutions. 

Let us leave this Conference ready to act, together. 

With hope. With ambition. And with the leadership that this moment demands. 

Thank you.

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