Inputs to the Outcome Document

Trade is vital for economic growth, but protectionism and unilateralism threaten the global trading system, limiting developing countries' participation. These nations face challenges in competing with developed economies' subsidies for green and digital transitions and struggle to secure financing for infrastructure. To enhance their role in global value chains, developing countries require substantial investment in transportation, energy, and digital infrastructure. A specialized infrastructure fund, supported by multilateral development banks and private capital, is crucial to closing this financing gap.

Multilateral Credit: Filling in the Financial Gap?

Better Data on Trade in Services for Effective FFD Strategies

The momentum to measure South-South cooperation is growing rapidly, spurred by the endorsement of SDG indicator 17.3.1 and the voluntary ‘Framework to Measure South-South Cooperation’. Developed by the global South, the Framework aims to provide data on South-South cooperation to enable first-ever globally inclusive information on international development support by reflecting the realities of the global South. To unlock its full potential, significant support, technical training, harmonized tools, and targeted assistance, is needed for countries.

Integrating Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) into Financing for Development is essential for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While technological advancements offer opportunities, they can disrupt growth pathways and increase inequalities if mismanaged. Key recommendations include directing technology to create middle-class jobs and labour-absorbing sectors, improving access to scientific knowledge and technological innovations through open science and flexible intellectual property regimes, fostering South-South cooperation, and mobilizing development financing, including Official Development Assistance (ODA) to close technological gaps.

Culture is now recognized as a key driver of inclusive sustainable development, as recently evidenced in the UN Pact for the Future. However, culture remains sidelined in discussions and policies on the financing of sustainable development. A more systematic integration of culture into financing frameworks – spanning domestic public resources, private sector investments, development cooperation and trade – is fundamental for accelerating the implementation of 2030 Agenda and for advancing sustainable development in the post-2030 agenda, including through culture as a stand-alone goal.

This policy brief explores the urgent need to close the global education financing gap to meet SDG4 targets by 2030. With a shortfall of US$97 billion annually in low- and lower-middle-income countries, the lack of adequate public funding threatens broader development goals like poverty reduction, social stability, and climate action. The brief calls for long-term sustainable financing solutions, including increasing domestic resource mobilization, enhancing international cooperation, addressing debt distress, and further scaling innovative financing, to ensure equitable access to quality education and drive long-term socioeconomic progress.

Demographic change is one of the most powerful yet largely neglected factors shaping financing for sustainable development. It not only has implications for the expenditure side of public and private budgets, but also for the revenue side, and thus on budgets and debt. This brief makes the case for systematic consideration of demographic change and other megatrends in planning and budget processes of countries.

Forced Displacement - Comprehensive Finance for Affected Countries

Financing in Fragile and Humanitarian Settings

Financing Solutions to Protect and Expand Social Sector Investments to Deliver Children's Rights

Scaling up public and private investments in sustainable industrialization is a key to closing the SDG financing gap in developing countries. This UNIDO policy brief discusses how modern SDG-oriented industrial policies, complemented by innovative financing mechanisms and capacity-building, can play an important role in directing financing towards strategic investments and sectors, thus accelerating progress towards the SDGs.

Corruption is a cross-cutting issue, impacting all aspects of the financing for development agenda. Neglecting to adequately address corruption could jeopardize the entire process. By including and investing in proven anti-corruption measures and strengthening international cooperation in the recovery of proceeds of corruption, we can ensure that financial resources are effectively mobilized and safeguarded for development. Corruption is a cross-cutting issue, impacting all aspects of the financing for development agenda. Neglecting to adequately address corruption could jeopardize the entire process. By including and investing in proven anti-corruption measures and strengthening international cooperation in the recovery of proceeds of corruption, we can ensure that financial resources are effectively mobilized and safeguarded for development.

To make measurable progress in combatting illicit financial flows related to the proceeds of crime Member States should prioritize preventing money laundering and the financing of terrorism, including in the outcomes of the Fourth Financing for Development Conference and resolutions. Financial crime has direct negative macroeconomic impacts and preventing it is foundational to sustainable development. It can only be addressed through a whole of government approach. Safeguarding payments and remittance flows, developing stable and inclusive financial sectors capable of supporting inclusive economic growth and protecting domestic resource mobilization all require a foundation of financial integrity grounded in effective, risk-based Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) frameworks.

The global financial system faces critical challenges, particularly for developing countries, including debt crises and financing gaps. Intensified South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTrC) can offer innovative policy solutions. Recommendations include scaling up debt management strategies, upscaling innovative solutions, strengthening regional development banks, and creating regional infrastructure bonds to pool risks and lower borrowing costs. Expanding contingency financing mechanisms and establishing data-sharing platforms are essential for financial stability. FFD4 presents a key opportunity to advance these SSTrC-driven initiatives for sustainable development.

To realize their domestic revenue potential, countries need research and technical cooperation. International organizations and bilateral donors provide essential training and resources to strengthen tax administrations and skills for policy analysis in government and academia. Governments in the Global South can progress faster towards the SDGs by partnering with experienced institutions. Technical assistance and research collaboration are key, with hands-on learning from experts. Collaborative efforts, including South-South and North-South partnerships, are crucial for establishing robust policy analysis and research infrastructure in the Global South.