Inputs to the Outcome Document

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.

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.

Remittances and diaspora investments are a major source of external private finance crucial for achieving SDGs, but their full potential remains largely untapped. Member States should acknowledge their potential and renew and expand their commitments to maximize their impact to development, ensuring access to formal, affordable, and secure remittance services through supportive regulations, improved payment systems, digital solutions, and promoting financial inclusion for both migrants and their families back home. At the same time, Member States should facilitate and support diaspora investments to homeland SMEs by creating diaspora engagement strategies and supportive environments, capacity-building for diaspora members, involve them in policy development, remove investment barriers, and provide adequate mechanisms to crowd in their investment.

By grounding policy decisions in solid evidence, countries can better navigate the complexities of tax reforms and ensure that their strategies effectively support the financing of the SDGs. Administrative data and ex-ante policy modelling, such as tax-benefit microsimulation modelling, are indispensable in providing a full picture to policymakers. Data and modelling infrastructure should be public goods accessible to the government and its agencies, academia, think tanks and CSOs to enable an inclusive debate about the choices governments face when making decisions on tax and benefit policies.

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.