Financing the 2030 Agenda for

Sustainable Development

On 26 September 2019, the General Assembly will convene its first High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development since the adoption of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda.

Financing will help turn the vision of sustainable development into reality.

By investing in the Sustainable Development Goals, we invest in the future.

António Guterres, UN Secretary General

The Addis Agenda is the global framework for financing development

Domestic public resources
Private business and finance
Development cooperation
Trade
Debt and debt sustainability
Systemic issues
Capacity development
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Background

The High-level Dialogue will provide high-level political leadership and guidance on the implementation of the Addis Agenda, identify progress and emerging challenges and mobilize further action to accelerate implementation.

The Addis Ababa Action Agenda, the United Nations framework for mobilizing resources for implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, established a follow-up process to review progress on sustainable financing. The ECOSOC Forum on Financing for Development brings together governments, civil society, and businesses yearly to examine past challenges and propose future actions to align and mobilize resources for the SDGs.

Additionally, the Addis Agenda mandates that the High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development of the General Assembly will be held back-to-back with the High-level Political Forum at the Summit level every four years. The 2019 High-level Dialogue will be the first convened since the adoption of the Addis Agenda and will take place on 26 September 2019, during the UN high-level week of action for people and planet.

The High-level Dialogue will be chaired by the President of the General Assembly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is financing for sustainable development?

The internationally agreed Addis Ababa Action Agenda (from 2015 provided a new global framework for financing sustainable development that aligns all financing flows and policies with economic, social and environmental priorities.

The Addis Agenda aligns all domestic and international resource and investment flows, policies and international agreements with economic, social and environmental priorities. It incorporates all the SDG means of implementation targets into a comprehensive financing framework, and serves as a guide for further actions by governments, international organizations, the business sector, civil society, and philanthropists.

The specific action areas of the Addis Agenda are:

  • Domestic public resources
  • Domestic and international private business and finance
  • International development cooperation
  • International trade as an engine for development
  • Debt and debt sustainability
  • Addressing systemic issues
  • Science, technology, innovation and capacity building

Q: What will be the focus of the 2019 High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development?

The High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development, under the auspices of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), will assess progress since the adoption of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda in 2015 and provide leadership and guidance on the way forward to accelerate implementation of the 2030 Agenda and SDGs.

The High-level Dialogue will include four interactive dialogues the need for sustainable public and private investments; debt sustainability; international taxation; and illicit financial flows, among other issues. It will also serve as a platform for countries and other stakeholders to make announcements and bring new initiatives that could accelerate progress on financing the 2030 Agenda.

Q: Where and when will the High-level Dialogue occur?

The High-level Dialogue will take place on the 26 September at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

The High-level Dialogue will be at the Heads of State and Government level, and the Chair of the High-level Dialogue will be the President of the 74th session of the General Assembly.

The High-level Dialogue will be one of three high-level events taking place in September 2019, along with the 2019 Climate Summit and the SDG Summit. These events will be mutually reinforcing in identifying areas for action to accelerate the progress towards sustainable development.

Q: Why is the High-level Dialogue important?

The High-level Dialogue provides an opportunity to reinvigorate international commitment to the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, showcase areas of global progress, and raise awareness about emerging challenges to financing for development as well as new solutions to align and mobilize resources for the 2030 Agenda.

Q: What will be the outcome of the High-level Dialogue?

Countries and other stakeholders will make announcements and bring new initiatives that could accelerate progress on the 2030 Agenda. According to established practice, the President of the General Assembly will issue an official summary of the High-level Dialogue.

Outcomes

Official summary by the President of the General Assembly

Announcements and initiatives

H.E. Mr. Allen Chastanet, Prime Minister of St. Lucia – Country Financing Roadmap, to be jointly implemented with the World Economic Forum

H.E. Mr. Mohamed Azmin Ali, Minister of Economic Affairs of Malaysia – the One WASH Fund, led by the Islamic Development Bank and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

H.E. Mr. Peter Eriksson, Minister for International Development Cooperation of Sweden – remittances for sustainable development initiative, in partnership with UNCDF

H.E. Mr. Rasmus Prehn, Minister for Trade and Development Cooperation of Denmark – plan to double climate-relevant official development assistance

H.E. Mr. Marcelo Ebrard, Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Mexico – joint plan with neighboring countries to invest in areas with large migrant outflows

H.E. Mr. Nasser Bourita, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Morocco -- new initiatives in agriculture and climate change; with Senegal to reinforce sustainability and security; and a climate information hub for African youth

H.E. Mr. Jean Asselborn, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg – Build Fund, in partnership with UNCDF and Bamboo Capital

H.E. Mr. Ville Skinnari, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of Finland – reporting on the growing membership in the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action and plans to reduce the cost of capital for climate projects in countries with limited access to affordable capital

Mr. Keith Krach, Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment of the United States – Mobilizing Institutional Investors to Develop Africa’s Infrastructure initiative

H.E. Ohood Al Roumi, Minister of State of Happiness and Wellbeing of the United Arab Emirates -- energy and technology initiatives, including through partnership with over 30 small island developing States on climate action and renewable energy partnerships

Mr. Manuel Sager, Director-General of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Switzerland -- Blue Peace Initiative

Representative of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France – development of innovative measurement of development assistance

Mr. Amar Bhattacharya, Brookings Institution -- Report of the Technical Task Force on Mobilizing $100 billion per year by 2020

Mr. Rémy Rioux, International Development Finance Club Chair – Proposal to contribute to a new UN-led development investment label; and proposal for a global summit of development banks to be organized in 2020

Ms. Barbara Zvan, Investor Leadership Network – the Network’s first climate change report, providing information needed by investors and lenders to appropriately assess and price climate-related risks and opportunities

Ms. Stephanie von Friedeburg, International Finance Corporation -- Reporting on strategy that seeks to improve confidence in investing for impact through implementing common operating principles

Ms. Anne-Marie Levesque, Chair of the 2X Working Group – Initiative by G-7 and additional countries to mobilize $3 billion by 2020 to invest in women, with $2.5 already mobilized

Ms. Lise Kingo, CEO and Executive Director, UN Global Compact – Launch of SDG bond; and launch of network of Chief Operating Officers for the SDGs

Mr. Richard Curtis, SDG Advocate and Movie Director – Make My Money Matter campaign

Mr. Gerbrand Haverkamp, Executive Director, Global Benchmark Alliance – New ranking of the world’s most influential technology companies on the basis of their alignment with the SDGs

Ms. Maria Ramos, Co-chair of the Secretary-General’s Task Force on Digital Financing of the SDGs – Launch of the interim report of the Task Force

Ms. Dominique Souris, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Youth Climate Lab & Ms. Genevieve Jiva, Pacific Islands Climate Action Network Coordinator – Messages from the Youth Climate Summit

Registration

Information Note – Access, Security and Seating

Expressions of interest – interactive dialogues

Information Note (24 July)

Delegations wishing to engage in the interactive dialogues are invited to express their interest through the e-speakers module in e-deleGATE, indicating which dialogue, by 10 September 2019.

Registration for participation – civil society

Civil society registration should be done through Indico here. The deadline for registration is 8 September 2019.

Please note that due to limited number of seats in the UN Trusteeship Council, registration alone for the event will not guarantee approval of your participation. Only registrants who have been approved and issued special event tickets will be able to attend the meeting. Additional information will follow closer to the event date.

Registration for participation – intergovernmental organizations and UN system, including funds, programmes, specialized agencies and regional commissions

For participation and seating arrangements, please send your delegation list to the General Assembly and ECOSOC Affairs Division (Ms. Rafaella de Lia, delia@un.org) by 15:00, 16 September.

Media Centre

Media Advisory

Press Release

Media Coverage – Summary

Media Access Arrangements

Media are welcome to cover the High-Level Dialogue and to conduct press encounters, in accordance with the United Nations media accreditation procedure. The information on press encounters can be found at the Media Accreditation and Liaison Unit (MALU) website, under Media Alert.

A very limited number of media seats will be available in the gallery of the Trusteeship Council Chamber upon request to MALU on a first-come, first-served basis.

Webcast and Social Media

The United Nations Webcast services will provide live streaming coverage of the high-level meeting in 6 languages as well as on-demand coverage (recorded video) in English and original language, through the UN Web TV website. The coverage will include the opening segment, the four interactive dialogues and the closing segment.

The discussion can also be followed on social media using the hashtags #Fin4Dev #GlobalGoals #UNGA.

High-level attendees making announcements or bringing initiatives to accelerate financing for sustainable development at the High-Level Dialogue are invited to showcase their actions at the VIP Social Media Studio, which will be located in the UN Visitors’ Lobby. There will be an Instagram Studio as well as potential opportunities for Facebook Live, Twitter Mirror, Snapchat and more. Appointments are highly recommended and may be made by contacting Ms. Pooja Premchandran: premchandran@un.org.