As world leaders convened to address growing inequality and a huge funding gap —exacerbated by recent reductions in global aid—the United Nations Conference on Financing Development opened Monday in Seville, Spain.
Over 4,000 representatives from governments, financial institutions, commercial, and civil society gather at the once-cade summit, which spans to Thursday. Including UN Secretary-general António Guterres, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Kenyan President William Ruto, at least 50 world leaders are present.
Closing the $4 trillion yearly gap in development finance required to achieve the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 is a main priority. These include improving global health and education, tackling climate change, and eradicating starvation and poverty.
Major budget reductions threaten progress, though. Traditionally a major donor, the United States is missing the conference after President Donald Trump cut USAID programmes by more than 80%. Trump has also pressured NATO allies including Germany, France, and the United Kingdom to boost defence spending, so causing them to cut foreign aid budgets.
Oxfam International said the decreases were the worst since 1960 and warned they would affect the poorest regions of the earth the most.
Organizers hope the event will yield the “Seville Commitment,” a formal commitment to restructure global financial systems and reassert support for the SDGs. Expected to be signed in Seville, a draft statement from prior New York discussions contains pledges on gender equality and changes in international financial institutions.
While some leaders see this as proof that multilateral collaboration is still feasible, opponents charge the paper is without vision. Oxfam charges powerful countries with putting elite interests above real world needs.
