Mitarbeiter sonstige

The elephants in the room: uncomfortable perspectives on the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development

Klingebiel, Stephan
Mitarbeiter sonstige (2025)

in: Stephan Klingebiel / Jorge A. Pérez-Pineda / Kathrin Berensmann, Financing for development: From Monterrey to Seville, Bonn: German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS), 8-12

The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) is a crucial platform for addressing sustainable development financing. However, it faces growing challenges, including shrinking public financial resources, declining multilateral consensus and increasing geopolitical  competition. This paper highlights key but often overlooked issues shaping FfD4, including the decline of official development assistance (ODA), its use as a geopolitical tool and debates over shifting ODA governance from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to the United Nations (UN). It also examines the impact of Donald Trump’s return to the White House, particularly the freeze on US development cooperation. Amid global crises and shifting power dynamics, the FfD4 process is less about ambitious innovation and  more about mitigating the decline of global development cooperation.

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