EU and OACPS reaffirm commitment to Global Sustainable Development for the FfD4

The EU and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) have issued a joint statement reaffirming their commitment to the United Nations 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for the 4 th UN Conference on Financing for Development (Ff D 4). The parties have called for a renewed and ambitious global financing framework to accelerate progress towards sustainable development in a statement approved today by the Council of the EU. Global financing needs In the joint statement, both parties emphasised the urgent need to close the global financing gap for achieving the SDGs through the effective use of all sources of financing—public and private, domestic and international. They stressed the importance of multilateralism, the rules-based international order, and a stable, fair, secure, inclusive, transparent and predictable global trading system, particularly in light of the current fragmented and uncertain geopolitical climate. Recognising the European Union’s longstanding leadership in development cooperation—as the world’s largest provider of Official Development Assistance (ODA)—the statement called for increased efforts to meet international ODA targets. It also emphasised the importance of mobilising private finance and using innovative financing instruments, such as green and blue bonds and public-private investment funds, as well as remittances and diaspora investment. Samoa Agreement The OACPS and EU underscored the relevance of the...