FFD4 Opens With A Renewed Global Framework ToTackle Sustainable Development Challenges
The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) opened today in Sevilla with the adoption of the Sevilla Commitment or Compromiso de Sevilla, an intergovernmentally negotiated outcome that lays the foundation for a renewed global framework for financing development. Commitments include steps to close the $4 trillion financing gap for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), address the debt crises, and reform the rules of the system to make the international financial system fairer and more transparent, putting people's needs at the center, and injecting new hope for people around the world.
'We are here in Sevilla to change course. To repair and rev up the engine of development to accelerate investment at the scale and speed required. And to restore a measure of fairness and justice for all,' United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said in his opening remarks. 'The Sevilla Commitment document is a global promise to fix how the world supports countries as they climb the development ladder.'
"It is time to take a step forward and not only reaffirm our commitment but redouble it. We must improve debt sustainability, ensure fiscal justice, and fulfill our commitments to international cooperation," said Pedro Sánchez, Prime Minister of Spain.
At a time of extraordinary uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, and against a backdrop of rising debt, falling investment, shrinking aid, and with the SDGs only five years away, the Sevilla Commitment delivers a remarkable consensus among more than 190 nations committed to action for a fairer, safer future.
'FFD4 offers us a once-in-a-decade opportunity to shift the tide. The Sevilla Commitment is more than an outcome document. It is a new framework and a renewed global promise—to mobilize finance at scale, to reform the international financial architecture, and to put people's needs at the center of development, said Li Junhua, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs and Secretary-General of the Conference. 'Sevilla is not an endpoint. It is a launchpad for a new era of implementation, accountability, and solidarity.'
FFD4, which will conclude on 3 July, is hosted by the Government of Spain, and opened in the presence of the King of Spain, His Majesty Felipe VI. The Conference has drawn more than 15,000 attendees, including close to 60 Heads of State and Government, ministerial-level representatives, heads of international organizations, such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization, public development banks, private sector organizations and civil society representatives. Alongside the plenaries and multi-stakeholder roundtables, more than 470 special and side events are also taking place during the Conference period.
FFD4 builds on the momentum of the Pact for the Future, adopted by world leaders in September 2024, where countries agreed to boost investment in the SDGs, address the growing debt burdens of developing countries and accelerate long-overdue reforms to the global financial architecture.
Signaling a new phase of collective action on financing for development, coalitions of countries and diverse stakeholders will announce ambitious initiatives and concrete solutions under the Sevilla Platform for Action that will boost the renewed financing framework and set out a turning point from dialogue to delivery.
Sevilla Platform for Action
In the Sevilla Platform for Action, coalitions of countries and stakeholders have put forward more than 130 high-impact initiatives to begin implementation of the Sevilla Commitment or Compromiso de Sevilla on day one. These initiatives complement the renewed global financing framework adopted by world leaders and will help deliver tangible progress to finance our future, across the three main sets of commitments of the Compromiso: to catalyze investments at scale, address debt challenges, and support reforms for a transparent and fair architecture.
International Business Forum
Held alongside FFD4 on 30 June – 3 July 2025 in Sevilla, Spain, the International Business Forum brings CEOs and prominent global business leaders together with Heads of State and Ministers to drive solutions that unlock private finance and investments for sustainable development. Organized by the FFD4 Business Steering Committee, the forum aims to strengthen collaborations and co-create solutions for sustainable investment.
About the Conference
Building on the foundations laid by the Monterrey Consensus (2002), Doha Declaration (2008), and Addis Ababa Action Agenda (2015), as well as the Pact for the Future adopted at the UN last September, the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4), is taking place in Sevilla, Spain, from 30 June to 3 July 2025.
Rising debt burdens, falling investment, and shrinking aid are among the financing challenges confronting the world today. With progress on the SDGs off track and rising systemic risks, including due to climate change and conflicts, the Conference provides a once-in-a-decade opportunity to mobilize finance at scale and reform the rules of the system to put people's needs at the center.
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