About

Global poverty increased dramatically in 2020 with the impacts of Covid-19 reversing two decades of progress towards achieving the sustainable development goals. The demand for development finance continues to grow as governments and policy makers work to build back their economies, however, development finance is undergoing extreme pressure and is at risk of decline. Adopted in 2015, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda provides a multilateral framework for financing sustainable development. It acknowledges the role public and private finance can play in creating new markets, jobs and reducing poverty, and the unique ability to mobilise finance in low-income and middle-income countries. However, five years on, progress has been slow and is at risk of steering further off course. Informed by ODI’s new report, “ Development Finance Institutions (DFIs): need for bold action to invest better ” we investigate what has and hasn’t worked in mobilising private finance for development. We explore how development finance institutions, multilateral development banks and their shareholders, can re-evaluate their business models, investment approaches and collaborative initiatives to better support the vision of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, and support the global effort to ‘build back better'.