BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:unctad.org
BEGIN:VEVENT
UID:6a58a861c4731
DTSTART:20250701T063000Z
SEQUENCE:0
TRANSP:OPAQUE
DTEND:20250701T080000Z
LOCATION:Seville\, Spain
SUMMARY:FFD4 side event: Economic necessity meets political feasibility - p
 ractical solutions for the debt morass
CLASS:PUBLIC
DESCRIPTION:The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Developmen
 t comes at a pivotal moment in the global effort to deliver on the SDGs. W
 ith less than five years remaining until 2030\, the international communit
 y faces a narrowing window to mobilize the financing required to meet its 
 commitments. Yet rather than accelerating progress\, a mounting debt crisi
 s is threatening to undo hard-earned development gains and derail the 2030
  Agenda.In 2023\, developing countries spent a record $1.4 trillion on ext
 ernal debt service—nearly 4% of their gross national income. Over half o
 f the countries eligible for the IMF’s PRGT are now in debt distress\, m
 ore than twice the number in 2015. While many countries have so far manage
 d to avoid outright default\, it has come at a steep cost to development. 
 Rising interest rates and shrinking fiscal space are forcing governments t
 o choose between meeting their debt obligations and funding essential publ
 ic services. Today\, 3.3 billion people live in countries that spend more 
 on debt service than on health or education.The need for urgent\, coordina
 ted action is clear. Yet\, while there is no shortage of ideas\, implement
 ation of financing for development solutions to comprehensively address th
 ese debt challenges has remained unfulfilled. The core challenge lies not 
 in the technical feasibility of proposals\, but in their political feasibi
 lity: fragmented interests\, insufficient incentives\, and institutional i
 nertia continue to hinder progress.This panel discussion brings together m
 embers of the UN Secretary-General’s Expert Group on Debt whose work has
  been to translate technical proposals into practical policy actions. The
  conversation will focus on the politically viable solutions to the debt a
 nd development crisis\, and pathways to implement them effectively. As Ff
 D4 looks to chart a new course for development financing\, this conversati
 on aims to identify what is needed not only to lift countries out of the d
 ebt morass\, but to restore momentum toward achieving the SDGs and getting
  global development back on track.https://www.project-syndicate.org/commen
 tary/developing-world-debt-crisis-un-expert-group-solutions-by-mahmoud-moh
 ieldin-et-al-2025-04\n\nView meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org/mee
 ting/ffd4-side-event-economic-necessity-meets-political-feasibility-practi
 cal-solutions-debt
DTSTAMP:20260716T094609Z
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