The Sevilla Forum on Debt was launched at the 16th UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD16).
It is one of the key commitments of the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4), which took place in Spain in July 2025, and represents a breakthrough in tackling the entrenched debt crisis in developing countries.
Speakers
- António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations
- Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary-General, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
- Carlos Cuerpo, Minister of Economy, Trade and Business, Spain
- Li Junhua, Under-Secretary-General, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
António Guterres, the ninth Secretary-General of the United Nations, took office on 1st January 2017.
Having witnessed the suffering of the most vulnerable people on earth, in refugee camps and in war zones, the Secretary-General is determined to make human dignity the core of his work, and to serve as a peace broker, a bridge-builder and a promoter of reform and innovation.
Prior to his appointment as Secretary-General, Mr. Guterres served as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees from June 2005 to December 2015, heading one of the world’s foremost humanitarian organizations during some of the most serious displacement crises in decades. The conflicts in Syria and Iraq, and the crises in South Sudan, the Central African Republic and Yemen, led to a huge rise in UNHCR’s activities as the number of people displaced by conflict and persecution rose from 38 million in 2005 to over 60 million in 2015.
Before joining UNHCR, Mr. Guterres spent more than 20 years in government and public service. He served as prime minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002, during which time he was heavily involved in the international effort to resolve the crisis in East Timor.
As president of the European Council in early 2000, he led the adoption of the Lisbon Agenda for growth and jobs, and co-chaired the first European Union-Africa summit. He was a member of the Portuguese Council of State from 1991 to 2002.
Mr. Guterres was elected to the Portuguese Parliament in 1976 where he served as a member for 17 years. During that time, he chaired the Parliamentary Committee for Economy, Finance and Planning, and later the Parliamentary Committee for Territorial Administration, Municipalities and Environment. He was also leader of his party’s parliamentary group.
From 1981 to 1983, Mr. Guterres was a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, where he chaired the Committee on Demography, Migration and Refugees.
For many years Mr. Guterres was active in the Socialist International, a worldwide organization of social democratic political parties. He was the group’s vice-president from 1992 to 1999, co-chairing the African Committee and later the Development Committee. He served as President from 1999 until mid-2005. In addition, he founded the Portuguese Refugee Council as well as the Portuguese Consumers Association DECO, and served as president of the Centro de Acção Social Universitário, an association carrying out social development projects in poor neighbourhoods of Lisbon, in the early 1970s.
Mr. Guterres is a member of the Club of Madrid, a leadership alliance of democratic former presidents and prime ministers from around the world.
Mr. Guterres was born in Lisbon in 1949 and graduated from the Instituto Superior Técnico with a degree in engineering. He is fluent in Portuguese, English, French and Spanish. He is married to Catarina de Almeida Vaz Pinto, Deputy Mayor for Culture of Lisbon, and has two children, a stepson and three grandchildren.
In September 2021, Rebeca Grynspan was appointed Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), becoming the first woman to lead the organization in its 60-year history.
Rebeca Grynspan, an economist and former Vice President of Costa Rica, is an experienced leader of international institutions with a substantive track record in government, UN diplomacy, economic policy and multilateral cooperation at the global level.
Prior to joining the United Nations, she was Vice President of Costa Rica and held cabinet positions as Minister of Housing, Minister Coordinator of Economic and Social Affairs and Deputy Finance Minister.
Previously, she served as Secretary-General of the Ibero-American Conference (2014–2021), chairing regional summits of Heads of State and Government; United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Associate Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); and UNDP Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. She was a member of the UN Commission for the Reconstruction of Haiti, representing the UN Secretary-General.
At UNCTAD, Grynspan has been at the centre of critical negotiations to address global trade and development challenges. She played a decisive role in the successful Black Sea Grain Initiative brokered between the UN, Türkiye, the Russian Federation and Ukraine, which enabled the safe export of over 32 million tons of grain, lowered global food prices by 22% and prevented millions from falling into food insecurity. She also leads the UN Global Crisis Response Group on food, energy and finance, and has represented the UN in G20 summits.
Her leadership has been recognized widely. In 2024, she received the Doha Negotiator of the Year Award for spearheading UN efforts to restore Black Sea trade routes. In 2025, Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation awarded her the inaugural Isabel Oyarzábal Women in Multilateralism International Prize for her contribution to multilateralism.
Ms. Grynspan holds degrees in economics from the University of Costa Rica and the University of Sussex, and honorary doctorates from several European universities.
H.E. Mr. Carlos Cuerpo Caballero was appointed Spanish Minister of Economy, Trade and Business on 29 December 2023. Prior to his appointment as Minister, he held two senior positions within the Ministry. First, he served as Director General of Macroeconomic Analysis between February 2020 and August 2021, and then as Secretary General of the Spanish Treasury.
Mr Cuerpo began his career as a civil servant in 2008, when he joined the Spanish Corps of State Economists. Since then, he has also worked for the European Commission and the Spanish Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility (AIReF).
Carlos Cuerpo holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, a Master’s degree from the London School of Economics and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Universidad de Extremadura.
Mr. Li Junhua of China was appointed as the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs effective 25 July 2022.
Prior to his appointment, Mr. Li was Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to Italy and San Marino. He brings to the position perspectives and visions on fostering multilateral economic and social cooperation, with a commitment to engage with all parties to further implement the 2030 Agenda including dedication to serve Member States. He has contributed to numerous meetings of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council, as well as other multilateral meetings including the G20, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), Asia–Europe Meeting (ASEM), BRICS etc.
As Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Mr. Li guides UN Secretariat support for the follow-up processes of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. He also oversees the substantive services to many intergovernmental processes, including the annual meetings of the Second and Third Committees of the General Assembly, the meetings of the Economic and Social Council, including its Development Cooperation Forum, and the work of the subsidiary bodies of ECOSOC. In addition to intergovernmental processes, Mr. Li oversees DESA’s policy analysis and capacity development work. He also serves as the Convenor of the Executive Committee on Economic and Social Affairs, and advises the United Nations Secretary-General on all development-related issues, including climate change, internet governance, and financing for development.
Mr. Li began his career at the Foreign Affairs Ministry in 1985. Since then, he has served in various capacities, including as Director General of the Department of International Organizations and Conferences, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China (2013-2019), Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to Myanmar (2010-2012), Deputy Director General of the Department of International Organizations and Conferences (2008-2010), Minister Counselor (Political), Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the United Nations (2003-2008), Division Director and Counselor in charge of UN General Assembly and Security Council Affairs (2001-2003), Second and First Secretary, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the United Nations (1997-2001). Third and Second Secretary, the Department of International Organizations and Conferences (1992-1997) and Assistant to the Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of China to the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, Bangkok (1986-1992).
Mr. Li holds a Master’s in International Public Policy, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University.