GUEST FEATURE: Have We Abandoned Development? – Insights From FfD4

Valentin Chavanne is a UNFCCC Youth Delegate for Austria and attended the 4^th International Conference on Financing for Development hosted by the United Nations in Seville, Spain. FFD4 brought together global leaders, economists and development experts to advance dialogue on mobilising sustainable financing for development in line with the 2030 Agenda.

                        By Valentin Chavanne

Blistering 48 Degrees Celsius accompanied the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development in Seville during the first week of July. The last time parties convened to discuss international cooperation on development was ten years ago, according to schedule. In contrast to past conferences, however, this year’s long-anticipated outcome document was already pre-emptively agreed upon – much to the detriment of civil society groups and activists. While some expressed doubts about its civic legitimacy, others speculated that this conference may just be the first to seriously address implementation.

Overshadowing all talking points was a ubiquitous topic: debt. As the US moves to withdraw its aid contributions from the international community, development assistance is expected to drop by 17% in 2025, with even less available for subsequent years. Other countries are following suit, citing tighter budgets and a plurality of crises in need of prioritisation over aid contributions. These changes seem particularly striking when juxtaposed with the reality that close to half of the planet’s population spends more on servicing their debt than on health and education. Governments have come to terms with the fact that innovative solutions are needed to rethink existing liabilities. Italy has announced a debt-for-development swap program, aiming to forgive roughly €230 million in exchange for investments into infrastructure at par in African countries. Spain and the World Bank hope to share expertise and enhance international collaboration on similar tools as part of their newly launched debt for development hub. Lastly, Canada, the United Kingdom, France and Spain joined forces with several multilateral development banks to feature emergency debt pause clauses in future loan issuance.

In support of the relentless efforts by campaigners to tie global development assistance to environmental goals, climate-related issues featured prominently in high-level talks as well as at most side events. British Economist and Chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment Nicholas Stern emphasised the need for Europe to act more swiftly on renewable energy, since China’s current investment strategy is seeing strong early results. Beijing’s decision to radically scale up solar- and wind-power have made clean energy cheaper than carbon-intensive alternatives, underpinning the necessity for a green transition from simply an economic perspective. In a separate context, Antigua, Barbados, Barbuda, Benin, France, Kenya, Spain, Somalia and Sierra Leone have raised the topic of introducing levies on premium aviation tickets. According to EU negotiators in favour of such a push, taxing business-class and private jet journeys at higher rates could likely generate roughly 80 billion EUR annually; which could in turn be spent on infrastructure projects and mitigation efforts.

While many of these initiatives seem innovative and are considered to be crucial for future international development assistance, they are nonetheless voluntary. The official outcome document – the Compromiso de Sevilla – failed to yield the binding commitments many countries desperately need. Additionally, although severely constrained national budgets highlight the imperative for private sector involvement, marketing financial aid as a commercial investment opportunity seems to disregard the emotional gravity associated with the livelihoods of real people at stake.  Nevertheless, while US funds are being reduced, a shared sense of international cooperation has intensified. Countries such as Italy, Spain and South Korea have announced that they will increase their share in official development assistance. Additionally, the Sevilla Platform for action – a collection of over 100 initiatives – was launched, providing a glimpse of what the implementation of effective foreign aid structures and innovative financing tools could look like. If realised, many of these measures have the potential to substantially change the way governments fund and distribute development assistance. Finally, several African countries’ efforts to introduce a UN tax convention have been gaining momentum alongside the formation of a novel borrowers’ club aiming to assist indebted states in their push to receive more financial support.

Most importantly, FfD4 provided a forum for the global community to build relationships, share expertise and reinforce their general consensus. As bilateral aid remains the predominant vehicle of choice for most donor nations, platforms such as this one — where heads of state, civil society and private actors have the opportunity to convene face-to-face — are not to be underestimated. In a difficult context for financing development, Sevilla might not have provided all the answers, but it has emphasised our commitment to keep pursuing them.

Sources
Numbers and facts in this article are directly sourced from the conference, certain side events or the following articles

Devex
https://www.devex.com/news/ffd4-special-edition-the-key-takeaways-from-four-days-in-sevilla-110448
People in Need
https://www.peopleinneed.net/ffd4-in-seville-a-pivotal-moment-for-global-finance-but-will-action-follow-rhetoric-12734gp
World Resource Institute
https://www.wri.org/technical-perspectives/4-ways-financing-development-can-deliver-people-nature-and-climate

THIRD PERSON BIO

Valentin Chavanne studied international law and ecological economics in Vienna, where he focused on international environmental policy, sustainable economic theory and the green energy transition. During his studies he has completed work for the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, Amnesty International and the European Commission. Since April 2025 he is one of four Austrian Youth Delegates representing young people in international climate negotiations.