Moving the development needle

When Seville welcomed the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) in June, the city in southern Spain was experiencing record-breaking heat. Yet inside the conference halls, the atmosphere was even more charged, not because of the weather but because of the urgency, ambition and determination to advance global development.

The Financing for Development Conferences, convened by the United Nations only once every decade, are landmark gatherings that set the global direction for how development is financed. They bring together governments, development banks, international organizations and civil society to identify practical solutions for mobilizing resources and addressing pressing global challenges.

The OPEC Fund, represented by a delegation led by President Abdulhamid Alkhalifa, joined this global community in Seville to transform conversations into commitments and commitments into action.

President Alkhalifa set the tone by chairing the Arab Coordination Group roundtable. The meeting culminated in a communiqué that underscored the need for faster, more collaborative and results-driven financing. The message was clear: fragmented promises are no longer enough, instead collective impact must take precedence.

Throughout the week, the OPEC Fund contributed to high-level exchanges that turned technical discussions into practical pathways.

At a panel hosted by the government of Spain, the Inter- American Development Bank, Asian Development Bank and the Pact for Prosperity, People and the Planet (4P), OPEC Fund's Vice President, Strategy Musab Alomar presented disaster-risk financing tools aimed at protecting vulnerable communities. Natural disasters can wipe out decades of progress within minutes. Equipping countries with instruments that mitigate these risks is therefore an essential element of sustainable development.

The OPEC Fund also participated in a session on drought resilience organized by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Presenting its Land Degradation Neutrality approach, the OPEC Fund emphasized that prevention is far more effective than reaction. With droughts intensifying worldwide, investment in soil protection and community resilience is fundamental.

One of the week's most significant milestones was the endorsement of the OPEC Fund's Island Resilience Facility under the official Sevilla Platform for Action. This recognition highlighted the OPEC Fund's commitment to a needs-based, country-driven model that ensures Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have ownership of the solutions designed for them. At a high-level side event on debt sustainability in SIDS, the OPEC Fund further showcased this facility as an inclusive, country-led model capable of addressing some of the most urgent climate-related vulnerabilities.

FFD4 was also an opportunity for the OPEC Fund to mark tangible progress in partner countries. A US$50 million loan agreement with Honduras was signed, aimed at expanding services, protection and finance for women entrepreneurs and microenterprises. This partnership goes beyond figures on a balance sheet: it will directly empower women, foster new businesses and strengthen communities.

Momentum continued at the Arab-Latin America & Caribbean roundtable co-hosted with CAF - Development Bank of Latin America, which unlocked new avenues of South-South cooperation on climate adaptation, energy transition, food security and infrastructure.

Bilateral engagements with Costa Rica, Colombia and Antigua and Barbuda advanced transformational projects ranging from biodiversity finance and green corridors to further support for the OPEC Fund Island Resilience Facility. These partnerships reinforced a powerful message: geography does not limit solidarity. Shared challenges demand shared innovation.

Seville, in all its intensity, became a fitting backdrop for these milestones. The record temperatures outside mirrored the topics inside. The conference demonstrated that, despite global uncertainty and mounting challenges, progress is possible when regions connect, financing is mobilized effectively and people remain at the center of strategies.

For the OPEC Fund, the week in Seville was about more than just representation. It was about catalyzing action, forging partnerships and reaffirming a clear mission. Development finance, when guided by collaboration, innovation and urgency, has the power to transform lives and shape resilient futures.