EU Statement – UN General Assembly: Informal consultation on the Financing for Development Forum outcome

EU Statement - UN General Assembly: Informal consultation on the Financing for Development Forum outcome

23 March 2026, New York - Statement on behalf of the European Union and its Member States delivered by Tiina Satuli, First Counsellor, Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations, at the UN General Assembly Informal consultation FFD Forum outcome

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Excellencies, dear colleagues,

I have the honour of delivering this statement on behalf of the EU and its Member States.

I would like to start by thanking the cofacilitators for the hard work that went into the zero draft and for soliciting our feedback. We also thank you for its timely circulation, respecting the roadmap that you had circulated.

The EU and its MS have made a preliminary assessment and offer some preliminary remarks, both general and detailed, on the text.

First, the more general remarks.

We appreciate the overall structure of the document including a chapeau, focussed chapters on the topics under review, a factual section to update on issues not under review in 2026, and forward looking next steps. Indeed, while we appreciate the structure proposed in general, we propose that subsequent revisions should focus more on noting trends, developments, progress and challenges of implementation of the commitments undertaken in Seville and in particular on the action-oriented next steps to further drive implementation.

The text should also avoid to the greatest extent possible language that deviates from, reopens or reinterprets language from the SC itself and avoid any unbalanced referencing of cross-cutting priorities and commitments.

It should be noted that while the Sevilla Commitment (SC) is an integrated package across its action areas and should be implemented as such, the membership committed to enhancing and deepening its annual assessment of progress by focussing on an agreed set of commitments in turn. Furthermore, extreme care should guide the referencing of sensitive issues and ongoing processes (such as INC on taxation) or aspects that UN members have dissociated from.

Mr/Madame Chair, regarding the language and elements contained in the zero draft: we are open to balanced new language where it pertains to recent and new developments, initiatives and further next steps of implementation. In the next revision, better and more extensive use could be made of the Financing for Sustainable Development Report (FSDR) and the mapping by the Inter-agency Task Force (IATF) of work being undertaken to implement the SC, including initiatives undertaken under the Sevilla Platform for Action, especially where they carry potential for further progress and multistakeholder cooperation.

Without prejudice to further proposals that the EU and its MS might provide, we also offer the following detailed comments on the text of the zero draft.

In the opening global framework and cross cutting section an explicit reference to the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs is missing. We also note that various ongoing conflicts have already had an enormous impact on sustainable development and this impact risks being lasting, which should be duly reflected, for example referencing para 14 of the Sevilla Commitment, linking sustainable development and peace. We should recall that for countries struggling with debt sustainability and in particular heavy debt servicing burdens, that these burdens can absorb a significant share of public revenues and constrain fiscal space for essential investments in sustainable development. We should also recall that the FFD process anchored at the UN is about ensuring that multilateralism continues to be harnessed towards effective and credible actions to finance the accelerated achievement of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. We note that the language on inequalities should be strengthened. We fully agree to highlight poverty and hunger but we should also emphasize social protection, human development, health and education. Indeed, while language on equality is lacking, the language on gender equality unacceptably absent from the text as is gender based violence, which is alarmingly on the increase globally, including online.

Language on UNCCD and CBD could be strengthened as COP17 of both Conventions are taking place this year. Moreover we would like to mention the growing scourge of pollution. We also miss references to policy coherence, democracy, good governance and the fight against corruption.

In the chapter about the action areas under review, the overall observation is that the text could make better use of the analysis of the FSDR to highlight trends as well as key progress and challenges of implementation. Certain elements are missing such as investment in addressing climate change and decent jobs. The role of MDBs and their work could be better reflected.

In relation to private investment and finance we could mention concrete initiatives, for example, the development of technical support tools, such as the Sustainable Finance Taxonomy Mapper, an online deep-mapping of sustainable finance taxonomies worldwide, fostering interoperability, transparency and comparability to align financial flows with global climate and environmental goals.

On trade we continue to await to see what progress is made at MC14 this week, on WTO reform in particular. As emphasized in the EU contribution, we consider it entirely unbalanced to include UCM language in the text, certainly as the text is lacking any reference to the need to update the WTO rulebook on level playing field in relation to industrial subsidies and state owned enterprises, which impacts far more on the export competitiveness and diversification efforts of developing countries. We welcome language on regional integration efforts as well as on critical minerals value chains and on building the capacity of developing and least developed countries to increase their value addition.

Language on the international financial architecture and systemic issues needs to be balanced and not reopen discussions from the Sevilla Commitment. Finally, the section on data and monitoring section could be much strengthened, not least as the common denominator across action areas is the availability, quality and better use of data.

Regarding the chapters not under review, the role of public resources in tackling inequalities, and the role of public policy in this arena cannot be overstated. We should recall that, in these complicated times, transparent, equitable, and efficient tax systems, can help nations reduce precarious over-reliance on volatile foreign aid and external debt. Undeniably, in several donor countries, pressures on public budgets and shifting political priorities are putting Official Development Assistance (ODA) under pressure. Regarding debt, it would be important to continue to stress the need for support to debtor countries in improving debt management and transparency. We can take note of several SPA debt initiatives and welcome the further strengthening of the Common Framework for Debt Treatments beyond the Debt Service Suspension Initiative.

Mr/Mme Chair,

The section on next steps should be the key deliverable of this political declaration. Focusing on implementation, while there are many gaps and challenges, there are also promising initiatives that could be highlighted. I will not enumerate any here but note that the IATF has done an extensive job in mapping out initiatives and indeed the objective of the Forum should be to focus on exactly that - the future and further implementation of commitments undertaken.

In that vein we also take this opportunity to thank the working group to establish the Borrowers Platform for the information provided at the Friends of Monterrey retreat, notably about forthcoming information sessions about the planned launch of the Platform and its intended activities.

Mr/Madame Chair, the EU and its MS stand ready to contribute with further feedback and proposals to ensure a robust outcome document with a strong focus on momentum and actions to implement our joint commitments from Seville.