Zambia Calls for Urgent Global Action on SDG Financing at UN Forum
Zambia has called for accelerated global action to address the widening financing gap for sustainable development, as it participated in the ECOSOC Financing for Development (FFD) Follow-Up Forum.
Delivering the country’s statement, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and National Planning, Ms Prudence Kaoma, urged the international community to prioritise the implementation of the Sevilla Commitment and translate agreed actions into measurable outcomes.
The Sevilla Commitment, adopted at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) held in Seville in 2025, seeks to tackle the estimated US$4 trillion annual financing gap for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
It also focuses on reforming the international financial architecture, lowering the cost of debt for developing countries and strengthening global cooperation to mobilise finance at scale. Zambia served as co-facilitator of the outcome document.
Ms Kaoma welcomed ongoing initiatives such as the Borrowers’ Platform and efforts aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of development cooperation.
She, however, noted that developing countries continue to face significant structural challenges, including high borrowing costs, rising debt servicing burdens, declining official development assistance and subdued investment flows.
“These pressures, compounded by geo-economic tensions, high energy costs and climate impacts, are constraining economic performance and slowing progress towards the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” she said.
Zambia reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening domestic resource mobilisation under the Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP), while calling for enhanced multilateral cooperation to build a more inclusive and responsive global financial system.
Ms Kaoma further emphasised the need for coordinated global efforts to ensure that financing reaches developing nations in a timely and sustainable manner, enabling them to meet their development targets.
