UN Secretary-General and Heads of MDBs to Enhance Collaboration to Address the Challenges of Achieving the SDGs

NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (23 September 2024) — United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and top UN officials met with the Heads of Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) Group on Sunday in a joint effort to better support countries in accelerating progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.

The high-level dialogue, which included five Presidents and three Vice-Presidents of the major MDBs, further advances the partnership between the UN and the MDB systems. The International Monetary Fund Managing Director also attended the meeting.

MDB Heads shared with the UN leadership their reforms to become a better, bigger and more effective system with a renewed sense of urgency and determination. The Secretary-General underscored the importance of MDB reforms as part of his call to unlock greater volumes of affordable long-term resources to close the SDG financing gap.

UN and MDB leaders discussed enhancing collaboration at the country level, especially in fragile and conflict-affected countries, as well as their efforts to catalyze private sector resources towards sustainable investments.

MDBs also agreed to collaborate towards the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) next year in Seville, Spain, where public, private and civil society leaders and organizations will assess progress and chart a course forward on financing for the SDGs.

Following the working meeting, Canada, Jamaica, and Spain co-hosted an open dialogue with MDB leaders, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed, and high-level UN Member State delegates.

MDB leaders highlighted their progress working as a system for greater impact and scale, the key role of concessional finance to support the poorest, and their work on financial innovation. MDBs also briefed Member States on their joint work, based on concrete deliverables outlined in the “Viewpoint Note”, a joint MDB workplan released in April 2024. These wide-ranging initiatives include scaling-up MDB financing capacity, boosting joint action on climate, and enhancing development effectiveness and impact.

MDBs also discussed how they can channel Special Drawing Rights to significantly increase financing for the SDGs, including supporting initiatives such as the G20 Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty.

Sunday’s meetings took place against the backdrop of the Summit of the Future, a unique gathering of world leaders at the UN General Assembly focused on strengthening multilateral cooperation, including on international finance, to tackle shared global challenges, including climate change, poverty and inequality.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.

The following leaders attended the high-level dialogue:

• Akinwumi Adesina, President, African Development Bank  
• Ajay Banga, President, World Bank Group  
• Mark Bowman, Vice-President, Policy and Partnerships, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development  
• Nadia Calviño, President, European Investment Bank 
• Ilan Goldfajn, President, Inter-American Development Bank and Chair of MDB Group 
• Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund
• Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary-General, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
• António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations
• Zamir Iqbal, Vice-President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer, Islamic Development Bank 
• LI Junhua, Under-Secretary-General, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations
• Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations 
• Carlo Monticelli, Governor, Council of Europe Development Bank 
• Scott Morris, Vice-President, East and Southeast Asia and the Pacific, Asian Development Bank   
• Courtenay Rattray, Chef de Cabinet to the Secretary-General of the United Nations
• Rodrigo Salvado, Director General, Operational Partnership Department, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank  
• Achim Steiner, Administrator, United Nations Development Programme