IWRM, Water-Food-Energy, Urban water-sanitation-drainage systems. Water connects the interrelated dimensions of development. It is a fundamental pillar of planetary systems and supports almost all human endeavors.
In developing countries the gap between aspirations and reality is quantified mainly in terms of financial gap. Even in the remote case that carbon credits or CO2eq tones reduction become an accepted currency for international debt payments, the total size of the debt ticket is USD 40 billions per year. The size of the gap: USD 4 trillions per year to achieve SDGs and USD 6 trillion to meet Carbon reduction pledges by 2030. So, -what are we talking about?. The only way is to incorporate the capital value of environmental services as part of the global economy, and then expand the global GDP by three of four times. Off course, this means a new global equilibrium, a new concept of value well beyond that of the exclusive human-work-based value reflected in our current balance sheets, millions of new jobs to restaure, preserve and expand natural capital and the planetary systems, and a new economic order considering f.i. "environental capital per capita".
The "Great Reversal" in Financing #SDGs in Developing Countries The concept of "Billions to Trillions" aims to escalate funding from the billions generated domestically and through Official Development Assistance (ODA) to address the significant financing gaps identified in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, as highlighted by Larry Summers and Professor Sin, we currently face a situation of "negative flows" in developing economies and emerging markets. This scenario is characterized by a disproportionate outflow of capital: $68 billion exiting developing economies and emerging markets to the private sector, and $40 billion being withdrawn by the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) from these regions to service debt, notably those incurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, the net capital inflows of concessional finance to these economies amount to merely two billion dollars. This stark reality underscores a developmental crisis where many countries spend more on debt service than on education, health, and basic services combined. We are experiencing a "Great Reversal" that necessitates a fundamentally different approach to managing and mobilizing international finance. Mahmoud Mohieldin, UN Special Envoy on Financing the 2030 Agenda Moderated by Dr. Rami Ahmad, Senior Advisor for IsDB President