Funding the Sustainable Development Goals is Not a Challenge of Sufficient Capital
Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 faces a substantial funding gap, now at US$14-17 trillion annually, fuelled by global crises including the pandemic, energy shocks, and inflation. While developing countries have been most impacted, global financial assets—totalling US$653 t...
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Risk Institute, Trieste- Geneva
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Cadmus |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cadmusjournal.org/article/volume-5-issue-4/funding-the-sdgs-is-not-challenge-of-sufficient-capital |
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| Summary: | Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 faces a substantial funding gap, now at US$14-17 trillion annually, fuelled by global crises including the pandemic, energy shocks, and inflation. While developing countries have been most impacted, global financial assets—totalling US$653 trillion with annual GDP at US$110 trillion—are theoretically sufficient to close this gap. The issue, however, is that most of these assets are either illiquid or deployed to maintain the living standards of the countries in which they are generated, to keep the lights on, or to achieve traditional profit-focused returns. Bridging this gap requires immediate and long-term capital strategies, such as deploying global wealth stocks for one-off investments and reengineering annual GDP flows to support the SDGs perpetually. Major asset holders, including households (US$534 trillion), governments (US$119 trillion), and corporations (US$179 trillion), noting some double counting, must be engaged, although much of their capital is illiquid or aligned to non-SDG objectives. Mobilizing these funds will depend on systemic changes in investment incentives, such as blended finance structures and impact investments that meet risk-adjusted returns. To generate the US$11-12 trillion annually needed by developing countries, a multi-stakeholder approach is essential, including policy reforms to encourage solutions and capital to flow to where they are most needed. Without a swift reallocation of resources, the cost of meeting the SDGs will continue to rise, risking the 2030 timeline. Addressing this alignment issue could unleash the necessary capital, enabling targeted investments in scalable, impactful solutions critical to achieving global sustainable development. |
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| ISSN: | 2038-5242 2038-5250 |