The 2021 Financing for Sustainable Development Report (FSDR) of the Inter-agency Task Force on Financing for Development warns that COVID-19 could lead to a lost decade for development. The report highlights the risk of a sharply diverging world in the near term, where the gaps between rich and poor widen because some countries lack the necessary financial resources to combat the COVID-19 crisis and its socioeconomic impact. Short-term risks are compounded by growing systemic risks, such as climate change, that threaten to further derail progress. The report recommends immediate actions to prevent this scenario and put forward solutions to mobilize investments in people and infrastructure to rebuild better. It also lays out reforms for the global financial and policy architecture to ensure that it supports a sustainable and resilient recovery and is aligned with the 2030 Agenda.
The 2021 FSDR begins with an assessment of the impact of the pandemic on the global macroeconomic context (chapter I), including a discussion of the interlinkages between economic, social (e.g., health, inequality), and environmental (e.g., climate) risks. The thematic chapter (chapter II) explores the growth of global systemic risk to identify policy options for sustainable and resilient financing. The remainder of the report (Chapters III.A to III.G and IV) discusses progress, challenges, and policy options across the seven action areas of the Addis Agenda—including in response to the current crisis and future risks.
The 2021 FSDR is the sixth report on implementing Financing for Development outcomes since the adoption of the 2030 Agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. The assessment draws on the expertise, analysis, and data from more than 60 agencies and international institutions that make up the Task Force.