At the UN initiative, experts and leaders from around the world meet in Spain today at a conference on growth funding, affected by global crises and the drastic reduction of the humanitarian aid of the US – which will not take part in the international meeting.

At least 50 leaders of state and governments are expected to attend the four -day International Development Funding Conference (FFD4) held in Sevilla, in the presence of UN Secretary -General Antonio Guterres, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and 4,000 civil society representatives.

Among the leaders who will be found in Seville, hit by a heatwave, is French President Emmanuel MacronSenegalese Basirou Diomagie Faye and Colombian Gustavos Petros. Their South African counterpart Siril Ramafaza canceled his participation for internal policy reasons.

The US will not send any representative for their part. Washington decided in mid -June to leave the negotiating table due to disagreements over the text submitted to the delegations, which estimated that it violates its “sovereignty” and creates “double” structures.

Why this conference is important

This year’s FFD4 goal is to find themselves Solutions for the countries of the world southaccording to the UN, with “funding deficiencies estimated at 4 trillion. dollars per year ‘, in order to meet the goals of sustainable development.

This conference takes place in a particularly gloomy period for development assistance, as it has been seriously affected by the cuts in humanitarian aid that US President Donald decided Trumpremoving 83% of funding for international aid programs through the USAID Development Service.

With $ 63 billion in 2024, the US was the most important donors for many organizations and non-governmental organizations, who are now facing significant difficulties, especially other countries- such as France, Britain and Germany- have also made cuts.

“Governments of wealthy countries are making the biggest cuts in growth aid since 1960,” Oxfam NGOs complained on Friday, which is worried about the fact that the countries of the South “diverge tragic” from their growth “course”.

For the countries concerned, the situation is even more difficult since Their public debt has increased sharply after the COVID-19 crisis. According to the UN, the debt of the least developed countries has tripled over 15 years and 3.3 billion people live in countries that spend more on repayment of their debt rather than health or education.

“We have to look at the truth: Many commitments remain unfulfilled,” while “people are facing seismic shocks that make it more difficult to resolve economic challenges,” Guterres said, referring to many global conflicts.

“In this troubled context we cannot let our ambitions fade,” he insisted.

The “commitment of Seville”

The ‘commitment of Sevilla’, which will be adopted at the end of the conference, requests the Review of International Financial Architecturemainly by allowing the south countries greater participation in international institutions and demanding better cooperation against tax evasion.

This text of 38 -pagewhich will be completed by unilateral announcements in the context of a “Seville Action Platform”, will serve as a plan to finance growth over the next ten years.

Although it is political, it will not be legally binding.

This is a source of dissatisfaction with NGOs, which have already been disturbed by the lack of – as they complain – solidarity from the richest countries. “The global north continues to block reforms. This is not a leadership, it is a denial, “said Mariana Paoli Christian Aid.