Switzerland attends 4th International Conference on Financing for Development
Bern, 30.06.2025 — Switzerland will be participating in the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) in Seville, Spain, from 30 June to 3 July 2025. Organised under the auspices of the United Nations, this global event aims to address financing challenges in order to help achieve the 2030 Agenda’s Sustainable Development Goals. The conference will cover a wide range of issues relating to development policy, environmental, economic and social sustainability, and macroeconomics. The Swiss delegation is being led by Patricia Danzi, director general of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
The International Conference on Financing for Development is an opportunity to reach a consensus on the future direction of sustainable development and international cooperation. Switzerland was actively involved in the negotiations that led to the outcome document, the ‘Compromiso de Sevilla’ (Seville Commitment).
Many countries are struggling to speed up implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The financing gap, estimated at several trillion US dollars a year, is particularly acute in the countries of the Global South. Some of these delays are due to a series of crises that have put a strain on public finances and reduced the resources available to fund sustainable development. Against this backdrop, Switzerland is working to strengthen existing financing instruments, increase funding for data, enhance the effectiveness of the international development assistance system, improve framework conditions in low- and middle-income countries and measure the impact of financing on development and the climate by means of enhanced national data and statistics systems. The aim is to enable these countries to effectively mobilise their own resources and attract high-quality investment. Switzerland believes that this approach based on joint responsibility is the best way to secure the future of sustainable development and international cooperation.
The Seville conference is the fourth such event addressing the fundamental issues around financing for development. The previous conference was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in July 2015. Ten years on, global challenges have proliferated and geopolitical tensions are making discussions more uncertain. From this point of view, 2025 is a crucial year for multilateralism. It also marks ten years since the adoption of the 2030 Agenda and 80 years since the signing of the Charter of the United Nations.
Outcome document negotiated
The outcome document is set to be adopted at the start of the conference on Monday 30 June. In Seville, Patricia Danzi is heading the Swiss delegation, consisting of representatives from the SDC, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, the Federal Statistical Office and the FDFA's State Secretariat, as well as two representatives from the private sector and civil society.