Dansk Interparlamentarisk Gruppes bestyrelse 2024-25
IPU Alm.del Bilag 16
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Summary report of the 2025 Parliamentary Hearing at the United Nations:
Scaling up
action for the Sustainable Development Goals: Finance, Institutions and Politics
Jointly organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Office of the President of the
General Assembly at United Nations Headquarters
13 and 14 February, 2025
Introduction
1. The 2025 Parliamentary Hearing at the United Nations (UN) was jointly organized by the
Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Office of the President of the General Assembly.
Approximately 180 parliamentarians from 60 countries attended the hearing.
2. The hearing included seven interactive discussions featuring panels of experts on topics
such as international trade, debt, taxation, overseas development assistance (ODA) and
private-sector investments. It provided an opportunity for parliamentarians to share best
practices, build cooperation, and provide input on ongoing negotiations and in view of
the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, to be held in Seville,
Spain, from 30 June to 3 July 2025.
Opening session
3.
Mr. Philemon Yang,
President of the UN General Assembly at its 79th session,
welcomed the parliamentarians and said that with only five years left, there was an urgent
need to implement and fund the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. He reminded
parliamentarians that they held the legislative, budgetary and oversight powers necessary
to turn global commitments into tangible action. In light of the upcoming 4th
International Conference on Financing for Development, the moment was ripe to
mobilize financing for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), enhance international
cooperation, leverage private investment, build political will and effectively engage all
stakeholders. The Pact for the Future, adopted in September 2024, provided an
opportunity to turbocharge efforts towards achieving the SDGs, and parliamentarians
were invited to champion its implementation.
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4.
Dr. Tulia Ackson,
President of the IPU, said the IPU had been helping parliaments turn
the global SDGs into national plans. However, progress towards the Goals was off track
owing to divisive politics, turbulent international relations and a lack of political will.
Only one third of parliaments were meaningfully engaged in national SDG progress
reports, and many lacked the necessary structures to adequately align their legislative
agenda with the SDGs. Parliamentarians must ingrain the SDGs in governmental
institutions and focus on financing the SDGs, which was estimated to cost between $2.5
trillion and $4 trillion per year over the next five years. Dr. Ackson stressed that, in a
world where 20% of the population consumed 80% of the resources, it was possible to
fund the SDGs if resources were distributed fairly. She encouraged parliamentarians to
prioritize the common good over individual political interests, engage their constituents
and focus on actionable recommendations to ensure no one was left behind.
5. Participants took part in a Mentimeter survey, expressing their views on topics such as
the need to strengthen multilateralism, address inequities in global debt and tax systems,
and incorporate the SDGs in the parliamentary budgetary process.
Panels 1 and 2. The deep challenge of the SDGs: Mobilizing political will; Parliamentary
oversight of the SDGs: The unfinished business of institutionalization
6. Panellists noted that the SDGs reflected people’s aspirations, advanced people’s rights
and had the potential to rebuild trust in government. They provided a bold framework to
address global challenges such as poverty, social justice and environmental degradation,
while fostering peace and prosperity. But a lack of political will remained the biggest
obstacle to achieving the SDGs, with other challenges including growing isolationism,
retreat from multilateralism despite the global nature of most crises, and financial
constraints. With only 17% of the SDGs on track globally and weak national ownership
of the SDGs, urgent parliamentary action was needed to accelerate progress and reinforce
commitments. Panellists recommended using existing frameworks, including the Pact for
the Future, to advance the SDGs.
7. Examples of parliamentary structures that review the SDGs and support public reporting
mechanisms that track progress towards the Goals included the following:
i.
In Uzbekistan, parliamentarians are regularly included in delegations and the
voluntary national reviews on the SDGs.
ii.
Côte d’Ivoire
has achieved growth in recent years in part because it has included
the SDGs in national development plans and strengthened relationships between
the executive branch and parliament.
iii.
The House of Representatives of Indonesia has developed an SDG monitoring
dashboard, which can be used by parliamentarians and constituents to track
progress.
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iv.
In Qatar, parliamentarians regularly call on ministers to present sustainable
development plans and citizens are allowed to make proposals.
8. Panellists said the global financial architecture should be reformed so that it was fit for
purpose. This included helping ensure that institutions such as the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) and the World Bank channelled most money to low- and middle-income
countries, and that systems used by credit rating agencies were not burdensome for
developing nations. Global historical accountability was needed to recognize countries’
role in the climate crisis. Global taxes must fund global goods; these could include taxes
on international aviation, shipping, carbon dioxide emissions and financial transactions.
Panellists and parliamentarians offered recommendations to build political will and
institutionalize the SDGs through measures such as the following:
a) Prioritizing goals that resonate with the people in each country and identifying tangible
targets that could be achieved during one election term
b) Working to achieve a fair distribution of resources
c) Prioritizing people-centric policies, such as those focusing on education, healthcare and
basic infrastructure
d) Working to create peace, security and political stability as key determinants of sustainable
development
e) Establishing parliamentary structures to review and advance the SDGs and support public
reporting mechanisms that track progress towards the Goals
f) Engaging with fellow parliamentarians, government officials, the media and constituents
to raise awareness about the SDGs and highlight their importance
g) Strengthening the budget process with greater transparency and stronger oversight of
government expenditures
Panel 3. Development cooperation and the SDGs: Making the most of aid
9. Panellists noted that ODA was crucial for financing the SDGs and could be a lifeline for
many developing countries. ODA helped leverage other types of financing, such as
blended finance and private investments. It could attract more resources by improving the
business environment, boosting tax collection and strengthening the management of
public finances. Governments from donor countries must meet their ODA commitments
to low-income countries, and parliamentarians should also work to help reduce
dependence on foreign aid. Some panellists encouraged calls for a national independent
commission to create a new blueprint for aid based on equity, inclusivity and fairness.
10. Panellists said rising isolationism, conflicts and geopolitical tensions were threatening the
future of aid. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD), aid commitments in 2023 accounted for only half of the
recommended gross national income commitment of 0.7%. Beyond increasing resources,
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there was a need for improved aid effectiveness, greater national ownership and better
results management. Panellists cited examples of aid effectiveness, such as the return on
investment achieved by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) of about
$9 for every $1 invested, the $300 million value of the Rwanda Green Investment
Facility’s, which started with $300,000 of seed money, and the creation of 20,000 jobs
for young people in the Democratic of the Republic of the Congo with a $150,000
investment.
Panellists and parliamentarians offered recommendations for making aid more effective
through measures including the following:
(a) Prioritizing national ownership of aid and building strong relationships with local
partners
(b) Ensuring aid is transparent and results-driven
(c) Building awareness among constituents, the private sector, civil society and the media
about the importance of aid
(d) Employing tools such as incentives and subsidies to promote projects that are long-term
and prioritize sustainable development, climate resilience, and core public goods and
services
(e) Prioritizing multilateral aid channels that are typically less politicized and more cost-
effective than bilateral ones
Panel 4. Raising domestic resources for the SDGs: A case for tax reforms
11. Panellists stressed that, in order to scale up progress towards the SDGs, national and
international tax systems must be reformed to avoid policies that deepened global
inequalities. Multinational corporations used profit shifting, offshoring, tax havens and
other mechanisms to avoid paying taxes – measures that, according to the OECD, created
as much as $240 billion in annual revenue losses. Parliamentarians were encouraged to
use their oversight authority to spotlight large-scale corporate tax evasion. One example
given was that, in 2023, the US Senate Committee on Finance had investigated
pharmaceutical companies’ tax practices and found that they had reported as much as
75% of their income in foreign subsidiaries. Another cited example was the recent
introduction of new country-by-country requirements, by the EU and Australia, with a
view to improving oversight of corporations’ profit-sharing strategies.
12. Panellists said most tax systems were regressive, focused on labour instead of wealth, and
lacked adequate enforcement capacities. Reforms were needed to make tax systems fairer
and more equitable while increasing domestic revenues so that States could fund public
goods. Parliamentarians were encouraged to use a whole-of-society approach. For
example, Jamaica had involved the business sector and civil society in tax reforms in
order to eliminate wasteful expenditures and increase domestic revenues.
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Parliamentarians were encouraged to use existing organizations, tools and instruments for
guidance, including the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Action 13, the UN
Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters, and Tax Inspectors
Without Borders.
Panellists and parliamentarians offered recommendations to increase tax revenues and
make tax systems fairer and more equitable through measures such as the following:
(a) Ensuring tax laws and policies are inclusive, transparent and open
(b) Imposing greater disclosure of the true owners of entities, including trusts, limited
liability partnerships and beneficial ownerships
(c) Enacting laws and policies that prioritize tax collection from high-net-worth individuals
(d) Regularly reviewing national tax laws and investing in capacity-building for local tax
administrations
(e) Seeking effective taxation and auditing of companies that engage in extractive industries
(f) Advocating for clarity and transparency in tax laws and guidance, deterring companies
from tax avoidance and evasion, and improving compliance
(g) Using parliamentary oversight to spotlight large-scale corporate tax evasion
(h) Sharing information with other countries and cooperating on cross-border tax issues,
including enforcement
(i) Pushing for the application of a global minimum tax of 15% for multinational
corporations – an OECD proposal that more than 140 countries have committed to
(j) Demanding greater insight into multinational corporations’ profit-shifting strategies in
order to properly investigate them and hold them accountable
(k) Building political will – nationally and internationally – to make tax systems more
sustainable, inclusive and focused on public goods
Panel 5. The debt crisis and the SDGs: Proposals for sustainable solutions
13. Panellists warned that the world was facing a debt crisis, with 3.3 billion people living in
countries that were spending more on interest payments than on education or health.
Parliamentarians and panellists stressed the need to make the global debt architecture
more people-focused and sensitive to low-income countries’ vulnerabilities.
14. Stronger principles were needed to ensure responsible lending, borrowing and debt
sustainability. These included adding climate-resilient clauses and mechanisms to address
external shocks. Since there was no single mechanism or bankruptcy court for States,
restructuring was often done too late and took too long, which drove up costs and
escalated debt burdens. Panellists said there was no easy way to coordinate creditors or
identify which ones to prioritize, adding to costs and delays. A sovereign debt
restructuring mechanism was urgently needed to set norms, correct power imbalances
favouring creditors, and streamline processes. Debt should serve as a catalyst for
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productive economic transformation, rather than burdening developing nations. Examples
of financial innovation included the following:
i.
The $750 million deal between the Dominican Republic and the World Bank for
climate projects
ii.
The issue of $2.5 billion in green bonds by Qatar
iii.
The African Development Bank’s $2 billion bond for projects promoting
sustainability
iv.
The agreement by Portugal to swap the debt of Cabo Verde for environmental
investments
Panellists and parliamentarians offered recommendations to address the debt crisis
through measures such as the following:
(a) Assessing countries’ borrowing practices, including the legal framework, terms and
conditions, who their counterpart is and whether they can negotiate with them
(b) Updating domestic legislation to include areas such as restructuring and dispute resolution
(c) Ensuring debt is transparent and aligned with national priorities, and has strong oversight
(d) Assessing the impact of borrowing to ensure it is used as intended and to measure its societal
benefit
(e) Ensuring that countries do not compromise their decision-making authority and financial
independence in any relationship with a creditor or lending institution
(f) Considering establishing debt management offices, independent of finance ministries and
national treasuries, to carry out cost analysis on debt management
(g) Advocating for the IMF and the World Bank to create fairer lending criteria for developing
countries, and for restructuring plans that consider States’ ability to pay
(h) Considering using economic measurements beyond gross domestic product, which has a
short-term outlook and does not capture critical indicators such as sustainability and people’s
well-being
(i) Promptly engaging in debt restructuring in cases of financial distress
(j) Considering debt cancellation, debt swaps and other ways to assist developing States
(k) Helping harness financial innovation, including green financing and other forms of financing
that prioritize people, sustainable development and the environment
(l) Focusing on regional cooperation and supporting regional development banks and
institutions
(m) Strengthening parliamentary oversight of public investment systems
Panel 6. International trade for the SDGs: The challenge of poverty eradication through
export-led growth
15. Panellists noted that a small number of developed nations dominated entire sectors of the
global economy, while trade agreements often lacked the necessary transparency, without
input from parliaments, the public and civil society. While international trade could drive
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sustainable growth and poverty reduction, it required multilateral rules, strong domestic
policies and capacity-building. Many developing States were trapped in low-value
commodity exports that limited their productivity and growth. The global trading system
must become more transparent and inclusive, and must prioritize people’s human rights,
sustainability and the environment.
Panellists and parliamentarians offered recommendations to improve international trade
through measures including the following:
(a) Advocating to transform the global trading system so that it holds multinational corporations
accountable and incentivizes respect for workers’ rights
(b) Demanding that government-led negotiations of trade and investment agreements are open
and transparent
(c) Auditing governments’ trade agreements to assess whether they benefit the public, contribute
to sustainable development, and have been negotiated in an open, inclusive way, free from
corruption
(d) Reducing trade barriers, such as tariffs imposed on developing countries
(e) Shifting from past models based on exploration and exploitation to ensure trade agreements
prioritize people and the planet
(f) Advocating for reforms of the World Trade Organization to make it more inclusive and fairer
to developing countries’ needs
(g) Leveraging existing frameworks, such as the Pact for the Future and the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development, which call for a transparent, equitable and inclusive trading
system that prioritizes sustainability, equity and climate resilience
(h) Prioritizing regional integration and reducing foreign exchange rate pressures by trading in
local currencies
(i) Using reliable data and clear communications to fight misinformation about trade
(j) Investing in capacity-building and promoting the transfer of knowledge and technology,
which requires investment in human capital and infrastructure
Panel 7. Private investments for the SDGs: The role of private long-term investments and
of international finance
16. Panellists said that with an estimated financing gap as high as $4 trillion annually over
the next five years, private investments were crucial for achieving the SDGs. Agreements
such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Paris Agreement and the Pact
for the Future highlighted the need to mobilize private finance and foster public-private
partnerships. Many investors were adopting environmental, social and governance
criteria, gradually aligning with the SDGs despite political risks in some countries.
Successful engagement of the private sector required clear guidelines, an enabling
business environment and sound governance institutions. Public-private partnerships
must be fair, transparent and accountable, with risks shared between sectors. Morocco
had adopted an Investment Charter that provided guarantees for private investors while
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imposing obligations in areas such as environmental laws. Algeria had also recently
passed legislation to incentivize private-sector investment.
Panellists and parliamentarians offered recommendations to involve the private sector in
sustainable development through measures such as the following:
(a) Prioritizing and rewarding investment quality, not just quantity
(b) Incorporating decent work, including quantity and quality of jobs, and labour standards,
in results measurement
(c) Applying existing conventions and guidelines, such as the
UN Guiding Principles on
Business and Human Rights,
the
OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on
Responsible Business Conduct,
and those issued by the International Labour Organization
(d) Centring the human dimension of economic development on anti-discrimination policies,
support for living wages, the protection of workers’ rights, and investments in green jobs
(e) Designing clear and enforceable laws and policies to regulate the extraction of natural
resources, and to prevent pollution and environmental degradation
(f) Creating an enabling business environment that is stable, predictable and clear, and
includes the rule of law, enforcement and open dialogue
(g) Working closely with the business community instead of just viewing it as a funding
source
(h) Working with parliamentarians in other countries to raise standards and fight the
fragmentation that entices companies to go where standards are lower
(i) Considering creating national bodies within government to monitor private-sector
commitments, rather than relying on self-reporting or external auditing, which is
susceptible to conflicts of interest
(j) Ensuring the availability of data that is of high quality and segregated by various
indicators
(k) Enhancing engagement with the UN by meeting with the Resident Coordinators and
exploring partnership opportunities
(l) Creating a robust and empowered public sector, where public finance remains the driver
of development and provides public goods and services
(m) Ensuring trade unions play an active role in designing and monitoring financing
agreements
Closing session
Dr. Ackson praised parliamentarians’ engagement at the hearing and expressed gratitude for the
participation of the President of the UN General Assembly and several high-level UN officials.
She reiterated that most conflicts and crises facing the world were human-made and solvable,
and that the SDGs were attainable. If the international community raised $7 trillion in response
to the COVID-19 pandemic, a similar effort could be directed towards sustainable development.
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Dr. Ackson said the hearing had underscored the interconnected nature of SDG finance,
including aid, taxes, debt, trade and private investments. She called on parliamentarians to push
for more transparency, inclusion and oversight of global financial systems and to ensure that
policies and budgets were people-centred and development-driven. People cared about
healthcare, education and the environment and it was up to parliaments to prioritize, fund and
implement relevant policies.
Dr. Ackson encouraged parliamentarians to embrace innovation and creativity, work closely with
the UN, and leverage multilateralism to restore fairness, build trust and tackle global challenges.
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Annex: List of speakers
Moderator: Mr. Dan Dunsky, journalist
Day one
Opening session
Mr. Philémon Yang, President of the UN General Assembly
Dr. Tulia Ackson, President of the IPU
Panel 1. The deep challenge of the SDGs: Mobilizing political will
Ms. Nelly Mutti, Speaker of the National Assembly, Zambia
Mr. Guy Ryder, Under-Secretary-General for Policy, UN
Mr. Jeffrey Sachs, President, UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network
Panel 2. Parliamentary oversight of the SDGs: The unfinished business of
institutionalization
Mr. Adama Bictogo, Speaker of the National Assembly, Côte d’Ivoire
Mr. Ulugbek Lapasov, Permanent Representative of Uzbekistan to the UN
Ms. Marina Ponti, Global Director, UN SDG Action Campaign
Panel 3. Development cooperation and the SDGs: Making the most of aid
Mr. Lok Bahadur Thapa, Permanent Representative of Nepal to the UN
Ms. Susan Brown, Assistant Secretary-General and Director, Bureau for External Engagement
and Advocacy, UNDP
Ms. Nilima Gulrajani, Principal Research Fellow, Development and Public Finance Team, ODI
Global
Panel 4. Raising domestic resources for the SDGs: A case for tax reforms
Mr. Navid Hanif, Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development, UN Department of
Economic and Social Affairs (DESA)
Mr. Ian Gary, Director, Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency (FACT) Coalition,
and member of the Global Alliance for Tax Justice
Ms. Marlene Nembhand Parker, Deputy Commissioner General, Legal Services Division, and
Chief Tax Counsel, Tax Administration Jamaica
Day two
Panel 5. The debt crisis and the SDGs: Proposals for sustainable solutions
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Ms. Shari Spiegel, Director, Financing for Development Office, UN DESA
Mr. Jason Rosario Braganza, Executive Director, African Forum and Network on Debt and
Development (AFRODAD)
Ms. Jill Dauchy, Chief Executive Officer, Potomac Group
Panel 6. International trade for the SDGs: The challenge of poverty eradication through
export-led growth
Mr. Thomas Schnoll, Permanent Observer of the OECD to the UN
Mr. Juan Jose Martinez Badillo, Chief, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) New York
Office
Ms. Melinda St. Louis, Director, Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch
Panel 7. Private investments for the SDGs: The role of private long-term investments and
of international finance
Mr. Hugo Carneiro, Member of the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal
Ms. Norine Kennedy, Senior Vice President for Global Strategy and United Nations Affairs,
United States Council for International Business (USCIB)
Ms. Rouguiatou Diallo, Economic Research Officer, International Trade Union Confederation
(ITUC)
Closing session
Dr. Tulia Ackson, President of the IPU
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