The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) adopted an ambitious global financing framework to close the $4 trillion annual SDG financing gap, reform the international financial architecture, scale up domestic resource mobilization, and catalyze climate and biodiversity finance. Building on these commitments, this session focuses on actionable pathways to accelerate financial flows toward NDC, SDG, and biodiversity goals, leveraging GGGI’s track record of mobilizing USD 14.5 billion since 2015 and operating in 50+ countries.

The session convenes policymakers, development banks, private financiers, and innovators to translate FFD4’s calls to action into practical solutions. Discussions will explore how to unlock subnational finance, embed climate and nature resilience in infrastructure, and integrate debt, climate, and biodiversity finance solutions for countries in vulnerable situations.

The Sustainable Finance session is structured into three thematic panels:

1. Unlocking Subnational Financing: scaling domestic resource mobilization and strengthening subnational finance are critical to delivering essential public services and advancing the NDCs and SDGs. This panel focuses on how local governments and quasi-sovereign entities, such as national development banks (NDBs), can drive climate-aligned investments at scale.

   Participants will examine innovative ways to diversify local revenue streams, such as municipal bonds and thematic bonds (green, SDG, resilience), while leveraging NDBs to channel finance into priority sectors. The discussion will explore enabling conditions – robust regulatory frameworks, credit enhancement, digital platforms, and capacity development – that empower subnational actors to mobilize resources for climate, biodiversity, and inclusive development outcomes. By highlighting successful examples and tools, the session will identify concrete steps to strengthen domestic financial ecosystems and accelerate investment flows to local communities.

   2. Climate Resilient Infrastructure: Infrastructure remains a backbone of economic growth but is increasingly exposed to climate shocks and biodiversity loss. FFD4 reaffirmed the importance of building “quality, reliable, resilient, and sustainable infrastructure” and integrating climate and nature considerations into investment frameworks.

   This panel explores how infrastructure finance can shift from business-as-usual to climate-resilient, nature-positive, and socially inclusive approaches. It will spotlight models where public–private partnerships (PPPs) and blended finance instruments integrate nature-based solutions, resilience standards, and inclusive planning from design through delivery. Case studies will demonstrate how digital and AI-driven asset management tools enhance lifecycle planning and resilience monitoring. Participants will discuss actionable pathways for embedding resilience into procurement, capital mobilization, and risk-sharing frameworks, ensuring infrastructure not only withstands climate impacts but also delivers lasting ecological and social co-benefits.

   3. Integrating Climate, Biodiversity, and Sovereign Debt Solutions: Developing countries are increasingly trapped in a reinforcing cycle of climate vulnerability, biodiversity loss, and unsustainable debt. With over 50 developing countries spending more than 10% of revenues on debt interest, fiscal space for climate and nature goals is shrinking, just as trillions are needed annually to meet global targets.

   This panel examines how sovereign debt strategies can be aligned with climate and biodiversity goals, drawing lessons from recent transactions and emerging innovations. The discussion will explore mechanisms to link debt relief with ecosystem protection and community resilience, and how technology, including AI-powered tools, can enhance transparency and impact monitoring. By connecting debt sustainability with environmental outcomes, participants will map a forward-looking vision for integrating innovative sustainable finance instruments into the global climate and biodiversity agenda while strengthening economic resilience.

These three panels form an interconnected narrative that reflects the urgency – and opportunity – of reshaping the global financial system to meet today’s complex and overlapping challenges. By addressing financing gaps at the subnational level, embedding resilience into infrastructure, and aligning sovereign debt strategies with environmental goals, the session provides a complete framework for accelerating the shift toward sustainable, inclusive, and climate-aligned finance.

The Sustainable Finance session will offer forward-looking insights and practical solutions that advance the green growth objectives of GGGI Member States. By convening global and regional actors – including policymakers, financial institutions, and implementation partners – the session aims to catalyze new partnerships and actions to align financial flows with the Paris Agreement, the SDGs, and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.