Ten years ago, delegates at the 2015 International Conference on Financing for Development agreed: the world needed a better way to pay for development. For three days, they negotiated in Ethiopia’s capital — and the night before the conference ended, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda was born.
Countries should mobilize domestic resources, the delegates said, and enhance tax systems to do so. Private sector investment should be multiplied, too — and with the right kinds of investments, aid dollars could go from “billions to trillions” across the globe.
Back in 2015, official development assistance was at an all-time high, and delegates felt like countries were closer than ever to contributing 0.7% of their gross national income to ODA. They recommitted to doing so — and for Mahmoud Mohieldin, the United Nations special envoy on financing the 2030 Agenda, the moment felt like “peak collaboration” on sustainable development.
About the author
Elissa Miolene
Elissa Miolene reports on USAID and the U.S. government at Devex. She previously covered education at The San Jose Mercury News, and has written for outlets like The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Washingtonian magazine, among others. Before shifting to journalism, Elissa led communications for humanitarian agencies in the United States, East Africa, and South Asia.
