Finance in Common: First Ever Global Summit of Public Development Banks

Amid suffering and uncertainty, the Covid-19 pandemic has brought to the fore the urgency of cooperating on a global scale through new forms of collective action. 

For the first time, the Finance in Common summit, which will be held on 12 November 2020, will gather more than 450 Public Development Banks (PDBs) that operate at the local, national regional and international levels. PDBs are public institutions controlled or supported by governments. They have a public mandate and their operations implement countries’ commitments to development and international solidarity, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

What role for these actors?

The summit will consider the role of these actors in the immediate countercyclical response to the crisis and in the long term. This includes international commitments to the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Climate Agreement.

The summit will take place during the Paris Peace Forum, an annual initiative that aims to bring together all actors in global governance and promote their commitment to multilateralism. 

The Finance in Common summit provides the unique opportunity to build a new coalition of Public Development Banks. It will also promote cooperation between them to support collective action for the climate and Sustainable Development Goals.

“The creation of this new, diverse and dynamic coalition will promote consistency in the responses to global issues. This effort to “pool” our challenges, objectives and strengths has become even more urgent in the current context where the Covid-19 pandemic is exacerbating inequality all over the world”, says Audrey Rojkoff, Secretary-General of the summit.

Opportunity to present concrete measures

The Public Development Banks will sign a joint declaration during the summit. It will set out their commitment to align with the principles of sustainable finance and incorporate the objectives of the Paris Agreement, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and 2030 Agenda in their strategies and operations.

This summit will provide the opportunity to present concrete measures and innovative initiatives. Public Development Banks can submit their proposals under the call for projects launched by the Paris Peace Forum, which this year targets the operational response to the Covid-19 crisis. Partners will also be able to use the summit to announce initiatives that support or promote the alignment of Public Development Banks with the SDGs.

Related research

Before the Summit, the 14th AFD International Research Conference on Development, The Visible Hand: Development Banks in Transition, will take place in the framework of the Finance in Common Summit. The Open Discussion Days (9 and 10 November 2020) will be an opportunity to deliver evidence-based recommendations on how to scale up the potential of development banks to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

 

Request your invitation to the Research Conference: https://visiblehand-opendiscussiondays.com.