The United Nations called on Wednesday for a “sustainable industrial transformation” to narrow the widening development gap between countries, meet ambitious climate targets, and achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The 2023 Financing for Sustainable Development Report—Financing Sustainable Transformations—warns that, amid growing food and energy crises sparked by Russia’s full‑scale invasion of Ukraine, an uncertain global economic outlook, and escalating climate impacts, “urgent, massive investment” is needed to accelerate positive change in electricity supply, farming, transportation and construction.
The report points to signs of sustainable growth that could benefit all nations and provide a realistic platform for reaching the SDGs. One such sign is the extraordinary expansion of internet use, with more than 38,000 new users coming online each hour. Yet, without the means to invest in sustainable development and transform energy and food systems, developing countries are falling further behind, UN Secretary‑General António Guterres wrote in the foreword. He warned that a “two‑track world of haves and have‑nots” poses clear dangers for every country and called for renewed global cooperation and multilateral action to solve the current crises.
Some necessary changes are already underway. The energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine has spurred investment in the global energy transition, which surged to a record $1.1 trillion in 2022. For the first time, energy‑transition investments in that year exceeded those in the fossil‑fuel sector, although the bulk of this financing is concentrated in China and other developed nations. In contrast, most developing countries lack the resources to invest, a disparity laid bare by the report. Climate change, the war in Ukraine, the COVID‑19 pandemic and debt payments—up to twice those of 2019—have placed massive fiscal pressure on developing economies, limiting their ability to fund transformation. Post‑pandemic spending per capita averages $12,200 in developed countries, 30 times higher than the $410 in developing nations and 610 times higher than the $20 in the least‑developed countries.
Deputy UN Secretary‑General Amina Mohammed stressed that without a reformed international financial system and scaled‑up investments in the SDGs, the 2030 Agenda cannot be fulfilled. “The good news is that we know what to do and how to do it,” she said, urging rapid progress in energy, food, education and a new green industrial and digital age that leaves no one behind.
The report calls for a “new generation of sustainable industrial policies” grounded in integrated national planning to scale up investments and lay a foundation for the future. Opportunities for inclusive growth exist in agro‑industry, green energy and manufacturing. The rapid uptake of technology suggests the possibility of an equally swift transition to sustainable industrialization. Between 2021 and 2022, 338 million more people used the internet regularly—an increase of about 38,600 people per hour. However, manufacturing capacity remains uneven. In the least‑developed African countries, manufacturing value added fell from roughly 10 % of GDP in 2000 to 9 % in 2021, well short of the SDG target to double this share.
Targeted government policies are needed to build domestic productive capabilities, achieve low‑carbon transitions, create decent jobs, boost economic growth and ensure gender equality—essential for productivity. The 2023 report recommends strengthening tax systems, enabling more private investment, and scaling up international public investment and development cooperation. It also calls for reforms to the international financial architecture to raise sufficient resources and free countries from unaffordable debt repayments. Piecemeal or incomplete reforms that ignore the SDGs will render sustainable development unattainable.
Li Junhua, head of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, which led the inter‑agency report, affirmed that solutions exist to avoid a lasting sustainable‑development divide and a lost decade for development. He urged political will to overcome rising tensions, splintering alliances and nationalist trends, and to seize the moment by urgently investing in a common future.
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