#FinancingSDGs #FinanceReimagined
Tax abuse, tax exemptions and external debt service all drain governments' revenue. The GRADE Model is an innovative tool that can be used to understand the negative impact these outflows have on SDG progress in individual countries.
A growing number of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are experiencing debt distress due to high exposure to climate-related shocks. SIDS are having to borrow at high rates to recover from disasters, leaving them unable to invest in further development and climate resilience. Learn more.
The climate crisis is exacerbating debt sustainability challenges in Small Island Developing States (SIDS). With projections of increasing loss and damage in SIDS due to both extreme weather and slow-onset events, these debt problems are likely to continue and intensify. This study explores why levels of debt are particularly high in (some) SIDS, the challenges that this presents, and the different practices and policies that they have adopted to pursue – and attain – debt sustainability.
This paper, written for Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Jubilee USA, analyses the extent to which the Debt Sustainability Analyses (DSAs) carried out by the IMF and World Bank are sufficiently transparent, and what measures have been taken to improve their transparency. Improved transparency in DSAs is vital for driving continuous improvement, fostering trust and confidence, and enabling the formulation of better policy advice.
I worked with Future Earth Ltd in a global first to design a blended finance window for the Government of Antigua and Barbuda's SIRF Fund.
In Episode 5 of the Small Islands Big Picture podcast, I join a range of debt and development finance experts to ask: "Who is responsible for high debt burdens in Small Island Developing States?"
The debt crisis is putting climate adaptation spending out of reach. In 2023, debt service will be 12.5 times higher than spending on climate adaptation; in 2024, it will be 13.2 times higher. Read more.
How will the COVID-19 pandemic affect ESG investments? And is it possible to ensure that the current focus on ESG standards benefits low-income countries? Gail Hurley calls for more patient capital and a hands-on approach.
As the COVID-19 crisis worsens SDG financing gaps, could debt-for-health swaps provide an additional way in which more resources for healthcare systems could be made available while also reduce high debt burdens?
Public sector lenders should take the lead in pioneering innovative loan contracts that allow borrowers to better respond to crises like the coronavirus pandemic
The coronavirus crisis highlights just how much the world needs a well-coordinated and well-resourced system of international public financing. Global Public Investment offers an ambitious approach towards pooling resources and knowledge.
Delighted to be a contributing author to this fantastic new book on sovereign debt and human rights
As rapid urbanization proceeds, how can we enhance subnational finance in responsible ways and contribute substantially to local and national development? How are cities around the world already meeting the financing challenge at local level, including through innovative new finance models? Are there risks? What role for the international development community to support urban finance?
In May, the World Bank issued the world’s first bond linked explicitly to the U.N. SDGs. The initiative — which aims to capitalize on a rising number of investors interested in positive social and environmental impacts in addition to financial returns — has been heralded an innovation in investment products and can be added to a growing list of innovative debt instruments that are marketed as “ethical”. What are the pros and cons of innovative debt instruments?
Gail Hurley 