Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman emphasized the urgent need to bridge the $4 trillion financing gap to accelerate progress on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the 3rd Voice of Global South Summit. She highlighted the critical issues faced by developing economies, including the World Bank’s prediction that by the end of 2024, one in four developing economies will be poorer than before the pandemic. Sitharaman underscored the stagnation and regression in implementing SDGs in these regions, with the implementation of many SDGs in developing economies stagnating and some indicators even regressing.

Sitharaman called for collaborative strategies to address the financing gap, emphasizing the importance of financial inclusion and South-South cooperation. She cited India’s efforts, including a recent grant to the African Development Financial Inclusion Facility and promoting G20 platforms for financial inclusion. The Finance Minister also pointed out that developing countries need $6 trillion by 2030 to meet half of their climate targets, highlighting the significant shortfalls in climate financing. She urged pragmatic actions to advance financial inclusion and stressed the need for global leaders to move from words to action in delivering affordable, long-term financing at scale.