This month, the international community will meet in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to discuss the policy reforms, financing, and international coordination challenges involved in implementing a new sustainable development agenda. The targets—the Sustainable Development Goals—driving that agenda are ambitious, and intended to be applicable to all countries.
In Addis, governments, international organizations, the business community, and civil society will explore the options for mobilizing the financial resources needed to achieve these targets over the next 15 years. The debate will include issues ranging from maintaining global economic and financial stability to financing infrastructure, boosting tax collection, and attracting foreign capital—but also to issues of improving inclusion, gender equity, and climate change. The International Monetary Fund (IMF), traditionally associated with the promotion of macroeconomic and financial stability, now pays close attention to this wider set of issues, in recognition of their demonstrated importance for growth and economic performance.
On July 8, the Global Economy and Development program at Brookings hosted IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde for keynote remarks and a subsequent panel discussion led by Kemal Dervis, vice president and director of the Global Economy and Development program at Brookings.