The OECD recently launched the “Development Co-Operation Report - The Sustainable Development Goals as Business Opportunities”

Source: insme.org

The achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a huge challenge in today’s world and if public resources are fundamental, it is proven that they are not enough. The official development assistance (ODA) provided by the global community reached $132 million in 2015, but the investment need is much higher. The achievement of SDGs in developing countries requires around $3.3 to 4.5 trillion

per year. In this scenario it is crucial to involve the private sector as, according to the “Development Co-Operation Report - The Sustainable Development Goals as Business Opportunities” recently launched by the OECD, investing in sustainable development is a smart investment.

The publication demonstrates the high potential of private investments in SDGs, it is indeed proven that despite the high risk, considerable business opportunities are generated by allocating resources in developing countries.

Five pathways to exploit this potential at its maximum extent are at the core of the report:

• Foreign Direct Investments create jobs, boost productivity and enable local businesses to access new international markets;
• Blended Finance can improve the scale of investment in development, offering huge potential for public and private stakeholders to join the efforts and by doing so improving the scale of investments in developing countries;
• Monitoring and measuring mobilized private funds can enhance transparency and improve both financing strategies and good practices;
• Social Impact Investments that bring effectiveness, innovation and scale to sustainable business;
• Responsible business conduct enhances business and development results, matching investments quantity and business quality to produce social, economic and environmental benefits.

The report also includes key recommendations, statistics, data with information illustrating how businesses are already promoting investments and offering information on the performances of development cooperation providers.

Discover more by downloading the whole publication here.