UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday called on the international community to provide "adequate, predictable, sustainable funding" to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In his remarks at the High-Level Dialogue on Financing for Development, the secretary-general said financing is the test of seriousness of the ambition to achieve the SDGs and address the climate emergency.

Declining levels of Official Development Assistance and rising levels of debt are limiting spending on the Goals, Guterres said, adding that almost one-third of the world's least developed countries are currently in -- or at high risk of -- debt distress, and heavily-indebted small island developing states, wrestling with the sky-high costs of climate-related devastation, also are a special concern.

"At the same time, it is true that we have promising news to build on," he said. For example, financial markets are increasingly integrating sustainability in the way they carry out their activities. Various investors, insurers and stock exchanges have adopted social responsibility and sustainable principles.

Several financial institutions have already started to implement the recommendations of the Task Force on Financial Disclosure, said Guterres, urging every single company to do so urgently. "This, too, can promote the shift to sustainability."

The UN chief suggested a roadmap for Financing the 2030 Agenda. The first is to align the international financing system behind the SDGs. "That means removing the disincentives to long-term financing, and encouraging the financial industry to take full account of the true risks of unsustainable practices," he said.

Second, Guterres called for more support to individual countries as they mobilize domestic resources for financing their sustainable development strategies. The UN system stands ready to support the development and implementation of Integrated National Financing Frameworks, in line with countries' commitments, he said.

"Third, we need to address the exclusion from financial services that has afflicted so many people," Guterres said, adding that the fourth step is that international cooperation is an imperative.

According to the secretary-general, collaboration is crucial in cracking down on tax avoidance, tax evasion, corruption and illicit financial flows that deprive developing countries of tens of billions of dollars of potential resources for their development every year.

Cooperation will also be necessary in addressing the new challenge of taxing the digital economy, he added.

Guterres added multilateral development banks can play a key role in bringing public and private finance together, in de-risking private financing for critical projects, and in funding for infrastructure, especially in countries that cannot attract sufficient private investment.

"We need to find ways for big money to flow to small projects," he said.

The meeting was the UN General Assembly's first High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development since the adoption of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. Enditem

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