Three years have passed since the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and financing has become a key element in the discussions on how to achieve its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A few years into its implementation, there is now, perhaps, a better understanding of what is at stake.

On one level, we describe the system as a relatively simple one dominated by grant receipts and grant disbursements for agreed purposes. While this is true on the surface, the deeper analytical dive of the report shows that the SDGs requires the UN grant resources to be positioned more strategically to impact much greater and more diverse financing flows.

The overall ambition of this report is to contribute to – and push forward – current and future discussions related to the UN’s role in financing development. Armed with the latest statistics and with a broad menu of ideas for change, we hope to do just that. Read the Executive Summary.

The table below provides an overview of the five types of financial instruments currently in use in the UN system and are essential to understanding UN financing.