From commitments to action:
How PDBs can pave
the road to COP30

ABOUT THE EVENT

Public Development Banks, or PDBs, represent one of the largest and most underutilized levers in global finance. Today, more than 530 PDBs operate at multilateral, regional, national, and subnational levels, collectively managing assets exceeding $23 trillion and financing 10–12% of total global investment annually. This scale gives them unmatched potential to influence how capital is directed toward sustainable development and climate action.

Unlike purely private investors, PDBs are mandated to align their financing with public policy priorities, meaning they are uniquely placed to bridge gaps between global commitments and local realities, and between public and private sources of finance. Yet, despite this enormous potential, PDBs have historically been fragmented, operating in silos without a unifying system to maximize their collective impact.

This event, staged on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, will spotlight how the Finance in Common, or FiCS, system and the International Development Finance Club, or IDFC, network are changing that dynamic. Looking to continue the momentum of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development in Seville — where, for the first time, PDBs were explicitly recognized in the Outcome Document as essential players — through to COP30 in Belém later this year, this session will explore how PDBs can turn high-level commitments into concrete, country-driven solutions.

The United Nations’ “Baku to Belém Roadmap to 1.3T” provides an opportunity to connect agendas that are too often siloed: climate and development, public and private finance, global goals, and local priorities. This session will highlight PDBs’ unique placement as an operational bridge across these agendas and will consider their role in ensuring continuity: carrying forward the recognition achieved at FfD4, feeding into the G20 under South Africa’s presidency, and shaping outcomes at COP30.

It will also explore and highlight FiCS and IDFC initiatives — such as the Global Guarantee Platform, Currency Risk Management solutions, the Technical Assistance Hub, and the Global Financing Playbook —which can serve as practical tools to operationalize the FfD4 consensus and deliver results by COP30. These initiatives aim to foster country ownership, strengthen system coherence, and ensure that every investment is aligned with both the SDGs and the Paris Agreement.