Promoting Investments for Sustainable Development

A/RES/79/198View PDF

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 16ePromoting investments for sustainable development, published in 2024.

What other versions does this mandate have?

7 versions · 2020–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/127

2025A/RES/80/127Promoting investments for sustainable developmentLatestCompare with previous version
2024A/RES/79/198Promoting investments for sustainable developmentCompare with previous version
2023A/RES/78/141Promoting investments for sustainable developmentCompare with previous version
2022A/RES/77/155Promoting investments for sustainable developmentCompare with previous version
2022A/RES/76/197Promoting investments for sustainable developmentCompare with previous version

Versions are identified automatically by matching titles within the same organ (~97% accuracy on a manual audit).

What subjects does this mandate have?

5 topics

Development Assistance Foreign Direct Investment Investment Promotion Private Sector Sustainable Development

What does this mandate say?

45 operative paragraphs

Emphasizes that promoting investments in value addition and in the processing of natural resources and productive diversification ensures more inclusive and sustainable development, and in this regard encourages accelerated national efforts and the strengthening of international cooperation in areas that support policies and programmes that increase public and private, domestic and international investments for structural change in the economies of developing countries;

Encourages the promotion of sustainable and innovative financing opportunities and mechanisms to unlock new capital for sustainable investment and upscale sustainable business models, with a special focus on micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises;

Calls for the promotion of investment in developing countries for lifelong learning, technical and vocational training, skills and digital literacy, expanding access through digital technology, and implementing financial literacy programmes that empower individuals and businesses to make informed decisions, thus promoting financial inclusion, entrepreneurship and decent work;

Notes with concern that many of the least developed countries and small island developing States continue to be largely sidelined by foreign direct investment that could help to diversify their economies, despite improvements in some of their investment climates;

Also notes with concern the gap in access to capital and adequate support services for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, in particular for businesses led by women, young entrepreneurs and persons with disabilities, and recognizes that financial markets as well as business support organizations can be powerful vehicles for sustainable and inclusive economic growth and poverty alleviation, including when they support businesses that have a sustainable development impact and when access to credit is inclusive across all segments of an economy;

Recognizes that foreign direct investment can have positive spillovers, such as know-how and technology, including through establishing linkages with domestic suppliers, as well as encouraging the integration of local enterprises, in particular micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries, into regional and global value chains;

Emphasizes that foreign direct investment may have different impacts on Sustainable Development Goals, and underlines the need to strengthen the alignment of foreign direct investment with national policies and sustainable development strategies and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and invites States preparing integrated national financing frameworks to include and implement plans for mobilizing and aligning private finance with national development plans;

Recognizes the need to develop and strengthen policies to better align private sector incentives with Sustainable Development Goals, and acknowledges that sustainable finance taxonomies can be a helpful tool in creating more transparency and can thus incentivize the private sector to adopt and invest in sustainable practices and foster long-term quality investment;

Encourages national and international efforts to integrate sustainability into the financial system and thus to further reorient capital flows towards investments that are sustainable from an economic, social and environmental perspective;

Encourages financial institutions and development banks to promote and support developing countries in the issuance of Sustainable Development Goal bonds, where applicable, in particular linked to specific use of proceeds, such as social, sustainability, sustainability-linked, and green bonds, as additional mechanisms for financing investment for sustainable development;

Calls for increased foreign direct investments, particularly in developing countries, which have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and current multiple crises, to meet the 4 trillion dollar Sustainable Development Goal investment gap in developing countries, while recognizing the key role of foreign direct investments for economic growth and development and that foreign direct investments can reduce inequalities and can help commodity-dependent countries to transition to manufacturing activities and other higher-value-added activities;

Encourages financial actors at all levels to work towards the establishment of inclusive, representative and responsible financial practices, including practices related to transparency, disclosure and standards, and further encourages the efforts of all actors to reduce the existing and prevent further fragmentation of reporting and disclosure standards, as appropriate;

Welcomes the progress made by many countries in strengthening the enabling environment for private sector businesses and investments, but notes that more can be done to create competitive business and investment climates, including by increasing efforts to combat corruption, promoting market transparency, improving access to market information and easing the process of setting up businesses, that are well placed to attract private sector investment and participation in support of sustainable development;

Reiterates that greater gender equality in the distribution of economic resources can provide the means for women to generate income and creates positive multiplier effects for the achievement of inclusive, equitable and sustainable economic growth, and in this regard reiterates the need for targeted actions and investments;

Recognizes the importance of private sector engagement with national, international and intergovernmental organizations, Member States and other relevant stakeholders, as appropriate, in their efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, in an effective, accountable and consultative manner;

Acknowledges the importance of combining international, multilateral development banks and government stakes in public-private partnerships to reduce the cost of capital, and the need for a shift in the lending priorities of multilateral development banks towards better leveraging of their funds, to attract greater volumes of private finance into developing countries to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals;

Notes the importance of sustainable corporate practices, including integrating environmental, social and governance factors into company reporting, as appropriate, with countries deciding on the appropriate balance of voluntary and mandatory rules, and encourages businesses to adopt principles for responsible business and investing;

Acknowledges the importance of corporate sustainability reporting, encourages companies, especially publicly listed and large companies, to integrate sustainability and due diligence information into their reporting cycles, encourages industry, interested Governments and relevant stakeholders, with the support of the United Nations system, as appropriate, to enhance existing models and develop new models for best practice and to facilitate action for the integration of sustainability reporting, taking into account experiences from already existing frameworks and paying particular attention to the needs of developing countries, including for capacity-building, and welcomes in this context the collaboration of the United Nations Global Compact with the Global Reporting Initiative and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development;

Recognizes the challenges faced by developing countries in adopting new international sustainability reporting standards, leading to increased needs for capacity-building, especially for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, and welcomes in this context the work of the Intergovernmental Working Group of Experts on International Standards of Accounting and Reporting for the promotion of sustainability reporting in developing countries;

Calls upon Member States to reduce tensions and other risk factors and to foster environments that are conducive to scaling up long-term and sustainable investments, characterized by, inter alia, open, transparent and non-discriminatory investment policies;

Notes with concern the growing number of slum dwellers and the adverse effects on their health, safety and livelihood opportunities, and in this regard encourages targeted investments at all levels to ensure affordable and adequate housing as well as sustained investment for Sustainable Development Goal targets in these sectors by 2030;

Emphasizes that the private sector can contribute to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda in many ways, including through applying creative and innovative solutions to solving sustainable development challenges, the alignment of its business models with the Sustainable Development Goals, and supporting the efforts of the public sector in, inter alia, disaster risk reduction, climate action and skills development, in accordance with national plans and policies, and in this regard encourages further policy development and capacity-building on de-risking investments in all countries to mobilize financing;

Welcomes the growing interest among investors in taking sustainability issues into account in their investment decisions, but acknowledges that further work is needed to analyse, monitor and measure its contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals and maximize its positive development impact, and in this regard takes note of the work of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in monitoring sustainable finance and Sustainable Development Goal investment trends of the world’s largest institutional investors through the Global Sustainable Finance Observatory;

Acknowledges that reducing disaster risk, as outlined in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, and the political declaration of the high-level meeting on its midterm review, is a cost-effective investment in preventing future losses, encourages Member States to develop standards, legislation and regulations, as appropriate, for disaster risk-informed public and private sector investments, including on risk disclosure in investments and transactions, and to ensure that pipeline and bankable projects include multi-hazard and other measures that assess, prevent and mitigate risks, including in infrastructure and the real estate sector, and in this regard encourages Member States to routinely conduct stress testing of infrastructure systems;

Encourages efforts to align infrastructure plans to disaster risk reduction strategies, including by engaging the insurance companies and promoting multi-hazard disaster risk assessments as a prerequisite for infrastructure, housing and real estate investments in all sectors and stress testing of critical infrastructure systems, with a view to safeguarding gains in sustainable development;

Encourages Member States to achieve sustainable development in its three dimensions in an innovative, integrated, transparent, inclusive and equitable manner, which requires sufficient, sustainable and predictable investment through both the public and the private sectors;

Invites all relevant stakeholders to explore the possibilities of taking sustainability factors into account in credit rating assessments and to strengthen credit markets to promote the growth of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, in particular those owned by women;

Recognizes the growing momentum around sustainable investment and finance, including through investments in Sustainable Development Goal bonds, and invites private companies, including institutional investors, to adopt sustainable practices that foster long-term value;

Acknowledges with great concern the devastating economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which undermines countries’ ability to implement the goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement and threatens to upend the progress made recently in promoting investment in the Sustainable Development Goals, notes the role of multi-stakeholder partnerships, including with the public and private sectors, to foster strategic investment in the Sustainable Development Goals, especially in areas that could contribute more to combat COVID-19 and its resulting socioeconomic impacts, including through innovative financing, inter alia, in healthcare systems, including universal health coverage; food security, including agricultural and food production and related supply chains; digital connectivity; job creation; sustainable and quality infrastructure development and growth in productivity; as well as to ensure an environment-responsive approach to COVID-19 recovery and to counter the shortfall in investment that the pandemic entails, calls upon all stakeholders to cooperate in order to enhance resilience and sustainability in global supply chains and strengthen international investment, including by aligning investments with the 2030 Agenda, and encourages cooperation to facilitate cross-border travel of persons for essential purposes, without undermining efforts to prevent the spread of the virus;

Stresses the need to take stock of public and private initiatives to measure investment impacts on the Sustainable Development Goals, identify their similarities and differences, and lay out potential gaps;

Welcomes in this regard the request, in the outcome document of the 2019 Economic and Social Council forum on financing for development follow-up, to the Inter-Agency Task Force on Financing for Development to further its analysis on the impact and metrics for measurement of the contribution of private sector investments and instruments to the Sustainable Development Goals at the global level, and encourages international support for Member States, according to national circumstances and priorities, to voluntarily develop practical tools on measuring and collecting timely and reliable data on the private sector contribution towards the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals at the national level, as appropriate;

Emphasizes that international public finance plays an important role in complementing the efforts of countries to mobilize public resources domestically and that official development assistance, as a critical source for development finance, helps developing countries to secure sufficient public resources to invest in sectors that could accelerate the delivery of the transformational ambition of the 2030 Agenda, and notes in this regard the need to intensify efforts to meet respective commitments, focusing the most concessional resources on those with the greatest needs and least ability to mobilize other resources;

Notes the potential of blended finance, including its ability to crowd in, leverage or catalyse additional financing, and stresses that projects should be aligned with national priorities, have long-lasting development impact and be in the public interest, including those in vulnerable situations, while recognizing that, for different Sustainable Development Goal investment areas, different types of finance may represent the most effective financing modalities;

Encourages Member States to promote shareholder and consumer engagement that may encourage companies to take into account consumers’ sustainability preferences;

Calls upon development partners to continue to support efforts to strengthen policy frameworks to incentivize finance for productive investment, including building capacity to access available, additional and sustainable sources of financing, including concessional finance, particularly in the least developed countries, landlocked developing countries, small island developing States and African countries, and taking into account the specific challenges faced by middle-income countries;

Notes the policy proposals put forward by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in its World Investment Report 2022: International Tax Reforms and Sustainable Investment, in particular that the international community should support developing countries, especially in Africa and the least developed countries, including through scaling up technical assistance to take advantage of international tax reforms, and calls upon the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to work in collaboration with multiple stakeholders to help developing countries to avail themselves of these recommendations;

Also notes the World Investment Report 2023: Investing in Sustainable Energy for All of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and invites the consideration of the proposals contained therein as appropriate;

Takes note of the policy proposals put forward by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in its World Investment Report 2024: Investment Facilitation and Digital Government, in particular that the international community should support developing countries, especially in Africa and least developed countries, including through the deployment of business facilitation and digital government tools and the promotion of institutional investment to support long-term economic growth, and calls upon the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to work in collaboration with multiple stakeholders to help developing countries to avail themselves of these recommendations;

Notes that by supporting the development of wider digital government applications, technical assistance for business and investment facilitation, including capacity-building initiatives based on international investment policy instruments, there is the potential to tackle some of the gaps in investment for the Sustainable Development Goals;

Encourages States, development partners and the private sector to invest in technological development, to build more resilient supply chains, increase productive capacity and economic diversification in developing countries, share and transfer technology and know-how on mutually agreed terms and improve domestic investment climates to facilitate mass production, especially of safe, quality, effective and affordable vaccines, therapeutics and medical equipment, promote job creation, adequate training and capacity-building and wealth creation, increase investment in quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, including through the full utilization of the United Nations development system, the World Bank and other multilateral institutions in addressing the capacity and funding gaps, building a pipeline of bankable, quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure projects and exploring innovative platform approaches to coordinating, scaling up and channelling public and private finance and technical assistance, increase all components of international public finance, including the catalytic use of official development assistance, domestic and international private sector finance, domestic resource mobilization, and trade, and reduce the average transaction cost of migrant remittances;

Emphasizes the need for technical assistance and capacity-building support for investment promotion and developing project pipelines and bankable projects, in particular for developing countries;

Calls upon the United Nations system and all relevant stakeholders to support the capacity-building of developing countries in their efforts to close the Sustainable Development Goal investment gaps, especially at the country programme level, on the use of public finance to leverage private investment for projects benefiting sustainable development;

Stresses the need to craft trade and investment agreements with appropriate safeguards so as not to constrain domestic policies and regulation in the public interest, emphasizes the importance of the provision of capacity-building to developing countries in order to benefit from opportunities in international trade and investment agreements, and encourages the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to continue and strengthen existing programme of capacity-building, research and policy analysis, regional and multilateral consensus-building and consultations with States on investment agreements;

Requests the Secretary-General, in collaboration with the secretariat of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, to inform the General Assembly at its eightieth session of the implementation of the present resolution, based on their ongoing research, through a dedicated section of the World Investment Report, with a special focus on promoting investments for sustainable development as well as concrete recommendations, including on strategic sectors to invest for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, and looks forward to the continuing consideration of these issues in the forthcoming reports of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Financing for Development;

Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its eightieth session, under the item entitled “Macroeconomic policy questions”, the sub-item entitled “Promoting investments for sustainable development”.

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