(REF DF24) How Development Finance can support Science for the SDGs, including leveraging other funding instruments, Convened by ISC

(REF DF28) How Development Finance can support science to achieve the SDGs
Abstract

Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) are specialised development organisations that are usually majority-owned by national governments. DFIs invest in private sector projects in low and middle-income countries to promote job creation and sustainable economic growth. They apply stringent investment criteria aimed at safeguarding financial sustainability, transparency, and environmental and social accountability.

Facing the corona crisis, many Development Finance Institutions support industries fighting the pandemic. The International Monetary Fund has agreed to boost the finances of low and middle-income countries to support their pandemic response through a $650bn allocation of its special drawing rights. “This is a historic decision — the largest SDR allocation in the history of the IMF and a shot in the arm for the global economy at a time of unprecedented crisis,” said Kristalina Georgieva, IMF managing director, in a statement on Monday, 2 August 2021.

The IMF is not the only one allocating funds aimed at overcoming the pandemic. The World Bank designated numerous programs designed to deal with the challenges of the pandemic. As part of the World Bank Group’s response to the pandemic, IFC is deploying fast-track financing to help keep companies in business and preserve jobs.

In synergy with the IMF and the World Bank are significant initiatives by the DFIs after the pandemic:

• The European Investment Bank invests into digitalisation and a green revival;
• The African Development Bank Group is spurring sustainable economic development and social progress, with an objective of poverty reduction in its Regional Member Countries (RMCs), achieving this by: mobilising and allocating resources for investment in RMCs; and providing policy advice and technical assistance to support development efforts;
• The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has dedicated 21 billion € to help counter the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The United States International Development Finance Cooperation has a multi-pronged response to COVID-19, which marshals public and private resources to expand access to critical therapeutics and medical equipment designed for low-resource environments, to bolster liquidity and funding for these purposes, thereby strengthening existing health systems and assets to build resilient local capacity and assure essential services are not severely disrupted by the pandemic.

This Session will explore the link between development financing and science and innovation.
The commitment to addressing the Covid pandemic by development banks and many multilateral fora is extensive. It can be informed by a more comprehensive engagement with the science, and medical research community. Digital tools for steering financing and directing funding to better effect and accelerating results towards achieving the UN SDG’s can greatly enhance policy development and operational oversight. The Session will examine how:

1. Linking development finance to science and research can improve both;
2. To maintain policies, legal frameworks, regulations and programmes which promote multi-disciplinary cross-sector research collaboration for achieving the UN SDG’s – among scientists, research institutions and innovative businesses;
3. Methodological policy support can vastly improve flexible and agile research collaborations that facilitate rapid, interdisciplinary, and evidence-based responses to future systemic crises and natural disasters across nations;
4. Promoting effective and efficient processing as well as sharing of research data as openly as possible and securely as necessary, improving the availability, sustainability, usability and interoperability of research data, technologies, infrastructure and services;
5. Development finance using digital finance tracking innovations can improve science programmes funded by nations, science funding bodies and others;
6. Improving development finance funding mechanisms are defined for international comparison and learning can increase synergy and generate re-usable scientific knowledge from the global initiatives for science;
7. Development finance can support capacity building for scientific research addressing COVID 19 and other diseases in areas including clinical trials, biobanking, other medical sciences, agri-food, and environment, amongst others;
8. Supporting blockchain, AI, and federated learning can enable data analytics and evidence-based response to pandemics and pandemic preparedness;
9. Ensuring the global approaches to regulations prioritise funding effectiveness for science and innovation to achieve the UN SDG’s: E.g. data protection regulation
10. Input on science and innovation for policymakers at regional, national and multistakeholder levels can increase global scientific impact in achieving the UN SDGs;
11. Supporting policy alignment for synergy in development finance at the international level;
12. Supporting awareness by creating an inventory and directory of development finance initiatives can reduce waste and duplication

•   Financing