The climate,conflict and COVID-19 crises have deepened the SustainableDevelopmental Goals (SDGs) financing gap, shrunk public fiscal space, increasedpublic debt, and exacerbated a rise in inequality and poverty on theAfrican continent and mosteconomies across the world.Reimaging Africa's development financing landscape by going beyond traditionalmodels and strengthening governance systems will be crucial to building aresilient, inclusive, and sustainable future.
Integrated nationalfinancing frameworks (INFFs) are a powerful approach to helping countries formulaterisk-informed and SDG-aligned integrated financing strategies for a sustainablerecovery. UN Member States introduced the concept of an INFF inthe 2015 Addis Ababa Action Agenda to align financing policies with long-termdevelopment plans and the SDGs and to create an enabling environment for bettercontribution from public and private actors. Today, more than 40 countries inSub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are using the INFF approach.
One of thestrategic building blocks of an INFF is monitoringand review, with a particular focus on promoting transparencythroughout the budget cycle. There is a growing demand in the region forsharing experiences, practical advice and tools for developing SDG-alignedfinancing strategies and implementing INFF reforms related to SDG-aligned budgeting,taxation, public debt, investment, development cooperation, climate finance,private sector development, diaspora engagement and local finance, amongothers.
About the workshop
The United Nations Economic Commission forAfrica (ECA), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United NationsDepartment of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and International BudgetPartnership havejoined forces to organise a 4-day workshop in Abuja, Nigeria.
Theworkshop, hosted within the framework of the INFF Facility and the regionalbudget transparency initiative, builds on the success of a regional INFF training workshop held virtually inAugust 2021 and a regional budget transparency workshop held in February 2020in Nairobi.
Theworkshop will bring together the African INFF community and senior decisionmakers to share INFF experiences and learn about the advantages and challengesin setting up SDG-aligned integrated financing strategies, with a particularfocus on SDG financing dialogues and open budget reforms.
On day 3 ofthe workshop, Open Budget Survey civil society researchers will join governmentofficials. Together, they will take stock of countries' investments in humancapital and budget openness. They will also develop draft country-level actionplans to improve budget openness and increase support for social sectors andefforts to combat climate change. Government officials should integrate theseaction plans into INFF-driven financing strategies.
