Connecting private investment to the SDGs

As the private sector recognizes the importance of sustainable development to people and planet, demand is growing for a dedicated space to connect investors with impactful business opportunities. To meet this need, the SDG Investment Fair has been reimagined as a year-round platform, bringing together top institutional investors with sustainable development projects in developing countries.

Now hiring? The twin problem of today’s labour market

The COVID‑19 global pandemic outbreak in 2020 sent an unprecedented shockwave across labour markets worldwide, shooting up unemployment to alarming heights. As the global economy gradually rebounds, millions are still trapped in joblessness while at the same time many developed economies struggle to fill job vacancies. How can both be happening at the same time?

This was our year: UN DESA Annual Highlights 2020-2021

2020 and 2021 brought unprecedented challenges to people and societies all over the world. The COVID-19 pandemic unfurled a cascade of global health, social, and economic shocks, intensifying the need for transformative change.

UN DESA aimed to accelerate this change, supporting governments to shape an inclusive recovery from the crisis and to get back on track to realize the goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Coming this week, UN DESA Annual Highlights 2020-2021 provides a glimpse of our efforts.

New training toolkit to support public servants in SDG delivery

Public servants play a key role in our global efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They provide health care, education, water and sanitation and other key services to our societies. The COVID-19 pandemic has made the crucial and life-sustaining role public servants play even more visible. Without them the SDGs cannot be achieved.

Post-pandemic industrial policy: what will it look like?

Ever since the financial crisis over ten years ago, countries and local governments have been warming up to the idea of stimulating economies and creating jobs by generating solutions for climate change and the environmental breakdown. But these ideas had been slow to start and far from widespread. Can the recovery from the pandemic change all that?

The euro area’s economic pulse is coming back

The global pandemic has left deep scars on economies across the globe. This is certainly true for the euro area, which saw widespread lockdowns after the outbreak of the pandemic in the spring of 2020. As a response, a host of fiscal policies provided strong support across economies, and monetary policy has been maintaining a very accommodative stance. These have been major factors in the economic recovery of the euro area and the most recent bank lending survey by the European Central Bank is confirming a picture of vigorous economic revival.

It is time to build forward together

The COVID-19 pandemic that continues to grip the world has caused over 3.7 million deaths and is reversing decades of progress in the fight against poverty. It is a matter of fact that the impact of the coronavirus has been the hardest on people who - for generations - have lacked equal access to public goods and services, quality healthcare systems and strong social protection, making it harder to cope with global crises.

Achieving SDG7 will put us on a pathway to net-zero

By Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All and Co-Chair of UN-Energy

Doing good while doing well – private sector and SDGs

In recent years, a new generation of consumers has begun demanding companies to act in the interest of sustainability. Purpose-driven businesses are also recognizing the benefits of focusing on the long-term. These leaders have committed to creating value for all stakeholders and taking concrete actions to align their business models with sustainable development principles. But we still need to do much more to mobilize private finance and align business practices with the Sustainable Development Goals.

Is unconventional monetary policy reaching its limits?

Since the onset of the pandemic, central banks around the world have deployed massive stimulus to limit the economic damage and support the recovery. Just like after the global financial crisis of 2007–08, unconventional monetary policy measures have played a crucial role in the response to COVID-19. Developed country central banks have purchased trillions worth of securities through quantitative easing programs, leading to an unprecedented expansion of their balance sheets.