The humanitarian, health, social, political and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are complicating difficult decisions on multilateral financing as states seek to evaluate how to balance national needs with commitments to prevent development losses. Using Sweden as an example, this UN Talks seminar explored a number of difficult decisions on development resources and their allocation, with a focus on demonstrating leadership under challenging circumstances.
The seminar explored a number of key questions. How might bilateral and multilateral flows be respectively impacted as development financing shrinks? Beyond reductions associated with the contracting GDP, what other factors are likely to effect ODA levels in the coming year? How could major changes in development financing impact on Swedish civil society organisations and the people they work with? As an important contributor to development financing and a longstanding advocate for international cooperation, how should Sweden support the multilateral system in the wake of the COVID crisis?
