We need smart solutions to the SDGs funding gap more urgently than ever, yet governments in high income countries are trying to fob us off with failed ideas.<\/p>\n
Despite admitting that \u2018public goods\u2019 like health, education and social care for the most vulnerable are best funded by \u2018public money\u2019 back home, our politicians are refusing to extend the same logic to filling the SDGs funding gap.<\/p>\n
Instead, they continue to insist that companies will voluntarily fill the SDGs funding gap with private money in their search for profits.<\/p>\n
The current \u2018solution\u2019 is the so-called \u2018Billions to Trillions\u2019 approach. Supporters claim that if mega-rich private investors and huge global companies are offered profit guarantees from the aid budget, they will invest one trillion dollars into essential public services in low income countries.<\/p>\n
But this has been called \u2018mathematical gymnastics\u2019 – experts estimate the maximum amount of private investment that can be generated in this way is just $200bn – leaving a huge gap. Worse, high income country governments have already started cutting aid budgets as they shrug off responsibility for the SDGs – global aid fell by $4bn in 2018.<\/p>\n
The \u2018Billions to Trillions\u2019 approach:<\/p>\n
Click here to read our report exposing the \u2018Billions to Trillions\u2019 lie<\/a><\/p>\n In 2018, the UK Chancellor Philip Hammond vowed not to sign another \u2018Private Finance Initiative\u2019 (PFI) deal for UK public services for this reason, and the French Court of Auditors recommended the strategy be abandoned for French services in 2017. But our governments still promote an approach in low income countries that, for example, led to payments for one Lesotho hospital taking up half the country\u2019s entire health budget.<\/p>\n Worse, every day spent talking about \u2018Billions to Trillions\u2019 is a day wasted, when we could have been talking about real solutions.<\/p>\n It\u2019s time for governments to step up to their responsibility for filling the SDGs funding gap, and focus on smart solutions that will actually work.<\/p>\n Check out our campaigns for the the Robin Hood Tax<\/a> and the Climate Damages Tax<\/a> for smart solutions to fill the SDGs funding gap<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Dodging their responsibilities We need smart solutions to the SDGs funding gap more urgently than ever, yet governments in high income countries are trying to <\/p>\n\u2018One rule for us, another for them\u2019<\/h2>\n