UN chief warns of ‘decimated' aid budgets at development conference in Spain

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday warned that foreign aid budgets have been “decimated,” saying this isn't a crisis of numbers but of “families going hungry, children unvaccinated, children dropping out of school,” at a major development conference in Seville.

He noted that meeting the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals — a global agenda to end poverty, protect the planet and promote peace — requires about $4 trillion a year.

“But we are here in Seville to change course, to restore a message of fairness and justice for all,” Guterres added.

The secretary-general was addressing the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development — the first such gathering in a decade.

About 50 world leaders and 4,000 representatives from business, civil society and financial institutions are attending the four-day event.

Earlier this month, the US announced it would not attend.

Washington, which recently cut funding to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) – historically one of the world's largest aid agencies – has also formally rejected the Sustainable Development Goals.

“For decades, the mission of sustainable development has united countries large and small. Together, we achieved progress,” Guterres said. “But today, development and international cooperation are facing massive headwinds. We are living in a world where trust is fraying and multilateralism is strained.”

Despite the challenges, participants in Seville remain optimistic that the world can still overcome common threats.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez emphasized empathy as essential to multilateralism in a speech delivered at the event.

“Today, I want to emphasize the value of empathy – an inherent good within multilateralism that allows us to see the world from someone else's perspective. Let us look beyond the random scars of history, called borders, and act. Because no matter how strong the borders, how high the walls, they won't be able to stop the challenges we are facing,” Sanchez said.

“In this complex world, we don't have many opportunities like this. So, let's take advantage of it and work together so that when we look back, we are certain that we did what we needed to do,” he added.