This archive report was first published on 17 October 2019.
On October 17, 2019, the United Nations announced the formation of the Global Investors for Sustainable Development (GISD) Alliance, co-chaired by Oliver Bäte, CEO of Allianz, to mobilize trillions of dollars from the private sector to finance the SDGs.
The Alliance brings together 30 influential leaders from prominent international corporations, including Safaricom, Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Bank of America, Citigroup, ICBC, Infosys, Investec, Santander, and UBS.
According to Secretary-General António Guterres, the Alliance aims to cooperate across borders, financial sectors, and even with competitors to stimulate long-term investment in development and speed up progress towards achieving the SDGs.
“We face widening inequality, increased devastation from conflicts and disasters, and a rapidly warming Earth. These leaders have seized our sense of urgency, recognizing that our pace must be at a run, not a crawl,” Guterres said.
The Alliance will deliver solutions to unlock long-term finance and investment in sustainable development, mobilize additional resources for countries and sectors most in need, and increase the positive impact of business activities.
Over the next two years, the group will align business practices with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with the Secretary-General establishing a timeline for actionable results.
The UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs will coordinate the Alliance’s work, which comes amidst a growing recognition in the corporate community that the continued success of their companies is inextricably linked to a sustainable future for the world.
