The Sustainable Development Agenda: Leveraging the G20 to Enhance Accountability and Financing

If more progress had been made on the SDGs, the world could better face the COVID-19 pandemic. While G20 countries will inevitably focus on the short-term response and recovery, they should also keep the SDGs as a “North Star” for the required transformation of the global economic system. Domestically, individual G20 countries must adopt collective management of the global commons and global public goods. Internationally, the G20 countries should provide financial and technical support to developing countries. Strong leadership from the G20 will be needed to keep the longer-term 2030 Agenda in focus when short-term expediency prevails. The proposal provides seven concrete steps.