The leaders of ten multilateral development banks (MDBs) have expressed their approval for the G20 Roadmap aimed at reforming these institutions to enhance their effectiveness. This endorsement by G20 Leaders is seen as a step towards addressing regional and global challenges, creating more jobs, and supporting countries in meeting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement targets.
The roadmap, a continuation of discussions initiated by G20 Leaders in New Delhi last year, aligns with the priorities of Brazil's G20 presidency. It suggests strategies to boost MDB financing capacity and maximize impact. A significant aspect of the roadmap is its encouragement for development banks to function "as a system," fostering better engagement with governments, development banks at various levels, and the private sector.
The Heads of MDBs Group collaborated closely with Brazil’s G20 presidency to build on prior efforts. This included an April 2024 Viewpoint Note from MDBs detailing 16 key deliverables. Fourteen of these were integrated into the G20 Roadmap, which also prioritizes short-term and medium-term actions for implementation.
Significant achievements highlighted by the MDB Heads Group include reaching a collective goal to increase lending headroom by $400 billion over ten years and raising climate finance lending to record highs in 2023. Climate financing estimates for low- and middle-income countries are projected to rise significantly by 2030.
Additionally, MDBs launched initiatives such as a co-financing portal with over $95 billion in project opportunities and new publications through the Global Emerging Markets Risk Database Consortium. They also enhanced procurement practices among MDBs and worked on catalyzing private sector mobilization through local currency financing.
Moving forward, MDBs will continue implementing their reform agenda informed by the G20 Roadmap. They plan to engage with South Africa's upcoming G20 presidency to track progress using existing reporting mechanisms aligned with their mandates.
On December 2, 2024, leadership of the Heads of MDBs Group will transition from the Inter-American Development Bank to the Council of Europe Development Bank. The group extended gratitude to President Ilan Goldfajn of the Inter-American Development Bank for his leadership as Chair.