Publications & Documents

This Working Paper presents the perspective of Indonesia on the concept of total official support for sustainable development (TOSSD), the extent of TOSSD resources provided by Indonesia and the capacity of the government to report on these resources. Indonesia broadly supported TOSSD as a relevant measure for monitoring SDG implementation and proposed some adjustments to the TOSSD methodology. Estimates for TOSSD provided by Indonesia in 2017 amount to USD 6 376 million, with USD 16 million for Pillar I (cross-border flows to other developing countries) and USD 6 360 million for Pillar II (contributions to international public goods). For Indonesia, activities recorded in TOSSD should not only be assessed in financial terms, but also in terms of their sustainable development impact. This pilot study attests to Indonesia’s strong capacity to report on TOSSD Pillar I, but finds that tracking could be improved for a wider range of resources. The country also has the capacity to report on Pillar II.

The majority of forcibly displaced people worldwide are hosted by developing countries. Alternative routes to sustainable solutions for the forcibly displaced, particularly in developing countries, are drying up, and the path towards and support for local integration and longer-term development is becoming urgent. Based on a questionnaire, this report delves into the question of how donor countries are addressing forced displacement and whether the shift towards a focus incorporating the humanitarian-development-peace nexus in addressing forced displacement is tangible. It highlights lessons learned so far and proposes recommendations on broadening the current approach to addressing forced displacement in developing economies.

The least developed countries (LDCs) are the furthest from achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They are also likely to be hit the hardest by the COVID-19 crisis and badly need the additional private finance that blended finance can unlock. Yet evidence shows that too little private finance is mobilised for investment in LDCs. How can this be fixed? The Blended Finance in the Least Developed Countries 2020 report is the third edition and second joint UNCDF-OECD report. It builds on UNCDF research and transactional experience, OECD data and analysis on private finance mobilized by official development finance, and a series consultations with and contributions by blended finance experts, LDC governments, UN missions, donors, civil society and research institutions. The report provides an update on the deployment of blended finance in LDCs. It also analyses its potential role in helping those countries recover from the COVID-19 crisis, and provides an Action Agenda for unlocking capital for the achievement of the SDGs in LDCs, as called for in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda.

There are approximately 800,000 Indigenous Australians, which is 3.3% of Australia’s total population. Indigenous Australians are custodians of the world’s oldest living continuous culture and make a vital contribution to contemporary Australian society. Indigenous Australians are also important for the future of the national economy. For example, the amount of land with Indigenous ownership and interest has increased significantly in the last 50 years and now covers approximately half of Australia’s land mass. Indigenous Australians play an important role in the development of regional economies. Compared to the non-Indigenous population, Indigenous peoples are more likely to be located in predominantly rural regions. However, significant gaps in socio-economic outcomes with non-Indigenous Australians remain and these gaps are larger in rural regions. The report provides three key recommendations to improve economic outcomes for Indigenous Australians: improving the quality of the statistical framework and the inclusion of Indigenous peoples in the governance of data; promoting entrepreneurship to provide opportunities for Indigenous peoples to use assets and resources in ways that align with their objectives for development; and, implementing an approach to policies that is adapted to places, and empowers Indigenous institutions and communities.

The sale of publicly-owned oil, gas and minerals can have a significant impact on the development trajectory of resource-rich developing and emerging economies due to the large volume of commodities sold and the amount of money involved. Therefore, getting the buyer selection process right is a crucial step to prevent potential public revenue losses that can arise through sub-optimal allocation and corruption. This Guidance is intended to strengthen state-owned enterprises (SOEs)’ capacity to market commodities and optimise the value of resources sold. It explains how SOEs can set up transparent and competitive buyer selection procedures that reduce discretion, close opportunities for favouritism and corruption, ultimately leading to increased revenues for improved development outcomes. Based on the review of existing selection and procurement processes, the Guidance provides recommendations for countering key corruption challenges at each step of the buyer selection process, and identifies examples of best practices. This Guidance complements the work of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) on recommended disclosures of buyer selection procedures by SOEs.

This study examines reforms to civil service pension arrangements in a number of developing countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America. These arrangements are a significant component of public-sector remuneration in many developing countries and they can carry substantial risks, not only financial but also political and social. This study takes a long-term and systemic approach to civil service pensions, charting their evolution as part of a country’s social protection provision and with reference to public-sector remuneration as well as broader institutional developments. It demonstrates the short- and long-term costs of these arrangements against spending on other social protection interventions, notably poverty-targeted social assistance. Through a series of case studies, it examines the motivation behind countries’ decision to reform their civil service schemes, as well as the challenges they faced when undertaking these reforms and their overall impact. The study is intended to support countries planning to reform their civil service pension schemes by identifying key principles and specific policies they might consider in this process; it can also support governments not planning such reforms to better understand the financial dynamics of their civil service schemes.