Are FfD3 and Post-2015 striking the right public-private balance?

Global Policy Watch - Briefing #4

By Barbara Adams and Gretchen Luchsinger

Getting the right balance between public and private sector roles and responsibilities in the Financing for Development and Post-2015 process will be fundamental to prospects for sustainable, inclusive development. Yet early evidence suggests this balance is already awry, skewed far in favour of private interests. Are we seeing a process of outsourcing the international agenda?

There’s no question that businesses around the world are sources of growth and employment. But they are also the source of the most serious threats to sustainable development—from pollution to illicit financial flows that undermine prospects for public resources.

Can we have a transformative development agenda without the transformation of business? Is it time for a new model of business fully grounded in sustainability and inclusion as inherent, not optional, operating principles?