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A commitment to 100% SDG alignment
AFD Group aims to become the first public development bank that is 100% SDG-aligned. To meet this commitment, AFD Group is focusing on a development model with a high level of sustainability that mainstreams protection of the planet, the reduction of inequalities and citizen participation.
AFD Group’s commitment to being 100% SDG-aligned aims to combine ecosystem integrity, the reduction of inequalities, and prosperity for all. In concrete terms, we will pay more attention to the impacts and quality of our offers, and all our actions will have to systematically mainstream the major cross-cutting challenges concerning the planet, social cohesion and democracy. Our Sustainable Development Analysis and Advice Grid (AADD) will guide us on this path. We undertake to:
- Increase the share of our financing targeting transformational and systemic impact,
- Maximize the positive co-benefits and synergies between the three cross-cutting challenges,
- Do no significant harm to any of the SDGs.
Financing for sustainable transitions
From water, energy, and transport, to health and education, the need for sustainable infrastructure remains vast in many emerging and vulnerable countries. This is why AFD, Proparco, Expertise France, and the STOA impact fund have been taking action to support the sustainable transformation of local, regional, and national infrastructure, in the wake of the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact and in accordance with the guidelines of the French Presidential Council for Development. Concrete examples are our contributions to the Global Gateway initiative in Africa, European convergence in the Balkans, and resilience in the Indo-Pacific countries.
AFD Group is also committed to developing local and international financing fully aligned with the SDGs. In line with the Paris Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, we support changes in the practices of economic entities by providing technical assistance. This support especially helps micro, small and medium-sized enterprises as well as the agricultural sector to achieve SDGs 2 (“Zero Hunger”) and 12 (“Sustainable Consumption and Production”) and to strengthen food security. As part of this policy, Proparco finances agricultural value chains in Africa through the Food and Agriculture Resilience Mission (FARM) initiative.
Human development, strongly impacted by the recent crises, remains a core aspect of AFD Group’s actions. Our goal is to raise the Human Development Index by targeting:
- The social impact of investments and the tools to measure it
- Social, territorial, economic and climate vulnerabilities, based on behavioral science and knowledge capitalization from the Fund for Innovation in Development (FID)
- The financing of long-term social policies, to scale up social innovations
© Albert Gonzalez Farran / UNAMID
AFD Group is also working for universal access to education and health by supporting projects for young people and the training of health professionals.
Maximizing multiple impacts across climate, social cohesion, and democratic progress
Three cross-cutting themes are the guarantees of a better world: (i) the planet; (ii) social cohesion; and (iii) institutions, citizens and democracy. AFD Group now systematically mainstreams these into all its actions.
Since 2017, AFD Group has maintained a strict commitment to achieving the 2030 Agenda and has enhanced its activities through several actions:
- Financing projects with strong transformational impact,
- Aligning with the Global Biodiversity Framework adopted at COP15,
- Mainstreaming "just transition" issues and vulnerabilities into our approaches.
AFD Group provides guidance in developing and financing low-carbon and resilient trajectories. Civil society, the research world, public authorities and private actors are mobilized to achieve these goals. So as not to harm nature, we also assess climate and biodiversity-related risks, including within the framework of the EU Corporate Social Responsibility Directive (CSRD). Our actions also take into consideration local vulnerabilities so that no harm is caused to other SDGs.
Reducing inequalities and promoting inclusion
AFD Group’s projects incorporate an “equality and inclusion” indicator and follow a redistribution approach, in particular through fair tax policies and investments targeting disadvantaged territories or vulnerable populations.
In line with its feminist commitment, AFD Group is working on gender mainstreaming (DAC 1) and the empowerment of women (DAC 2). We are promoting women’s physical, economic and political autonomy and strengthening the Support Fund for Feminist Organizations (FSOF) and cultural and creative industries.
Fostering citizen participation and democratic processes
We can observe distrust of democracy all over the world. Its symptoms are: the shrinking of civic space, declining trust in democratic institutions and a revival in the popularity of authoritarian politics. Luckily, there are still those who aspire after “substantive democracy”, which is favorable to collective deliberation. AFD Group supports such local democratic dynamics and efforts to promote the rule of law, human rights and the creation of spaces for dialog between citizens and decision-makers. Our support is in no way conditional on a given institutional model.
Our actions involve a variety of stakeholders (government ministries, local authorities, civil society, the research world, etc.) and draw inspiration from democratic practices. AFD Group promotes deliberative processes at different scales, particularly at the project level, while capitalizing on and amplifying the experiences already undertaken locally. Our action promotes an inclusive approach to human rights and is in line overall with French policy guidelines such as the Programming Act on Inclusive Development and Combating Global Inequalities, the Policy Coherence for Development, and the Interministerial Committee for International Cooperation and Development.
Ensuring that no SDGs are compromised
Alignment with the SDGs means ensuring that projects financed by AFD Group do not undermine any of the other goals. This requires:
- Thorough analysis of the realities of countries and the impacts between the various societal, environmental and institutional issues
- Stronger support for public and private actors engaged in structural transformations
Beyond projects, AFD Group identifies and supports the agents of structural change, which include government ministries, local authorities, banks, NGOs, companies, media, and others. For non-state actors, our support involves financing, technical cooperation and peer exchanges, in particular via the IDFC and FiCS Club networks.
At the same time, AFD is working on a global scale to bring norms and standards in line with the SDGs and with climate and biodiversity needs. AFD is active in influential coalitions such as JEFIC, IDFC and FiCS, which represent nearly 15% of global investment. In this way, we can help influence discussions on sustainable finance.
