7th PAGE-DCO Dialogue | 28/05/2025

Financing Sustainable Food Systems for SDG Acceleration

Under the title “Financing Sustainable Food Systems for SDG Acceleration”, the 7th PAGE-DCO Dialogue explored the critical role of finance in transforming food systems to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Held on 28 May 2025, the dialogue brought together around 100 participants including high-level panelists, UNRCO economists, partnership officers and PAGE country teams to reflect on the opportunities and challenges ahead, building on current global momentum towards food systems transformation.

Co-organized by PAGE and the UN Development Coordination Office (DCO), in collaboration with the UN Food Systems Hub, the dialogue emphasized that transforming food systems through effective financing is vital for building resilience, offering the potential to create millions of rural jobs, lower healthcare expenses, and safeguard biodiversity.

The Urgency of Transformation

Despite their potential benefits, current food systems are largely misaligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and generate significant hidden costs globally, estimated at 12 trillion dollars annually. They are a major contributor to environmental degradation, accounting for around one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions, 70% of freshwater withdrawals, and a significant share of deforestation. These challenges are compounded by the degradation of the very natural resources these systems rely upon.

The dialogue underlined that while the transformation of food systems offers substantial benefits, including the potential to unlock $4.5 trillion in new business opportunities annually, it is hampered by financial and political barriers. Current funding practices often reinforce industrial, large-scale, export-oriented agriculture, which can lead to negative environmental and social outcomes. Shifting financial flows toward more sustainable practices was identified as a necessary step forward.

Power dynamics are everywhere. If we want to transform finance in the food system, we need to explore who holds the power around finance

Andrew Bovarnick Global Head of Food and Agricultural Commodity Systems, UNDP

The Political Dimension

A key insight highlighted throughout the dialogue was that transforming food systems is not just a financial challenge, but also a political one.

Power imbalances—ranging from global financial institutions to local actors—affect who benefits from existing systems and who is left behind. Incorporating political economy analysis into financial strategies was highlighted as essential to addressing these inequalities and designing more inclusive systems.

Pathways for Change

The dialogue explored potential pathways and solutions. There was consensus that it’s not just about finding more money but about shifting existing finance in smarter ways. Reforming agricultural subsidies and other harmful forms of support emerged as one of the clearest levers available.

While policy support and subsidies can be complex, tools like the Policy Optimization Tool (PolOpT) are being developed to help countries navigate these challenges and identify SDG-related payoffs from optimizing agricultural policy support.

Innovative approaches such as blended finance, de-risking instruments and concessional loans were highlighted as promising options for scaling up investment in sustainable food systems. International financial institutions were noted as key players in supporting national reform agendas and investment strategies, particularly in debt distress contexts.

Voices From the Ground

The role of UN Country Teams and UNRCOs in helping governments connect high-level planning with implementation, particularly in navigating complex reforms, shone brightly in the breakout sessions. Breakout discussions, facilitated by UNRCO economists from Rwanda, Jordan, Indonesia, Tajikistan, and Bolivia, provided an opportunity for country-level sharing on innovative financing approaches, policy integration, and the role of UNRCOs and UNCTs in supporting these efforts.

Participants also acknowledged the varying needs of different country groups, such as Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Least Developed Countries (LDCs), and Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), emphasizing that while there is no one-size-fits-all solution, coordinated efforts at national and international levels are essential.

The dialogue served as a platform for knowledge exchange and collaboration, reinforcing the shared understanding that aligning finance with inclusive and resilient development remains both a critical challenge and a major opportunity.

Launched in 2021, PAGE-DCO Dialogue Series “One UN for Accelerating a Fair and Green Economic Transformation” leverages the collective economic expertise of the UN Resident Coordinator network through thematic dialogues focused on key areas of green economic transformation. The next PAGE-DCO Dialogue is scheduled for the last quarter of 2025.

PAGE and UN DCO

Launched in 2021, PAGE-DCO Dialogue Series “One UN for Accelerating a Fair and Green Economic Transformation” leverages the collective economic expertise of the UN Resident Coordinator network through thematic dialogues focused on key areas of green economic transformation. The next PAGE-DCO Dialogue is scheduled for the last quarter of 2025.

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