Today and tomorrow, President Alar Karis is attending the 4th UN International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) in the Spanish city of Seville.
The Estonian head of state says that development cooperation and the way it is financed need to be reformed. “Developing countries must decide for themselves which path to take, and partner countries can support them on that journey,” he remarked. “Businesses, civil society and international organisations all have a part to play in making development more effective. Estonia’s experience is that cooperation and promoting trade relations have a more lasting impact than aid. To achieve that, we have to invest in education, digital solutions and new technologies like AI, all of which support economic development. Estonia is very happy to share its experience when it comes to digital solutions.”
Tonight, President Karis will be attending a gala dinner hosted by His Majesty King Felipe VI of Spain.
Tomorrow, the head of state will be attending the opening plenary session of FfD4, where he will speak on behalf of Estonia in a general debate on the financing of development and the possibilities of digitalisation in supporting developing countries.
Alongside his Sierra Leonean counterpart Julius Maada Bio, President Karis will co-chair a debate focusing on how to support developing countries via digitalisation and new solutions.
The head of state will also be meeting with his Angolan and Senegalese counterparts João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço and Bassírou Diomaye Diakhar Faye, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli of Nepal and UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
On Monday evening, President Karis will be attending a reception hosted by Spanish head of government Pedro Sánchez.
World leaders will come together with representatives of banks, businesses, civil society, international organisations and the UN at FfD4 to discuss and bolster cooperation in support of developing countries. The Seville conference aims to agree on new approaches to supporting global development and developing countries more effectively through the joint adoption of an outcome document entitled Compromiso de Sevilla. Heads of state and government from almost 50 countries will be attending the event.
