A study on challenges and opportunities in financing Sustainable Development Goals 4 and 9 in three Caribbean countries: an exploratory analysis

This study presents an exploratory analysis of the current state of financing the implementation of quality education and resilient infrastructure in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados and Saint Lucia. The study will analyze domestic funding sources, including government budgetary resources, and foreign sources, including loans and grants. It will examine strategies the region can adopt to leverage funding at scale, such as blended finance, innovative PPPs, ESG-driven FDI and syndicated loans. The study will also examine how the countries can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of financing to increase the impact per unit cost of spending. Th United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide the most wide-ranging global strategy for achieving sustainable development. They integrate major socio-economic, political and environmental concerns. Anchored in the 5 Ps- people, planet, prosperity, peace and partnership, the SDGs provide a unified road map that considers trade-offs and complementarities in the development process. Caribbean countries have committed to the SDGs as a roadmap to guide their development (CARICOM Secretariat, 2017). In 2015, along with other Caribbean countries, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados and Saint Lucia, the three countries analyzed in this study, identified 12 SDGs for priority action. These included SDGs 4 and 9, which will be the focus of this study (IISD, 2015). Since then, the three countries have been trying to integrate the SDGs into their - national development plans and strategies (ECLAC, 2017). Crucially, the countries recognize the need to implement the SDGs in an integrated and harmonized manner to optimize the use of resources and to realize beneficial synergies among goals. Moreover, a significant value added of the SDGs is that they promote a vision and strategy beyond the four-year election cycle in the countries, thereby entrenching commitment to long-term policies that advance sustainable development.