The United Nations Resident Coordinators in Africa met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to discuss strategies to reduce the risk of dependence on external partners and to strengthen domestic resource mobilisation to promote sustainable development.
The meeting, held on Monday, April 27, 2026, and organised by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the United Nations Development Coordination Office (UNDCO) and the United Nations Development Commission (UNDCO) of the African Union (AUC), was a preparatory event for the African Regional Forum on Sustainable Development, focusing on the African Union’s Domestic Resource Mobilisation Strategy.
This strategy has become critical to financing Africa’s development goals, including the Second Ten-Year Implementation Plan and the 2030 Agenda. Faced with rising financing gaps and debt vulnerability, African countries must mobilise their domestic resources to achieve sustainable development.
Discussions focused on strategies to improve tax policy and administration, combat illicit financial flows, and strengthen the Public financial management – all of which are crucial to strengthen domestic resource mobilisation and support development efforts.
The role of UN Resident Coordinators was also highlighted, highlighting their importance in helping governments align their funding frameworks Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The main obstacles preventing African countries from mobilising resources for development were identified, including structural and economic factors fragmentation of development networks and institutional weaknesses.
To address these challenges, the meeting proposed six strategic priorities: rethinking development from a political economy perspective, strengthening sovereignty African financial institution, deepening regional integration, redirecting financial resources towards transformative initiatives, strengthening tax administration systems, improving service delivery, and strengthening institutional coordination.
The discussions also highlighted the need for African countries to use development banks and national institutions to effectively mobilise national resources. The African Union Commission (AUC) and the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) reaffirmed their strong commitment to support the implementation of these recommendations.
The Director of the Strategic Planning, Monitoring and Results Division of ECA, Mr. Said Adejumobi, representing the Executive Secretary of ECA, highlighted the crucial role of domestic resource mobilisation, noting that Africa’s previous ten-year plan failed due to lack of sufficient funding.
The AU’s Director of Strategic Planning and Implementation, Ms. Botho Kebabonye Bayendi, said that the AU and the UN share a funding framework focused on mobilising domestic resources for the realisation of the African Vision. She urged UN Resident Coordinators to support governments and strengthen coordination to deliver on commitments.
The findings and recommendations are intended to guide regional policy decisions and development initiatives, underscoring Africa’s commitment to advancing its development agenda through strong domestic resource mobilisation.