by: United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)

The purpose of this paper is to explore the nexus between the sustainable development agenda -- from the Earth Summit in 1992 to Rio+20 in 2012 -- and development cooperation. It explores the evolution of international cooperation, and in particular finance, in response to the emergence of the sustainable development agenda, and their contribution to supporting that agenda. We then examine how the elaboration of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as proposed by the Rio+20 outcome document, could provide a framework for more effective international cooperation for sustainable development.

This paper does not engage in detailed examination of the financial flows related to international cooperation – a topic that is covered elsewhere. Instead, it tries to identify the main weaknesses in the current framework for international cooperation in regard to bringing humanity to a more sustainable development path, and the potential for improvement. The paper draws on material published since the Earth Summit, including material prepared for the UNCSD (Rio+20).

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