United Nations, July 23 (IANS): UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for reform of the international financial system which he described as "outdated, dysfunctional and unfair".

In a video message to the first meeting of the Preparatory Committee for the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, which started in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Monday, Guterres said the upcoming conference provides a unique opportunity to tackle financing challenges "head-on" as reported by Xinhua news agency.

The conference, scheduled to take place in Spain from June 30 to July 3, 2025, "opens the door for world leaders to adopt ambitious reforms to deliver affordable long-term financing at scale, and deliver the SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) Stimulus," said the UN Chief.

"It presents a unique opportunity to reform an international financial system that is outdated, dysfunctional and unfair -- from the tax and debt architecture to the system of public development banks, to trade and investment rules, to the financial safety net and global governance," he added.

Since world leaders met in Addis Ababa nine years ago and agreed on a transformative agenda committing public and private actors to align investment and policies with sustainable development, progress has been made, but many commitments remain unfulfilled, Guterres said.

The world is facing "seismic shocks" that make financing challenges harder to solve, and geopolitical divisions that undermine collective action, he stressed.

"Faced with sky-high debt burdens and costs of capital, developing countries have limited prospects of financing the Sustainable Development Goals."

"I count on all of you to move forward with a determination to rescue the 2030 Agenda. And together, we can deliver not only a financial system, but a world, that is more just, equitable and sustainable," Guterres concluded.