HAMBURG, Germany (Reuters)

Many of the world’s poorest countries are having to cut other investments to service debts, stated United Nations Development Programme administrator Achim Steiner on Monday.

Speaking at the Hamburg Sustainability Conference, Steiner noted that the financial crunch is hindering countries from meeting their sustainable development goals. “For many least developed countries, they have literally been priced out of the financial markets. They cannot borrow any more money,” he said, emphasizing the extreme situation that forces countries to reduce other spending to avoid defaulting on debts.

Countries such as Ghana, Sri Lanka, and Zambia have recently defaulted on their debts, while others are struggling with payments due to rising borrowing costs linked to the global interest rate hike.

Simultaneously, the world requires trillions more dollars annually to achieve climate spending goals. Steiner pointed out that increasing financing is “absolutely central” to fulfilling sustainable development goals, which the UNDP is closely monitoring.

“We have to tackle this issue of our international financial architecture and our international financial system,” Steiner warned. “If not, we are going to fall apart in our endeavor to find answers that our citizens are expecting from us.”