A spatial perspective on the impact of official development assistance on sustainable development goals

The United Nations (UN)'s 2030 Agenda for 17 Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a critical framework for advancing environmental sustainability and human development. Official Development Assistance (ODA) serves as a key source of financing for the SDGs, particularly in developing countries. This study investigates the impact of ODA on various aspects of SDG performance, emphasizing the need for a holistic approach that accounts for the diverse needs, uneven progress, and spatial interdependencies among UN member states between 2000 and 2021. Our findings show that ODA statistically significantly supports basic goals such as SDG 1 (no poverty) and SDG 2 (zero hunger), but has limited, or in some cases negative, effects on other goals, including SDG 8 (decent work), SDG 9 (industry and innovation), SDG 15 (life on land), and SDG 16 (peace and institutions). The results also reveal substantial heterogeneity across country groups, underscoring the need for ODA to broaden its focus to underfunded areas and adopt more context-specific strategies that recognize spatial dynamics, manage trade-offs, and prioritize SDG pathways aligned with country-specific capacities and priorities.