No health, gender and eco justice without ending wars, invasions and genocides

Shobha Shukla (CNS)
While health, gender and other sustainable development goals are reeling under severe funding cuts, Govts of richer Nations are increasing defence budgets. More shocking is that same Govts who are raising spending on militarisation, are the ones committing to ‘peace’ at a global meet on financing for development and refusing on debt cancellation for the Global South Nations.
In June 2025, a meeting of NATO and its allies was held which pledged to increase defence spending to 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035. “Yet these same countries-the same NATO countries-during negotiations of 4th Financing for Development Conference of the UN (FfD4), refused to include a reference to debt cancellation for the Global South. This increased commitment to militarisation without relieving the persistent debt crisis remains a major gap in the FfD4 process,” said Swetha, Senior Global Policy Research Officer at Fos Feminista.
"This is the money (5% rise in budgets for mili-tarisation) they are taking off from programmes on gender equality and human rights (including human right to health),” said Mabel Bianco, founding president of FEIM (foundation for studies and research on women).
A Feminist Forum was organised right before the FfD4 began. “Feminist Forum’s Political Declaration importantly called for de- escalating wars and ending territorial invasions and genocide- nothing less from this is acceptable,” said Sai Jyothirmai Ra-cherla, Deputy Executive Director of ARROW (Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women).
Agrees Lidy Nacpil, coordinator of Asian People's Movement on Debt and Development (AP-MDD): “I would echo what Political Declaration of Feminist Forum organised before FfD4 said that no real financing justice can be reached without an urgent end to escalating wars, territorial invasions and genocides, in Gaza, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and other places.”
“There is growing realisation of debt. Global North has plundered Global South for centuries. Systematic accountability for the historical role of the Global North in causing and perpetuating the debt crises in the Global South, along with reparations and non-debt creating finance are central demands for a feminist transformation of the existing international financial architecture,” responded Zainab Shumail of Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD).
Global South is reeling under perennial debt and debt servicing.
(To be contd)