Partner London
"The result of FfD4 was the adoption of the Seville Commitment - an agreement by UN Member States to reshape global financial flows to support sustainable development."
In July 2025, representatives of Watson Farley & Williams’ ESG and mining teams attended the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (“FfD4”) in Seville, Spain. The result of FfD4 was the adoption of the Seville Commitment – an agreement by UN Member States to reshape global financial flows to support sustainable development.
The Seville Commitment calls for reform of international financial architecture to allow developing countries cheaper and more sustainable access to finance, allowing them to invest in development projects.
The Seville Commitment acknowledges the growing demand for critical minerals and their huge potential to drive sustainable development. It also notes that most countries rich in critical minerals lack the financial resources to invest in sustainable extraction, processing and other value-addition activities and so are trapped in low-value added resource extraction.
Paragraph 46 of the Seville Commitment, among others, outlines several transformative policy directions focussing on trade in critical minerals and commodities to provide a roadmap for mining to provide positive impacts in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Below, we set out several key policy themes, together with examples of how we are assisting clients to embed these in transactions.
Domestic capacity building
Financial institutions and potential development partners are encouraged to support the development of local industry and domestic production capabilities with a view to increasing value and competitiveness of critical mineral exports from developing countries.
Support for Value Addition
The Seville Commitment calls for increased state-funding for the Common Fund for Commodities (“CFC”) to allow it to increase its capacity to provide loans, grants and investments for projects that promote value addition. Time will tell whether member states to the CFC, such as the UK, will make voluntary contributions to support value addition projects. Given, however, the wide range of financial institutions and other development organisations with whom CFC partners, there will likely be a domino-effect on lending policies of financial institutions, with a focus on supporting local processing and other value-addition activities in-country.
In recent years, we have seen several jurisdictions actively prohibiting the export of raw materials without further refinement. Companies that can finance and provide technology transfer for in-country refinement and value addition are therefore well placed to thrive in these markets. The Seville Commitment could well encourage financial institutions that have not always considered mining an industry which should attract development finance to invest alongside mining companies where there is a clear value-added proposition.
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Senior Associate London
Associate London
Partner Sydney
Partner London
Partner London
Partner Dubai
"The Seville Commitment stresses the importance of providing support to developing countries to negotiate commodity contracts that are stable and adaptable to changing economic conditions."
Global Traceability, Transparency and Accountability
The Seville Commitment places a strong emphasis on developing a global traceability, transparency and accountability framework for the entire mineral value chain to strengthen due diligence, facilitate corporate accountability and build a global market for critical minerals. Companies operating in the mineral value chain may face new due diligence obligations, reporting requirements and increased regulatory scrutiny. A growth in the use of technology tools (for example satellite monitoring and blockchain tracking) to assist both companies and government agencies to monitor and audit compliance can help to overcome potential barriers to trade. Companies that can invest in such technologies and enable local regulators to access data for compliance and monitoring purposes have the potential to put themselves ahead of their competitors in this space.
Stable and Predictable Investment Environments
The Seville Commitment stresses the importance of providing support to developing countries to negotiate commodity contracts that are stable and adaptable to changing economic conditions. Whilst bilateral and multilateral investment treaties have been seen to both attract and safeguard investments by effectively providing ‘guarantees’ around stabilisation and providing foreign investors with the tools to manage risk and make significant investments in developing countries, recent years have seen several countries withdraw from such treaties. Withdrawals relate to a perceived failure of these treaties to protect the rights of local communities and adverse economic consequences for countries arising out of significant claims being brought against the state by investors.
These issues are not new and have been a feature of our advice for some time, working with both governments and companies to advise on the impact of investment treaties, as well as contracts which provide for adaptability in pricing (and disputes arising from their application).
Inclusive Collaboration
The Seville Commitment urges collaboration between governments, regulators, industrial partners and civil society to promote commodity markets that are fair, transparent and resilient and contribute to sustainable development and benefit all participants.
Again, this is something which already regularly appears in our work. Over the last few years, we have seen an increase in elements of consultation and negotiation between each of these groups as well as supporting initiatives to embed consultation into development financing agreements.
The Seville Commitment additionally reiterates that each country is responsible for its own economic and social development and supports country-led development strategies whilst emphasising the need to scale up international cooperation and support for the rising needs of developing countries.
Integration of infrastructure development
The Seville Commitment states that the infrastructure gap in critical sectors such as energy prevents sustainable development and economic growth, especially in developing countries and notes that the least developed nations often face higher infrastructure costs which exacerbates these issues.
"The Seville Commitment marks a pivotal moment for the future of co-investment models, by encouraging value addition, responsible sourcing, inclusive collaboration and stable investment environments."
Integrated investment models that combine infrastructure development with investment in extraction of minerals is one avenue that could support the statements and commitments made in the Seville Commitment.
An excellent example of the co-development of infrastructure needed to export mined iron ore, is the Simandou Project in Guinea, which WFW advised on. In due course, the infrastructure will also be used for passenger and general cargo services and includes provision to be expanded for use by third party producers. The Guinean government has positioned itself as a convening authority that aligns the interests of multiple sponsors and ensures that the infrastructure serves both the mine and broader national development objectives.
Another example of co-development of infrastructure is the development of the Lobito Corridor. The Lobito Corridor is a strategic infrastructure and economic development initiative that connects the mineral-rich states of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo to the Atlantic Ocean via railway to the port of Lobito in Angola. Its main purpose is to transport critical minerals. Whilst the project was borne out of regional cooperation it gained momentum when the US and EU adopted the project under the G7’s Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment.
The Seville Commitment marks a pivotal moment for the future of co-investment models, by encouraging value addition, responsible sourcing, inclusive collaboration and stable investment environments. The Simandou model demonstrates how co-investment in the enabling infrastructure can de-risk large scale mining projects, enhance the host county’s leverage, attract diversified capital and support sustainable development.
We look forward to continuing to support our clients in completing transactions which embody these principles as the Seville Commitment moves from policy to action.
Key contacts
Partner London
Senior Associate London
Associate London
Partner Sydney
Partner London
Partner London
Partner Dubai
