Francis Zinsou – Former Permanent Representative of Benin to the United Nations and former negotiator on behalf of the (then) 49 Least Developed Countries at the 2015 Financing for Development conference which produced the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA) – the current global agenda for development finance which includes an enhanced recognition of the private sector as a development actor – alongside public funding of Overseas Development Assistance. Ambassador Zinsou explains how local governments were excluded from early drafts of the AAAA, which only referenced a role for central government, civil society and the private sector. Benin’s advocacy led to the inclusion of “article 34”, recognizing the role of local government finance, despite indifference from some national governments.