Existing research highlights the OECD’s strategic efforts to position itself as a key monitor of Sus-tainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4) while aligning its educational programs and activities with SDG4 objectives (Li and Morris, 2022), exemplified by initiatives such as the annual Education at a Glance reports. Although the SDGs evolved from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and earlier International Development Goals (IDGs)—over which the OECD exerted significant influence, as articulated in the 1996 OECD/DAC report Shaping the Twenty-First Century: The Contribution of Development Cooperation, supported by the World Bank and IMF (Fontdevila, 2021)—it was not until 2019 that the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) was officially recognized as one of the main sources that informed the design of the moni-toring framework for SDG target 4.1.1c. This development reveals a significant narrative about the design and monitoring of global development goals, as well as the ongoing struggle for le-gitimacy and influence within the global architecture of intergovernmental organizations. Drawing on sociological theories of knowledge and policy brokers operating within the global governance complex (Steiner-Khamsi, Martens, & Ydesen, 2024), this paper investigates the OECD’s role in shaping and advancing SDG4. Using archival documents from the OECD Library and Archives and interviews with retired members of the OECD’s Center for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI) and Education Policy Committee, this study examines the collaborations and coordination between UNESCO, UIS, and the OECD. Particular focus is given to the OECD Work-ing Party on Indicators of Educational Systems (e.g., OECD 2016, 2018) and the organization’s initiatives related to SDG4. Finally, the paper critically analyzes the trajectories established through these processes and their implications beyond the expiration of the SDGs in 2030. It aims to identify key considerations for researchers and policymakers engaged in developing comparative and international education frameworks for the post-2030 era.

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