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SDGs Still Off Track Despite Progress, Warns UN Report

GreenWatch Desk: Development 2025-07-15, 11:13am

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Inequalities persist across the world including in Ghana (pictured).



Global life expectancy increased by an astonishing five years between 2000 and 2019. However, since the COVID-19 pandemic, it has slid backwards by almost two years. More than 110 million children have entered school since 2015, but by 2023, 272 million children still lacked access to classrooms.

The UN’s latest Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Report, launched Monday by Secretary-General António Guterres, chronicles both progress and setbacks—showing that while the world has made significant advances, it remains drastically off track to achieve its development goals by 2030.

“This report is more than a snapshot of today. It’s also a compass pointing the way to progress. This report shows that the Sustainable Development Goals are still within reach, but only if we act—with urgency, unity, and unwavering resolve,” said Mr. Guterres.

The report’s release coincides with the opening of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, which will continue over the next ten days in New York, aiming to address the UN chief’s call to action.

In 2015, the General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda, outlining 17 Sustainable Development Goals—including ending poverty and ensuring universal access to healthcare and quality education. The SDGs aim to prioritise future generations through sustainable and climate-friendly initiatives.

“The 2030 Agenda represents our collective recognition that our destinies are intertwined and that sustainable development is not a zero-sum game but a shared endeavour that benefits us all,” said Li Junhua, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs.

Ten years after this commitment, the agenda faces mounting challenges, including a $4 trillion funding shortfall for the developing world and rising geopolitical tensions undermining multilateralism.

“The problem is that the Sustainable Development Goals do not include the instruments necessary to make them happen,” said Mr. Guterres.

In light of these challenges, only 18 per cent of the SDGs are on track to be achieved by 2030. Around 17 per cent are showing moderate progress. However, over half of the goals are progressing too slowly—and 18 per cent have regressed.

“We are in a global development emergency, measured in over 800 million people still living in extreme poverty, intensifying climate impacts, and relentless debt servicing,” the Secretary-General warned.

Between 2015 and 2023, maternal death rates and child mortality under five years old dropped by approximately 15 per cent. In the same period, 54 countries eliminated at least one tropical disease, and 2.2 billion malaria cases were prevented through targeted interventions.

“These victories are not abstract statistics—they represent real lives transformed, families lifted from poverty, and communities empowered to build better, more resilient futures,” said Mr. Li.

However, many people continue to be left behind. One in ten people still lives in extreme poverty, and one in eleven faces food insecurity. Over 1.1 billion people live in slums or informal settlements without basic services, including clean water and sanitation. In 2024, one person was killed in conflict every 12 minutes.

In short, while many lives were transformed over the past decade, many more were left behind—and some worsened or lost.

“What we have learned since then is that sustainable development is not a destination but a journey of innovation, adaptation, and commitment to human dignity,” said Mr. Li.

Reliable data underpins sustainable development, according to the Secretary-General’s report. It enables the UN, governments, and civil society to track progress and target investments where they are most needed.

When the 2030 Agenda was adopted in 2015, only a third of the SDGs had sufficient data, and over a third lacked internationally agreed methodologies. Today, 70 per cent of SDG indicators are well-monitored, and all have internationally recognised monitoring systems in place.

Yet, progress in data collection, like all aspects of the development agenda, faces growing threats.

“This report tells the SDG story in numbers, but it is, above all, a call to action,” said Mr. Guterres.

The Secretary-General emphasised that achieving the SDGs requires significant reforms to the global financial system, beginning with renewed investment in multilateralism.

“This year’s High-Level Political Forum is a crucial moment that gives us hope and encourages collective, innovative thinking,” said Lok Bahadur Thapa, Vice-President of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), at the forum’s opening.

The forum signals that the work is not yet done—achieving the goals will require greater investment and stronger commitment over the next five years to prevent further setbacks.

“This is not a moment for despair, but for determined action. We have the knowledge, tools, and partnerships to drive transformation. What we need now is urgent multilateralism—a recommitment to shared responsibility and sustained investment,” said Mr. Li.