Reflections on UN SDGs implementation

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 Global Goals outlined by the UN as a universal call to action to eradicate poverty, safeguard the environment, and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030. The different goals are based on a principle of interconnectedness with each other where different causality relations might influence the outcome of one over the other. Based on this doctrine UN countries must develop a framework aimed at maximizing potential synergies and disrupting foreseen trade offs in order to achieve the most optimal payoff. To this regard, there is a whole branch of the UNDP specializing in support on SDGs integration in order to tackle upcoming challenges in the most efficient and comprehensive way and provide guidance to different stakeholders on potential approaches, methods, capabilities and spaces to go from to lead systems changes on a daily basis.

Globally, the latest available data on the 140 measurable targets shows moderate if not insufficient progress towards the 2030 goals with 30% experiencing no progress or regression. On the other hand, great advancements have been made in the process of tracking and monitoring SDG related indicators through a process of continuous refinement and harmonization. This has allowed to increase the country coverage from 36% to 66%. Nonetheless, gaps persist both in the geographical coverage of data as well as the incompatibility among countries or regions to which regard National Statistical Offices (NSOs) are playing a vital role in coordination and innovation.


By analysing the progress of each target with its related goal, globally one can notice how SDG 4 Quality Education, SDG 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth, SDG 16 Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions seem to be the targets with lowest progress. 

On the other hand, SDG 12 Responsible Consumption and Production, SDG 14 Life Below Water and SDG 15 Life on Land seem to show the more extensive progress since 2015 baseline.


In conclusion, in order to achieve the SDGs it is vital to foster innovations and policies with the aim of reducing the potential trade offs and non associations among different goals, i.e. SDGs 11, 13, 14, 16, and 17, and continue fostering the transformations of synergies into a virtuous cycle of SDG progress.



References:


United Nation Development Programme, The SDGs in action, UNPD, Available at: https://www.undp.org/sustainable-development-goals

United Nation Development Programme, SDG integration: Integrated Solutions for Sustainable Development, UNPD, Available at: https://sdgintegration.undp.org/

Kroll, C., Warchold, A. & Pradhan, P. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Are we successful in turning trade-offs into synergies?. Palgrave Commun 5, 140 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-019-0335-5

United Nation Development Programme, Sustainable Development Goals: Progress Chart 2023, UNPD, Available at: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2023/progress-chart/Progress-Chart-2023.pdf

United Nation Development Programme, The Sustainable Development Goals Report: Special Edition, UNPD, Available at: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2023/

Our World in Data team (2023), SDG Tracker: Measuring progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals, OurWorldInData.org, available at: 'https://ourworldindata.org/sdgs


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