Publications

The 2018 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on sustainable development took place from 9 to 18 July. A total of 46 countries presented voluntary national reviews, up from 43 countries that conducted reviews in 2017. Since the inaugural reviews in 2016, 111 reviews have been presented, by 102 countries, with a number of countries conducting second reviews. Looking ahead to the 2019 HLPF, it is anticipated that 51 countries will present their national reviews, of which 41 will be doing so for the first time.

The voluntary national reviews document how countries are tackling the transformative challenge of the 2030 Agenda. The reviews are country-specific and complement the broader…

New frontier technologies — everything from renewable energy technologies to biodegradable plastics, artificial intelligence and electric vehicles — hold immense potential to improve people’s lives and significantly accelerate efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and address climate change. But without appropriate policies, they can also drive greater inequality and increase social dislocations.

The World Economic and Social Survey 2018 produced by UN DESA found that renewable energy technologies and efficient energy storage systems are already enhancing environmental sustainability, allowing countries to “leapfrog” over existing technological solutions. New…

A fast-changing climate, conflict, inequality, persistent pockets of poverty and hunger and rapid urbanization are challenging countries’ efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), according to the UN’s latest SDG progress report.

The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2018 found that conflict and climate change were major contributing factors leading to growing numbers of people facing hunger and forced displacement, as well as curtailing progress towards universal access to basic water and sanitation services.

For the first time in more than a decade, there were approximately 38 million more hungry people in the world, rising from 777 million in…

Growth in the world economy is surpassing expectations and global GDP is now expected to expand by more than three per cent this year and in 2019, reflecting strong growth in developed countries and broadly favourable investment conditions. But rising trade tensions, heightened uncertainty over monetary policy, increasing debt levels and greater geopolitical tensions can potentially thwart progress, according to the United Nations World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) as of mid-2018.

According to the report, world economic growth is now forecast to reach 3.2 per cent both in 2018 and 2019, an upward revision by 0.2 and 0.1 percentage point, respectively. This revised…

Universal social protection is a potent development policy tool that can alleviate poverty, inequality and social exclusion. Few countries have been able to reduce poverty and improve living conditions on a broad scale without comprehensive social protection systems in place.

The international community’s consensus on the importance of social protection has been reinforced with the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Target 1.3 of the Sustainable Development Goals stresses the role of social protection in ending poverty in all its forms, as it seeks the implementation of “nationally appropriate social protection measures and systems for all, including floors…

–An upturn in the global economy—now growing by about 3 per cent—paves the way to reorient policy towards longer-term issues such as addressing climate change, tackling existing inequalities and removing institutional obstacles to development, according to the United Nations World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) 2018.

“The World Economic Situation and Prospects 2018 demonstrates that current macroeconomic conditions offer policy-makers greater scope to address some of the deep-rooted issues that continue to hamper progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals,” stated UN Secretary-General António Guterres in the Foreword.

According to the report, in 2017, world…

The 2017 meeting of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) took place from 10 to 19 July. A total of 43 countries presented voluntary national reviews, up from 22 countries that presented inaugural reviews at the 2016 HLPF. With this, more than a third of countries will have conducted a voluntary national review, sharing progress, experiences, lessons learned and challenges in implementing the 2030 Agenda. Looking ahead, at the 2018 HLPF, 47 countries will present their national reviews. Four of these will be conducting their second review at the HLPF (Colombia, Egypt, Mexico, and Switzerland) and one country its third (Togo). This report synthesizes some of the…

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development sets out a universal plan of action to achieve sustainable development in a balanced manner and seeks to realize the human rights of all people. It calls for leaving no one behind and for ensuring that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are met for all segments of society, at all ages, with a particular focus on the most vulnerable—including older persons.

Preparing for an ageing population is vital to the achievement of the integrated 2030 Agenda, with ageing cutting across the goals on poverty eradication, good health, gender equality, economic growth and decent work, reduced inequalities and sustainable cities. Therefore, while…

If the world is to eradicate poverty, address climate change and build peaceful, inclusive societies for all by 2030, key stakeholders, including governments, must drive implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at a faster rate, according to the The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2017, launched by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Using the most recent data available, the annual Sustainable Development Goals Report provides an overview of the world’s implementation efforts to date, highlighting areas of progress and areas where more action needs to be taken to ensure no one is left behind. The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2017report found that…

A careful review of 70 years of the United Nations’ economic advice reveals that the analysis still remains relevant to guiding countries through a difficult current global economic situation and for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, according to the World Economic and Social Survey launched today by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

Individual countries have pursued widely different development paths during a period that has witnessed the fastest growth in global output and trade than any other period in the history of humanity—and have achieved varying results from the bleak to the miracle—. An in-depth review of the…

Growth in the global economy has picked up in the last six months in line with expectations, but in many regions, growth remains below the levels needed for rapid progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, according to the United Nations World Economic Situation and Prospects as of mid-2017 report.

The report identifies a tentative recovery in world industrial production, along with reviving global trade, driven primarily by rising import demand from East Asia. World gross product is expected to expand by 2.7 per cent in 2017 and 2.9 per cent in 2018, unchanged from UN forecasts released in January this year. This marks a notable acceleration compared to just 2.…

This action plan builds on the momentum and spirit of the 2014 World Conference on Indigenous Peoples and to this end will promote partnership and collaboration between the UN system, civil society organizations, and multilateral bodies such as regional development banks and human rights special procedures and commissions.

This system wide action plan will contribute to the fit for purpose agenda by ensuring stronger linkages between the normative and operational work of the United Nations, increasing coordination and coherence in addressing the rights of indigenous peoples. It calls for strengthened United Nations senior level engagement, encouraging work with Member…