Publications

The 2019 Financing for Sustainable Development Report (FSDR) of the Inter-agency Task Force on Financing for Development warns that mobilizing sufficient financing remains a major challenge in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Despite signs of progress, investments that are critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remain underfunded and parts of the multilateral system are under strain.

The FSDR recommends that the international community should use this opportunity to reshape both national and international financial systems in line with sustainable development. If we fail to do so, we will fail to deliver the 2030…

The World Youth Report on “Youth and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, prepared by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), examines the mutually supportive roles of the new agenda and current youth development efforts. The report provides insight into the role of young people in sustainable development in the context of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and related frameworks, in particular, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development and the World Programme of Action for Youth.

The Report considers the role the 2030 Agenda can play in enhancing youth…

Countries in all regions of the world are continuing to make strides in their efforts to improve e-government and to provide public services online according to a new report launched by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs today.

In a 2018 ranking of countries on e-government development, Denmark, Australia, and Republic of Korea came out on top of a group of 40 countries, scoring very high on an index (the E-Government Development Index—EGDI), which measures countries’ use of information and communications technologies to deliver public services. The Index captures the scope and quality of online services, status of telecommunication infrastructure and…

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…

The 2018 report of the Inter-agency Task Force on Financing for Development finds that most types of development financing flows increased in 2017, and that there has been progress across all the action areas of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. This progress was underpinned by an upturn in the world economy, but at the same time the report warns that risks could derail development progress and structural impediments continue to undermine sustainable development prospects.

The 2018 report provides policy options which, if implemented, would put the world on a sustained and sustainable growth and development path. It also examines the financing challenges to the SDGs under…

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…

Continued slow global economic growth is likely to leave about 6.5 per cent of the world population extremely poor in 2030 without national actions supported by international cooperation, according to a new report issued by the United Nations today.

A continuation of the status quo would severely hamper efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. The Goals call for eliminating poverty by 2030.

According to the 2017 “Financing for Development: Progress and Prospects” report, under current trends, least developed countries (LDCs) are likely to fall short by large margins.

Projections indicating that global gross product will grow at less than 3…

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…

In Africa, as in other regions, persons with disabilities are disproportionately likely to live in poverty and, too often, lack access to education, health care, employment opportunities, housing, social protection systems, justice, cultural expression and participation in political life. The ability of persons with disabilities to participate in society is often frustrated because physical environments, transportation and information and communications systems are not accessible.

In this context, a Toolkit on Disability for Africa has been developed by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), Division for Social Policy and Development (DSPD). It is…

The United Kingdom, followed by  Australia and the Republic of Korea, lead the world in providing government services and information through the Internet,  e-government, according to a new survey released today by the United Nations showing the progress of nations in promoting e-government.

The 2016 UN E-Government Survey provides new evidence that e-government has the potential to help support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs).

The Survey found that United Kingdom has pursued continued development on e-government innovation, and its Government Digital Service has been replicated by other countries around the…

Launching the first-ever Sustainable Development Goals report on the new global development agenda adopted in 2015, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that the 15-year undertaking was “off to a good start” but would require all parts of the UN family and its partners to work together.

“We have embarked on a monumental and historic journey,” the Secretary-General told the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), which opened on 11 July and ended on 20 July 2016, at the UN Headquarters in New York.

“We must all learn, in national governments, in local authorities, in business and civil society, and also at the United Nations, to think differently,” he…