The SDG Targets in 2030: Successes and Failures

The SDG Targets in 2030: Successes and Failures
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The SDG Targets in 2030: Successes and Failures
There are eight years left for the United Nations (UN) Member States to deliver the sustainable development goals (SDGs) in 2030. The UN has dubbed this period a “Decade of Action” moment, but it is unlikely that these goals will be met. The SDGs are contained in the “Transforming Our World”, the UN’s 2015 report that first set out goals that would serve as a guide for global development until 2030 (Holden, Linnerud, & Banister, 2017). Following its release, critics have argued about the viability of the recommendations contained in the report with some terming it contradictory in achieving economic development while enhancing “harmony with nature (Hickel, 2019).” Holden, Linnerud, and Banister (2017) have also perceived the recommendations to be in stark contrast to “Our Common Future”, a UN report published in 1987 that recognized the impact of increasing economic growth on sustainability. These critics indicate weaknesses in the SDG recommendations and are pointers that most objectives may not be achieved. With the time fast approaching the deadline of 2030, some of the targets may or may not be achieved by 2030, and examining the successes and failures in reaching the goals by 2030 is critical in realigning priorities toward this agenda. This essay discusses the SDGs while examining a brief history behind the plan. Using specific examples of the SDGs and tracking their progress, the paper determines the current state of achieving certain goals and identifies the goals that are likely to be achieved and those that are most difficult to attain with reasons. Based on four goals: equity, provision of quality education, gender, and creation of decent work and spurring sustainable economic growth, this essay examines the capacity of Kenya to meet the SDGs by 2030. The last section reflects on the next steps and key recommendations to the United Nations.
SDG Goals and Historical Background
The Millennium Development Goal (MDGs) of 2000 was a predecessor of the SDG 2030 which outlined eight goals that were adopted by the UN. In this earlier plan, the UN was committed to reducing poverty and social exclusion, affording universal primary education, promoting and supporting gender equity and women empowerment, reducing child mortality, improving maternal health, preventing the spread of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, promote environmental sustainability, and enhancing partnership for development. These goals were later reviewed to constitute the current 17 SDGs. The new targets have focused mainly on gender and development with 8 goals (goals 1, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, and 17) touching on the issue of women empowerment for sustainable development. These comprise poverty reduction; gender equality; clean water and sanitation; affordable clean energy; sustainable cities and communities; responsible production and consumption; climate action; and partnership for the goals. The other 9 SDGs (goals 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, and 16) include zero hunger; good health and wellbeing; quality education; decent work and economic growth; industry, innovation, and infrastructure; reduced inequalities; life below water; life on land; and peace, justice, and strong institutions (United Nations, n.d). Adopted by all UN Member States, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a blueprint for peace and prosperity for humanity and the planet Earth for present and future generations. The 17 SDGs represent an urgent call for all nations to collaborate for sustainable development. These goals also recognize that the fight against poverty must be enhanced through other interventions that support health and education, reduce inequality in societies, and spur economic growth while being conscious of issues surrounding climate change. The adoption of the SDG has had a long history dating back to 1992 (United Nations, n.d). Understanding the historical background of SDGs will enhance the appreciation of the recommendations and possible ways of ensuring its successful implementation among member states.
The SDGs are a product of decades of collaborations among states and the UN bodies such as the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs. The roadmap began in June 1992 when over 178 counties signed to adopt Agenda 21 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (United Nations, n.d). Agenda 21 was a comprehensive plan of action aimed at establishing an international partnership under three anchoring goals: sustainable development, improving the lives of people, and protecting the environment. In September 2000, UN Member States unanimously adopted the Millennium Declaration at the UN Headquarters in New York during the Millennium Summit. During the Summit, the eight Millennium Development Goals or MDGs were adopted with a key objective of declining poverty by 2015. In 2002, the Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development and the Plan of Implementation were adopted during the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in South Africa. Conclusions from this Summit reaffirmed the commitments of the international community to eradicating poverty and protecting the environment, further leading to the building of these objectives on Agenda 21 and the Millennium Declaration by adding more emphasis on multilateral cooperation. A decade later in 2012, UN Member States adopted the “Future We Want” document during the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In the document, members resolved, inter alia, to begin developing a set of SDGs that would build upon the MDGs and form the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. The outcomes from the Rio+20 also comprised other measures for sustainable development implementation, including the requirement for future programs of work in small island developing states, development financing, and more. In 2013, the General Assembly instituted an Open Working Group comprised of 30 members charged with the responsibility of developing a proposal on the SDGs. The negotiation process on the post-2015 development agenda began in January 2015 through the General Assembly. These talks would later result in the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with 17 objectives, commonly known as the SDGs in September 2015 (United Nations, n.d). Since adoption, member states have worked to implement the plan, and while some goals are achievable, others are difficult to achieve.
Current State of Achieving SDGs
The world witnessed a crisis of significant margin in 2020/2021 when the Covid-19 pandemic forced the closure of businesses and institutions, affecting people’s lives and efforts by states to realize the 2030 SDGs. The 2021 “Sustainable Development Goals” report recognizes the devastating impacts of the pandemic on achieving these goals and outlines areas that need immediate and concerted approaches (United Nations, 2021). Liu Zhenmin, the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs highlights the current state of achieving the SDGs and laments that many years of progress have been reversed or halted. In many countries, the UN reveals that the pandemic intensified and exposed inequalities as the poorest and most vulnerable populations were disproportionately impacted by the crisis. In terms of climate, biodiversity, and pollution crises, many countries still lag behind in meeting the 2030 targets. For instance, there has been an increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases despite efforts to reduce emissions in 2020 partly due to lockdowns and other measures enacted by governments to control the spread of Covid-19. Countries are off track in meeting the Paris Agreement and the terrestrial ecosystems and biodiversity are deteriorating at startling rates (United Nations, 2021). There is a need to view the pandemic as a mirror reflecting the deeply rooted challenges in society such as frail healthcare systems, insufficient social protection, and environmental degradation. While the world may meet some of the SDGs, it is not certain that countries will achieve the targets by 2030.
Achievable goals
While the pandemic reversed or halted progress in shortened life expectancy and overall health, the UN notes that the third goal is at least 75% complete. However, this decade of progress in ensuring better maternal, child, and reproductive health may be reversed or halted if pandemics such as Covid-19 are not arrested. Progress has been made in achieving the sixth goal of ensuring the availability of clean drinking water and sustainable water and sanitation management. However, billions of people still lack access to safe and clean dining water and hygiene and sanitation services as of 2020. The UN reports that 2.3 billion people still live in water-stressed areas as of 2018 partly due to the shrining of natural wetlands between 1970 and 2015 by 35%. According to the 2021 UN report, the world may ultimately achieve the goal of taking urgent action in combating climate change and its effects. This observation is derived from findings that 125 out of 154 countries in the developing world are already devising and executing national climate change plans (United Nations, 2021). Areas that have seen this progress include food security and production, freshwater resources, terrestrial and wetland ecosystems, human health, and major economic sectors and services. It is important to note that climate financing also increased by 10% from 2015-2016 to 2017-2018, bringing the annual average funding to $48.7 billion (United Nations, 2021). Nevertheless, the increasing greenhouse gas emissions need shifting economies to carbon neutrality. There have also been efforts to protect, restore, and support sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, better manage forests, and fight desertification as well as land degradation and biodiversity loss. Although progress has been seen in making forest management sustainable, the world has lost over 100 million hectares of forest since 2000 and this should send an alarm to relevant authorities to avoid the reversal of the progress...