The United Nations warns that with “less than a fifth of the targets achieved”, countries are failing to deliver on the promises of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and recommends stepped-up diplomatic efforts and urgent funding.
“Achieving the SDGs – the best way to solve global problems – remains elusive,” warns a United Nations report (2024 Sustainable Development Goals) released this Friday.
The UN therefore recommends increased funding, highlighting that the SDG investment gap in developing countries currently stands at four billion dollars a year.
According to the UN, developing countries need more financial resources and new financial policies, so they are proposing reform of the “global financial architecture”, which is considered crucial to obtaining the necessary funds that can stimulate sustainable development.
The same United Nations document also stresses that “peace and security” are essential, recalling that the number of displaced people has reached an unprecedented level: about 120 million as of May last year.
“(The number of) civilian casualties increased by 72% between 2022 and 2023 in a context of escalating violence, highlighting the urgent need for peace. It is essential to resolve current conflicts through dialogue and diplomacy,” the report says. .
In fact, “six years after the proposed date,” the UN warns that current progress “falls far short of what is needed to achieve the SDGs,” and stresses that without increased investment and action, realizing “the blueprint for a more resilient and prosperous world” will remain a difficult task.
On the other hand, the report shows that only 17% of goals are currently being implemented “on schedule,” with nearly half recording minimal or moderate progress and more than a third stagnating or regressing.
“The ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, worsening conflicts, geopolitical tensions and growing climate chaos have seriously slowed progress,” the report says.
According to the UN, in 2022, compared to 2019, more than 23 million people live in extreme poverty and more than 100 million suffer from hunger.
“In 2023, the number of civilian deaths in armed conflicts increased. This year (2024) was also the hottest on record, with global temperatures approaching the critical threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius,” the document warns.
“This report underscores the urgent need for closer and more effective international cooperation to achieve maximum progress,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres, referring to the new analysis released Friday in New York.
“With more than six years to go, we cannot fail to deliver on our promise to end poverty, protect the planet and leave no one behind by 2030,” Guterres added.
The UN also affirms that the Future Summit, to be held on September 22 and 23 at UN Headquarters in New York, is needed to “set the world on the right path to achieving the SDGs.”
“Discussions at the summit will include addressing the debt crisis that is holding back so many developing countries and the urgent need for financial reform” at the international level.
The Financing for Development Conference and the World Summit for Social Development in 2025 will also be important moments for advancing the SDGs, according to the report.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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