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NEW DELHI: No country is on track to achieving all of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, which include ending poverty and achieving gender equality, a study has found. However, when grouped according to geographical, cultural, and socioeconomic factors, different countries appear to be making progress on different goals, according to the findings published in the journal PLOS One.Researchers, including those from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, found that, for instance, African and Asian countries-which have the lowest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) -- have made low progress on goals such as eradicating poverty, achieving gender equality, and ensuring good health and well-being.
However, these countries have made the best progress on climate action and responsible consumption and production, the team said.The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is aimed at achieving human progress, economic prosperity, and planetary health. Member states of the United Nations adopted the framework in 2015.
The researchers noted that setbacks, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and armed conflict, have slowed progress.More research is needed to clarify the underlying obstacles so they can be effectively addressed, they added. Our findings show that progress toward the SDGs is heavily influenced by geographical, cultural, and socioeconomic factors, with no country on track to achieve all the goals by 2030, the authors wrote.
For the analysis, 20 years' worth of data from 107 countries, including GDP, was used. Indicators of progress towards the SDGs, designated by the UN, were utilised.The study revealed complex links between the SDGs, with some acting synergistically and others as trade-offs.
For example, the two goals of 'climate action' and 'responsible consumption and production' appear to support each other but are negatively correlated with the other 15 goals. This finding raises a potential red flag, indicating that the current global economic system may be working against the climate action goals, the authors wrote.However, the 'no poverty' goal appeared to be synergistic with most other goals, they said.
The authors thus called for a re-evaluation of the strategies being used to pursue the SDGs and an approach that is region-specific and accounts for the complex relationships between the goals.The study's findings could help inform such efforts, they added..
