The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.
- At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), an urgent call for action by all countries – developed and developing – in a global partnership.
- As we reach the halfway point from the adoption of the SDGs in 2015 to the 2030 deadline, this report provides an update on the Asia-Pacific region’s progress towards achieving the SDGs.
Key Highlights
- Asia-Pacific region is not on track to achieve the SDGs by 2030. The region faces major challenges related to poverty, hunger, health, education, gender equality, clean water and sanitation, affordable clean energy, decent work and economic growth, inequality, climate change environmental degradation, peace, justice and strong institutions.
- Progress has been made in some areas, but is insufficient to meet SDG targets. Extreme poverty continues to decline, child and maternal mortality rates have fallen, access to electricity is increasing, more land is being protected, and countries are taking steps to develop policies and institutions to support sustainable development.
- Critical gaps remain across all SDGs, with majority of targets likely to be missed regionally based on current trajectories. Accelerated progress is urgently needed on all fronts.
- Impact of COVID-19 pandemic has been severe, reversing hard-won gains and exacerbating existing challenges. Strong policy interventions and investment needed for an inclusive, resilient and green recovery.
- All stakeholders need to strengthen efforts and work in closer partnership. Governments need to increase SDG financing, integrate SDGs into policies and programmes, and improve data availability. Development partners need to provide coherent support, fill financing gaps and share knowledge and technologies. Private sector and civil society need to align actions with the SDGs.
Key Challenges for Major SDG Areas
Poverty and Hunger
- Extreme poverty rate dropped from 14.1% in 2015 to 8.9% in 2022. However, economic fallout from the pandemic has pushed over 80 million more people into extreme poverty.
- With a slowing economy and population growth, about 416 million people in the region will likely still be living in extreme poverty in 2030. Urgent efforts needed to get back on track.
- Hunger had been slowly rising even before the pandemic hit. In 2020, an estimated 418 million people in Asia-Pacific were undernourished. Disruptions to food supply chains and reduced affordability of healthy diets have worsened food security.
Health and Well-Being
- Maternal mortality declined by 45% from 2000 to 2017 in Southern Asia. But still accounted for 83% of regional maternal deaths in 2017, with large disparities between and within countries.
- Under-five child mortality dropped by more than half since 2000. But countries need to accelerate progress to meet 2030 targets. Wide disparities persist between rural and urban areas, poorer and richer households.
- Reproductive health and family planning services remain inadequate with unmet needs. Adolescent birth rates also higher than global average.
- Major infectious diseases including malaria, tuberculosis and hepatitis B remain endemic with considerable mortality despite progress in reducing cases/deaths. Antimicrobial resistance growing concern.
- Pandemic overstretched health systems with disruptions to essential health services – immunization, pre and antenatal care, family planning, HIV and TB treatments. Roll back of progress made.
Education and Learning
- Enrolment rates at primary level reached 94% and lower secondary level 74%, with near parity between girls and boys. However, quality and outcomes remain a key concern.
- COVID-related school closures in 2020-2021 caused learning losses and increased dropouts, disproportionately impacting disadvantaged learners. Students in some countries may have lost between 1.5 to 2 years of schooling on average.
- Literacy rates vary widely across countries from 40% to 99%. Digital skills gaps are also substantial within and across countries, limiting ability to benefit from digital technologies for sustainable development.
Gender Equality
- Female representation in national/local legislatures increased from 19% in 2015 to 27% in 2022, but still well below gender balance.
- Early marriage among girls aged 15-19 years declined slowly from 16% in 2000 to 13% in 2018. High prevalence remains a concern in some countries.
- Gender-based violence persists at high levels affecting around 1 in 5 women regionally. Few countries have national prevention strategies. Disrupted access to support services during pandemic lockdowns exacerbated risks.
- Women’s equal participation in and opportunities for leadership in economic/political life remain restricted. Women spend 3 to 6 times more time on unpaid domestic and care work than men – a key obstacle.
Water and Sanitation
- In 2020, 1.5 billion people in the region still lacked access to basic sanitation services – the majority living in Southern Asia.
- Access to basic drinking water also remains inadequate for 430 million people in the region – again concentrated in Southern Asia.
- Progress has been hampered by poor maintenance of facilities, lack of suitable technologies for more remote areas, and limited technical/financial capacities.
- Climate change is increasing water scarcity and variability in rainfall across the region, while pollution is further threatening already limited drinking water resources.
Inequality
- Income inequality is rising in many countries, with top 10% income share growing and bottom 50% share falling from 1990 to 2020. Such disparities are socially divisive and hamper poverty reduction efforts.
- Inequality of opportunity also remains very pronounced, with large gaps in access to basic services by income status, geography, gender and other factors. Vulnerable groups including persons with disabilities, indigenous people and migrants tend to be disproportionately impacted.
- Tax avoidance and evasion by corporations and wealthy elites limits the fiscal space for countries to invest in basic services and social protection programmes to reduce inequalities.
Peace and Governance
- Violent conflicts and tensions have escalated in recent years in countries including Afghanistan, Myanmar, Pakistan and Sri Lanka – resulting in tragic loss of lives as well as triggering significant displacement within and across borders.
- The ability of governments to deliver equitable and inclusive development has come under increasing strain due to factors including rising demands from growing populations, fiscal constraints often exacerbated by debt burdens or biased tax policies, capacity limitations and in some countries, democratic backsliding.
- Redoubled efforts needed to promote peaceful, just and inclusive societies with effective and accountable institutions at all levels.
Climate Change and Environmental Degradation
- Asia Pacific continues to be the major source of greenhouse gases globally, responsible for about half of global emissions in 2019. Extreme weather events and rising sea levels already impacting countries across South East Asia and the Pacific Islands.
- Deforestation remains a critical issue in several countries with net forest loss from 2015 to 2020 estimated at 26,000 square kilometers in South-Eastern Asia alone as forests cleared for agriculture and fires degrade land area.
- Air pollution levels are dangerously high in many cities, with more than 90% of the region’s population exposed to levels above WHO guidelines putting millions at risk of respiratory and other diseases.
- Water pollution, coastal zone degradation, biodiversity loss and unsustainable use of natural resources are growing concerns for ecosystem health and sustainability of development.
Key Recommendations
To build back better and get on track towards the SDGs by 2030, accelerated progress is required on all fronts by all stakeholders through the following actions:
National Governments
- Policy integration: Place SDGs at the heart of national, sub-national and local development plans and sectoral policies. Enhance policy coherence.
- Financing: Increase public investments towards SDG priority areas including social sectors. Widen fiscal space through more progressive tax policies.
- Institutional coordination: Set up high-level coordinating SDG mechanisms and strengthen data systems to monitor progress.
- Localization: Engage local administrations, cities, communities and indigenous groups to drive localized SDG actions.
- Stakeholder participation: Institutionalize platforms for civil society, academia, marginalized groups and private sector to contribute insights on SDG planning and monitoring.
- Green recovery: Make sustainability and inclusiveness central tenets for building resilience against future shocks and stresses.
Development Partners
- Harmonized support: Provide integrated, multi-year financing and policy support aligned with national SDG priorities through coordinated mechanisms like the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks.
- Global public goods: Increase investments in regional cooperation to tackle collective challenges like epidemics, climate change, transnational crime, inequality and market volatility.
- Innovative approaches: Support South-South exchanges for transfer of relevant, scalable and adaptable SDG solutions suited to local contexts.
Private Sector & Finance
- Sustainable business models & markets: Develop innovative products and business models that expand access to affordable goods and services for lower income populations aligned with SDGs.
- Investing in SDGs: Channel investments towards companies supporting SDG activities. Issue sustainability bonds to finance large-scale SDG projects in infrastructure, SME promotion, climate resilience etc.
- Responsible business conduct: Implement responsible business practices across global value chains covering human rights, environment, transparency, taxation and anti-corruption.
Civil Society & Citizens
- Awareness-raising & advocacy: Energize public support and foster partnerships with governments to ensure ambitious, accountable and inclusive SDG progress.
- Service delivery complementarity: Provide technical and local expertise to supplement public sector SDG delivery systems on the ground for harder to reach populations.
- Real-time social audits: Provide independent in-depth evaluations, highlighting priority areas for policy or implementation improvement at national and local levels.
With concerted action, it remains possible for countries in Asia and the Pacific to get SDG progress in the region back on track over the next decade, despite the widespread setbacks caused by the pandemic.
