GOAL OF THE MONTH – Special Focus – HLPF

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Where We Are

With current progress falling far short of what is required to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, this year’s High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development on 8 to 18 July at UN Headquarters in New York will be critical to turbocharging efforts to accelerate SDG implementation in the remaining six years. Under the auspices of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), the Forum is the main platform for reviewing the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs.  

This year, the Forum will convene under the theme of “Reinforcing the 2030 Agenda and eradicating poverty in times of multiple crises: the effective delivery of sustainable, resilient and innovative solutions”.

Five SDGs will be reviewed in depth: 

The forum will include a three-day ministerial segment from 15 July to 17 July, with the last day of the High-Level Segment of ECOSOC being held on 18 July. 

During the Ministerial Segment, over 30 countries will carry out voluntary national reviews (VNRs) of their implementation of the 2030 Agenda and share their experiences and best practices at HLPF. These include: Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belize, Brazil, Chad, Colombia, Congo (Republic of the), Costa Rica, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Georgia, Guinea, Honduras, Kenya, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Libya, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Namibia, Nepal, Oman, Palau, Peru, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Sudan, Spain, Syrian Arab Republic, Uganda, Vanuatu, Yemen, Zimbabwe. 

Additionally, during the Ministerial Segment, countries will participate in the general debate “From the SDG Summit to the Summit of the Future”. This debate will be an opportunity to exchange experiences, transformative actions and initiatives following the 2023 SDG Summit, as well as highlight priorities and expectations for the upcoming Summit of the Future on 22 to 23 September at UN Headquarters in New York. 

Find out more about the discussions taking place at HLPF by consulting the draft programme and the schedule of VNR labs. 

Spotlight

SPECIAL EVENTS DURING HLPF  

11 | Special Event on Transforming Education 

As we approach the two-year anniversary of the Transforming Education Summit (TES), the UN Secretary-General is convening a Special Event on Transforming Education, in collaboration with the President of the General Assembly and the President of ECOSOC, on Thursday, 11 July 2024, 10 am – 1 pm, in the ECOSOC Chamber. 

The Special Event will seek to spur greater commitment and action on education transformation in the context of the upcoming Summit of the Future and to inform the 2025 World Summit on Social Development and the 2025 Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development.  

15 | Special Event on Keeping the SDG Promise: Pathways to Acceleration 

The Chair of the UN Sustainable Development Group, in partnership with the Permanent Mission of Spain, is convening an HLPF Special Event entitled Keeping the SDG Promise: Pathways for Acceleration, on Monday, 15 July 2024, 3-6 p.m. in the ECOSOC Chamber. 

The Special Event will provide an update on progress being achieved through the “High Impact Initiatives” (HIIs), championed by the United Nations development system and others at the 2023 SDG Summit. It will also explore the importance of mobilizing investments for critical SDG transitions and showcase countries and programmes that are already making progress in that direction, drawing on the work of the Joint SDG Fund. 

16 | Special Event on SDG 6 and the Water Action Agenda  

The fourth annual SDG 6 Special Event provides opportunities for discourse on global water and sanitation topics and features the launch of the UN System-wide Strategy for Water and Sanitation. Other activities of the Special Event include discussions of country-level actions toward implementing the new UN strategy. Additionally, SDG 6 Global Acceleration Framework Country Acceleration Case Studies from Cambodia, Czechia, and Jordan will be launched.  Speakers include Amina J. Mohamed, UN Deputy-Secretary-General, Keith M. Harper, Vice-Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, Alvaro Lario, UN-Water Chair and President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development, and more. Tuesday, 16 July, 10 a.m. -1 p.m.; 3 p.m.- 8 p.m, in Conference Room 11.

There will be 13 Special events and more than 140 side events at the Forum. 

 “Our failure to secure peace, to confront climate change, and to boost international finance is undermining development. We must accelerate action for the Sustainable Development Goals – and we don’t have a moment to lose.”  

– António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, 28 June, 2024 

 

SDGs IN NUMBERS

  • An additional 23 million people were pushed into extreme poverty and over 100 million more were suffering from hunger in 2022 compared to 2019.  
  • Nearly 60 per cent of countries faced moderately to abnormally high food prices in 2022. 
  • 2023 was the warmest on record, with global temperatures nearing the critical 1.5°C threshold. 
  • The number of civilian deaths in armed conflict skyrocketed in 2023.  
  • The number of forcibly displaced people has reached an unprecedented level, nearly 120 million by May 2024. 
  • Debt levels remain exceptionally high and the annual investment gap for developing countries to achieve the SDGs stands at $4 trillion.  
  • While Official Development Assistance (ODA) reached another new high of $223.7 billion in 2023, the overall sustainable development grants to developing countries fell in 2022 and debt levels. 

Highlights

28 June | Sustainable Development Goals Report 2024  

The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2024 states that current progress falls far short of what is required to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.  

According to the report, less than one fifth of SDG targets are on track. The lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, escalating conflicts, geopolitical tensions and growing climate chaos have severely hindered progress. 

The report highlights where action must accelerate, particularly in critical areas undermining SDG progress — climate change, peace and security, inequalities among and between countries, among others. 

Key findings  

  • For the first time this century, per-capita GDP growth in half of the world’s most vulnerable nations is slower than that of advanced economies. 
  • Based on data collected in 2022 in 120 countries, 55% of the countries lacked non-discrimination laws that prohibit direct and indirect discrimination against women. 
  • Increased access to treatment has averted 20.8 million AIDS-related deaths in the past three decades. 
  • Progress on education remains of grave concern, with only 58% of students worldwide achieving minimum proficiency in reading by the end of primary school. 
  • Global capacity to generate electricity from renewable energy has begun expanding at an unprecedented rate, growing at 8.1 per cent annually for the past five years. 
  • Record high ocean temperatures have triggered a fourth global coral bleaching event.  

The report is accessible on the UN Statistics Division website. 

11 | Launch of the World Population Prospects Report 2024 

The World Population Prospects 2024 Report: Summary of Results and the accompanying 2024 revision of World Population Prospects (WPP24) will be launched on 11 July at UN Headquarters in New York at 12:30 pm EDT. WPP24 is the twenty-eighth edition of the United Nations population estimates and projections of the world population that have been published by the UN since 1951. These estimates and projections form a comprehensive set of demographic data to assess population levels and trends at the global, regional and national levels. The launch may be followed on UN WebTV. 

Upcoming International Days

11 | World Population Day 

The world’s population is growing dramatically: it stood at close to 8 billion in 2021 and is expected to increase to 8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050, and 10.9 billion in 2100, raising immense social, economic and environmental challenges. International Population Day allows us to reflect on these challenges and on the solutions to address them.  Access population data and key indicators on UNFPA’s World Population Dashboard. Read the latest State of the World Population Report from UNFPA here. 

15 | World Youth Skills Day 

The theme for World Youth Skills Day 2024, “Youth Skills for Peace and Development,” underscores the crucial role young people play in peacebuilding and conflict resolution. The world faces a multitude of challenges today, many of which affect the youth. On World Youth Skills Day, let us unite in recognizing the potential of young people as agents of peace and commit to providing them with the skills and opportunities to address challenges and contribute to a peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable future. 

18 | Nelson Mandela International Day  

Celebrate Nelson Mandela’s contribution to peace, freedom and the promotion of social justice during the Nelson Mandela International Day under the theme “It’s still in our hands to combat poverty and inequity”. On 15 July there will be the annual UN General Assembly Commemoration featuring the President of the General Assembly, the UN Secretary-General and more. The event will be live streamed on UN WebTV. 

ACTNOW for our Common Future 

A healthy planet is essential to safeguard our future. It’s about ensuring clean air, fresh water, and thriving ecosystems that benefit all living things, including ourselves. On the road to the Summit of the Future, we are encouraging everyone to #ActNow, Speak Up, to show decision makers that people worldwide are taking a stand for a more sustainable future for all. Learn more on how you can participate and engage your networks in ActNow: bit.ly/SoF-Challenge-NL 

 

Summit of the Future 

The Summit of the Future, to be held in New York 22-23 September 2024, is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to strengthen the multilateral system to address existing and emerging challenges, improve global governance and accelerate the implementation of existing commitments, including the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.  The Summit will have as its outcome an inter-governmentally agreed Pact for the Future. Stay tuned for more: https://www.un.org/en/summit-of-the-future 

Awake at Night Podcast

Season 8 of the UN’s award-winning podcast is now streaming! Hosted by UN Communications Chief, Melissa Fleming, Awake at Night gives exclusive insights into the inspiring lives of the extraordinary people that make up the United Nations. 

Discover all the episodes here: https://pod.link/1429922419 

SDG EDITORIAL CALENDAR 2024