{"id":118184,"date":"2026-07-07T13:00:25","date_gmt":"2026-07-07T17:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/sustainabledevelopment\/?p=118184"},"modified":"2026-07-06T10:38:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T14:38:19","slug":"press-release-sdgs-report-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/sustainabledevelopment\/blog\/2026\/07\/press-release-sdgs-report-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Press Release | For over a decade, the SDGs have delivered results \u2013 now the world must urgently scale up what works, UN report finds"},"content":{"rendered":"

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PRESS RELEASE<\/p>\n

For over a decade, the Sustainable Development Goals have delivered results \u2014 now the world must urgently scale up what works, UN report finds<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0With fewer than five years to 2030, a decisive final push is needed to keep the promise of the SDGs within reach<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

New York, 7 July 2026<\/strong> \u2014 Since their adoption in 2015, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)<\/a> have delivered results at scale \u2013 bringing access to water, electricity and health care to billions. However, progress remains uneven and insufficient. Without a decisive push to rapidly scale up what works, the promise of the SDGs risks slipping out of reach, according to The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2026,<\/strong> <\/em>released today.<\/p>\n

What a decade of evidence tells us: the SDGs deliver results<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since 2015, sustained investment, sound policies and international cooperation have improved the lives of billions of people worldwide with measurable gains across the SDGs. Nearly one billion people gained access to safely managed drinking water and 1.2 billion to safely managed sanitation. New HIV infections fell by 30 per cent between 2015 and 2024, and AIDS-related deaths by 35 per cent. Electricity now reaches 92 per cent of the world’s population. Internet access has surged, from 40 to 74 per cent. Social protection covers more than half the global population for the first time in history.<\/p>\n

Behind these results is an important and often overlooked achievement: the data revolution. A decade ago, data was available for only half of all SDG indicators. Today, a global database of more than 3.2 million data points covers nearly every indicator \u2014 enabling countries to identify where progress is accelerating, where gaps persist and which policies are delivering results.<\/p>\n

\u201cGuided by the data in this report, our vision of the 2030 Agenda remains within reach. Together, let us make a decisive final push to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and build a healthy, prosperous future for all,\u201d said United Nations Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres.<\/p>\n

Why the world is falling short: overlapping crises and a widening financing gap<\/strong><\/p>\n

Despite progress, however, major challenges persist. Of the 139 SDG targets with trend data, only 36 per cent are on track or making moderate progress. Nearly half \u2014 49 per cent \u2014 are advancing too slowly, and 15 per cent have regressed below 2015 baselines.<\/p>\n

One in ten people still live in extreme poverty. Around 2.3 billion people face moderate or severe food insecurity. More than 150 million children remain stunted. Maternal mortality stands at nearly three times the global target. None of the gender equality targets are on track. The number of people affected by climate-related disasters has more than doubled since 2015. \u00a0Escalating conflicts, climate change, slowing economic growth, rising debt and a record decline in official development assistance are compounding the shortfall and disproportionately affecting the world\u2019s most vulnerable people.<\/p>\n

What must happen now: scale up what works<\/strong><\/p>\n

The report emphasizes that the SDGs remain the world\u2019s shared blueprint for peace, prosperity and sustainability. The evidence accumulated over more than a decade of implementation shows that meaningful progress is achievable \u2014 but only when political commitment, financing, innovation and international cooperation align.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than a decade of implementation has shown what is possible,\u201d said Li Junhua, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs. \u201cThe task now is to scale up what works \u2014 with the urgency, investment and cooperation needed to fulfill the promise of the 2030 Agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n

Closing the approximately $4 trillion annual SDG financing gap \u2014 through the Sevilla Commitment<\/a> and the reform of the international financial architecture \u2014 is essential. This must be matched by stronger data systems through the Medell\u00edn Framework<\/a> to direct investment to the most vulnerable first. Accelerating the energy transition, harnessing frontier technologies including artificial intelligence for sustainable development, advancing gender equality as a cross-cutting priority, and reinforcing multilateral cooperation will also be critical to success.<\/p>\n

The choices made over the next four years \u2014 on financing, cooperation and collective crisis response \u2014 will have lasting effects for generations to come, according to the report.<\/p>\n

Additional key facts and figures<\/strong><\/p>\n

Progress<\/em><\/p>\n