As the 2030 deadline for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals barrels toward us, many of them are woefully off track — with nowhere near enough financing to reach them. The world would need to come up with $4 trillion to meet the SDGs at a time when the United States — long the world’s biggest funder of official development aid — has opposed them altogether.
So, where do the SDGs stand, and is there any hope of achieving them?
The goals were off-track even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, explained Navid Hanif, assistant secretary-general for economic development in the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. But implementing them is the responsibility of national governments, which in recent years have faced numerous challenges.
About the author
Tania Karas@TaniaKaras
Tania Karas is a Senior Editor at Devex, where she edits coverage on global development and humanitarian aid in the Americas. Previously, she managed the digital team for The World, where she oversaw content production for the website, podcast, newsletter, and social media platforms. Tania also spent three years as a foreign correspondent in Greece, Turkey, and Lebanon, covering the Syrian refugee crisis and European politics. She started her career as a staff reporter for the New York Law Journal, covering immigration and access to justice.
