“End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.” Goal 2 states that hunger and all forms of malnutrition must be eradicated by 2030. This would be accomplished by doubling agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers (especially women and indigenous peoples), by ensuring sustainable food production systems, and by progressively improving land and soil quality. Agriculture is the single largest employer in the world, providing livelihoods for 40% of the global population. It is the largest source of income for poor rural households. Women make up about 43% of the agricultural labor force in developing countries, and over 50% in parts of Asia and Africa. However, women own only 20% of the land. Other targets deal with maintaining genetic diversity of seeds, increasing access to land, preventing trade restriction and distortions in world agricultural markets to limit extreme food price volatility, eliminating waste with help from the International Food Waste Coalition, and ending malnutrition of children.

“Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.” Significant strides have been made in increasing life expectancy and reducing some of the common killers associated with child and maternal mortality. Between 2000 and 2016, the under-five mortality rate across the globe decreased by 47%. Still, the number of children dying under age five is extremely high: 5.6 million in 2016 alone. Newborns account for a growing number of these deaths, and poorer children are at the greatest risk of under-five mortality due to a number of factors. SDG Goal 3 aims to reduce under-five mortality to at least as low as 25 per 1,000 live births. Goal 3 also aims to reduce maternal mortality to less than 70 deaths per 100,000 live births. Though the maternal mortality ratio declined by 37% between 2000 and 2015, there were approximately 303,000 maternal deaths worldwide in 2015, most from preventable causes. In 2015, maternal health conditions were also the leading cause of death among girls aged 15-19. Data for girls of greatest concern – those aged between 10-14 – is currently unavailable. Key strategies for meeting SDG Goal 3 will be to reduce adolescent pregnancy, provide better data for all women and girls, and achieve universal coverage of skilled birth attendants.

“Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” Major progress has been made in access to education, specifically at the primary school level, for both boys and girls. The number of out-of-school children has almost halved from 112 million in 1997 to 60 million in 2014. Still, at least 22 million children in 43 countries will miss out on pre-primary education unless the rate of progress doubles. Access does not always mean quality of education or completion of primary school. 103 million youth worldwide still lack basic literacy skills and more than 60 percent of those are women. In one out of four countries, more than half of children failed to meet minimum math proficiency standards at the end of primary school, and at the lower secondary level, the rate was 1 in 3 countries. Target 1 of Goal 4 is to ensure that, by 2030, all girls and boys complete free, equitable, and quality primary and secondary education. Additionally, progress is difficult to track: 75 percent of countries have no or insufficient data to track progress toward SDG Goal 4 targets for learning outcomes (Target 1), early childhood education (Target 2), and effective learning environments. Data on learning outcomes and pre-primary school are particularly scarce; 70 percent and 40 percent of countries lack adequate data for these targets, respectively. This makes it hard to analyze and identify the children at greatest risk of being left behind.

“Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.” According to the UN, “gender equality is not only a fundamental human right, but a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world.” Providing women and girls with equal access to education, health care, decent work, and representation in political and economic decision-making processes will nurture sustainable economies and benefit societies and humanity at large. In many nations, gender discrimination is still woven into the fabric of legal systems and social norms. Even though SDG5 is a stand-alone goal, other SDGs can only be achieved if the needs of women receive the same attention as the needs of men. Issues unique to women and girls include traditional practices against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, such as female genital mutilation. Child marriage has declined over the past decades, yet there is no region that is currently on track to eliminate the practice and reach SDG targets by 2030. If current trends continue, between 2017 and 2030, 150 million girls will be married before they turn 18. Though child marriages are four times higher among the poorest than the wealthiest in the world, most countries need to accelerate progress among both groups in order to reach the SDG Goal 5 target to eliminate child marriage by 2030. Achieving gender equality will require enforceable legislation that promotes empowerment of all women and girls and requires secondary education for all girls. The targets call for an end to gender discrimination and for empowering women and girls through technology. Some have advocated for “listening to girls.” The assertion is that the SDGs can deliver transformative change for girls only if girls are consulted. Their priorities and needs must be taken into account. Girls should be viewed not as beneficiaries of change, but as agents of change. Engaging women and girls in the implementation of the SDGs is crucial.

“Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.” This goal emphasises economic growth through increased productivity and technological innovation. Over the past 25 years the number of workers living in extreme poverty has declined dramatically, despite the long-lasting impact of the economic crisis of 2008/2009. In developing countries, the middle class now makes up more than 34 percent of total employment – a number that has almost tripled between 1991 and 2015. However, as the global economy continues to recover we are seeing slower growth, widening inequalities and employment that is not expanding fast enough to keep up with the growing labour force. According to the International Labour Organization, more than 204 million people are unemployed in 2015. The keys to achieving this goal are promoting entrepreneurship and creation of employment opportunities. The goal aims at eradicating social evils like forced labour, slavery, and human trafficking. The targets include increasing economic productivity, sustaining per capita economic growth, reducing unemployment, protecting labour rights, and many more.

“Make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.” As states struggle with the responsibility of managing poverty and increasing populations in urban spaces, this SDG focuses on ensuring access to safe and affordable housing, and upgrading slum settlements, investment in public transport, creating green public spaces, and improving urban planning and management in a way that is both participatory and inclusive. More than half of the world’s population now live in urban areas. By 2050, that figure will have risen to 6.5 billion people – two-thirds of humanity. Sustainable development cannot be achieved without significantly transforming the way we build and manage our urban spaces. The rapid growth of cities in the developing world, coupled with increasing rural to urban migration, has led to a boom in mega-cities. In 1990, there were ten mega-cities with 10 million inhabitants or more. In 2014, there are 28 mega-cities, home to a total 453 million people. The progress of this goal is indicated by proportion of urban population living in slums, informal settlements or inadequate housing, proportion of population that has convenient access to public transport, by sex, age and persons with disabilities, ratio of land consumption rate to population growth rate, and other factors.