Despite the odds, don’t give up on the Sustainable Development Goals, urges the UN

The president of the UN’s flagship body ECOSOC, Lok Bahadur Thapa, reminded the international community on Monday that no country can achieve sustainable development alone, and that political will and momentum are needed to achieve the SDGs by 2030.

“Let’s judge by the results,” said Mr Thapa.

The speech marked the start of a high-level ministerial meeting High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF)UN annual forum to assess progress in Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) organized by ECOSOC – UN Economic and Social Council.

The High-Level Segment will end on Thursday with a negotiated declaration between ministers and heads of state concrete actions that Member States will take to advance progress on the 17 Goals.

Latest draft the 2026 ministerial declaration includes commitment to increasing investment in the SDGs and developing international regulations for transformative technologies such as artificial intelligence.

At the end of the HLPF, 36 countries will present so-called Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) on their progress in achieving the SDGs and share best practices with other Member States.

As the HLPF kicked off last Tuesday in New York, the UN simultaneously released its annual report SDG Progress Reportfound that coordinated action to achieve those goals had been successful, but the government must accelerate action if it is to meet the 2030 deadline.

Goals require funding

Opening Monday’s session, Mr. Thapa, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres And President of the General Assembly Annalena Baerbock, admits that the SDGs are not on track.

At the same time, they emphasized that the UN and its member states know what works to create sustainable development, but that funding remains the biggest obstacle to rapid and effective action.

In fact, the main findings of the SDG Progress Report – viz only 36 percent of SDG indicators with trend data are on track or experiencing moderate progress – reflects a lack of effective funding rather than a lack of goodwill, according to Guterres.

He noted that developing countries pay borrowing costs several times higher than rich countries, and many countries spend more money on debt servicing than on national debt, leaving them ill-equipped to implement the SDGs without assistance.

“We need to increase the voice and participation of developing countries, reforming the global financial architecture to ensure these countries receive the support they need,” Guterres said.

To increase SDG financing, Guterres emphasized the need for reforms in multilateral development banks opening up private investment and ensuring fair access for developing countries.

Jaewon Choi, leader of the DMUN Foundation, a youth-led non-governmental organization that empowers young people to engage in multilateral processes, also weighed in on this, demanding that young people be included in initiatives to achieve the Goals.

“A revitalized UN must integrate meaningful youth engagement,” Mr. Choi told the ministers.

The promise of multilateralism

Speakers urged Member States to prioritize SDG funding, debt relief, civil society partnerships and concrete collective action as they negotiate.

Mr Guterres highlighted this Pact for the Future, Sevilla Commitment, Doha Political Declaration, High Seas Treaty And Antigua and Barbuda’s Agenda for Small Island Development as proof that multilateralism can still be realized.

“Development requires everyone – business, development banks, innovators, civil society, community leaders and young people,” said Guterres.

The first words of Ms. Baerbock’s address to ECOSOC – “We are not on the right track” – formed the basis of the UN’s call to HLPF member states: despite enormous challenges, giving up on achieving the SDGs by 2030 is not an option.

Right on target

A leading football fan, Ms Baerbock ended her speech with a timely comparison between the SDGs and this year’s gripping football World Cup competition.

“This tells us one thing very clearly: never give up in the 80th minute,” said Ms. Baerbock. “One goal at the right time can change everything. And 17 goals in the same moment can change the world. It was up to us to play together for the last four years.”