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This blog post summarizes the World Development Indicators 2016 and Sustainable Development Goals

World Development Indicators (WDIs) are the World Bank’s compilation of internationally comparable statistics about global development and the quality of people’s lives. It draws on data from over 200 economies and more than 50 partner organizations to present more than 1400 indicators which measure the state of development in countries, regions and income groups. The data cover a range of topics and can be accessed through online platforms, publications and applications. The WDI is regularly updated and new data are added in response to the needs of the development community; the 2016 edition includes new indicators to help measure the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).  This is the first edition of World Development Indicators to include a discussion of the Sustainable Development Goals, which replaces the assessment of progress toward the Millennium Development Goals in previous editions.

The development indicators by the World Bank are a store of high quality data with coverage going back to the year 1960 (for most data). It is extremely useful for many reasons, be it understanding the country-specific development or monitoring the progress in less developed nations. These indicators give a deep comparative and individual insight into all aspects which are linked to development and not just growth. These indicators additionally provide great information to investors or companies looking to invest outside their home nation, as they present a reliable and accurate picture of a country or region.

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 associated targets in the SDGs builds on the 8 goals and 18 targets of the Millennium Development Goals but are far wider in scope and far more ambitious. They focus on five themes: people, planet, prosperity, peace, and partnership. Countries have resolved to end poverty and hunger and ensure that all people can fulfill their potential in dignity and equality and in a healthy environment; to protect the planet from degradation and take urgent action on climate change; to ensure that all people can enjoy prosperous and fulfilling lives and that progress takes place in harmony with nature; to foster peaceful, just, and inclusive societies free from fear and violence; and to mobilize the means to implement Agenda 2030, focused on the poorest and most vulnerable, through strong global partnership.

For each of the 17 goals, experts from the World Bank’s Development Data Group, Global Practices and Cross-Cutting Solution Areas have selected key indicators to identify and analyze important trends and challenges, and to elicit discussion on measurement issues. World View also presents indicators that measure progress toward the World Bank Group’s twin goals of ending extreme poverty by 2030 and enhancing shared prosperity in every country.

Along with the goals and targets, a global monitoring framework with more than 200 indicators is being developed by UN member states, working closely with UN agencies and other stakeholders. For each goal, World view presents recent trends and baselines against key targets, largely using indicators available in the World Development Indicators database and drawing on the specialist knowledge of World Bank staff. 

Measuring and monitoring progress against the Millennium Development Goals were major challenges and required substantial efforts on the part of national statistical agencies and others to improve the quality, frequency, and availability of relevant statistics. With a new, broader set of goals, targets, and indicators, the data requirements are even greater. Baselines and progress for few Sustainable Development Goal targets can be measured completely. Both governments and development partners will need to continue investing in national statistical systems and other relevant public institutions, where much of the data will continue to originate. At the same time, the statistical community needs to strengthen partnerships with the private sector and other emerging actors for advancing new techniques of data collection, analysis, and use.

As in previous editions, World view also presents indicators that measure progress toward the World Bank Group’s twin goals of ending extreme poverty by 2030 and enhancing shared prosperity in every country, which are also central elements of Sustainable Development Goals 1 (end poverty in all its forms everywhere) and 10 (reduce inequality within and among countries). A major change is that the estimates of global and national extreme poverty rates have been updated to the international poverty line of $1.90 a day per person, in 2011 purchasing power parity terms. Estimates of indicators of shared prosperity for 94 countries, including the growth rates of the average income of the bottom 40 percent, are also included.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS and TARGETS

Goal 1

It is concerned with ending poverty in all its forms everywhere. It was found that 13 percent of the world’s population lived below the international poverty line of $1.90 a day in 2012, compared to 37 percent in 1990. Declines in all regions contributed to the early success of meeting the Millennium Development Goal target of halving extreme poverty globally. Sustainable Development Goal 1 builds on this and proposes ending poverty in all forms by 2030. It also aims to ensure social protection for poor and vulnerable people, to increase access to basic services, and to support people harmed by conflict and climate-related disasters.

Goal 2

It aims at ending hunger, achieving food security and improving nutrition, and promoting sustainable agriculture. Over the past 25 years the share of the world’s population suffering from hunger has fallen. The prevalence of undernourishment, where food intake does not meet continuous dietary energy requirements, has been almost halved globally, from 19 percent to 11 percent, but remains far higher in low-income countries than elsewhere. Efforts to end hunger by 2030 will not be successful if current trends continue. Improvements in food security and sustainable agriculture, especially in cereal yields, can help a lot.

Goal 3

The third Sustainable Development Goal is concerned with ensuring healthy lives and promoting wellbeing for all at all ages .In low-income countries more than half the population dies from communicable diseases or maternal, prenatal, or nutrition conditions. In middle and high-income countries the pattern is different: More than two-thirds die from non-communicable diseases. Sustainable Development Goal 3 focuses on improving well-being, especially at the most vulnerable stages of life, providing health services, and improving imbalances between poorer and richer countries.

Goal 4

It aims at ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all. Much progress has been made toward universal education, with 92 percent of children worldwide completing primary education and 74 percent completing lower secondary education. But the gross tertiary enrollment ratio remains around 30 percent. Increased access to higher education is needed to achieve a productive, talented, and diverse labor force and an empowered citizenry. Sustainable Development Goal 4 also focuses on education quality, proficiency in key subjects at various ages, and access to modern education facilities.

Goal 5

It aims at achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls. Despite much progress toward gender equality in recent years, critical gaps between men and women persist. Half of women are economically active, compared with over three-quarters of men. On top of limited economic opportunities, women often have restricted agency, their ability to make decisions about their lives and to act on those decisions. While women and girls usually bear the direct costs of inequalities, gender bias has a cost to all, reducing the pace of development.

Goal 6

It is oriented towards ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. Despite halving the number of people worldwide without access to an improved water source over the past 25 years, the poorest countries are struggling to sustainably provide safe water and adequate sanitation to all. Just over a quarter of people in low-income countries have access to an improved sanitation facility, compared with just over half in lower middle-income countries. Delivery of water supply and sanitation is not just a challenge of service provision; it is intrinsically linked with climate change, water resources management, water scarcity, and water quality.

Goal 7

The seventh Sustainable Development Goal aims at ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all .Between 1990 and 2013 worldwide energy use increased about 54 percent, more than the 36 percent increase in the global population. Access to energy is fundamental to development, but as economies evolve, rising incomes and growing populations demand more energy. Meeting Sustainable Development Goal 7 will require increasing access to electricity, the take-up of clean fuels and renewable energies, and energy efficiency.

Goal 8

This Sustainable Development Goal aims at promoting sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. Jobs are the bedrock of both economic and social development. And growth drives development. By leveraging labor, individuals and households have a sustainable pathway out of poverty. Yet more than 200 million people were unemployed in 2015, and many more were underemployed in low-productivity informal sector jobs. Some 600 million new jobs need to be created by 2030, just to keep pace with the rising population.1 Sustainable Development Goal 8 aims for higher economic productivity and at least 7 percent annual GDP growth in the least developed countries.

Goal 9

This Sustainable Development Goal is concerned with building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation. Since 1990 over $2.5 trillion has been invested in private infrastructure projects around the world. Investments in telecommunications, electricity, and roads form the foundations for industrialization, innovation, and increased productivity.

Goal 10

It aims at reducing inequality within and among countries. The targets of Sustainable Development Goal 10 focus on reducing inequality in a variety of contexts: income inequality within a country and inequality by gender, age, disability, race, class, ethnicity, religion, and opportunity. It also tackles inequality among countries in terms of voice, migration, and international aid.

Goal 11

It aims at making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. An estimated 60 percent of the world’s population will live in urban areas by 2030, and most of the expected 1 billion increments in urban dwellers between 2015 and 2030 will occur in Africa and Asia. This demographic transformation will affect the economic, environmental, social, and political futures of individuals everywhere. Cities are complex systems in which every component affects every other. Sustainable Development Goal 11 focuses on making cities and other human settlements safe, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable

Goal 12

This Sustainable Development Goal aims at ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns. A third of the world’s energy is consumed by the food sector, but a third of food that is produced is lost or wasted. Saving a quarter of this lost food would be enough to feed 870 million people. Sustainable consumption and production by countries, in essence doing more and better with less ,means meeting basic needs of people and promoting a better quality of life while cutting harmful waste and pollution.

Goal 13

This goal involves taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts . Globally, 2015 was the hottest year on record, according to the World Meteorological Organization. Climate change is already affecting every country on every continent through changing seasons and weather patterns, rising sea levels, and more extreme weather events. Changes in temperature and precipitation pose substantial risks for agriculture, water supplies, food, ecosystems, energy security, and infrastructure.

Goal 14

This Sustainable Development Goal aims at conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development. Fish is the main animal protein for more than 1 billion people. Average worldwide fish consumption is about 20 kilograms per person per year. Yields from the planet’s oceans, seas, and marine resources are essential to the food security of much of the world’s population. Monitoring progress toward the sustainability of these resources is paramount but creates substantial challenges.

Goal 15

This Sustainable Development Goal aims for protection, restoration and promotion ,sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combating desertification and halting and reversing land degradation, and halting biodiversity loss. Forests cover 30 percent of the Earth’s land but, despite efforts to protect them, around 13 million hectares vanish each year. Between 1990 and 2015 the world lost more than 129 million hectares—over 3 percent of its forest area. The impact of human activity on the environment directly affects the world’s poorest communities, and deforestation, desertification, and loss of biodiversity all pose major challenges to future sustainable development.

Goal 16

This Sustainable Development Goal aims at promoting peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, providing access to justice for all and building effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels. Peaceful nations governed with fairness and transparency provides the optimal platforms for implementing development strategies and programs. However, many states are in fragile situations, with citizens and their daily lives compromised by fear, conflict, unjust laws, and opaque governance. The success of the Sustainable Development Goals in such areas depends on achieving livable and calm communities supported by reliable and accountable institutions.

Goal 17

The last Sustainable Development Goal is concerned with strengthening the means of implementation and revitalization the global partnership for sustainable development. Coordinated global macroeconomic policies, increased aid flows for the poorest countries, effective public-private partnerships, and domestic resource mobilization in low- and middle-income countries are key to achieving development goals.

CROSS CUTTING ISSUES

• Statistical Capacity: High-quality data and statistics underpin national decision-making processes, guiding resource allocation, private sector investment, program design, and policy formulation. Agenda 2030 pledges that no one will be left behind and that the goals and targets will be met by all countries, people, and segments of society. This pledge places new demands on data and statistics and means that disaggregation by sex, income group, age, location, and other dimensions of development takes on new importance. For most indicators the best ways to improve data availability are to invest in national statistical capacity and to develop stronger partnerships among international agencies, governments, and civil society.

• Financial Inclusion: Financial inclusion means having access to a full range of affordable formal financial products and services, delivered responsibly by sustainable institutions. To manage their financial lives, adults need access to an account or an electronic instrument to securely store money, send payments, and receive deposits. But around 2 billion adults worldwide do not have such an account, and many small businesses cannot access the financial instruments they need. Financial inclusion is a complex concept and is difficult to measure. Important aspects are access to, use of, and quality of services. Moreover, relevant data have been scarce, though recent efforts are improving the situation. Access to financial services enables individuals and firms to manage sudden changes in income, smooth cash flow, accumulate assets, and make productive investments. It promotes better use of resources and better access to essential services and enables a higher quality of life. Financial inclusion is an important enabler of development.

• Fragility, Conflict and Violence: Sustainable Development Goal will be severely impacted in regions affected by fragility, conflict, and violence. Episodes of unrest can reverse development efforts and rapidly dismantle achievements built over a long time, along social, political economy, and physical dimensions. Overall, around a fifth of the world’s population is estimated to be in a fragile, conflict, or violent situation, according to the World Bank. The number of forcibly displaced persons, which includes internally displaced people, refugees, and asylum seekers, is estimated to be 60 million. In fragile, conflict, and violent situations individuals and their day-to-day lives are threatened, and their surroundings become dangerous. People flee, and the numbers of internally displaced persons and refugees increase. Fragility, conflict, and violence damage the social fabrics and social contract of countries, impacting behavioral codes and trust in government and aggravating ethnic or religious friction. Fragility, conflict, and violence often disproportionately affect the health and safety of women and children.

It is imperative that the researchers and policy makers understand these goals and localize in their own country context to make the development goals and targets more achievable.

Source: World Development Indicators 2016, World Bank