The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda is a set of goals related to the well-being of the world to be achieved by 2030. It was adopted by 193 Member States at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Summit in 2015. The Agenda 2030 comprises 17 SDGs and 169 targets and is guided by the principle of universality, inclusivity and sustainability to ensure development for all people, everywhere, especially the most vulnerable ones. SDGs address challenges like hunger, poverty, inequality, environmental degradation etc. for equal societies and a prosperous planet.
Institutional Mechanism
The Division for Sustainable Development Goals (DSDG) in the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) is responsible for advocacy and evaluation of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda of SDGs. The SDG Summit takes place every four years in UNGA and is reviewed annually by the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.
India has established a strong institutional framework for SDG implementation. The NITI Aayog is the nodal agency to implement SDGs, mapping of schemes and coordinating with the States and Union Territories. The sector-specific goals are implemented by central Ministries and the State Governments are key players in localizing these goals. The private sector and civil society are stakeholders in emerging areas like technology and renewable energy. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has been instrumental in developing indicators for monitoring the performance of SDGs. The UN Country Team in India supports all the key agencies in their efforts to make global efforts successful.
India’s Progress on SDGs
According to the latest edition of the SDG India Index 2023-24, India scored 71 out of 100, climbing up from 66 in the previous edition. The Index measures progress and drives competition among all the States and Union Territories (UTs) on a set of important National Indicators. The Index was first launched in 2018 by NITI Aayog with technical support from the UN in India, using 113 indicators across 16 SDGs.
Since 2018, India has observed remarkable progress in several SDGs. Significant progress has been made in SDG-1 (No Poverty), SDG-3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG-6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG-7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG-9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG-11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG-13 (Climate Action). SDG-7 has the highest score amongst all SDGs at 96 (2023-24) and SDG-13 has recorded the highest increase from 54 (2020-21) to 67 (2023-24). The goal-wise performance of SDGs may be observed in the figure given below.
Source: SDG India Index 2022-23
The scores of individual States and Union Territories now range from 57 to 79, recording a significant improvement from 2018. All the States have shown an improvement in overall score with Uttarakhand, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu ranking as top-performing States while Bihar, Jharkhand and Nagaland are trailing at the end.
Schemes and Impacts
The innovative policy formulation and coordinated implementation of Government schemes have made remarkable impacts on the progress of the SDGs in India. The SAUBHAGYA Scheme has provided affordable electricity to one hundred percent of households and PM Ujjwala Yojana has supplied 103 million LPG connections. Thrust on clean energy has resulted in a swift increase in solar power capacity from 2.82 gigawatts (GW) to 73.32 GW. Likewise, Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (banking access), MGNREGA (employment guarantee) along with Digital India Mission have expedited financial inclusion for economic growth as never before.
Swachh Bharat Mission and Jal Jeevan Mission significantly have improved the status of access to clean water and sanitation respectively by creating 110 million toilets and 149 million tap water connections in rural areas. Similarly, 800 million people were covered under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) to ensure food security and more than 520 million people under Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) for health insurance. PMJAY is the largest health insurance scheme funded by any Government. India’s progress in education was ramped up through the Right to Education (RTE) Act making education free and compulsory for children up to 14 years. India ranks among the top performers globally on the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) through strong climate action with an impressive target of 500 GW capacity from renewable energy by 2030.
Challenges and Way Ahead
The current global progress shows that only 17% of the SDGs are on track. According to the “State of Food Security and Nutrition 2023,” 735 million people worldwide suffer from hunger, a sizable number. Factors like COVID-19 and geopolitical conflicts have further dented the efforts. The effort to finance development in LDCs has not been successfully realised
Despite commendable growth numbers, India faces significant challenges in meeting the ambitious targets of the SDGs within the given timeframe. Challenges such as water scarcity, gender inequality, and uneven access to healthcare and education need special attention. The status of maternal and child health indicators, environmental degradation, the dominance of fossil fuels, and non-sustainable agricultural practices remain critical challenges.
Since independence, India has pursued development strategies that balance economic growth with social welfare and environmental sustainability. With strong institutional mechanisms in place and continued efforts to localize the SDGs, India is well-positioned to make substantial progress by 2030. As a home to one-sixth of humanity, India has a significant role in achieving the global SDGs goals. India has been actively putting the agenda on the global high tables. New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration of the G20 Summit 2023 has adopted action plans to accelerate progress on the SDGs. The SDGs have been further aligned with India’s vision of ‘Viksit Bharat’ (Developed India) by 2047.
However, when only five years are left until the 2030 deadline, the target demands innovative policy responses and targeted endeavours. India needs to seize this opportunity to maximise the achievement of the SDGs goals by balancing economic growth, social inclusion and environmental protection. As a leading nation of the Global South, India should continue to work to strengthen global institutional arrangements and credit guarantees for SDG-focused projects from multilateral development banks.
Leave a Reply