Quantum Leaps or Incremental Steps? Tracking Industry Progress Toward the 2030 SDG Targets

Abstract

The clock is ticking on our progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the 17 targets that all 193 UN member countries agreed to in 2015, and we are not doing well. The UN SDG Progress Report 2023 indicates that just 15% of SDG targets are progressing towards achievement, and over half have seen little to no progress, or even experienced setbacks [5]. Now for the industry leaders, policy makers, and investors, the big question is: "Are we seeing quantum jumps in sustainable transformation or is it still business as usual, with 2030 visions remaining unattainable? Ambition delivery gap isn't even across countries. Embedded policy frameworks, green taxation and circular economy legislation are still very present in countries that continue to lead in SDG Index scores with values above 83 [4]. Yet, in the Global South, Nigeria, India and Brazil have high investment commitments yet slow growth rates, because of structural difficulties in their economies – from funding constraints to institutional capacity gaps. The picture is no different with industry sectors. Progress has been made in fact in the energy transition (SDG 7) with global renewables reaching a record 295 GW in 2022, with China, the United States and Germany leading the way [2]. However, sustainable agriculture (SDG 2), quality education (SDG 4) and reduced inequalities (SDG 10) are still resisting progress. There's no sign of quantum leaps displacing the incremental in the data, just both working in tandem in different industries, in different countries, at vastly different paces.