UNGA 81: A Moment of Reflection for the World’s Approach to Sustainable Development

On September 18, UN Secretary-General António Guterres convened the SDG Moment under the theme, “Together, we can get there,” setting the tone for the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81) and recognizing the collective effort that has put the Sustainable Development Agenda into practice.

Each year, this exercise is a moment for stocktaking. Civil society, governments, and other stakeholders gather to reflect on how they collectively are faring in their implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As the 2030 deadline inches closer, the SDG Moment provides a forum for the socialization of ideas on how to make the most of these final years and to discuss what might come next for global development.

A RENEWED VISION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Since the 2030 Agenda was adopted in 2015, the annual SDG Moment has highlighted how unwavering commitment to social development and stakeholder engagement has generated meaningful progress across many of the 17 Goals.

Despite turbulent geopolitics and setbacks, we have a strong understanding today of which approaches have worked and which haven’t. Thanks to efforts guided by the SDGs, we have seen success in health outcomes, combating poverty, and access to clean water. Each year, however, progress stalls. In 2026, just 36% of the SDG targets were reported to be on track or making moderate progress, while 15% were regressing.

The experiences of countries that have made progress on the Goals and the 2015 negotiation process on how to bring disparate actors together to create a viable starting point for the new global development agenda. Today’s political climate, however, is vastly different than in 2015: There is renewed emphasis on middle powers, Official Development Assistance from donor countries has been hollowed out, and the U.S. is increasingly retreating from the multilateral architecture it helped create. Any new framework will be informed by the progress made since Member States came together in 2015 to create and implement the 2030 Agenda –– and it must also respond to today’s novel circumstances.

An agenda can go only as far as the political will that surrounds it. Past initiatives have tasked high-level champions with connecting stakeholders to translate sustainable development commitments into action. This same structure can be used to advance thinking on a post-2030 framework and to provide useful guidance on what might encourage leaders to address the real hurdles to implementation, based on lessons from the past 11 years.

REDEFINING PARTICIPATION IN GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT

The SDGs have guided how nations and their people support one another and plan for a future of long-term investment and cooperation. Through the Deputy Secretary-General’s Six Transitions and the Global Sustainable Development Report’s (GSDR) systems-change approach, we have an evidence base to carry forward the objectives of the 2030 Agenda.

The Independent Group of Scientists (IGS) produces the GSDR, and the third and final cohort has been appointed ahead of the 2027 SDG Summit. Members of these three cohorts could form an advisory panel for the high-level champions of the SDGs to provide a scientific sounding board and valuable continuity. The IGS could work in tandem with high-level champions to identify what has prevented quick progress, take the guidance and networks around the current Goals and build on them, and then incrementally move toward a new framework.

Amid political uncertainty, poverty, climate change, and other persistent challenges, it is essential that the next communally imagined framework succeeds in advancing economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental protection.

WHAT COMES AFTER 2030

The UN system understands the importance of delivering better and delivering as one. Within the UN80 reform process, the system itself and Member States are making operational changes to create a more streamlined, effective, and responsive organization.

The UN’s approach to the Regional Reset offers lessons for the urgent work of sustainable development. The Regional Reset aims to localize as much humanitarian delivery as possible, coordinate agencies at a country level, and place staff with institutional memory and expertise into positions where they can be most useful. It also identifies the setbacks to effective humanitarian support and provides evidence-based guidance for more coordinated work and greater impact.

Through reform exercises such as the 2018 Development System reforms, and now the UN80 process, the system has repeatedly strived for greater coherence and impact in its work. When nations have faced challenges in implementing the Goals, they have responded by rising to the occasion. Developing a shared vision that embraces individual expertise and collective ingenuity will help us navigate the next phase of sustainable development.

For the UN to orchestrate a new responsive and resilient framework that builds on the meaningful progress made by the SDGs, it must start with the unglamorous work of keeping the current sustainable development agenda functional and effective. The 2030 Agenda is not a perfect framework. But despite its challenges, the framework has remained a working system that has accomplished unprecedented progress in advancing social development, eradicating poverty, and combating climate change around the world. Our experience with the SDGs over the past 11 years will be instructive as work begins to determine what should take its place.