Berlin, 12 September 2023 – According to a recent United Nations report, the international community is struggling to make progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. Shockingly, only twelve percent of the goals, which aim to tackle issues such as poverty, hunger, and inequality, are currently on track to be completed. The lack of progress is alarming, with some goals even further from being achieved than when they were initially set.
One of the most pressing concerns highlighted in the report is the alarming increase in global hunger. Since 2015, the number of people suffering from hunger has risen to a staggering 735 million. Shockingly, if current trends continue, the UN estimates that 590 million people will still face hunger by 2030, which is even higher than the number when the Sustainable Development Goals were first adopted.
Mathias Mogge, the secretary general of Welthungerhilfe, emphasized the urgent need for corrective actions: We must quickly change course to get back on track. The international community has the knowledge and resources necessary to achieve sustainable development, and the SDGs provide a solid framework for this process. However, we now require a greater commitment to implementing these goals.
Mogge believes that the upcoming SDG summit presents a significant opportunity for progress. He suggests that Chancellor Olaf Scholz lead a coalition of doers to renew and expand commitments during the summit in New York. Implementation of these commitments is the key to making significant progress towards ending hunger by 2030.
To effectively tackle hunger by the target date, Welthungerhilfe calls on heads of state and government to make a clear commitment to the human right to food. This would involve ensuring the inclusion of marginalized groups and civil society as a whole in decision-making processes at all levels.
Additionally, food systems need a transformative overhaul, which will require stable and adequate funding for development cooperation and humanitarian assistance. The planned budget cuts to humanitarian aid and development cooperation by the German government send the wrong message as the world approaches the halfway point of the Agenda 2030.
Mathias Mogge stresses the importance of the German government matching its ambitions with actions, especially as Germany aims to take on more responsibility within the UN. The SDG summit presents an ideal opportunity for the German chancellor to drive global efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
As the world reflects on fifty years of being part of the United Nations, Mogge hopes that the German government seizes this moment to lead the way in taking action, ensuring that the global community can successfully achieve the ambitious goals set for 2030.
