Welcome to the fourth edition of SDGSustainable Development Goal Pulse – UNCTAD’s annual statistical publication reporting on developments relating to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development -—
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—- and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGsSustainable Development Goal). The purpose of this report is to: provide an update on the evolution of a selection of official SDG indicators and complementary data and statistics; provide an update on progress in the development of new concepts and methodologies for SDG indicators for which UNCTAD is a global custodian agency; and to showcase how UNCTAD is supporting member States in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The report also investigates thematic issues of relevance to the 2030 Agenda – this year, the report discusses, as In-Focus topic, the issue of inclusive growth with particular emphasis on gender equality and environmental sustainability, assessing progress and challenges in these areas. Over the last decades, rising inequality as well as climate change have indeed questioned the ability of economic growth to continue to play its historical role as the driver of development. To support the SDGs, growth needs to be inclusive and sustainable.
The report is arranged in a way that it can be read by theme, and by goal and indicator.
In the theme view, the indicators are browsable by the three themes to which UNCTADs work contributes: multilateralism for trade & development; productive growth; and structural transformation. Through this thematic lens, progress towards a wide range of SDG indicators is discussed, including recent trends in trade, including barriers to trade, and policies to promote trade; financial resource mobilization, investment, debt sustainabilityA country’s capacity to finance its policy objectives through debt instruments and service the ensuing debt -—
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—-., transport infrastructure and ICTInformation and communications technology (ICT) is a diverse set of technological tools and resources used to transmit, store, create, share or exchange information. These resources include computers, the Internet, live broadcasting technologies, recorded broadcasting technologies and telephony -—
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—-. for sustainable development; as well as industrial development, manufacturing value-added, technological upgrade, environmental sustainability and the fostering of productive capacitiesUNCTAD defines productive capacities as consisting of the productive resources, entrepreneurial capabilities and production linkages that together determine a country’s ability to produce goods and services that will help it grow and develop -—
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In the goals-and-indicators view, the content is presented by SDG indicators and their related goals. The goals and indicators selected reflect UNCTAD’s broad mandate in trade and development, investment, finance, and technology. The SDG indicators are supplemented with other data and official statistics to complement the picture. The SDG indicators presented in this report are:
- Indicator 2.a.2: Total official international supportFor the purpose of the SDGs, official international support refers to assistance in the form of official development assistance and other official flows -—
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—-. to agriculture - Indicator 2.b.1: Agricultural export subsidiesExport subsidies refer to the granting of support by governments to some beneficiary entity or entities to achieve export objectives. Export subsidiesmay involve direct payments to a firm, industry, producers of a certain agricultural product etc. to achieve some type of export performance. In addition, export subsidies may include low-cost export loans, rebates on imported raw materials and tax benefits such as duty-free imports of raw material. They can also take the form of government financed marketing. Most subsidies have existed in agriculture -—
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—-. - Indicator 2.c.1: Indicator of food price anomaliesFood price anomalies refer to abnormally high or low market prices for food commodities. The indicator relies on a weighted compound growth rate that accounts for both within-year and across-year price growth. The indicator directly evaluates growth in prices over a particular month over many years, taking into account seasonality in agricultural markets and inflation, allowing to answer the question of whether or not a change in price is abnormal for any particular period. The method is applied both to individual food commodities and to a basket of food items. It is measured by SDG indicator 2.c.1 -—
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Goal 8: Decent work and economic growth
- Indicator 8.a.1: Aid for Trade commitmentsAid for Trade commitment is a firm obligation, expressed in writing and backed by the necessary funds, undertaken by an official donor to provide specified assistance to a recipient country or a multilateral organisation -—
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—-. and disbursements
Goal 9: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
- Indicator 9.1.2: Passenger and freight volumes, by mode of transport
- Indicator 9.2.1: Manufacturing value addedManufacturing value added (MVA) is the net-output of all resident manufacturing activity units. It is obtained by adding up their outputs and subtracting intermediate inputs -—
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—-. Manufacturing can broadly be understood as "the physical or chemical transformation of materials, substances, or components into new products" -—
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—-, consisting of sector C in the International Standard Industrial Classification of all Economic Activities (ISIC) revision 4 -—
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—-. - Indicator 9.2.2: Manufacturing employment
- Indicator 9.4.1: CO2Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a colourless, odourless and non-poisonous gas formed by combustion of carbon and in the respiration of living organisms -—
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—-. emissionEmission is the discharge of pollutants into the atmosphere from stationary sources such as smokestacks, other vents, surface areas of commercial or industrial facilities and mobile sources, for example, motor vehicles, locomotives and aircraft -—
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—-. per unit of value added - Indicator 9.5.1: Research and developmentResearch and development (R&D) comprise creative and systematic work undertaken in order to increase the stock of knowledge – including knowledge of humankind, culture and society – and to devise new applications of available knowledge -—
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—-. expenditure - Indicator 9.5.2: Researchers relative to population
- Indicator 9.a.1: Total official international support to infrastructure
- Indicator 9.b.1: Proportion of medium and high-tech industryMedium and high-tech industry is an industry in which producers of goods incur relatively high expenditure on research and development (R&D) per unit of output. The distinction between low, medium, and high-tech industries is based on R&D intensity, i.e. the ratio of R&D expenditure to an output measure, usually gross value added. For a list of the particular economic activities, considered to be medium and high-tech -—
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—-. value added - Indicator 9.c.1: Proportion of population covered by a mobile network
- Indicator 10.a.1: Proportion of tariff linesA single item in a country’s tariff schedule -—
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—-. with zero-tariff* - Indicator 10.b.1: Total resource flowsIn the context of the IAEG-SDG, these flows quantify the overall expenditures that donors provide to developing countries, including official and private flows, both concessional and non-concessional. Specifically, they include ODA, OOFs and private flows -—
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—-. for development
Goal 12: Responsible consumption & production
- Indicator 12.6.1: Number of companies publishing sustainability reports*
Goal 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions
- Indicator 16.4.1: Total value of inward and outward illicit financial flows*
Goal 17: Partnership for the goals
- Indicator 17.2.1: Net official development assistanceOfficial Development Assistance (ODA) are resource flows to countries and territories which are: (a) undertaken by the official sector; (b) with promotion of economic development and welfare as the main objective; (c) at concessional financial terms (implying a minimum grant element depending on the recipient country and the type of loan). In addition to financial flows, technical co-operation is also included -—
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—-., total and to LDCsLeast developed country - Indicator 17.3.1: Additional financial resources mobilized for developing countries from multiple sources*
- Indicator 17.4.1: Debt servicePayments made to satisfy a debt obligation, including principal, interest and any late payment fees -—
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—-. as a share of exports of goods and services - Indicator 17.5.1: Implement investment promotion regimes for LDCs*
- Indicator 17.6.2: Fixed Internet broadbandA general term meaning a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device. In data communications, this refers to a data transmission rate of at least 256 kbit/s. In the context of Internet, this can be delivered via fixed (wired) or mobile networks -—
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—-. subscriptions - Indicator 17.8.1: Proportion of individuals using the Internet
- Indicator 17.10.1: Worldwide weighted tariff-averageWeighted average of tariffs applied to imports of goods in HS chapter 01-97. The tariffs are weighted by the value of the imported goods to which they are applied. It is expressed as percentage of the value of goods imported. The average level of customs tariff rates applied worldwide can be used as an indicator of the degree of success achieved by multilateral negotiations and regional trade agreements. See metadata for indicator 17.10.1 -—
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—-.* - Indicator 17.11.1 Developing countries and LDCs' share of global exports*
- Indicator 17.12.1: TariffsTariffs “are customs duties on merchandise imports, levied either on an ad valorem basis (percentage of value) or on a specific basis (e.g. $7 per 100 kg). Tariffs can be used to create a price advantage for similar locally produced goods and for raising government revenues. Trade remedy measures and taxes are not considered to be tariffs.” -—
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—- faced by developing countries, LDCs and SIDSSmall island developing states (SIDS) were recognized as a distinct group of developing countries at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992. More information on UNCTAD official page.*
This includes all the indicators for which UNCTAD is a custodian or co-custodian. These indicators fall under goals 10, 12, 16 and 17, covering topics related to trade, tariffs, development finance, debt, investment, illicit finance, and enterprise sustainability.
Custodian agencies of SDG indicators, including UNCTAD, are responsible for developing international standards and recommending methodologies for monitoring SDG indicators. They are also tasked with compiling and verifying country data and metadata, and for submitting the data, along with regional and global aggregates, to the global SDG report and database updated by the United Nations Statistics Division. SDG Pulse covers the following UNCTAD’s custodian indicators, but also many other SDG indicators to describe sustainable development comprehensively.
To see UNCTAD custodian indicators and find related SDG Pulse sections, click on the graph.
UNCTAD runs a wide-ranging capacity development programme to support progress towards the 2030 Agenda. This report presents some case studies from UNCTAD’s development programme from a statistical perspective – presenting UNCTAD’s activities and successes in hard numbers. These case studies are important as they also illustrate the Results Based Management approach adopted by UNCTAD – helping us to improve our responsiveness and accountability to member states. In 2022, new chapters showcase statistics reflecting UNCTAD’s activities in supporting member States to measure illicit financial flows (SDG 16.4.1), enhance productive capacities, and mobilize financial resources for development in the time of COVID-19COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by the strain of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 discovered in December 2019. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses which may cause illness in animals or humans. In humans, several coronaviruses are known to cause respiratory infections ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The most recently discovered coronavirus causes coronavirus disease COVID-19 -—
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Every year, the SDG Pulse will highlight a specific aspect of the 2030 Agenda and discuss this issue from the slant or perspective of statistics. This year’s theme addresses inclusive growth with a new UNCTAD Inclusive Growth Index that puts people and the planet at the centre of attention. In-Focus analyses countries’ ability to achieve inclusive growth with a particular lens on gender equality and environmental sustainability. It will help to guide more holistic policies pursuing wellbeing for everyone today and in the future.
Data downloads
All data used in maps and charts can be downloaded by clicking on the top right of each data visualization.
Disclaimer
The designations employed and the presentation of material on this web site do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. A dispute exists between the Governments of Argentina and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland concerning sovereignty over the
Falkland Islands (Malvinas). The final boundary between the Republic of Sudan and the Republic of South Sudan has not yet been determined. The final status of the following territories has not yet been agreed or determined: Abyei area, Aksai Chin, Arunachal Pradesh, Bi’r Tawil, Hala’ib Triangle, Ilemi Triangle, Jammu and Kashmir, Kuril Islands, Paracel Islands, Scarborough Shoal, Senkaku Islands, Spratly Islands.
The designations “developing” and “developed” are intended for statistical convenience and do not necessarily express a judgement about the stage reached by a particular country or area in the development process. UNCTAD’s grouping of developing and developed economies is based on the former development status classification of the M49 standard, with some recent updates. For more details, see the UNCTADstat classification page.
Acknowledgements
SDG Pulse was developed by the UNCTAD Statistics Service, led by Anu Peltola, Acting Director. The following staff of the Service prepared the statistics, analysis and design: Sana Al-Jadir, Nour Barnat, Rachid Bouhia, Sonia Blachier, Sanja Blazevic, Ekaterina Chernova, Yoann Chaine, Richard Chalverat, Flavine Creppy, David Cristallo, Denis Gervalle, Victoria Goudeva, Onno Hoffmeister, Daniel Hopp, Ildephonse Mbabazizimana, Bojan Nastav, Anu Peltola, Vania Robelo, Amandine Rushenguziminega, Benny Salo and Anton Sudzik.
The following UNCTAD experts contributed to the drafting of the report with statistics and analysis across divisions: Regina Asariotis, Hassiba Benamara, Omar Benyamina, Andrzej Bolesta, Sonia Bouali, Hamed El Kady, Pilar Fajarnes Garces, Torbjorn Fredriksson, Yihong Gong, Penelope Hawkins, Jan Hoffmann, Daniel Ker, Tomasz Kulaga, Aurélie Legrand, Daniela Magalhaes Prates, Massimo Meloni, Elena Botvina, Samuel Munyaneza, Robyn Narelle Scherrer-Keen, Ngoc Nguyen, Alessandro Nicita, Anila Premti, Diana Rosert, Hidenobu Tokuda Lorenzo Tosini, Frida Youssef and Marina Zucker Marques. In addition, external experts provided crucial support in drafting the report: Anastasia Maga (ESCAPUnited Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific), Diana Camerini (UNODCUnited Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) and Steve MacFeely (WHOWorld Health Organization).
Notes
- * Indicator for which UNCTAD is a custodian or co-custodian agency.
References
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