We are at the midpoint to the UN’s ambitious 2030 Agenda, with only 7 years left to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. And we reach this mid-point as the world is grappling with the impact of simultaneous crises, from climate change and conflict to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) convened this month to assess and map the progress that countries are making toward Agenda 2030 and achieving each of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The SDG 16+ now campaign, which brings together civil society, governments, UN agencies, philanthropic groups and the private sector to work together to accelerate progress towards Goal 16 of fostering more peaceful, just and inclusive societies and institutions has analysed where we stand on achieving this. And the results are concerning – progress towards SDG 16 and its many sub-goals has been very slow and uneven, and in many cases backsliding.
The new report reflects the analysis of hundreds of civil society, UN, and government stakeholders from across the world.
Progress on 16.2 – ending violence against children
Target 16.2 is to end abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children. Sadly, the progress on this is backsliding.
Some notable progress has been made to prevent specific forms of violence against children, such as corporal punishment and trafficking. 65 countries have prohibited all forms of corporal punishment of children in all settings and 27 more have committed to reforming laws to achieve a complete legal ban, with a lot of this progress concentrated in recent years. Corporal punishment is banned in schools in 136 countries, penal institutions in 145 countries and as a sentence for a crime in 170 countries.
And in 2020, for the first time, the number of victims of trafficking detected globally decreased.
At large, however, with the COVID-19 pandemic and its related quarantine restrictions, lockdowns and school closures, there may be an additional 85 million girls and boys at greater risk of violence.
There has been increased gender-based violence, with reports of increased domestic violence, especially against girls. Despite a steady decline in the global prevalence of child marriage over the past decade, up to 10 million more girls are at risk of becoming child brides by 2030 due to the pandemic alone. And an additional 2 million cases of female genital mutilation (FGM) are expected over the next decade.
Progress against child labour has also stalled for the first time in two decades. 160 million children were engaged in child labour in 2020, with 9 million additional children at risk of being pushed into child labour by the end of 2022. School closures during the pandemic also made children more susceptible to recruitment and use by parties involved in conflict, sexual exploitation and recruitment into criminal gangs.
SDG 16 at large
Other SDG 16 goals have also not seen promising progress. All but two (providing legal identity for all and strengthening institutions and cooperation to prevent violence and combat terrorism and crime) have had no progress or seen a backside.
The report cites the biggest challenges to achieving the goals as funding, accountability and transparency, lack of data and lack of inclusivity of marginalised communities. It makes urgent recommendations for governments and the international community to improve data, financing, cooperation and action towards SDG 16 and the 2030 agenda.
Read the full report here.
Image: Amevi Wisdom/Unsplash