UN Deputy Chief: Billions Go to Bed Hungry Every Night as SDG Progress Stalls

UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed stated that one in ten people worldwide still live in extreme poverty, 2.3 billion people go to bed hungry every night, and more than 2 billion people still lack access to safe drinking water. She made the remarks at the high-level segment of the UN Economic and Social Council on the ‘Way Forward to 2030’ on Thursday.

Mohammed said the Secretary-General’s 2026 report on progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) shows that more than a third of the SDG targets are on track or showing moderate progress. However, she noted that progress remains highly uneven across different goals and countries.

She highlighted that among the targets on track or showing moderate progress, access to electricity has reached 92 percent of the global population, while internet connectivity has increased from 40 percent in 2015 to 74 percent today. ‘The SDGs matter, and they are making a difference. But our world today is very different from the one in 2015,’ Mohammed said.

According to Mohammed, overlapping crises, including geopolitical tensions, economic uncertainty, the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, food insecurity, debt pressures, and widening inequalities, continue to slow progress across the SDGs and test the ability to achieve them. ‘Meanwhile, the planet continues to warm at an alarming rate, and violent conflict has reached its highest levels in decades. These are not standalone challenges,’ she said.

‘The question before us is not whether the SDGs remain relevant… The question is whether we are ready to make the choices, mobilise the financing, and strengthen the cooperation needed to deliver them,’ she added. She called for stronger multilateral cooperation, increased investment, and integrated solutions that can advance multiple SDGs simultaneously while building resilience against future shocks. Describing the upcoming 2027 SDG Summit as a critical milestone, Mohammed said it must be more than just a stocktaking exercise. She stressed that the summit should serve as a moment to deliver results, sharpen priorities, scale up what works, and renew political commitment in the final stretch towards achieving the SDGs by 2030.