Africa’s progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063 is uneven, the latest Africa Sustainable Development report shows.
Development Diaries reports that three in five Africans, or 411 million people, still lack safely managed drinking water, according to ASD’s findings.
The report titled Accelerating the recovery from Covid-19 and the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and African Union Agenda 2063 at all levels, called for accelerated efforts to ensure that Africa achieves the global goals by the 2030 deadline.
Produced by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the African Union Commission (AUC), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), and the African Development Bank (AfDB), the report highlighted progress, the challenges, and the numerous opportunities for improving Africa’s development prospects.
Many African countries have regressed in their implementation of the SDGs due to financial problems, inadequate planning, and a general lack of commitment on the part of many African governments.
Also, there have been numerous coups, contested elections, and insecurity, all of which have an impact on development and the SDGs’ implementation process.
It is understood that while the availability of securely managed drinking water services has increased in African countries, there is still a sizable gap between rural and urban areas.
The need for African countries to invest in water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure and to strengthen integrated water resource management capacity is also brought to the fore.
In achieving SDG seven, which is affordable and clean energy, the use of clean cooking fuels and technologies remains limited, hence the call for an increase in infrastructure and technology funding to boost sustainable power generation across Africa.
As Africa moves towards achieving the SDGs, there are more targets that need to be expedited or reversed than there are targets that are on track.
The report called for prompt measures to hasten countries’ advancement towards the Agenda 2063 ambitions, goals, and targets as well as major SDGs.
In all, there is a need for greater investment in infrastructure to improve access to public transport, waste management, and air quality in African cities.
Photo source: AfDB
