Global goals: where are we and where is the world? BLOG by Yuliia Malich, external communications manager of Rinat Akhmetov Foundation
Strangely enough, the world has 17 formally defined Global Goals (the Sustainable Development Goals).
Global goals were worked out at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro in 2012. The idea was to create a number of universal goals that responded to the urgent environmental, political and economic problems the world is facing.
These are the Goals: (the Sustainable Development Goals) It turns out that the world sets itself 17 goals, but most of them will be far from being a priority for Ukraine for quite some time. For example, the world switches over to the alternative energy sources, has a purpose in industry and infrastructure innovation, reducing inequalities in society and responding to climate change.
At the same time in Ukraine, the first 4 goals are still of vital importance:
1. Reducing poverty in the country (No Poverty). In terms of GDP per capita, Ukraine is on the 135th place, followed by the countries that we rarely hear about at all. In relation to the world average GDP per capita, this is 0.214.
2. Ensuring the population's access to food (Zero Hunger). This problem is especially urgent in the East of Ukraine, where people are literally surviving just due to the humanitarian assistance of private foundations and international organizations.
3. Good Health and Well-being. In Ukraine, the trend of negative population growth has long been established. The average life expectancy of a Ukrainian is 65 years, while in more developed countries it reaches 75-85 years.
4. Quality Education. In 2016, about 67 thousand students went to study abroad (Source), not to mention that the Ukrainian diploma, in most cases, is not rated abroad.
Given that the first 4 goals are still not achieved in Ukraine, it is difficult to talk about climate change and innovation. In the current situation, the state can not always cope effectively with the mentioned four goals, let alone the other 13...
At the same time, Ukrainian civil society gets more and more active, helping the state to cope with the first four goals a lot. This synergy takes good effect. Moreover, social activism is increasingly encompassing the other 13 Global Goals.
I hope the day will come when we will be increasingly concerned about climate change and the protection of natural ecosystems, leaving poverty, hunger and health issues behind.
