Giving Compass' Take:

• Payce Madden at Brookings reports on research and figures showing Africa's progress on the Sustainable Development Goals, and what areas need to be given more attention. 

• How can funders help support the issues that need to be given more funding for change? 

• Learn about African leaders who pledged to improve education and health. 

Earlier this month, the United Nations released its annual Sustainable Development Goals Report, which measures the progress of and identifies gaps in the implementation of all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The report notes progress in some areas, but warns that the global commitment to the SDGs has not yet been sufficient, and that the most vulnerable people and countries are at risk of being left behind. The report also notes that climate change and increasing inequality within and across countries are undermining progress and threaten to reverse many of the gains made over recent decades.

As Figure 1 shows, while the share of the world’s population living in extreme poverty has declined dramatically since 1990, this progress has slowed in recent years. Extreme poverty remains high in low-income countries and countries affected by conflict, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where 413 million people still live on less than $1.90 a day. The report states that, without significant shifts in policy and increased global commitment, the share of extreme poverty will likely remain in the double digits in Africa in 2030.

Read the full article about Africa's Sustainable Development by Payce Madden at Brookings.