November 21, 2023
Here’s some good news:
Between 2000 and 2019, the share of the global population living in extreme poverty fell by more than 70 percent, to 648 million. AIDS-related deaths dropped drastically, as did deaths from other preventable diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis. This success inspired the United Nations to set sustainable development goals, which envision a world without extreme poverty, where no one goes hungry, and where everyone has a chance at a quality education and decent health care by the year 2030.
Here’s some bad news:
In the wake of the pandemic and a worldwide refugee crisis, the UN self-reports that on 80 percent of their goals, progress is “weak,” “stalled,” or “has gone into reverse.”