UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Index 2026

About UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Index 2026

• The SDG Index 2026 is an annual assessment that measures countries’ progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
• Publisher: It was released by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN).
• Assessment: The index assesses SDG progress for 193 UN member states using an SDG score on a 0–100 scale.
  • However, 169 countries are ranked in the 2026 edition (including first-time entrants Eritrea and Timor-Leste)
• For the First Time:
  • Retroactively calculated SDG Index rankings have been introduced, allowing year-to-year comparison using the same indicators and thresholds.
  • The report has refined the headline SDG Index (SDGhi) by using one indicator for each SDG to reduce statistical bias from missing time-series data.
  • A new Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) indicator on productive and sustainable agriculture has been added to strengthen the assessment of SDG 2 (Zero Hunger).
• Key Findings and Performance (2026):
  • Global Performance:
    • 2030 Goal Status: None of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is on track to be achieved globally by 2030, and only 16.5% of the SDG targets are progressing on track.
    • Major Global Challenges: SDG 11, SDG 14, SDG 15, and SDG 16 remain the furthest off track,
      • while the weakest-performing indicators are mainly related to SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions).
    • Global Rankings: Finland, followed by Sweden and Denmark, topped the 2026 SDG Index,
      • while Chad, the Central African Republic, and South Sudan ranked at the bottom due to conflict, political instability, security issues, and limited fiscal space.
  • India’s Performance:
    • Highest-ever Ranking: India secured its highest-ever rank of 94th among 167 countries with an SDG score of 68.3, improving from 99th in 2025.
    • Strong Improvement: Since 2015, India has climbed 18 places, making it one of the fastest-improving major economies, although it remains behind Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.
    • Key Challenges: India faces challenges in 13 of the 17 SDGs, and only 33.3% of its SDG targets are likely to be achieved by 2030.
      • SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) remains the biggest concern,
      • while progress has been made in electricity access (SDG 7) and mobile broadband and internet use (SDG 9).