Protect the Promise

Far from progress

A more equitable world is one of the most important promises of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Sadly, this report shows that with regard to the health and rights of women and children, that promise is not being kept. Far from a progress report, this document describes a reversal. Women’s and children’s health and rights are threatened to a degree not seen in more than a generation.

THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

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Foreword for the 2022 Progress Report on the Every Woman Every Child Global Strategy for Women's, Children's and Adolescents' Health (2016-2030)

New York, 18 October 2022

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A more equitable world is one of the most important promises of the Sustainable Development Goals. Sadly, this report shows that with regard to the health and rights of women and children, that promise is not being kept. Far from a progress report, this document describes a reversal. Women’s and children’s health and rights are threatened to a degree not seen in more than a generation.

At the core of our unkept promise is the failure to address the gaping inequities at the root of global crises, from the COVID-19 pandemic to conflicts and the climate emergency. The report describes the impacts of these crises on women, children and adolescents, from maternal mortality to malnutrition and wasting.

If these inequities persist, we will not keep our promise for a healthier, safer and more just world for all by 2030. Nor will we be equipped to manage the next pandemic, prevent the next conflict, or adapt to the mounting loss and damage from climate-related disasters.

The recommendations in this report fall into four broad categories: increased investment in health, including primary healthcare systems; improvements to food supply; collaboration across sectors and partnerships with the private sector; and the protection and promotion of women’s rights across the board. Taken together, these steps can address losses and build concrete progress for women, girls, and young people around the world.

I call on leaders to be resolute in implementing these solutions, honouring their commitments, and safeguarding the rights and wellbeing of every woman, child and young person.

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This is our wakeup call.

We can be certain that even as barriers continue to grow, healthier and empowered women, children and adolescents are the key to achieving a better world. But we cannot move in the right direction – toward a world where the most vulnerable are prioritized and reached – without concerted and collaborative efforts.

The outlook was bleak when we last presented a progress report on the United Nations Every Woman Every Child Global Strategy for Women’s, Children and Adolescents’ Health. In 2020, in the early days and months of the global COVID-19 pandemic, many massive and far-reaching consequences were predicted of shutdowns and containment measures that were then happening all around the world. In many ways women, children and adolescents fared worse than anticipated.

I write to you now as the United Nations Secretary-General’s Global Advocate for Every Woman Every Child. I was appointed to this role in 2021 and have strived to use the position as a platform to restore women, children and adolescents to a priority place in the global health agenda.

Now, in 2022, we are calling on all to think and act to protect the promise. This promise refers not only to the commitments made in the SDG and all of the campaigns that followed, but also to the larger promise of potential that everyone is born with. Too often this promise remains unclaimed, or even denied due to geography, economics, race, ethnicity, or gender.

While challenges persist and progress continues to be too slow to achieve the goals set out for 2030, there are reasons to be optimistic. The backsliding in outcomes shows that commitments, when delivered on, can be effective and life-changing. Conversely, in a void of will, attention and action, the results are devastating. This report should be seen as an urgent appeal to get on track to meet the ambitious but achievable goals.

This is our wakeup call. We can be certain that even as barriers continue to grow, healthier and empowered women, children and adolescents are the key to achieving a better world. But we cannot move in the right direction – toward a world where the most vulnerable are prioritized and reached – without concerted and collaborative efforts.

This is a promise we must all unite to protect fiercely and without compromise.

H.E. Kersti Kaljulaid

United Nations Secretary-General’s Global Advocate for Every Woman Every Child

President of Estonia (2016–2021)

Too many preventable deaths among women, children and adolescents

The global maternal mortality ratio

(MMR) declined by 38% from 2000 to 2017. But that translated into an average annual rate of reduction of just 2.9%.

5 million children died

before they reached their fifth birthday in 2020. Almost half of those deaths occurred among newborns.

1 million adolescents

died in 2020, most from injuries, violence, self-harm, infectious causes and complications in pregnancy.

Nearly 2 million

babies are stillborn every year

Financing shortfalls

Funding for women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health was stagnating even before the COVID-19 pandemic. The huge fiscal and economic challenges stemming from the pandemic have made the situation worse, as both official development assistance (ODA) from donor countries and domestic funding have been directed to response and recovery efforts, leaving less funding available for other priorities.

Shifting power and leadership for equality and impact

Solutions can be found in the talent, drive, skills and dedication of women and adolescents themselves – when they make decisions and have meaningful influence and control.

Greater participation of women in politics and leadership roles results in increased investments in social protection, health and education policies and programmes.