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Eliminating gender inequality and promoting population health are stand-alone goals in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is crucial to understand goal setting and policy making processes aimed at promoting gender and health equality given the entrenched and structural natures of these inequalities. Our research examines the process of problem and solution representation, priority setting, and factors that shape the policymaking process concerning women and girls within the UN system in relation to the SDGs. Data for this study were collected from semi-structured one-on-one interviews with participants who have work experience within the United Nations (UN) (n = 9). The analysis was informed by a qualitative descriptive methodology. Our findings identify the role of political forces in influencing policy, the challenges of limited and tied financial resources, the role of scientific evidence and data, and the purpose of different mandates across agencies. Political forces were found to shape the work of UN agencies, often hindering advancement of the SDG agenda. At the same time participants noted how they navigated opposition or what they considered regressive approaches to women and girls' health in order to pursue a more progressive agenda. Finite financial resources were also noted to play an important role in shaping SDG implementation pertaining to women and girls' health. Identification of the types of knowledge, evidence, and data that drive and are given preference in policy creation and development can highlight shortcomings and strengths of current modes of policy development and implementation. Key stakeholders and future research in health and development policy spheres can draw from our findings to gain insight into problem representation and prioritization. This will help identify underlying assumptions that inform work on women's and girls' health and how they shape policy agendas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regrettably, the triple global catastrophe of pollution, natural loss, and climate change coexists with the global socioeconomic problems of poverty and inequality. Temperatures are increasing at an unprecedented rate; biodiversity is disappearing swiftly, with potentially dire consequences for all of us; and pollution is becoming a global issue, killing millions of people annually and continuing to worsen. There is no normative vacuum in which the 169 targets and 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were born or placed. They are based on international law and designed to be compliant with the commitments made in a number of soft law instruments and international agreements. There is, of course, a connection between international law and the SDGs. What kind of relationship do they have? How much and how may the SDGs and international law complement one another to improve systems integration .In an effort to leverage the relationship for global sustainability, this paper investigates these issues from two angles. First, do the SDGs play a key role in bringing together different international organizations to work toward the ultimate goal of sustainable development? Most international institutions function in relative isolation and may pursue conflicting interests since they are engrossed in their respective mandates and goals. Goal-setting, as a governance technique to prioritize, motivate, and provide direction, has been proposed by some observers as a way to improve the overall performance of current institutions in fostering sustainable development. Insofar as providing consistency to an otherwise divergent and even inconsistent set of institutional arrangements, how effective are the SDGs likely to be? Second, is it conceivable that international law will aid in the integrated implementation of the SDGs? The SDGs themselves have come under fire for lacking consistency, even though they pride themselves on being “integrated and indivisible. This is a problem since the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) experience has demonstrated that achieving these governance goals on their own could have unforeseen consequences. While certain MDG targets were achieved, the MDGs’ spirit was not. Then, despite its fragmented structure, how and to what degree may international law integrate the SDGs and aims and aid in the achievement of long-term sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Eliminating gender inequality and promoting population health are stand-alone goals in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is crucial to understand goal setting and policy making processes aimed at promoting gender and health equality given the entrenched and structural natures of these inequalities. Our research examines the process of problem and solution representation, priority setting, and factors that shape the policymaking process concerning women and girls within the UN system in relation to the SDGs. Data for this study were collected from semi-structured one-on-one interviews with participants who have work experience within the United Nations (UN) (n = 9). The analysis was informed by a qualitative descriptive methodology. Our findings identify the role of political forces in influencing policy, the challenges of limited and tied financial resources, the role of scientific evidence and data, and the purpose of different mandates across agencies. Political forces were found to shape the work of UN agencies, often hindering advancement of the SDG agenda. At the same time participants noted how they navigated opposition or what they considered regressive approaches to women and girls’ health in order to pursue a more progressive agenda. Finite financial resources were also noted to play an important role in shaping SDG implementation pertaining to women and girls’ health. Identification of the types of knowledge, evidence, and data that drive and are given preference in policy creation and development can highlight shortcomings and strengths of current modes of policy development and implementation. Key stakeholders and future research in health and development policy spheres can draw from our findings to gain insight into problem representation and prioritization. This will help identify underlying assumptions that inform work on women’s and girls’ health and how they shape policy agendas.

This research aimed to understand the subject regarding the 2030 Agenda Sustainable Development Goals and food production through literature reviews covering the timespan from 2001 to 2021. Methodologically, this paper is framed as a literature review and uses the Scopus platform to get to the database, selecting 243 papers. The results pointed out that the United States presented the highest number of published documents (126). When it comes to the origin of affiliation, the universities located in the Netherlands (University of Wageningen) and Canada (University of Guelph) present together the highest number of published documents (24). Among the keywords, the most frequent are food safety, followed by the food supply, sustainability, and climate change. Finally, regarding the main subjects tackled during the analyzed time period, it was verified that the issues concerning public policies, land use, and food safety were discussed throughout the entire timespan. In turn, the most recent period, mainly covering the articles published from the year 2021 on, inserts into the discussion agenda the aspects of Covid-19, the pandemic, and its impacts, especially influenced by the setting experienced worldwide. At the same time, other subjects less discussed took the spotlight, also emerging from the Covid-19 pandemic, such as digital agriculture and digital technology, which began to have major relevance. At last, it is possible to infer that reaching sustainable development goals is even more challenging under a pandemic context experienced by all the countries from 2020 to the present day. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prevalence, management, and control of the neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) highlighting the current or prospective impact of COVID-19 on research and development funding for, and execution of, NTD programmes. This review was conducted to determine if, and how, NTDs were affected by COVID-19, and whether those effects will delay the elimination goals of the Sustainable Development goals. Methods: Using open-source available data from policy and documentation from official websites of the relevant stakeholders including but not limited to World Health Organization (WHO) documents and policies, government foreign aid documents, and the Policy Cures G-Finder reports, this scoping review explored ongoing challenges to supporting research and development (R&D) for the NTDs and in maintaining NTD control programs; examined the constraints posed for NTD management by the pandemic from disruptions to healthcare services, reduction of finance and explored the potential long-term implications and consequences for those poorer, neglected populations in low and middle income-countries (LMICs). This was done by a scoping review literature search, publications were subject to an initial practical screening step to ensure the most relevant publications were selected for full screening, with the focus on scoping the designated topic of the impact of COVID-19 on NTDs. We further undertook an evaluation of the socio-economic factors exacerbating the impact of COVID-19 on NTD burden. Results: Multiple disruptions and setbacks, likely to affect NTD programmes and progress towards their elimination targets were identified in this study. R&D funding for the NTDs and AIDs and TB has declined since the funding high point of 2019, and for malaria since the high point of 2018. Significant changes in allocation of R&D funding within the NTDs are observed post pandemic, likely because of prioritization among donors. Diseases for which the least R&D investment was reported in place, prior to the pandemic (mycetoma, taeniasis/cysticercosis, trachoma and Buruli ulcer) have been particularly impacted post pandemic. We identified specific NTDs including schistosomiasis, leprosy, and rabies that have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and disruptions caused to on ongoing NTD control and elimination programs. Pandemic restrictions disrupted essential medical supply manufacturing and distribution impacting immunization programs and hindered efforts to control the spread of infectious diseases. NTD programmes have experienced numerous setbacks including delays in mass drug administration programs (e.g. for schistosomiasis), cancelled or delayed vaccination programs (e.g. for rabies) and closure of testing facilities has resulted in reduced diagnosis, treatment, and disease elimination for all NTDs. Lockdowns and clinic closures causing disruption to essential healthcare services restricted NTD surveillance and treatment programs. Community fears around contracting COVID-19 exacerbated the constraints to service delivery. Disparities in global vaccine distribution have widened with LMICs facing limited access to vaccines and disruption to immunization programs. Finally, the pandemic has led to increased poverty with poor and marginalized communities, impacting nutrition, healthcare access and education all of which have long term implications for NTD management and control. Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly impacted global health research and global health equity. Attention and funding were diverted from all sectors, significantly affecting research and development efforts set out in the World Health Organization's NTD elimination Roadmaps. Ongoing changes to funding, economic crises, logistics and supply chain disruptions as well as deepening poverty has put a strain on already weak healthcare systems and exacerbated LMIC healthcare challenges. In particular, the delays and constraints to NTD management and elimination programs will have long-reaching consequences highlighting the need for global cooperation and renewed investment to put the NTD roadmap back on track. Targets and milestones are unlikely to be met without significant investment for recovery, in place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Teorija in Praksa is the property of Teorija in Praksa and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

ABSTRACT: This research aimed to understand the subject regarding the 2030 Agenda Sustainable Development Goals and food production through literature reviews covering the timespan from 2001 to 2021. Methodologically, this paper is framed as a literature review and uses the Scopus platform to get to the database, selecting 243 papers. The results pointed out that the United States presented the highest number of published documents (126). When it comes to the origin of affiliation, the universities located in the Netherlands (University of Wageningen) and Canada (University of Guelph) present together the highest number of published documents (24). Among the keywords, the most frequent are food safety, followed by the food supply, sustainability, and climate change. Finally, regarding the main subjects tackled during the analyzed time period, it was verified that the issues concerning public policies, land use, and food safety were discussed throughout the entire timespan. In turn, the most recent period, mainly covering the articles published from the year 2021 on, inserts into the discussion agenda the aspects of Covid-19, the pandemic, and its impacts, especially influenced by the setting experienced worldwide. At the same time, other subjects less discussed took the spotlight, also emerging from the Covid-19 pandemic, such as digital agriculture and digital technology, which began to have major relevance. At last, it is possible to infer that reaching sustainable development goals is even more challenging under a pandemic context experienced by all the countries from 2020 to the present day.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were initiated as a new chapter in international development and contributed to the use of global goals and the setting of targets as a key tool for defining the international development agenda. Given this growing significance, little is known about how they affect key stakeholder policy preferences, and their wider implications on Universal Primary Education in Nigeria as the second goal (MDG2), which inadvertently neglects secondary and tertiary educations. Domesticating the MDGs and building on the loopholes identified by MDG 2, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were introduced as a broader version of the MDGs. While Goal 2 of the MDGs focuses on achieving Universal Primary Education, Goal 4 of the SDGs addresses quality education across all levels of education. In this regard, this paper focuses on the relationship between the university system and the SDG4. Drawing on data from secondary sources, this paper argues that in order to ensure that the SDGs achieve a remarkable quantum leap in the area of education, the training and development of academics at Nigerian universities must be optimised and prioritised. Relying on the human capital theory, the paper opines that training academics in universities is one of the strategies towards realising Goal 4 of the SDGs. This is because university academics are the major determinants of the quality of academic activities that go on in universities, which are critical to the education system that is in turn a catalyst of development on a sustainable scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Timor-Leste's food insecurity, propelled by political conflicts, a fragile economy and biophysical limitations that characterize mountainous Small Island Developing States (SIDS), is expressed in a high incidence (50%) of stunted children. Hence, the Millennium Development Goals Achievement Fund's Joint Program's (MDG-F JP) in 2009 was a timely intervention to reduce prevalence of underweight among under-fives. Since the impact of the program remains largely unclear, the current study investigates the contributions of the MDG-F JP on improving children's nutritional status in Timor-Leste, in order to inform policymakers on how to make future programs more effective. Methods: Using bivariate analyses and multiple linear regression models we analyzed Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data from under-fives in 2009–2010 and 2016, combined with spatially explicit data from geographic information systems (GIS). The analyses generated trends and factors associated with undernutrition, which were used in a quasi-experimental setting to compare districts that received the MDG-F JP with similar districts that did not receive MDG-F JP interventions. Results: A comprehensive set of factors dependent on seasons, locations, and individuals determine undernutrition in Timor-Leste. A positive impact of the MDG-F JP was found for the average severity of wasting, but not for stunting and underweight. Conclusions: The findings reinforce the pressing need for integrated and cross-sectoral programs, aimed especially at agricultural workers, mothers, and children. The agricultural challenge is to sustainably select, produce and conserve higher-yield and nutrient-rich crops, and educational enhancement should be aligned with local practices and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The practice of the apartheid system in South Africa has been widely condemned for perpetuating enduring socio-economic inequality and for its detrimental impacts on the lives of millions of citizens. While many studies have strongly affirmed this assertion, socio-economic inequality continues to arguably engender a long-lasting struggle among the black and colored communities in post-apartheid South Africa. This places a burden on the country's successive governments to implement long-term policies that can rectify the plight of the people. Consequently, the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000 becomes an important reference tool for the African National Congress (ANC)-dominated government, which has initiated and implemented policies to combat inequality in the postapartheid era. This study examines the roles and measures taken by the ANC government to address racially discriminated economic and social inequality within the framework of the MDGs. Using qualitative research methods, the study explores the background framework of the MDGs and analyzes socio-economic measures implemented by successive ANC governments between 2000 and 2015, focusing on areas such as education, poverty eradication, and healthcare. Primary and secondary sources are utilized to provide insights and support the analysis. The findings reveal that the ANC-dominated government effectively incorporated the frameworks of the MDGs into its formulation and execution of policy measures to eradicate social inequality in South Africa. The study concludes that the effective implementation of these measures has yielded considerable progress, effectively addressing multifaceted issues such as poverty, healthcare, education, and unemployment. This conclusion aligns with the official South African MDG report, which unequivocally highlights the several achievements of MDG targets through policy implementation from 2000 to 2015. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ensaio: Avaliação e Políticas Públicas em Educação is the property of Ensaio: Avaliacao e Politicas Publicas em Educacao and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The practice of the apartheid system in South Africa has been widely condemned for perpetuating enduring socio-economic inequality and for its detrimental impacts on the lives of millions of citizens. While many studies have strongly affirmed this assertion, socio-economic inequality continues to arguably engender a long-lasting struggle among the black and colored communities in post-apartheid South Africa. This places a burden on the country’s successive governments to implement long-term policies that can rectify the plight of the people. Consequently, the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000 becomes an important reference tool for the African National Congress (ANC)-dominated government, which has initiated and implemented policies to combat inequality in the post-apartheid era. This study examines the roles and measures taken by the ANC government to address racially discriminated economic and social inequality within the framework of the MDGs. Using qualitative research methods, the study explores the background framework of the MDGs and analyzes socio-economic measures implemented by successive ANC governments between 2000 and 2015, focusing on areas such as education, poverty eradication, and healthcare. Primary and secondary sources are utilized to provide insights and support the analysis. The findings reveal that the ANC-dominated government effectively incorporated the frameworks of the MDGs into its formulation and execution of policy measures to eradicate social inequality in South Africa. The study concludes that the effective implementation of these measures has yielded considerable progress, effectively addressing multifaceted issues such as poverty, healthcare, education, and unemployment. This conclusion aligns with the official South African MDG report, which unequivocally highlights the several achievements of MDG targets through policy implementation from 2000 to 2015.

At the highest international political level, the United Nations declared the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 after having announced (and later not fulfilled) the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000. This shift from the MDGs to the SDGs, in which the term development was replaced by the concept of sustainability, also demands a paradigm shift within the research field of development communication and communication for social change which needs to put the focus on sustainability, embracing the concept of sustainability communication as key when analyzing and practicing social change by the use of communication and media. The article unfolds this argument by explaining the political shift from the MDGs to the SDGs and the relevant research fields analyzing these different goals and then sketching the research areas of development communication and communication for social change as well as the one of sustainability communication. In bringing all these areas together, it is argued that the change of the political goals provokes the above mentioned paradigm shift in the research area of development communication. Transforming development communication into sustainability communication also allows to focus the broad term of communication for social change on a specific aim – which is sustainability.

Objective: Sub‐Saharan African countries have the highest perinatal mortality rates. Although HIV is a risk factor for perinatal death, antioretroviral therapy (ART) programs have been associated with better outcomes. We aimed to investigate how maternal HIV affects perinatal mortality. Methods: The authors performed a nested case–control study at Saint Luke Hospital, Wolisso, Ethiopia. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, current maternal conditions, obstetric history, and antenatal care (ANC) services utilization were collected. The association between perinatal mortality and HIV was assessed with logistic regression adjusting for potential confounders. Results: A total of 3525 birthing women were enrolled, including 1175 cases and 2350 controls. Perinatal mortality was lower among HIV‐positive women (18.3% vs. 33.6%, P = 0.007). Crude analysis showed a protective effect of HIV (odds ratio, 0.442 [95% confidence interval, 0.241–0.810]), which remained after adjustment (adjusted odds ratio, 0.483 [95% confidence interval, 0.246–0.947]). Among HIV‐negative women, access to ANC for women from rural areas was almost half (18.8% vs. 36.2%; P < 0.001), whereas in HIV‐positive women, no differences were noted (P = 0.795). Conclusion: Among HIV‐positive mothers, perinatal mortality was halved and differences in access to ANC services by area were eliminated. These data highlight the benefits of integrating ANC and HIV services in promoting access to the health care system, reducing inequalities and improving neonatal mortality. Synopsis: HIV infection is de facto associated with halved risk of perinatal mortality, raising attention on the need for effective integration of antenatal care and HIV services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers play a vital role in educational development and educational reforms in the country. Therefore, for making the educational policies, programs, and system to be successful, the school's work culture and subsequently teachers' job satisfaction is of cardinal importance. Thus, the most pertinent question that comes forward is whether teachers are satisfied with their profession. Whether their service conditions and policies are adequately providing them with professional satisfaction? To attain educational goals and to enhance the educational outcome, the dire need is to analyze the overall job satisfaction of teachers, keeping socio-economic, psychological, and administrative aspects of the problem in view. This study attempted to make a comparative study of the job satisfaction of government schools' teachers with that of private schools' teachers to ascertain their level of job satisfaction with special reference to PTR, Corporal Punishment, and workload provisions of the RTE Act. This study is an attempt to make a comparative study of satisfaction of schools keeping socioeconomic, psychological, and administrative aspects of the problem. In this study issues related to the academic responsibilities of teachers and other issues related to the teaching-learning process; development of school curriculum; working hours of the teachers; prohibition of deployment of teachers for non-educational work; Classroom- Teacher Ratio in schools, Pupil-Teacher Ratio have been studied in-depth to make a comparative assessment of Job satisfaction of Teachers in public and private schools in India. The school teachers are normally overburdened with non-teaching or administrative duties, consuming a lot of their time. Preparation of several reports and writing down every detail of expenditure resulted in a waste of teaching time. Besides this, teachers in government schools have to do other activities like census data collection, disaster relief duties, or duties related to elections. Teachers are mentally and physically exhausted/drained leaving little time for their personal or family obligations. The teachers' staff room with certain basic amenities for providing brief relaxation during hectic teaching schedules, an interaction opportunity with colleagues, and also to energize them as well as to infuse in their confidence, mutual support, and motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were an important precursor to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Hence, identifying the conditions that made the MDGs successful enhances our understanding of global goal‐setting and informs the global endeavour to achieve the SDGs. Drawing on a comprehensive review of 316 articles published between 2009 and 2018, we identify six factors that have enabled or hindered MDG implementation. Our analysis stresses the importance of path dependencies and shows that the MDGs catalysed changes only for those countries with sufficient resource availability, administrative capacity and economic development, as well as adequate support from external donors. National ownership and NGO pressure bolstered efforts to implement the MDGs. These findings suggest that globally agreed goals do not easily trickle down from the global to the national level. Thus, this article adopts a forward‐looking perspective and draws key lessons for the current implementation of the SDGs in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Populations in urban centers of developing countries have increased very significantly during the post‐1960 period, primarily due to urbanization. Rates of population growth during this period simply overwhelmed their financial, institutional, and technical capacities to manage all types of basic services, including the provision of clean water and proper wastewater management. Surprisingly, issues of access to clean water and sanitation at major international forums of very senior policymakers were first raised during the United Nations Conference, in Vancouver, in 1976. It recommended that everyone should have access to clean water by 1990. Subsequently, Millennium Development Goals set the target that, by 2015, the number of people not having access to clean water should be reduced by half, compared to 1990. The United Nations claimed that this target was met in 2010. However, this is not true. Thereafter, the Sustainable Development Goals stipulated that everyone should have access to clean water by 2030. Current developments indicate that this goal is highly unlikely to be reached. This paper objectively reviews the progress of urban water security in developing countries from the post‐1960 period, analyses why international targets were missed in the past, and what can be done to ensure urban water security in developing countries in the future.

Leadership is an important factor in building collaborative governance, even leadership capacity would also affect the effectiveness of ongoing collaborations. This study aims to describe the map of leadership and collaborative governance studies through a Systematic Mapping Study (SMS) over a period of 5 years. This period was chosen in connection with the transition period from Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs.) The literature studies that were conducted cover the years of 2013 to 2018. The results showed that research on leadership and collaborative governance varied greatly and it was necessary to do a mapping to see the trends. The most widely used research method is qualitative, and the trend of publication shows a very significant decline, especially in 2013-2018. Based on these results, research on leadership with a focus on collaborative governance research is important to be carried out in order to produce various innovations and scientific development (body of knowledge).

The study focuses on Nigeria's agriculture policies and their alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 1 and 2. It examined historical and present agricultural policies, food security, and their compliance or relevance to the United Nations set goals or policy framework of Sustainable Development Goals 1 and 2. According to the document, despite the Nigerian government's laws and programs, there is still a severe threat of food insecurity to the Nigerian cooperative's existence. In this context, it was investigated to what extent the Nigerian economy is in sync or accord with the idea of the Sustainable Development Goals 1 and 2 and agricultural and food security plans. It questioned and investigated the capacity of the Nigerian economy's structural features to impede or assist the realization of food security under Sustainable Development Goal 1&2. As a result, the study detailed and analyzed the agricultural aims, concepts, and programs of the Sustainable Development Goals 1 and 2. It also looked at the structure of the Nigerian economy concerning its output structure, domestic economic capacity, and social structure capacity in the context of SDGs 1 and 2 agriculture and food security objectives. Furthermore, it x-rayed the requirements for compliance. Finally, it concluded and made some policy recommendations.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations (UN) brought many countries closer to the best practices in several sectors. However, regarding water and sanitation services (WSS), the evolution from the original Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is not yet understood. Therefore, analysing whether low- and middle-income nations were able to converge in terms of WSS is fundamental for policy-making. Here, we propose a benchmarking exercise aimed at assessing the performance of 123 low- and middle-income UN Member States regarding WSS development targets over the 2001–2015 period of MDG pursuance. In the end, we show that, on average, the assessed Member States were already fully convergent before the implementation of the SDGs, despite further improvements with the latter. Additionally, we show that all UN regional groupings were able to decrease not only the performance spread of their Member States, but also the gap between the best practice frontier and the worst practice frontier. Besides, the Proportion of population using an improved drinking water source was the indicator with the highest performance growth in the considered period. HIGHLIGHTS Benchmarking exercise to measure convergence.; Application to 123 low- and middle-income United Nations (UN) Member States.; 2001–2015 performance assessment regarding the development targets of water and sanitation services.; Globally, the UN Member States converged on average.; The 'Proportion of population using an improved drinking water source' had the highest performance growth.;

Had poverty been halved between 1990 and 2015? In the present paper, we show how well‐known stochastic dominance tools can be used to check the robustness of claims regarding monetary poverty variations and then, using data from PovcalNet, provide a new picture of achievements with respect to poverty alleviation during the Millennium Development Goals' era. Using a sample of 90 developing countries, we notably observe that of the 58 countries whose pace of poverty reduction was consistent with a 50 percent decrease in the headcount index over a 25‐year period, 51 countries showed distribution changes that were in line with a more general conclusion that poverty would have been halved, whatever the poverty index we use, over the same period. Our results at the global level for the period 2002–2012 also show that the same conclusion robustly holds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For decades, feminism has driven a gender equality agenda in development policies. Decolonial and intersectional feminisms, for example, have played an anti-racist and anti-colonial agenda. Women's demands have found different degrees of incorporation into international plans, such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this scenario, this work compared gender equality in the MDGs and the SDGs to analyze their advances and challenges in the face of the gender mainstreaming agenda and intersectional and decolonial demands. Documental research was carried out on the objectives, targets, and results of the MDGs and the objectives and targets of the SDGs. The results indicate that the SDGs are more ambitious than the MDGs by adopting a broader and more transversal approach to gender equality. However, there are important gaps in operationalizing an approach to gender inequalities that considers the intersections of different forms of discrimination that affect different groups of women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is an environmental challenge confronting all countries across the globe in varying degrees of intensity. It, directly and indirectly, interferes with the enjoyment of all human beings including – the right to life, housing, water and sanitation, food, health, development, security of persons and an adequate standard of living. Industry and business play a crucial role with regard to climate change, accounting for approximately one-third of the world's energy consumption and 36 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions. Therefore, industry and the global business community have a responsibility to join national and international efforts to lower their greenhouse gas emissions. Across Asia, Europe, Africa, and North and South America, the adverse effects of climate change have manifested over the years as ozone layer depletion, continental global warming, a shower of acid rain, extended fires, melting ice, rise in sea level and other extreme events which call for urgent action at national and international levels. A self-regulating approach that makes manufacturing organisations socially responsible and responsive to environmental issues in their operating countries can be pragmatic in climate-change mitigation, and strengthen existing governmental policies on climate change. A number of affirmative actions and recommendations has been formulated at national and international levels to regulate climate change including eco-vigilance, adoption of green, conservation of the flora and fauna, zero-tolerance of gas flaring, socially responsible investment, carbon emission reporting and disclosures and adoption of environment-friendly manufacturing techniques. Therefore, the present study not only focusses on the theoretical aspect but also on the socio-legal aspect filling the gap in both theory and practice related to the impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]