Sustainable Development Solutions Network revised working draft of “Indicators for Sustainable Development Goals”

The revised working draft of the “Indicators for Sustainable Development Goals” of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) is now available on their revised website. It includes goals, targets and indicators.

On sexual and reproductive health and rights: It should be noted that the language has been standardized to refer to “health and rights”. In response to some comments (including those from various civil society networks and organizations) that have called for strengthening the focus on sexual and reproductive health and rights over the discussion of fertility rates and to avoid any misunderstandings about the need for voluntary approaches to reducing fertility rates, the SDSN Leadership Council has simplified the language of target 2c and rearranged the indicators.

Target 2c now reads:

Realize sexual and reproductive health and rights for all, and promote the rapid reduction in fertility to replacement level or below through exclusively voluntary means

The order of the indicators has been changed as follows:

1. Met demand for family planning
2. Contraceptive prevalence rate
3. Total fertility rate

And two indicators have been added, including one on comprehensive sexuality education

•  Mean age of mother at birth of first child
•  [Indicator on sexual health education] – to be developed

Under Target 4c on violence against individuals, especially women and children, the following two indicators have been added:

• Percentage of women aged 20-24 who were married or in a union before age 18
• Prevalence of harmful traditional practices

While the goals and targets will be discussed in greater detail in the 12^th session of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals (OWG-12) these indicators will be an important step for the following development of the sustainable development goals.

(Note from the Editors: We would like to thank Katrin Erlingsen of DSW for making her analysis of the changes in the SDSN working draft available, on which this posting is based)