Sustainable Development Goal 3: Targets, Indicators and Progress

Overview

Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG 3) seeks to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. It sets global benchmarks for reducing mortality, fighting communicable diseases, improving access to healthcare, and strengthening health systems.

The goal combines outcome targets with implementation targets, so it covers both health results and the systems needed to achieve them.

Structure of SDG 3

• 13 targets: 9 outcome-oriented targets and 4 means of implementation targets.
• 28 indicators: Used to monitor global progress across the goal.
• Core focus areas: Maternal and child health, communicable diseases, non-communicable diseases, health financing, workforce, and emergency preparedness.
• Implementation targets (3.a to 3.d): Tobacco control, vaccine research and development, health financing and workforce, and early warning systems for health risks.

Maternal and Child Mortality

• Target 3.1: Reduce the global maternal mortality ratio to less than 70 deaths per 100,000 live births by 2030.
• 2023 maternal mortality: Global MMR stood at 197 deaths per 100,000 live births, nearly three times the target.
• Maternal deaths: About 260,000 maternal deaths were recorded globally in 2023, or roughly 712 deaths per day.
• Required pace: To meet Target 3.1, the global MMR must decline by an average annual rate of 14.8% between 2024 and 2030, compared with the actual 2.2% average annual reduction rate recorded between 2000 and 2023.
• Target 3.2: End preventable newborn and under-5 deaths, with neonatal mortality at least 12 per 1,000 live births and under-5 mortality at least 25 per 1,000 live births by 2030.
• 2024 child mortality progress: 134 countries had met the under-5 mortality target.
• Global child mortality: Under-5 mortality fell to 37.4 deaths per 1,000 live births, while neonatal mortality dropped to 17.2 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Communicable Diseases and NCDs

• Target 3.3: End the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), malaria and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by 2030.
• HIV progress: Between 2015 and 2024, new global HIV infections fell by 30%, and AIDS-related deaths declined by 35%.
• NTD elimination: By the end of 2025, 59 countries had eliminated at least one neglected tropical disease.
• Tuberculosis: Global TB deaths declined from 1.27 million in 2023 to 1.23 million in 2024, marking the first decline in TB deaths and cases since 2020.
• Malaria: Despite elimination from 47 countries, malaria cases are rising globally.
• Target 3.4: Reduce premature mortality from non-communicable diseases by one-third by 2030.
• NCD burden: In 2021, NCDs caused an estimated 18 million premature deaths among people under 70 years of age.

Health Risk Management and Early Warning

• Target 3.d: Strengthen national and global health risk management, capacity building, and early warning systems for global health risks.
• International Health Regulations (IHR): Used to assess preparedness for cross-border health emergencies.
• 2024 IHR assessment: Surveillance recorded the highest global average capacity score of 80.
• Weak areas: National capacities for managing chemical events and health policies scored lower than surveillance.

Key Prelims Takeaways

• SDG 3 structure: 13 targets in total, including 9 outcome targets and 4 implementation targets.
• Indicators: Progress is tracked through 28 indicators.
• Maternal mortality target: Less than 70 deaths per 100,000 live births by 2030.
• Child mortality target: Neonatal mortality of at least 12 per 1,000 live births and under-5 mortality of at least 25 per 1,000 live births.
• TB trend: 2024 saw the first decline in TB deaths and cases since 2020.
• Malaria elimination: 47 countries have eliminated malaria, but global cases are still rising.
• Health preparedness: Surveillance scored 80 in the 2024 IHR capacity assessment.