Scotland was one of the original signatories of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, joining 193 UN Member States committed to tackling global challenges such as poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice. As UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated, sustainable development is a responsibility to the planet and future generations. The 17 interconnected SDGs and their 169 targets provide a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and in the future.
In 2025 the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals website states “While conflict, climate disruption, economic instability, and rising geopolitical tensions have placed the promise of the Goals in peril, we can still turn things around by 2030. Notably, there has been some SDG success since 2015 with improvements in key areas, including poverty reduction, child mortality, electricity access and the battle against certain diseases.”
The National Performance Framework (NPF) was introduced by the Scottish Government in 2007 to outline societal goals and guide government action. It is the main mechanism for localising and implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Scotland, helping align national and local plans and identify gaps.
In 2025, the Scottish Government confirmed a period of reform to develop a more strategic and impactful NPF. However, no immediate changes will be made, and the current 11 National Outcomes and the statutory duty on public bodies under the Community Empowerment Act remain in place while the website is currently archived.
Progress on the UN Sustainable Development Goals at a worldwide level is mixed. The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2025 states: “only about 35 per cent show adequate progress – 18 per cent are on track and 17 per cent are making moderate progress. In contrast, 48 per cent of targets show insufficient progress, including 31 per cent with only marginal gains and 17 per cent with no progress at all. Most concerning, 18 per cent of targets have regressed below 2015 baseline levels.”
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