UNGA 2025: Only 64 Months Left To Deliver On SDG-3 & SDG-5 | Time For Accountability

Governments must walk the talk on gender equality, right to health and human rights to deliver on SDGs in next 64 months (by 2030)

Governments committed to deliver on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015. As we cross the two-thirds mark this year on the road towards delivering on Agenda 2030, and as world leaders plan to meet for 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) soon, it is critically important to review where are we on the promises of gender equality and human right to health.

“Would world leaders honour their commitment to deliver on SDG-3 which is on health and well-being and on SDG-5 which is on gender equality? Would they be held to account for lack of progress on both SDG-3 and SDG-5? Would they genuinely deliberate to course correct and accelerate progress towards these goals by 2030 or earlier? That is yet to be seen. But what we do find today is that anti-rights pushes and anti-gender pushes are rising and threatening whatever little progress was made on gender equality and human right to health,” said Shobha Shukla, Founder Executive Director CNS and SHE & Rights coordinator, and SDG-3 Lead Discussant at United Nations intergovernmental High Level Political Forum HLPF 2025.

“Despite having made some progress on SDG-3 and SDG-5, we are now - more than ever - seeing a lot of fight from the anti-gender and anti-rights groups. They are coming against every progress we have made on SDG-3 and SDG-5 over the last couple of years,” said Kavutha Mutua, Founder Director, The Legal Caravan and noted High Court lawyer, Kenya.

“Some of the regressive trends that we have seen are around punitive laws and legal Bills targeting matters of sexuality, such as Ugandan anti-homosexuality Act. A similar Bill has been introduced in many other African countries including Ghana (not successful first and now could be reintroduced). For Kenya we have seen 4 versions of a similar Bill being introduced in parliament so there is a lot of punitive laws and lot of policy rollbacks (or possibilities),” said Kavutha.

Rollbacks of progressive policies

“Despite having made strides, we are seeing a lot of progressive policy rollbacks, for example, Kenya has commitments around advancing comprehensive sexuality education, which Kenya withdrew from, and as well as the Maputo Protocol reservation around Article 14 on the right to access safe abortion services - which again hinders the progress under the area of sexual and reproductive health and rights. We have seen contradicting laws that again hinder access to these services for young women and girls, including the Geneva Consensus Declaration that we have continuously advocated against,” said Kavutha Mutua.

These policy changes hinder government's commitments towards advancing sexual and reproductive health and rights for young women and girls and gender diverse communities. “We must defend progress made in laws and courts where possible. In Kenya, we are in court defending the national reproductive health policy which had come under attack or rather had been passed without public participation and therefore the voice of young women and girls was not covered and aspects such as comprehensive sexuality education were intentionally removed,” said Kavutha.

Nepal provides a shining example of leadership on SDGs

Only 64 months are left to deliver on the UN SDGs by 2030. Dr Bikash Devkota, Secretary, Department of Health and Population, Government of Nepal said: “The clock is ticking, and urgency to deliver on SDGs is real for Nepal. This moment is not only about reflecting our progress but also about reaffirming commitments, embracing accountability and inspiring collective global action. If we review Nepal's public health journey, then it is from fragility to the leadership over the past decades. Nepal has travelled an extraordinary journey in public health despite limited resources, complex geography, frequent crisis from political transitions, devastating earthquake and COVID-19 pandemic.”

Kavutha and Dr Devkota were speaking in SHE & Rights (Sexual Health with Equity & Rights) session, organised together by Global Center for Health Diplomacy and Inclusion (CeHDI), International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP) 2025, Family Planning News Network (FPNN), International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW), Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR), Asia Pacific Media Alliance for Health and Development (APCAT Media) and CNS.

“Nepal has demonstrated that determined policies, community ownership and global solidarity can drive remarkable change. Allow me to share with you some milestones that we believe are not only national successes but maybe the global exemplars. Nepal has witnessed one of the most dramatic health transformations. Life expectancy at birth has increased almost three-fold from 28 years in 1954 to 72 years in 2021. Over the last three decades, we have reduced maternal mortality ratio by more than 70%. The neonatal mortality rate has been reduced by more than half, declining from 50 deaths to 21 deaths per 1,000 live births over the same period,” said Dr Devkota.

“Access to sexual and reproductive health and rights in Nepal has expanded significantly supported by progressive legislation such as the Safe Motherhood and Reproductive Health Rights Act which was enacted by the federal parliament of Nepal to respect, protect and fulfill women's constitutional rights to safe motherhood and reproductive health by ensuring the provision of safe, quality, affordable and accessible maternal and reproductive health services,” added Dr Devkota.

Nepal is Rubella free: WHO

Nepal has maintained over 90% of immunization coverage under national immunization programme for several years. Just last year Nepal conducted a nationwide campaign reaching over 6.3 million children with measles and rubella vaccination. As a result of these sustained efforts, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared Nepal eliminated Rubella on 18th August 2025 and we are on track of eliminating measles, kala azar (leishmaniasis), and malaria, said Dr Devkota. “These are not merely statistics, but these reflect the lives saved, disabilities averted, and futures served. They testify to our ability to deliver results when communities, governments and partners work together.”

Fighting communicable disease and advancing HIV and tuberculosis response is another success area. Nepal is the only country in Asia Pacific to have reduced new HIV infections by over 75% between 2010 and 2024. This is a landmark achievement placing Nepal alongside with three countries in Africa with similar progress. Nepal is the only country in the world to implement 100% pictorial health warnings on tobacco products.

Must-do priority actions in Africa to deliver on SDG-3 and SDG-5

“Together, these two SDG goals (SDG-3 and SDG-5) are at the heart of the 2030 agenda. Without them, there can be no human development, no sustainable peace, and no economic transformation,” said Benedicta Oyedayo Oyewole, Community Engagement and Partnership Lead, InternationalPlanned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) Africa.

Benedicta calls for priority actions:

“Invest: We need to invest in primary healthcare and universal health coverage. Countries must ring-fence budget for primary healthcare, remove user fees for maternal and reproductive health and scale up midwives and community health workers. Universal health coverage must guarantee sexual and reproductive health services from conception and safe delivery to treatment for survivors of sexual and other forms of gender-based violence,” said Benedicta of IPPF.

“End violence: We must make ending all forms of gender-based violence and child marriages a political priority. Laws alone are not enough. We need enforcement. We need budgeted action plans and survivor-centred services, shelters, hotlines, safe schools, mental healthcare among others. Ending child marriage requires working with communities from traditional and religious and faith leaders and ensuring girls have access to quality secondary education,” added Benedicta.

She called for “putting money in the hands of women's rights and community-led organizations because they are the groups reaching the most vulnerable and the most marginalized in the communities from sex workers to people living with HIV, persons who inject drugs, sexual and gender diverse folks, and women in rural settings. And these are people most often led behind, including persons with disabilities. And yet they receive only a fraction of development financing. If we want transformative change, we must trust and fund them.”

Safeguarding progress on SDG-3 and SDG-5 is as important. “There were moves in Gambia to rollback law and the rights that criminalizes the practice of female genital mutilation or cutting last year. And we see this roll back of rights coming with the influx of anti-right and anti-gender moves across this continent,” alerts Benedicta. “We are not asking for charity, but justice. It makes economic sense. It is the foundation of the African countries that we want. The time for political rhetoric is over. What we need now is courage, financing and political will to ensure that by 2030 no woman dies from giving birth, no girl is forced into marriage, no one is denied health and dignity because of who they are.”

SDG-3 and SDG-5 in Asia Pacific region

“The Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW) and partners have reviewed progress on SDG-3 and SDG-5 in the face of intersecting crises both within the SDG framework but also incorporating community and lived experiences of women and girls in all their diversities from the region,” said Anjali Shinoi, noted intersectional feminist from Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW).

“If we look at maternal mortality, one-third of the countries in the region are not on track to reduce maternal mortality to below 70 deaths per 100,000 live births. Most countries are experiencing a decline in maternal mortality, but for many the problem is too big, and the progress is not far enough. Of course, maternal mortality is a completely preventable issue, and a regional analysis shows that the full spectrum of maternal maternity care including antenatal care, skilled delivery services and postpartum care is correlated to lower maternal mortality ratios. The maternal mortality ratio is lowest in countries where these services are highly utilised. Research from our partners at the University of Health Sciences Lao PDR shows that the delays in seeking care and receiving care are the primary contributors of maternal mortality in rural areas,” said Anjali of ARROW.

“Unsafe abortions continue to be an important source of preventable maternal deaths. Adolescents face a dangerous cycle of pregnancy and unsafe abortions along with mental health dangers, limited access to legal abortion pathways, parental consent requirements, affordability issues, societal pressures and stigma, non-adolescent friendly healthcare services, and a fear of lack of agency. Girls in the region also face a multitude of challenges when it comes to their safety and well-being, including early and forced marriages, female genital mutilation or cutting as well as sexual, physical and psychological violence,” said ARROW’s Anjali Shenoi.

“While several countries have reasonable legal ages of marriage, but they also contain other dangerous exceptions. For example, in the Philippines while legal age is 18 but the Muslim law allows marriage at much earlier age. In Bangladesh again loopholes in child marriage Restraint Act allow for special cases. There is a 13% increase in child marriages in Bangladesh since the COVID-19 pandemic. In countries like Kyrgyzstan while there is legislation in place, but there is poor implementation,” said Anjali.

ARROW’s intersectional feminist Anjali recommends:

Comprehensive universal access to services related to sexual and reproductive health and rights, where universal access is defined to include the full spectrum of sexual and reproductive health and rights services across life cycle, positioned within legal frameworks with adequate policy and resource allocation to increase government investment.

Increase health budgets and public fund allocation with periodic review ensuring marginalized groups aren't left out and integrate universal health coverage and SRHR to address access barriers.

Remove legal, structural, social, geographical barriers to health services, including safe abortion and maternal health services.

Redesign inclusive health systems. Create cohesive, inclusive, accessible systems for all diversities, providing equitable access to marginalized populations, strengthen sexual and reproductive health services.

Eliminate harmful practices, address structural barriers in norms, laws, policies and repeal discriminatory practices

Recognize needs of gender diverse people and ensure high quality timely reliable data disaggregated by gender, age, ethnicity, disability and location to monitor beyond SDG indicators.

Thailand is first country in Southeast Asia to legalise marriage equality: Love wins

“I would like to celebrate a major progress in Thailand for which we have been fighting for over 20 years: Marriage Equality Act. Some months back, Thailand became the first country in Southeast Asia to recognize marriage equality. This law ensures that all couples, regardless of their sexual orientation and gender identity, have the same rights to marry from the age of 18 and above. The Marriage Equality Act brings life-changing benefits to LGBTIQ+ individuals, couples, and families,” said Matcha Phorn-In, Founder Executive Director of Sangsan Anakot Yaowachon, Thailand.

Gender-neutral terms such as "spouse" now replace "husband" and "wife" in the Civil and Commercial Code, ensuring equal rights in marriage, child adoption, healthcare decisions, inheritance, and more. Thailand’s own Constitution, in Section 27, prohibits all forms of discrimination, reinforcing the nation’s commitment to these principles. Along with Thailand, 37 countries worldwide recognized marriage equality.

“We would fully celebrate when all countries in southeast Asian region stop criminalising LGBTQIA+ peoples. Representation of women and gender diverse communities as elected representatives in the parliament and other decision-making spaces is important. We could get Marriage Equality Act in Thailand but in other countries where there are not enough politicians from the marginalised communities, it continues to remain a challenge. Equitable representation is the first key to success,” said Matcha.

“In many countries we are faced with armed conflicts (or invasions or genocide). People in these conflict areas are forced for internal and external displacements. Many countries do not acknowledge indigenous rights. So, indigenous peoples’ rights to land and natural resources also get severely restricted. Rather indigenous peoples are impacted by so-called ‘business’ activities that violate human rights and our environment. For instance, mining of rare earth on the Thai Myanmar border contaminates the river (with cancer causing arsenic for example) which most impoverishment peoples and communities are forced to drink and use for their domestic and other needs,” added Matcha Phorn-In.

“We cannot talk about right to health without talking about ending wars, conflicts, invasions and genocides. Even schools and hospitals are getting targeted in wars. We must call upon all UN organisations and all governments to end all forms of wars, conflicts, invasions and genocides,” concluded Matcha as a necessary non-negotiable step to advance progress towards all SDGs.

Impact happens when gender equality and health programmes converge

“Street Women Engaged and Empowered to end TB (SWEET) project of Humana People to People India is one of our initiatives to help towards achieving the SDGs. SWEET also helps reach the most underserved girls and women among the urban poor and help improve health outcomes as well as reduce TB stigma. Now HIV interventions have also been added in SWEET programming,” said Lisbeth Aarup, Head of Programme Development, Humana People to People India.

“SWEET serves street women (homeless women who have been infected or affected by TB or HIV). They engage in small groups to increase their collective health and treatment literacy related to TB and HIV as well as other connected health and social support services. By implementing SWEET model of Humana People to People India, these girls and women become change agents as peer educations and supporters of people who have TB or HIV (or at risk of TB or HIV). They also become active crusaders to fight intersectional stigma and discrimination related to TB and HIV,” added Lisbeth.

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