How the Sustainable Development Goals could change life for all of us 

A brief guide to the new Global Goals

After years of campaigning and consultations, the Sustainable Development Goals were formally adopted by 193 member states at the UN General Assembly in New York on September 25, 2015.

The 17 new goals are aimed at ending poverty and inequality, and creating a more sustainable world. They replace the Millennium Development Goals, which expire at the end of this year, and will set the direction of development globally for the next 15 years.

As UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the General Assembly, the goals "are a to-do list for people and planet, and a blueprint for success. To achieve these new global goals, we will need your high-level political commitment. We will need a renewed global partnership".

There are 17 sustainable development goals with 169 targets in contrast to the eight Millennium Development Goals with 21 targets. However, the UN says the goals had to be broad in scope because of the scale of the challenges they address. 

Goal 6: Ensure access to water and sanitation 

Goal 6 – Ensure access to water and sanitation for all – recognises  the importance of clean water and adequate sanitation facilities. It means providing access to clean water and safe toilets will be a central part of international development plans.  
SDG 6 targets
  • By 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all
  • By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations
  • By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally
  • By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity
  • By 2030, implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate

  • By 2020, protect and restore water-related ecosystems, including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes
  • By 2030, expand international cooperation and capacity-building support to developing countries in water- and sanitation-related activities and programmes, including water harvesting, desalination, water efficiency, wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse technologies
  • Support and strengthen the participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management
Picture credits: Main picture, Indian children by Stephen Gray; Kenyan schoolgirls by Mary Bellekom