19 September 2025 - Amid the shimmering heat and sleek skyline of Manama, Bahrain, Eman Fareed methodically pinches off bits of dough and spaces the soon-to-be cookies evenly on a baking tray in her kitchen. A retired civil servant and a mother, she opened her own business. “I named my company ‘Brown Sugar’ because I am Brown and I like sugar,” Fareed says, laughing.
The enterprise emerged as a result of her passion for sweets and the support of Kaaf Humanitarian. This Bahraini non-profit has become a grassroots model for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by empowering individuals and communities to achieve self-reliance.
“They show me how to go in my life,” Fareed adds as tears roll down her cheeks. “This is a story I will tell my child, how I become a good and a strong woman.”
Eman Fareed is just one among the millions of people whose lives have continued to improve in the 10 years since the world embarked on one of its most ambitious journeys yet - achieving the SDGs.
Her story, , serves as a reminder that behind the 17 bright-colored tiles are more than eight billion people who deserve and strive for a prosperous, dignified and fulfilling future - on a healthy and thriving planet.
Much progress has been made
Since 2015, when the historic became a lighthouse, guiding global efforts to create a better future for all, many people’s stories have been changed for the better.
Behind the bright red tile of SDG 1: No Poverty are the 4.2 billion people, or per cent of the world’s population, who now have access to at least one social protection benefit. This is an increase of 10 percentage points since the SDGs were launched. Over the past decade, the bottom 40 per cent of populations in most countries higher income and consumption growth than the national average. Internet use from 40 per cent in 2015 to 68 per cent in 2024 - connecting millions more to opportunities for education, work and participation in politics and beyond.
“We have seen a significant decline in child marriage, and maternal and child mortality rates have fallen,” said UN DESA Under-Secretary-General Li Junhua. At this intersection of SDG 5: Gender Equality and SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being, are the millions of lives saved, and the millions of deaths prevented.
Behind the crimson tile of SDG 4: Quality Education are the who have entered school since 2015. Over the past 10 years, schooling completion rates have been rising at all levels of education, and the gender gap has been continuously narrowing.
This list of advances made in the name of the SDGs over the past decade is far from complete: many more have been made, and many more lives have been improved. Such inspiring progress comes as a result of a years-long national and international effort.
Since 2015, 190 countries, plus the European Union, have presented their (VNRs) at least once, demonstrating a global commitment to working toward the 2030 Agenda, promoting accountability and sharing good practices and lessons learned from the ground up.
“These are not isolated wins. They are signs of momentum. Signs that multilateralism can deliver,” said UN Secretary?General António Guterres.
Five more years ahead
Still, the roadblocks on the way to a safer and more equal future for all persist.
“Despite these important gains, the convergence of conflicts, climate chaos, geopolitical tensions, and economic shocks continue to obstruct progress at the pace and scale needed to meet our 2030 commitments,” Mr. Li said.
According to this year’s , only 35 per cent of SDG targets are on track or making moderate progress. Nearly half are moving too slowly, and 18 per cent are going backwards. But it is not a reason for desperation. Instead, it is a call for more urgent action.
“The Sustainable Development Goals are not a dream. They are a plan - a plan to keep our promises to the most vulnerable people, to each other, and to future generations,” Mr. Guterres said. “With five years left, it’s time to transform these sparks of transformation into a blaze of progress - for all countries. Let us act with determination, justice and direction. And let’s deliver on development - for people and for planet.”