In drawing the most relevant lessons for implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the World Economic and Social Survey 2017 systematically reviews the seven decades of development discussions contained in the publication ? the oldest continuous publication of its kind. Since its inception in 1947 and before the publication of the World Bank?s first World Development Report in 1978, the Survey had been the only publication that produced annual reporting and analyses of the global economic trends and their development implications. As such, the Survey has documented a wealth of development experiences across the different phases of global economic development (see Figure 1).…
UN/DESA Policy Brief #51: Reflecting on the World Economic and Social Survey's 70 years of development policy analysis
Since 1947 the World Economic and Social Survey has promoted a broader understanding of development, emphasizing the importance of advancing the structural transformation of the economy, progress in social development and environmental sustainability. This year?s edition, Reflecting on 70 years of development policy analysis, shows that many parallels can be drawn between the challenges currently facing the international community and those that confronted the world in the past. These lessons from the past are relevant to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In particular, the Survey highlights the importance of a stable global economy supported by coordinated…
World Economic and Social Survey 2017: Reflecting on 70 years of development policy analysis
On the 13th and 14th of October 2016, the Development Strategy and Policy Analysis (DSP) Unit will hold the First Expert Group Meeting to support the preparation of the 70 year anniversary issue of the World Economic and Social Survey 2017 (WESS 2017) on ?The contribution of the World Economic and Social Survey to development, theory and practice?. The meeting will bring together the lead authors of the chapters in WESS 2017, members of the UN DESA Team, experts in the selected subject matter and colleagues from UN member organizations. The objective of the meeting is to review the draft chapters for WESS 2017 with the expectation of receiving comments and suggestions for the preparation of…
Expert Group Meeting: The contribution of the World Economic and Social Survey (WESS) to development, theory and practice
The World Economic and Social Survey 2016 contributes to the debate on the implementation challenges of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
In addressing the specific challenge of building resilience to climate change, the Survey focuses attention on the population groups and communities that are disproportionately affected by climate hazards. It argues that, in the absence of transformative policies which coherently address the economic, social and environmental dimensions of development, building climate resilience will remain elusive and poverty and inequalities will worsen.
To the extent that the differential impact of climate hazards on people and communities is determined…
World Economic and Social Survey 2016: Climate Change Resilience: An Opportunity for Reducing Inequalities
The World Economic and Social Survey 2016 contributes to the debate on the implementation challenges of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
In addressing the specific challenge of building resilience to climate change, the Survey focuses attention on the population groups and communities that are disproportionately affected by climate hazards. It argues that, in the absence of transformative policies which coherently address the economic, social and environmental dimensions of development, building climate resilience will remain elusive and poverty and inequalities will worsen.
To the extent that the differential impact of climate hazards on people and communities is determined…
World Economic and Social Survey 2016 Overview: Climate Change Resilience: An opportunity for reducing inequalities
The launching of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) at the dawn of the present century ushered in one of the most important initiatives undertaken by the United Nations. Concerted efforts at the international, national and subnational levels to achieve the MDGs have brought about significant development progress over the past 15 years. Nevertheless, important development gaps remain.
The year 2015 was one of global action on the unfinished business of the MDGs and the many other challenges facing humankind. Once again, the United Nations has taken the leading role in promoting development for all, and through an inclusive consultation process has formulated the 2030 Agenda for…
World Economic and Social Survey 2014/2015: Learning from National Policies Supporting MDG Implementation
The role of selected policy instruments in reducing income inequality
Giovanni Andrea Cornia
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Land Ownership Patterns and Income inequality in Southern Africa
Sam Moyo
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Sustainability and Inequality
Frances Stewart
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Reducing Inequality for Sustainable Development
The 2014 World Economic and Social Survey notes that the inequality within countries has increased markedly in recent decades. The majority of the world's population lives in countries where inequality in 2010 was higher than it was in 1980. The standardized and updated indicators used in this Survey show that inequality in Asia has increased and has reached levels similar to those in Latin America, so far the region with the highest inequality in the world. Countries in Europe (including the Russian Federation and Eastern European economies in transition) experiences a sharp increase in inequality during the 1990s, whereas countries in…
Sustainable Development Challenges
The world is faced with challenges in all three dimensions of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental. For instance, more than 1 billion people are still living in extreme poverty, income inequality within and among many countries has been rising and, at the same time, unsustainable consumption levels and production patterns have resulted in huge economic and social costs and may endanger life on the planet.
The World Economic and Social Survey 2013 contributes to the deliberations on addressing sustainable development challenges with a focus on three important cross-sectoral issues identified for action and follow-up at the 2012 United…
World Economic and Social Survey 2013
Welcome to the United Nations
