Ghana has four years left to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), but the country’s latest progress assessments raise questions over whether the pace of implementation is sufficient to meet the 2030 deadline.
The National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) has now begun a fresh assessment of five high-impact SDG targets, heightening attention to the gap between Ghana’s commitments and the results achieved so far.
The SDGs, adopted by United Nations member states in 2015, comprise 17 goals and 169 targets covering areas including poverty, education, employment, health, sanitation, energy, institutions and climate action. Ghana, like other countries that adopted the 2030 Agenda, has integrated the goals into its national development planning framework.
With just four years left, Ghana now faces the challenge of turning its SDG commitments into tangible results before the 2030 deadline.
At an inception meeting on September 10, 2026, the NDPC engaged Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and members of the SDG Implementation Coordination Committee to assess five targets considered capable of generating multiplier effects across other development areas.
The five targets are SDG 16.6 on effective, accountable and transparent institutions; SDG 8.5 on full and productive employment and decent work; SDG 4.1 on completion of quality basic education; SDG 6.2 on adequate sanitation and hygiene; and SDG 7.3 on energy efficiency.
Opening the meeting on behalf of the NDPC Director-General, Director of Development Policy Mrs Alice Amekudzi said Ghana needs to move from broad commitments to concentrated action in areas where progress can produce the greatest development impact.
“With only four years left to 2030, Ghana must have a clear understanding of where we are, what progress has been achieved, what gaps remain, and what it needs to change to accelerate implementation,” she said.
The assessment follows Ghana’s own findings that progress across the SDGs has been uneven.
The country’s 2025 Voluntary National Review (VNR), which assessed 105 indicators across the SDGs, described Ghana’s progress as mixed and highlighted persistent challenges requiring accelerated action.
According to the NDPC’s latest assessment, 12.4 percent of the indicators tracked were on target, while 41 percent showed moderate progress. The figures point to movement in some areas but also suggest that a significant share of the indicators requires faster implementation if Ghana is to close its development gaps before 2030.
Where Ghana Has Made Progress
Ghana has recorded measurable gains in several areas.
The 2025 VNR reported improvements in access to electricity, drinking water, financial inclusion, social protection and gender parity in pre-tertiary education. Ghana’s economy has also returned to stronger growth, providing some support for efforts to advance development priorities.
Ghana has also recorded gains in access to electricity, basic drinking water and pre-tertiary education, including achieving gender parity in the latter.
These gains show that progress is possible when policy, investment and implementation are sustained.
But the areas where Ghana remains behind are closely connected to the five targets now being prioritised by the NDPC.
The Gaps Are Significant
Poverty remains a major obstacle to achieving the SDGs.
Ghana’s latest data shows some improvement in multidimensional poverty, with the rate falling to 21.9 percent in the third quarter of 2025 from 23.9 percent in the first quarter, according to the Ghana Statistical Service. However, the figure still represents about over 7 million people facing multiple forms of deprivation, highlighting the scale of the challenge under SDG 1, which seeks to end poverty in all its forms.
Employment is another concern.
Ghana’s labour market remains heavily dominated by informal employment, with about 80 percent of employed persons working in the informal sector. The sector remains a major source of jobs but is characterised by low productivity, irregular incomes and limited job security, raising concerns about Ghana’s ability to deliver the productive and decent work envisaged under SDG 8.5.
Education presents a similar challenge. While Ghana has achieved gender parity in pre-tertiary education, the primary completion rate was around 80 percent in 2022/23 and was described as declining. This means access alone has not translated into universal completion of quality basic education.
Sanitation is an even bigger gap.
Sanitation remains a major gap, with access to basic sanitation still low and a significant share of the population continuing to practise open defecation. This leaves Ghana with considerable work to do to meet the sanitation and hygiene target under SDG 6.2.
Energy efficiency also remains a priority. Although electricity access has expanded, the country continues to face challenges around energy efficiency and the transition towards cleaner energy. Renewable energy remains another area requiring significant progress, accounting for just 0.71 percent of Ghana’s total electricity generation in 2024, according to the Energy Commission.
The Data Problem
One of the difficulties in determining exactly how far Ghana has progressed is the availability of reliable and timely data.
The Ghana Statistical Service has indicated that the forthcoming Ghana Living Standards Survey 8 is expected to provide information for several indicators where data gaps have affected SDG reporting.
The availability of better data will matter as the deadline approaches because government cannot effectively accelerate areas where it cannot accurately measure the size of the gap or determine whether interventions are producing results.
The NDPC has therefore placed data, monitoring and targeted implementation at the centre of its latest assessment.
Four Years To Close A Decade-Long Gap
Globally, the SDGs are significantly behind schedule. The United Nations’ 2025 assessment found that only 35 percent of SDG targets were either on track or making moderate progress, while nearly half were moving too slowly and 18 percent were in reverse.
Ghana’s own 2025 VNR similarly acknowledged that the country faces constraints including financing, youth unemployment, climate vulnerability and the need to strengthen implementation.
Ghana has four years left to make the progress needed to meet its SDG commitments. The five targets selected by the NDPC highlight some of the areas that need greater attention, including stronger institutions, decent jobs, quality basic education, improved sanitation and energy efficiency.
The nation still has time to improve its position before 2030. But the latest assessments suggest that the remaining period cannot be treated as an extension of the current pace.
