The institutional and policy transformations promoted under SDG 16 are foundational for addressing the 2030 Agenda’s various cross-cutting challenges. Strengthening inclusive governance, access to justice, and effective, accountable institutions are not only essential for achieving SDG 16 itself, but for advancing all the other goals, many of which depend on resolving armed conflict, strengthening institutional capacity, and implementing inclusive, equitable legislation to safeguard human rights.⁸⁴

SDG 16 accounted for the largest share of UN expenses in 2023, totalling US$ 12.1 billion, driven primarily by UN-DPO peacekeeping operations (60%), political and peacebuilding missions under the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA) (10%), and UNDP’s support for good governance, electoral assistance, rule of law, access to justice, anti-corruption, and conflict prevention (8%). Notably, the expenses of UN-DPO, the ICC, CTBTO, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), and IRMCT focus exclusively on SDG 16.

The second-largest share of UN system expenses in 2023 was directed toward eradicating hunger (SDG 2), reflecting the scale and persistence of global food insecurity and malnutrition. Having risen sharply between 2019 and 2021, global hunger has since remained persistently high, affecting 9.1% of the global population in 2023 compared with 7.5% in 2019.⁸⁵ The prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity has remained unchanged for three consecutive years. In 2023, 2.3 billion people (28.9% of the global population) were moderately or severely food insecure, including 864 million (11% of the global population) who faced severe food insecurity.⁸⁶ UN system expenses towards SDG 2 totalled US$ 11.8 billion, primarily ascribable to WFP assistance around reducing food insecurity and malnutrition, and providing sustainable agricultural resilience (83%). Elsewhere, UNICEF contributed mainly through nutritional care and counselling for children and women (7%),  while FAO provided agriculture and rural development support aimed at increasing food production and availability (6%). In addition, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)’s expenses were exclusively directed at SDG 2.

Improving global health also remained a key priority for the UN system in 2023, as reflected in expenses linked to SDG 3. Notable examples of the improvements seen in global health outcomes over recent years include the 52% reduction in AIDS-related deaths since 2010, and – in terms of preventing the deaths of newborns and children under five years of age – that fact that 146 countries or areas have either met or are on track to meet the target of 25 deaths per 1,000 live births. More recently, however, the COVID-19 pandemic, along with other ongoing crises, have reversed the progress made in life expectancy and disrupted childhood immunisation coverage, which suffered its steepest decline in three decades.⁸⁷

UN system expenses linked to SDG 3 amounted to US$ 9.1 billion in 2023, with two entities accounting for two-thirds of this total. WHO was the largest player with 44% of total expenses linked to SDG 3 (almost all – 98% – of the entity’s expenses were linked to this goal), while UNICEF contributed 23%, primarily through spending on newborn, child and maternal health among the most vulnerable populations. Elsewhere, the expenses of PAHO, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and Unitaid were almost fully linked to SDG 3 – ranging from 91% to 100% in each case.

Certain categories of expenses – particularly those linked to the procurement of goods, such as food or vaccines – are more readily traceable and systematically reported due to their structured, transaction-based nature. By contrast, measuring the impact of normative work – such as developing standards, guidelines and regulations –is often more complex in the absence of quantifiable financial targets. While compliance rates and behavioural change, among other indicators, can give some measure of effectiveness, linking UN expenses directly to SDG impact provides only a partial picture. Normative efforts and support for national development policies may only involve relatively modest financial outlays, yet yield significant, lasting contributions to sustainable development.

The lowest levels of UN expenses seen in 2023 related to environmental sustainability and resource use. These include ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy (SDG 7); ensuring responsible consump-tion and production patterns (SDG 12), conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas and marine resources (SDG 14); and protecting, restoring and promoting the sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably managing forests, combating desertification, halting and reversing land degradation and biodiversity loss (SDG 15). Each of these four goals received less than US$ 410 million in reported spending by UN entities, highlighting the relative underinvestment in environmental priorities, as well as efforts aimed at transforming consumption patterns and transitioning to more sustainable energy supplies.

The distribution of resources across SDGs varies signifi-cantly between UN entities. Figure 36 presents the 2023  expenses of four select UN entities, with each panel highlighting how that entity’s spending aligns with the SDGs  and the proportion of expenses reported against SDG codes. For WFP, 100% of its 2023 expenses (US$ 10.7 billion) were linked to SDG codes, including 90% (US$ 9.7 billion) to SDG 2, reflective of the fact that UN entities tend to prioritise SDGs closely aligned with their core mandates.

The UN Population Fund (UNFPA), meanwhile, contributed to a broader spectrum of development goals, directing more than half its 2023 expenses to health and gender equality. More specifically, its largest allocations were 44% (US$ 568 million) to SDG 3; 18% to reducing inequality within and among countries (SDG 10); 15% to taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts (SDG 13); and 14% to achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls (SDG 5).

UNICEF reported 92% of its total expenses (US$ 8.3 billion) against SDG codes in 2023, the diversity of which demon-strates the entity’s broad-based approach to advancing child health, education and access to essential services worldwide. UNICEF’s largest allocation of US$ 2.1  billion was directed at SDG 3, followed by US$ 1.4 billion to ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education, and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all (SDG 4). Additionally, US$ 1.5 billion went to strengthening the means of imple-men tation and revitalising the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development (SDG 17), underscoring UNICEF’s prioritisation of multisectoral collaboration.

Finally, UNDP contributed to all the SDGs, reflecting the entity’s emphasis on joined-up support for poverty reduction, climate resilience, and strengthening gover-nance and institutional frameworks. In 2023, UNDP reported 71% (US$ 4.0 billion) of its total expenses against SDG codes, the largest share of which (US$ 985 million) was directed at ending poverty in all its forms everywhere (SDG 1),  followed closely by SDG 13 with US$ 907 million. An additional US$ 263 million was allocated to SDG 16, an indicator of the integrated, interdependent nature of the SDGs and the entity’s broad mandate in supporting them.