Sweden Falls Short On International Development Goals: Audit. September 16, 2025

Sweden´s National Audit Office Riksrevisionen Photo Jessica Gow

By AFP - Agence France Presse

Sweden Falls Short On International Development Goals: Audit

Sweden's work on the implementation and follow-up of the UN's sustainable development goals, Agenda 2030, has "several shortcomings," a report by a government oversight agency said Tuesday.

The Nordic country has long been hailed as an example in the field.

"The government has emphasised that the agenda is important, but has not offered sufficient guidance on what needs to be done or how," Christina Gellerbrant Hagberg of the Swedish National Audit Office said in a statement.

"The authorities have therefore continued to work pretty much as usual, without taking any additional measures to achieve the agenda's objectives," she added.

Adopted by UN member states in 2015, Agenda 2030 outlines 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Among the goals are the eradication of poverty and hunger, promoting gender equality, and creating better access to clean water.

The Swedish government has not set up a comprehensive follow-up on the progress made and has not detailed the measures necessary to achieve the goals, according to the Swedish National Audit Office.

It said that "the overarching conclusion is that there are several shortcomings, the most serious of which is that the government has not identified a clear direction with priorities for Sweden's implementation."

"Even though the work has been ongoing for 10 years, there is still no comprehensive view of how the work towards the goals and sub-goals is progressing in Sweden," Karl Nilsson, who led the audit, said in a statement.

"We believe the government's level of ambition has declined in recent years. Fewer resources are being dedicated to it," Nilsson told AFP.

AFP has asked climate minister Romina Pourmokhtari and international development minister Benjamin Dousa for comment.

According to UN data, Sweden remains a top student, ranking second out of 167 countries, right behind Finland.

"We are practically at the same level as ten years ago," Nilsson added. "The results haven't improved much."

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