ABSTRACT
Sometimes viewed as controversial, rankings – and the composite indices that underlie them – can encourage better performance among countries when they are well-crafted, clear and transparent about their methodological choices. The most widely used ranking tool to measure performance on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is the SDG Index. It is published as part of the Sustainable Development Report, an annual unofficial monitoring report released by independent experts at the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. The SDG Index and rankings help render the SDGs actionable by translating the goals into concrete and easy-to-understand metrics. They also raise awareness among policymakers and contribute to holding countries accountable on SDG implementation. Yet, there are also critiques that rankings encourage ‘cheating’, and that the rankings of the SDG Index correlate too highly with countries’ per capita gross domestic product (GDP).
