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Photo By:  Corinna Robbins is licensed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license.

International Development 101

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Around the world, amazing progress in development is being made. More than 1 billion people have been lifted out of extreme poverty since 1990, with major gains made in health, education, and other areas that contribute to human well-being. While the world still faces considerable challenges, including inequality, conflict, and climate change, quality of life around the world is improving.

Development Works

– 24.3%

In 1990, about 35% of the global population lived in poverty; by 2013 that number was cut by more than half and had decreased to 10.7%. From 1990 to 2017, 1.1 billion people were lifted out of extreme poverty.

50%

From 1990 to 2016, there was a 50% drop in the proportion of undernourished people in developing countries, from 23.3% to 12.9%.

5.2 billion

In 2015, 5.2 billion people used safe drinking-water services. Some 2.6 billion people have gained access to improved drinking water since 1990.

A smiling young girl, lifts her scarf overhead on a clear, sunny day. In the background, a young bow stands underneath a tree covered in debris.
Photo By: Arez Ghaderi is licensed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license

How does the world work together to make development progress?

The U.S. has a long bipartisan history of working with and within the international system to advance evidence-based development priorities and solutions. American leadership and engagement in multilateral organizations and other international organizations is crucial and helps
drive development successes.

Since 2015, international development has been shaped by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a 15-year agenda divided into 17 different goals that provide a shared blueprint for tackling development challenges and advancing human rights, has driven international development. The U.S. was a key driver in the creation of the SDGs, which were developed and adopted by all 193 member countries in the United Nations (UN). The SDGs build on the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) established in 2000 to “combat poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation, and discrimination against women.”

The SDGs currently guide international development investments and track progress and effectiveness through an intersectional set of indicators. Around the world, country governments, NGOs, civil society organizations, and donors are working in coordination to meet the SDGs by 2030.

International development programs bring knowledge and resources to help communities and governments around the world as they work to end extreme poverty; support the advancement of human rights; and promote resilient, democratic societies while advancing global security and prosperity.

Sustainable Development Goals

The UN characterizes the SDGs in five key categories:

  • People: We are determined to end poverty and hunger, in all their forms and dimensions, and to ensure that all human beings can fulfill their potential with dignity, equality, and a healthy environment.
  • Planet: We are determined to protect the planet from degradation, including through sustainable consumption and production, sustainable management of its natural resources, and urgent action on climate change, so that it can support the needs of present and future generations.
  • Prosperity: We are determined to ensure that all human beings can enjoy prosperous and fulfilling lives and that economic, social, and technological progress occurs in harmony with nature.
  • Peace: We are determined to foster peaceful, just, and inclusive societies that are free from fear and violence. There can be no sustainable development without peace and no peace without sustainable development.
  • Partnership: We are determined to mobilize the means required to implement this agenda through a revitalized Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, based on a spirit of strengthened global solidarity, focused in particular on the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable and with the participation of all countries, all stakeholders, and all people. The interlinkages and integrated nature of the sustainable development goals are of crucial importance in ensuring that the purpose of the new agenda is realized.

Making Progress

99%

Polio cases have decreased worldwide by over 99% since 1988, with only 22 reported cases in 2017. PEPFAR is saving 14 million people with antiretroviral treatment (ART) as of March 2018, and nearly 2.2 million babies that would otherwise have been infected were born HIV-free.


+8%

Enrollment in primary education in developing regions reached 91% in 2015, up from 83% in 2000.


60%

Almost 40% of the world’s population lived in a free country in 2017. This, however, leaves approximately 60% of the global population living in countries that are partly or not free.

three boys play ina field in the early morning as the sun rises
Photo By: Khant Zaw

What work remains to be done?

Despite encouraging progress, many global challenges have been improved by development efforts, the need for assistance continues.

  • Millions of children still die from preventable and treatable diseases. 5.6 million children still die each year of preventable and treatable diseases. Up to 45% of deaths occurring among children under 5 are due in part to malnutrition.
  • Conflict and environmental shocks present new challenges for communities. The number of extreme climate-related disasters, including extreme heat, droughts, floods and storms, has doubled since the early 1990s. These harm agricultural productivity contributing to shortfalls in food availability, leading to food price hikes and income losses.
  • Economic growth is unequal. Half of all people living on less than $1.90 a day live in sub-Saharan Africa. If women farmers had the same access to financial resources as men, the number of hungry in the world could be reduced by up to 150 million.
  • The number of hungry people is rising for the first time in a decade. In 2017, 821 million people were estimated to suffer from hunger – up from 777 million in 2015.
  • Rapid population growth threatens past progress. The world’s population continues to grow; the population of Africa is on track to doubling by 2050, compounding strains on health care, labor markets, and agriculture, among others.
  • Millions continue to lack access to lifesaving health care. Over 14 million people living with HIV still do not have access to antiretroviral therapy, and 1.8 million people became newly infected with HIV in 2017. Less than half of 2.1 million children living with HIV have access to lifesaving antiretroviral drugs.
  • Rural and urban communities face different access challenges to reach development goals. Four billion people have no access to electricity worldwide – most of whom live in rural areas of the developing world. The overall growth of the world’s population could add another 2.5 billion people to urban areas by 2050, with close to 90% of this increase taking place in Asia and Africa.

To address current and upcoming challenges, the international community of partners in development must support growth of much needed technologies, knowledge, and policies in places where they’re needed most.

Who contributes to international development programs?

Effective development programs are driven by local country ownership and partnership and support a country’s capacity and commitment to solve their own development challenge. Development does not take place unless local ownership exists.

Resources for international development programs come in all forms and demonstrate the wide diversity of people committed to and investing in ending global poverty.

Key contributors include:

  • local and international NGOs
  • local country governments
  • multilateral organizations
  • donor country governments
  • local and international businesses
  • universities and research institutions
  • private foundations
  • individuals

These contributions to international development programs help to combat global poverty and support the development of peaceful and sustainable societies.

The implementaton of international development programs falls predominantly to local and international NGOs and faith-based organizations working at the country and subnational level, often in conjunction with local governments. In recent years, the international private sector has emerged as a key complement to other sources of development assistance helping accelerate development growth and achieve greater impact and scale. Recognizing that developing economies represent many of the fastest growing markets, customer bases and workforces, a growing number of private sector actors — including U.S. and global corporations, local businesses based in developing countries, financial institutions, impact investors and entrepreneurs — are proactively seeking opportunities to drive growth and profitability while delivering impact in the communities and countries where they operate.