This situation has been made worse by the impacts of the pandemic. High oil and gas prices in 2022 will likely bring a new increase, as subsidies are often linked to the price of energy.ĭeveloping countries bear a large part of the climate, biodiversity and pollution impacts of resource-intensive production processes, without reaping their benefits. This brings the subsidies back to pre-2015 levels. In 2021, Governments spent an estimated $732 billion on subsidies to coal, oil, and gas, against $375 billion in 2020. Target 12.c: Global data showed a rise in fossil fuel subsidies in 2021, after a brief fall in 2020 which was largely caused by a drop in energy prices. Target 12.7: In 2022, 67 national governments reported to UNEP on the implementation of Sustainable Public Procurement policies and action plans, up 50% from 2020. Companies continue to address their activities in attaining the SDGs, however, only 10% report on all 17 SDGs.

The sustainability indicators that are most widely disclosed by companies include policies on water and energy and CO2 emission, occupational health and safety, as well as board diversity. Target 12.6: A preliminary analysis shows that around 70% of companies monitored publish sustainability reports in 2022, tripling since 2016. Target 12.3: The percentage of food lost globally after harvest on farm, transport, storage, wholesale, and processing levels, usually attributed to structural inadequacies in the countries, is estimated at 13.2% in 2021, unchanged from 2016 and far from the target of halving post-harvest food losses by 2030. In Northern America and Europe, the material footprint was about 14% higher than domestic material consumption, while in Latin America and the Caribbean and sub-Saharan Africa, the material footprint was lower than domestic material consumption by 17% and 32%, respectively. Target 12.2: In 2019, the total material footprint was 95.9 billion tonnes, close to the world’s domestic material consumption of 95.1 billion tonnes. Yet, reporting has been decreasing by 30% on average every year since 2019 and continues to reflect great regional imbalances with more than 50% of policy instruments reported from Europe and Central Asia. Target 12.1: Between 20, 484 policy instruments supporting the shift to sustainable consumption and production were reported by 62 countries and the European Union, with increasing linkages with global environmental commitments on climate, biodiversity, pollution and waste, as well as a particular attention to high-impact sectors. To deliver SDG12, it is crucial to implement policies that support the shift to sustainable practices and decouple economic growth from resource use. Reporting on corporate sustainability has tripled since the beginning of the SDG period, but the private sector will need to significantly improve reporting on activities that contribute to the SDGs.

But the global economy also needs to speed up the decoupling of economic growth from resource use by maximizing the socio-economic benefits of resources while minimizing their negative impacts. Responsible consumption and production must be an integral part of the recovery from the pandemic. The world is seriously off track in its effort to halve per-capita food waste and losses by 2030.The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on consumption and production patterns, with disruptions to global supply chains and changes in consumer behaviour.

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