SDG 8 - Decent work and economic growth

SDG 8

Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all

Roughly half the world’s population still lives on the equivalent of about US$2 a day with global unemployment rates of 5.7% and having a job doesn’t guarantee the ability to escape from poverty in many places. This slow and uneven progress requires us to rethink and retool our economic and social policies aimed at eradicating poverty.

A continued lack of decent work opportunities, insufficient investments and under-consumption lead to an erosion of the basic social contract underlying democratic societies: that all must share in progress. Even though the average annual growth rate of real GDP per capita worldwide is increasing year on year, there are still many countries in the developing world that are decelerating in their growth rates and moving farther from the 7% growth rate target set for 2030. As labor productivity decreases and unemployment rates rise, standards of living begin to decline due to lower wages.

Sustainable economic growth will require societies to create the conditions that allow people to have quality jobs that stimulate the economy while not harming the environment. Job opportunities and decent working conditions are also required for the whole working age population. There needs to be increased access to financial services to manage incomes, accumulate assets and make productive investments. Increased commitments to trade, banking and agriculture infrastructure will also help increase productivity and reduce unemployment levels in the world’s most impoverished regions.

Facts and Figures

  •     The global unemployment rate in 2017 was 5.6%, down from 6.4% in 2000.
  •     Globally, 61% of all workers were engaged in informal employment in 2016. Excluding the agricultural sector, 51% of all workers fell into this employment category.
  •     Men earn 12.5% more than women in 40 out of 45 countries with data.
  •     The global gender pay gap stands at 23 per cent globally and without decisive action, it will take another 68 years to achieve equal pay. Women’s labour force participation rate is 63 per cent while that of men is 94 per cent.
  •     Despite their increasing presence in public life, women continue to do 2.6 times the unpaid care and domestic work that men do.
  •     470 million jobs are needed globally for new entrants to the labor market between 2016 and 2030.

Space-based Technologies for SDG 8

More effort is needed globally to increase economic productivity and create more and better jobs. The space industry is worth around US$ 385 billion as of 2017 and some expect this figure to surpass US$ 1 trillion by 2040. Accessing the sector can promote economic growth and innovation and create jobs.
UNOOSA helps countries leverage space to increase economic productivity and raise the number of youth in employment, education or training. Read more here.

SDG 8 Targets

Learn more about the SDGs

SDG Logo

Related Content

Article

Interview with Dr. Shimrit Maman, Senior Scientist at the Goldman Sonnenfeldt School of Sustainability and Climate Change

Interview with Dr. Shimrit Maman, Senior Scientist at the Goldman Sonnenfeldt School of Sustainability and Climate Change

Photo of Dr. Shimrit Maman. Photo by Dani Machlis

How do you personally and professionally relate to water? 

Growing up in Israel, water scarcity was a constant backdrop to my childhood. The arid climate and frequent droughts shaped my relationship with water from an early age. One vivid memory that remains stamped in my mind is the series of TV campaigns highlighting the importance of water conservation. I recall sitting in front of the television, concerned by the urgency conveyed in those campaigns. The images of dry landscapes and the emphasis on every drop of water as precious left a lasting impression.

Read More

Interview with Dr. Shimrit Maman, Senior Scientist at the Goldman Sonnenfeldt School of Sustainability and Climate Change

Interview with Dr. Shimrit Maman, Senior Scientist at the Goldman Sonnenfeldt School of Sustainability and Climate Change

Photo of Dr. Shimrit Maman. Photo by Dani Machlis

How do you personally and professionally relate to water? 

Growing up in Israel, water scarcity was a constant backdrop to my childhood. The arid climate and frequent droughts shaped my relationship with water from an early age. One vivid memory that remains stamped in my mind is the series of TV campaigns highlighting the importance of water conservation. I recall sitting in front of the television, concerned by the urgency conveyed in those campaigns. The images of dry landscapes and the emphasis on every drop of water as precious left a lasting impression.

Read More

Call: 2nd Global Online Stakeholder Consultation in preparation for the UN 2023 Water Conference

Event

39th International Sympsonium on Remote Sensing of Environment

The role of groundwater in advancing Africa’s socio-economic development

United Nations/China Forum on Space Solutions

Open Source CubeSat Workshop 2019

Multi-Stakeholder Thematic Webinars: Preparing for the Water Conference and the Water Action Agenda

United Nations/Austria World Space Forum 'Access to Space4All'

Local Perspectives Case Studies

Small-holder farmers in northern Madagascar are disproportionately impacted by drought

Small-holder farmers in northern Madagascar are disproportionately impacted by drought

Photo of a meager cow in front of a tree
Madagascar is becoming increasingly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and related disasters, namely drought, cyclones and flooding. While it is well-recognised that southern Madagascar has been suffering from drought for decades, it has not yet been properly acknowledged that northern Madagascar (The Diana region, Antsiranana and surrounding villages (e.g. Namakia)). Andranovondronina is also beginning to feel the impacts of drought. This is particularly affecting small-holder farmers who rely on rain-fed agriculture for both food and income. The climate of northern Madagascar is typically categorised as "transition tropical", so the onset of drought could also have major implications for the rest of the island. Northern Madagascar used to have a 6-month dry season and a 6-month rainy season, but the length of the rainy season has reduced significantly in recent years and is now locally considered a "cyclone season". More people are relying on groundwater, which is often contaminated with bacteria and excrement, leading to an increase in water-borne diseases and illnesses.
Read More

Hydrometeorological disasters in the Indian Himalayas

Hydrometeorological disasters in the Indian Himalayas

Flash flood in Uttarakhand, India
Hydrometeorological disasters (HMDs) in the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) area have led to multiple water-related issues that resulted from extreme rainfall, glacial melt, and changing river flows, all of which are made worse by climate change and land use changes. Accurate warnings of these disasters are difficult due to sparse gauging and rugged topography in the Garhwal Himalaya region, which increases the likelihood of disasters during the monsoon. The same region experiences water shortage and drought especially during non-monsoon periods. The use of wide coverage remote sensing data from the study region as well as from neighboring countries with access to space-based data can play a significant role in the monitoring and analysing of these challenges. This study applies spatiotemporal clustering and multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) to map high-risk zones, which will allow policymakers to reinforce infrastructure providing disaster resilience. There is a need for a solution that uses multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) and spatiotemporal clustering to map areas in Uttarakhand, Himalaya, that are prone to disasters with the help of satellite-based data. To determine which tehsils (smaller administrative units) are vulnerable, it is suggested to examine more than 150 years of recorded disaster data with location and fatalities. Further vulnerable regions can be mapped using high-resolution satellite data (procured through Sentinel, Landsat, Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) Digital Elevation Model (DEM), and Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM)) and analysed in the QGIS platform. This solution could use spatiotemporal clustering and MCDM to map high-risk zones, which will allow policymakers to reinforce infrastructure providing disaster resilience. Data of the Garhwal Himalayan region (India), which lies in the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region are needed. The topography of the HKH region is almost the same over eight countries, and all bear similar kinds of disasters and climate patterns. The Garhwal region occupies about 64 per cent of the area of the Uttarakhand state and is also the origin of the river Ganga.
Read More

Water scarcity and groundwater overextraction in Jordan: a growing crisis

Water scarcity and groundwater overextraction in Jordan: a growing crisis

Photo of cracks in dry soil. Creative commons by Domininka P. https://www.pexels.com/photo/heat-27286879/
Jordan’s water scarcity is primarily driven by overextraction of groundwater resources, inadequate rainfall, and inefficient water management practices. The country’s renewable water resources are estimated at less than 100 cubic meters per capita annually, far below the water poverty threshold of 500 cubic meters per capita. The overuse of aquifers, such as the Disi and Azraq aquifers, has led to water quality degradation and declining availability (Al-Zu’bi, 2007). The issue is exacerbated by climate change, which has resulted in erratic rainfall patterns, increased temperatures, and prolonged droughts (Al-Karablieh et al., 2016). Additionally, the rapid population increase, including the influx of refugees, has intensified demand for water resources. Agricultural activities, which consume approximately 50% of the country’s water supply, often rely on inefficient irrigation methods that contribute to groundwater depletion. If left unaddressed, the crisis will continue to threaten Jordan’s water security, agriculture, and public health.
Read More

Water quality degradation of the Bua River, Malawi

Mangrove forest loss in the Caribbean

Stakeholder

The United Nations University Institute on Comparative Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS)

The United Nations University Institute on Comparative Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS)

The United Nations University Institute on Comparative Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS) is a research and training institute of the United Nations University. UNU is a global network of institutes and programs engaged in research and capacity development to support the universal goals of the UN. It brings together leading scholars from around the world with a view to generate strong and innovative knowledge on how to tackle pressing global problems. UNU-CRIS focuses on the study of processes of global cooperation and regional integration and their implications.

Read More

Remote Sensing, GIS and Climatic Research Lab, University of the Punjab

Remote Sensing, GIS and Climatic Research Lab, University of the Punjab

The emerging demand of GIS and Space Applications for Climate Change studies for the socio-economic development of Pakistan along with Government of Pakistan Vision 2025, Space Vision 2047 of National Space Agency of Pakistan, and achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) impelled the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (HEC) to establish Remote Sensing, GIS and Climatic Research Lab (RSGCRL) at University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.

Read More

Space-based Solution

Harnessing rain: A system of safe, secure and sustainable drinking water - in development

Addressed challenge(s)
Samburu woman drinking (brownish) well water filtered through the fabric of her dress

Samburu tribe lacks access to safe drinking water - Dry spells due to water scarcity

Photo of a meager cow in front of a tree

Small-holder farmers in northern Madagascar are disproportionately impacted by drought

Collaborating actors (stakeholders, professionals, young professionals or Indigenous voices)
Suggested solution

The system involves a direct collection of rainwater into storage tanks. Implementing such a system has several challenges that a space-based GIS system can address comprehensively. The developed Rain4Drinking portal will be an opensource tool.

The model will be implemented in Google Earth Engine (GEE) and made available to communities through GEE App where they can just provide the shapefile of their rooftop or draw it on the interactive interface to get:

  • Size of tank they need
  • Type of tank they need
  • Best time of the year to store water for drinking 
  • Filtration requirements
  • Indigenised filter available
  • Feasibility of the rooftop rainwater collection system
  • Cost benefit analysis of the rooftop rainwater collection system

Requirements

Data

Software

Open-source cloud computing platform, Google Earth Engine (GEE) will be used for the development of this solution and the code will be public in form of GEE app.

Physical

Storage tank for collecting and storing water is a variable that needs to be constructed physically based on the output from space-based solutions. The important parameters for the tanks are their size and type.

  • Size of the tank:

The size of storage tank depends on the amount of rainwater received (varies locally) and size of collection area (rooftop). This requires a temporary track of precipitation in a region.

The rainfall data is also important for quantifying the purity of rainwater, as the month with a little rainfall gives more polluted water than the month with extensive rainfall.

  • Type of the tank:

Type of the tank usually comes with economic suitability. Plastic tanks are a ready-made solution but transportation to remote areas is very expensive, so their suitability zone is urban areas and its outskirts. The other option includes ferrocement tanks that can be built on the spot (with a low cost of material transportation) with huge sizes to store even thousands of gallons of water. The two famous types are Kalabashi Tank and Pumpkin Tank

Steps to a solution

The solution will be implemented in following three stages:

  1. Data access: There are global repositories of air quality and precipitation, developed using both space and ground-based measurements.
  • Global rainfall repositories provide rainfall patterns, average precipitation, months of maximum rainfall in a specific region that can help communities to estimate the suitable tank size and time of the year with the best quality of rainwater as well as to meet the water demand during both wet and dry seasons.
  • Global air quality repositories provide details of particulate matter, volatile organic compounds and other contaminants in the atmosphere.

 

  1. Processing / modelling
  • All the online available global repositories can be combined through multi-criteria analysis, helping communities determine their requirements, to estimate cost benefit analysis, and to conduct sustainability as well as risk assessment of their investment in harvesting rain for drinking purposes.

 

  1. Implementation of Rain4Drinking: This requires the development of portal allowing governments, organizations and communities to determine their feasibility plans and help them understand the benefits they can have from such investments.

 

Rain4Drinking diagram
Relevant publications
Related space-based solutions
Rainwater harvesting with tank at side of house

Harnessing rain: A system of safe, secure and sustainable drinking water - in development

A sand dam in Kenya. Credit: Hannah Ritchie

Construction of sand dams for Samburu County - in development

Map with y axis being latitude and x axis being longitude indicatingdecadal precipitation in Kenya

Rainwater harvesting in Samburu County – in development

NASA Earth Observatory images by Joshua Stevens, using data courtesy of Vishal Arya and the NASA DEVELOP Program. The maps above show some of the satellite data used to determine suitable locations. The first image shows precipitation from 2006 to 2016, which has remained fairly constant. The precipitation data came from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission and were validated with NOAA’s Global Surface Summary of the Day.

Determining optimum sites for rainwater harvesting - in development

Topographic map of Samburu

Water suitability map (Samburu County, Kenya) - in development

Keywords (for the solution)
Water scarcityRainwater harvestingAnalytical Hierarchy Process (AHP)
Climate Zone (addressed by the solution)
Tropical
Habitat (addressed by the solution)
Region/Country (the solution was designed for, if any)
Relevant SDGs