This article relates to Goal 3: Good health and well-being, one of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals. Goal icon by the United Nations. Emberoot is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the UN.
SDG 3, the third of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, asks the world to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages” by 2030. It is one of the broadest goals in the set. It covers mothers giving birth, babies in their first month, infectious diseases, heart disease and cancer, mental health, road crashes, pollution and the price people pay for care. This guide walks through the targets, the latest verified numbers and the places where progress has stalled.
What SDG 3 covers
The goal has 13 targets, listed in full on the UN’s Goal 3 page. Nine describe outcomes the world should reach, and four (lettered 3.a to 3.d) describe the means to get there, such as tobacco control, research on medicines, health financing and early warning for health emergencies. The ones most people will recognise are these:
- 3.1: bring the global maternal death ratio below 70 per 100,000 live births.
- 3.2: end preventable deaths of newborns and children under five.
- 3.3: end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases.
- 3.4: cut early deaths from non-communicable diseases by a third and promote mental health.
- 3.6: halve deaths and injuries from road traffic crashes.
- 3.8: achieve universal health coverage, including protection from ruinous health costs.
- 3.9: reduce deaths and illness from pollution and hazardous chemicals.
Target 3.8, universal health coverage, ties the rest together. If people cannot reach a clinic, or cannot pay for it without selling a field or skipping meals, the disease targets will not be met either.
Where the world stands on SDG 3
The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals Report 2026 gives the most recent global picture. Some lines have moved the right way since 2015. Others have barely moved, and a few have gone backwards.
Mothers and children
The maternal mortality ratio fell from 228 per 100,000 live births in 2015 to 197 in 2023. That is progress, but the target is below 70, and the pace is far too slow to get there by 2030. Child survival has done better. The under-five death rate was 37.4 per 1,000 live births in 2024, 13 per cent lower than in 2015, yet 4.9 million children still died before their fifth birthday that year.
Infectious diseases
HIV is a partial success: AIDS-related deaths fell 35 per cent between 2015 and 2024, though 1.3 million people were newly infected in 2024 and more than 9 million people living with HIV were not on treatment. Tuberculosis made 10.7 million people ill in 2024 and killed about 1.23 million. Malaria has gone the wrong way, with 282 million cases in 2024 and incidence rising from 59 to 64 cases per 1,000 people at risk since 2015.
Coverage and cost
The UHC service coverage index stood at 71 out of 100 in 2023, only a few points above its 2015 level. A December 2025 WHO and World Bank report found that about 4.6 billion people lacked access to essential services, and about 2.1 billion faced financial hardship because of health spending.
What is off track
Several targets will be missed by a wide margin unless something changes. The clearest case is road safety. Target 3.6 set a 2020 deadline to halve road deaths. WHO’s 2023 road safety report counted about 1.19 million deaths a year, a fall of only 5 per cent since 2010.
Vaccination is another worry. Coverage of the third dose of diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine was 85 per cent in 2024, no higher than in 2015, and 14.3 million children received no vaccines at all. Maternal deaths, malaria and financial protection are also lagging. Most of these gaps sit in the same places: low-income countries, rural areas and people in conflict zones, where health workers are fewest.
Why it matters beyond health
Health shapes almost every other goal. A child with malaria misses school (Goal 4). A family that pays a hospital bill from savings can slip into poverty (Goal 1). Air pollution is a health problem and a climate problem at once (Goal 13). For businesses, staff illness and burnout show up as absence, turnover and mistakes. WHO estimates that about 12 billion working days are lost every year to depression and anxiety alone.
The goal also gives organisations a shared language. A company that funds staff health cover, makes delivery riders safer or builds a telemedicine tool can point to a specific target rather than a vague claim about doing good. We cover practical steps in our companion pieces, and you can see every target, figure and source on our Goal 3 page or browse all 17 on the Global Goals hub.
If you are building a health product, such as a booking app for clinics or a patient record tool, talk to us about app development that starts with privacy and low-bandwidth users in mind.
This article is general information, not medical or professional advice.
Frequently asked questions
What does SDG 3 stand for?
SDG 3 is the third of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals adopted in 2015. Its official wording is to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. It covers maternal and child health, infectious and long-term diseases, mental health, road safety, pollution and universal health coverage, with most targets due by 2030.
Is the world on track to meet SDG 3 by 2030?
Not on most targets. Child deaths and HIV deaths have fallen, but the UN’s 2026 report shows maternal deaths, malaria, vaccination and financial protection well behind where they need to be. The road safety target, which had a 2020 deadline, was missed, with about 1.19 million road deaths a year according to WHO.
What is universal health coverage?
Universal health coverage, target 3.8, means everyone can get the health services they need, of good quality, without suffering financial hardship to pay for them. WHO and the World Bank track it with a service coverage index and with measures of household spending on health. In 2023 the index stood at 71 out of 100.