Showing papers in "Sustainable Development in 2019"
TL;DR: Wang et al. as discussed by the authors investigated the relationship between green logistics indices, economic, environmental, and social factors in the perspective of Asian emerging economies, and found that green logistics operations are positively and significantly correlated with per capita income, manufacturing value added and trade openness.
Abstract: This panel study investigates the relationship between green logistics indices, economic, environmental, and social factors in the perspective of Asian emerging economies. This study adopted Fully Modified OLS (FMOLS) Model and Dynamic OLS (DOLS) Model methods to test the research hypothesis, catering the problem of endogeneity and serial correlation. The results suggest that logistics operations, particularly LPI2 (efficiency of customs clearance processes), LPI4 (quality of logistics services), and LPI5 (trade and transport‐related infrastructure), are positively and significantly correlated with per capita income, manufacturing value added and trade openness, whereas greater logistics operations are negatively associated with social and environmental problems including, climate change, global warming, carbon emissions, and poisoning atmosphere. In addition, human health is badly affected by heavy smog, acid rainfall, and water pollution. The findings further extend and reveal that political instability, natural disaster, and terrorism are also a primary cause of poor economic growth and environmental sustainability with poor trade and logistics infrastructure. There is very limited empirical work presented in the literature using renewable energy and green ideology to solve macro‐level social and environmental problems, and this study will assist the policy makers and researchers to understand the importance of the green concept in improving countries' social, economic, and environmental performance.
271 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors theoretically developed and tested two key moderators to the relationship between green consumption intention and behavior, namely green product availability and perceived consumer effectiveness, and found that under high levels of the moderators, the relationships between the intention and the behavior were hypothesized to be stronger.
Abstract: Green consumption has become an important academic and practical topic. However, a recurring theme in the literature has been the attitude‐behavior gap in green consumption. Taking the cognitive view in studying consumer behaviors, this study theoretically developed and tested two key moderators to the relationship between green consumption intention and behavior, namely green product availability and perceived consumer effectiveness. Under high levels of the moderators, the relationship between the intention and the behavior were hypothesized to be stronger. Our data sample of 416 consumers in two large cities in Vietnam provided support for the hypotheses. Our study results thus contribute to the green consumption literature by explaining the attitude‐behavior gap. Our study also contributes to the broader literature by explaining the inconsistency in consumer behavior. Implications and recommendations for further research are also discussed.
176 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present alternative pathways for realizing human development objectives that rely on reducing inequality, both within nations and between them, rather than aggregate growth, and propose specific changes to SDG targets in order to resolve this issue.
Abstract: There are two sides to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which appear at risk of contradiction. One calls for humanity to achieve “harmony with nature” and to protect the planet from degradation, with specific targets laid out in Goals 6, 12, 13, 14, and 15. The other calls for continued global economic growth equivalent to 3% per year, as outlined in Goal 8, as a method for achieving human development objectives. The SDGs assume that efficiency improvements will suffice to reconcile the tension between growth and ecological sustainability. This paper draws on empirical data to test whether this assumption is valid, paying particular attention to two key ecological indicators: resource use and CO2 emissions. The results show that global growth of 3% per year renders it empirically infeasible to achieve (a) any reductions in aggregate global resource use and (b) reductions in CO2 emissions rapid enough to stay within the carbon budget for 2°C. In other words, Goal 8 violates the sustainability objectives of the SDGs. The paper proposes specific changes to SDG targets in order to resolve this issue, such as removing the requirement of aggregate global growth and introducing quantified objectives for resource use per capita with substantial reductions in high‐income nations. Scaling down resource use is also the most feasible way to achieve the climate target, as it reduces energy demand. The paper presents alternative pathways for realizing human development objectives that rely on reducing inequality—both within nations and between them—rather than aggregate growth.
175 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a narrative of the outcome of an extensive historical literature review of global policy development and processes concerning the emergence, efficacy, and eminence of sustainable development, education for sustainable development (ESD), and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs]) inception to date.
Abstract: This paper aims to present a narrative of the outcome of an extensive historical literature review of global policy development and processes concerning the emergence, efficacy, and eminence of sustainable development, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs]) inception to date. It starts by presenting the emergence, efficacy, and eminence of the concept and term “sustainable development” (which is integral to ESD) in terms of its historical definition, dimensions, understanding, interpretations, and challenges. It also highlights the take‐up of sustainable development in terms of green growth, human development, and human agency. It then presents an overview of ESD, accompanied by a discussion of its key characteristics, approaches, and significances. The paper then highlights a semantic analysis of the development of ESD, with a special focus on some converging processes, events, concepts, discourses, and declarations that have supported the rise of ESD and shaped its status to date. Considerable emphasis is placed on the significance and nexus between environmental education and ESD. The paper analyses the crucial interconnection between education, sustainable development, ESD, the SDGs, and human development. Furthermore, the paper discusses the centrality of ESD to the global education discourse and the nexus, role, and relevance of education and particularly ESD in relation to the achievement of all the SDGs. The paper concludes by critically reflecting on the above, vis‐a‐vis the author's previous empirical research on higher ESD, making recommendations on the future of ESD research and practice.
131 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined if enhancing ICT reduces inequality in 48 countries in Africa for the period 2004-2014 and found that increasing internet penetration and fixed broadband subscriptions have a net effect on reducing the Gini coefficient and the Atkinson index.
Abstract: This study examines if enhancing ICT reduces inequality in 48 countries in Africa for the period 2004-2014. Three inequality indictors are used, namely, the: Gini coefficient, Atkinson index and Palma ratio. The adopted ICT indicators include: mobile phone penetration, internet penetration and fixed broadband subscriptions. The empirical evidence is based on the Generalised Method of Moments. Enhancing internet penetration and fixed broadband subscriptions have a net effect on reducing the Gini coefficient and the Atkinson index, whereas increasing mobile phone penetration and internet penetration reduces the Palma ratio. Policy implications are discussed in the light of challenges to Sustainable Development Goals.
120 citations
103 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the concept of sustainability consciousness, an individual's experience and awareness of sustainable development, is introduced based on the UNESCO's definition of sustainable developme, which is defined as:
Abstract: In this paper, the concept of sustainability consciousness, an individual's experience and awareness of sustainable development, is introduced Based on UNESCO's definition of sustainable developme
96 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors assess the relevance of basic formal education in information technology for inclusive human development in 49 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2000-2012 and find that poor primary education dampens the positive effect of mobile phone penetration on inclusive human Development.
Abstract: This study assesses the relevance of basic formal education in information technology for inclusive human development in 49 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2000-2012. The question it aims to answer is the following: what is the relevance of basic formal education in the effect of mobile phone penetration on inclusive human development in sub-Saharan Africa when initial levels of inclusive human development are taken into account? The empirical evidence is based on instrumental quantile regressions. Poor primary education dampens the positive effect of mobile phone penetration on inclusive human development. This main finding should be understood in the perspective that, the education quality indicator represents a policy syndrome because of the way it is computed, notably: the ratio of pupils to teachers. Hence, an increasing ratio indicates decreasing quality of education. It follows that decreasing quality of education dampens the positive effect of mobile phone on inclusive development. This tendency is consistent throughout the conditional distribution of inclusive human development. Policy implications for sustainable development are discussed.
93 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine how comprehensively the reported performance of banks aligns with the endorsement of the SDGs and find that each bank's contribution remains particularly heterogeneous towards most individual SDG goals.
Abstract: The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) reflect grand challenges the global community needs to address in order to ensure economic welfare, environmental quality as well as social cohesion and prosperity for future generations. In this respect, the role of the banking sector, among other critical business entities and key stakeholders, is vital. The purpose of our paper is to examine how comprehensively the reported performance of banks aligns with the endorsement of the SDGs. We employ the well-established framework of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) performance indicators for a comparative assessment of the nonfinancial performance disclosed in the annual sustainability reports. Focusing on a small sample of leading European banks, we find an overall low contribution to the SDGs. Furthermore, each bank’s contribution remains particularly heterogeneous towards most individual SDG goals. Likewise, bank-specific strategies drive the most extensively addressed SDGs, overlooking any critical importance of certain GRI indicators with multifaceted impact across several SDGs. The study sets forth managerial implications for improving effective reporting of SDG performance. It concludes with emerging opportunities for enhancing disclosure of SDGs contribution and highlights future research perspectives towards industry-wide shared-value appraisal under the scope of these pressing grand challenges.
84 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the meanings conveyed by the concept of sustainability according to researchers were analyzed and four uses that researchers make of the term sustainability were employed to reveal such meanings, which allowed the identification of four meanings of sustainability.
Abstract: The ambiguity and polysemy of the concept of sustainability is a problem often faced by researchers. The existence of definitions that are not operative, diverse and sometimes contradictory represents a difficulty for the election of a suitable concept of sustainability. Even most of the research works whose title includes the term sustainability do not define what it is, which eventually, constitutes a methodological error. This leads the researchers to avoid defining sustainability, or to study it indirectly through the study of social and ecological variables of certain systems. The present work analysed the meanings conveyed by the concept of sustainability according to researchers. The uses that researchers make of the term sustainability were employed to reveal such meanings. Four uses were identified, which allowed the identification of four meanings of the concept of sustainability. This concluded that the meanings of the concept of sustainability are neither many nor as ambiguous as other authors point out, and that this classification of uses and meanings could be employed to avoid frequent errors made by researchers.
80 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors assessed how increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions affect inclusive human development in 44 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2000-2012.
Abstract: In the light of challenges to sustainable development in the post-2015 development agenda, this
study assesses how increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions affect inclusive human development in 44 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2000-2012. The following findings are established from Fixed Effects and Tobit regressions. First, unconditional effects and conditional impacts are respectively positive and negative from CO2 emissions per capita, CO2 emissions from liquid fuel consumption and CO2 intensity. This implies a Kuznets shaped curve because of consistent decreasing returns. Second, the corresponding net effects are consistently positive. The following findings are apparent from Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) regressions. First, unconditional effects and conditional impacts are respectively negative and positive from CO2 emissions per capita, CO2 emissions from liquid fuel consumption and CO2 intensity. This implies a U-shaped curve because of consistent increasing returns. Second, the corresponding net effects are overwhelmingly negative. Based on the robust findings and choice of best estimator, the net effect of increasing CO2 emissions on inclusive human development is negative. Policy implications are discussed.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the role of the FAO and the experts at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in the discussion of the effects of climate change on agriculture.
Abstract: I am grateful to Professor Maggie Gill and Dr Leslie Lipper for initial discussions, to Dr Leslie Lipper for arranging the meetings with the experts at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and to the experts at FAO for the valuable discussions on the topic. I would also like to thank Kirsten MacSween for revising the English. This research has been funded by the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), NE/N005619/1.
TL;DR: In this article, sustainable development is measured by using a wide range of indicators within multidimensional perspective of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 2015, which cover wide spectrum of areas such as poverty reduction, health, education, gender equality, and environment.
Abstract: In modern economies, the advancement of well‐being of the citizens should be in an inclusive and sustainable way. In this respect, the sustainable welfare targets should exclusively include three main pillars: economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental protection. These pillars consist of qualitative and nonmonetary, as well as monetary and quantitative indicators to monitor. Although sustainable development today is well‐appreciated in most governments' agenda, yet it is generally not a trivial task to measure its progress especially due to multidimensional nature of some targets. In this article, sustainable development is measured by using a wide range of indicators within multidimensional perspective of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 2015. Indicators cover wide spectrum of areas such as poverty reduction, health, education, gender equality, and environment. An index creation method is developed for measuring the level and the performance of countries' progress through achieving MDGs. The index score levels and the rankings of countries are compared with similar indexes developed by United Nations. Finally, countries are classified according to their achievements relative to other countries (which is measured by the index) versus their self‐achievement performances (in terms of improvement of the index over years) in a big matrix. Results demonstrate the importance of measuring country performances in both dimensions. Understanding the progress in MDGs can help settle on binding targets for achieving the country specific goals in economic and noneconomic areas and on the mechanisms to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030, which set amid on the success of MDGs.
TL;DR: In this article, the impact of multinational oil companies' (MOCs) CSR on rural women access to modern agricultural inputs in the Niger Delta, Nigeria was assessed. And the results showed that women depended on CSR of MOCs for policy dialogue and advocacy for women's access to agricultural land and inputs.
Abstract: Low productivity among female farmers when compared with their male counterparts is considered an outcome of limited access to agricultural land and inputs. The objective of this investigation was to assess the impact of multinational oil companies’ (MOCs’) CSR on rural women access to modern agricultural inputs in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. A total of 700 rural female farmers were sampled across the region. Results from the use of a logit model indicated that CSR recorded significant success in agricultural development generally, but has undermined equality. This implies that if a woman’s agricultural productivity is continuously hindered by unequal access to agricultural resources (or opportunities) and widespread inequality will limit poverty reduction efforts in Nigeria. The results also showed that women depended on CSR of MOCs for policy dialogue and advocacy for women’s access to agricultural land and inputs. Supporting agricultural initiatives that focus on empowering women would boost food security in sub-Saharan Africa.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed a framework for policy makers that allows the definition and implementation of the bioeconomy based on the strong sustainability approach, which requires not crossing ecological thresholds and implies consideration of planetary boundaries.
Abstract: The implementation of bioeconomy is important in seeking to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Thus, in recent years, more attention is focused on sustainable bioeconomy. Referring to weak and strong sustainability approaches, many authors stated that bioeconomy is related only to weak sustainability, but this study provides a framework for policy makers that allows the definition and implementation of the bioeconomy based on the strong sustainability approach. Furthermore, researchers evaluating bioeconomy implementation conventionally encompassed the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of the impact of bio‐products; however, they did not consider the strong sustainability approach. Strong sustainability additionally requires not crossing ecological thresholds and, thus, implies consideration of planetary boundaries. Therefore, the inclusion of land footprint and biocapacity measures in the bioeconomy strategy, verifying that the land footprint does not exceed the level of biocapacity, is essential for the creation of a strongly sustainable bioeconomy. This study embarks on the definition of the bioeconomy based on strong sustainability and contributes to the discussion about bioeconomy implementation in the context of sustainable development.
TL;DR: In this article, the Super-slack-based measure model is adopted to analyse the LCEE performance of 115 sample countries during 1999-2013, and the Malmquist Productivity Index is used to evaluate the dynamic change of low carbon economy efficiency between sample countries.
Abstract: Despite great efforts being devoted to, and substantial resources being consumed by low-carbon economy (LCE) development globally, it appears that little is known about whether LCE development is efficient. This paper measures low-carbon economy efficiency (LCEE) performance from a global perspective. The Super-slack-based measure model is adopted to analyse the LCEE performance of 115 sample countries during 1999-2013. The Malmquist Productivity Index is used to evaluate the dynamic change of LCEE between sample countries. The results indicate that overall worldwide LCEE performance is at low levels, and the differences in LCEE performance among the 115 sample countries are significant. It also indicates that LCEE performance is generally better in developed countries. From the dynamic perspective, a significant improvement in LCEE performance was achieved globally during the survey period, with an overall annual increase of 0.75%. These results provide a valuable reference to policy-makers and practitioners for adopting measures to promote LCE development effectively at a global level.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine relevant regulatory guidelines, policies, and recommendations on sustainable development, where it traces the origins of circular economy and sheds light on key theoretical underpinnings on CE's closed loop and product service systems.
Abstract: 530 © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Abstract This review paper examines relevant regulatory guidelines, policies, and recommendations on sustainable development, where it traces the origins of circular economy (CE). Afterwards, it sheds light on key theoretical underpinnings on CE's closed loop and product service systems. The findings suggest that the CE's regenerative systems minimise the environmental impact as practitioners reduce their externalities, including waste, emissions, and energy leakages through the use and reuse of resources. Therefore, this contribution offers a critique on CE's inherent limitations and discusses about the implications of having regulatory interventions that are intended to encourage responsible consumption and production behaviours. This contribution implies that CE is creating value to business and the environment. The closed loop and product service systems can unleash a new wave of operational efficiencies through increased throughput in production processes, as practitioners repair, reuse, remanufacture, refurbish, and recycle resources, whilst safeguarding the natural environment.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present the results of research to develop a novel analytical framework for assessing the potential of Earth Observation (EO) approaches to populate the SDG indicators.
Abstract: In 2015, member countries of the United Nations adopted the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the Sustainable Development Summit in New York. These global goals have 169 targets and 232 indicators which are based on the three pillars of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental. Substantial challenges remain in obtaining data of the required quality, especially in developing countries, given the often limited resources available. One promising and innovative way of addressing this issue of data availability is to use Earth Observation (EO). This paper presents the results of research to develop a novel analytical framework for assessing the potential of EO approaches to populate the SDG indicators. We present a Maturity Matrix Framework (MMF) and apply it to all of the 232 SDG indicators. The results demonstrate that while the applicability of EO-derived data does vary between the SDG indicators, overall, EO has an important contribution to make towards populating a wide diversity of the SDG indicators.
TL;DR: Wang et al. as mentioned in this paper investigated the relationship among the questionnaire respondents' risk perception, trust in public institutions (TPI), and willingness to buy disaster insurance (WBDI).
Abstract: Many rural settlements in China's western mountainous regions are affected by mountain disasters, such as landslides and mudslides. For residents living in landslide-prone areas, behaviors related to disaster risk mitigation (such as purchasing disaster insurance) are inevitably affected by disaster risk perception. Due to the substantial differences in disaster occurrence patterns, landslide-related insurance research is relatively rare compared with insurance research focused on other types of natural disasters (e.g., floods and droughts). Based on the results of questionnaires administered in landslide-prone areas in Chongqing, China, this paper uses partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to investigate the relationships among the questionnaire respondents' risk perception, trust in public institutions (TPI), and willingness to buy disaster insurance (WBDI). The results reveal that risk perception and TPI directly affect WBDI. Here, competence, participation, possibility perception, and fear perception are significantly positively correlated to WBDI, whereby fear perception has the largest impact, followed by possibility perception, competence, and participation. In addition, TPI indirectly affects WBDI through risk perception. Here, competence reduces fear perception and indirectly reduces WBDI. The implications of these results for theory are discussed. This study introduces a new method to support disaster risk mitigation-related decision making that can be useful to governments and individuals.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored the dynamic relationship among CO2 emissions, economic growth, and consumption of various fossil fuels (i.e., coal, petroleum, and natural gas) in China, using the panel dataset of 30 provinces for the period 1997-2015.
Abstract: Control of the increasing fossil fuel‐based carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and the associated environmental consequences are important for sustainable development in China. Nevertheless, very few studies have investigated the environmental consequences of China's fossil fuels at both the national and regional levels. For this purpose, this study explores the dynamic relationships among CO2 emissions, economic growth, and consumption of various fossil fuels (i.e., coal, petroleum, and natural gas) in China, using the panel dataset of 30 provinces for the period 1997–2015. Considering the significant differences across various regions, the whole sample and different regions in China are analyzed separately. The estimated results, at both the national and regional levels, provide strong evidence in favor of the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis for CO2 emissions in China. Furthermore, increasing coal and petroleum consumption significantly promotes CO2 emissions. Conversely, natural gas offers a cleaner substitute for other fossil fuels (i.e., coal and petroleum); its substitution effect may be influenced by the share of natural gas in the total energy needs. Finally, the above findings highlight several policy implications for the Chinese government's policymakers to effectively reduce CO2 emissions in China, thereby setting the nation on a sustainable development path.
TL;DR: In this paper, the silent technological revolution in sub-Saharan Africa focusing on emerging issues and challenges is examined and the public policy implications and directions for future research are identified and examined.
Abstract: The paper examines the silent technological revolution in sub‐Saharan Africa focusing on emerging issues and challenges. In view of the centrality of technology diffusion in fostering local innovations and economic development in developing countries, it is surprising that our understanding of the challenges and opportunities in scaling‐up technologies remains limited. This paper capitalises on the ongoing silent technological revolution in sub‐Saharan Africa to present an overview of how new technologies have been adopted and utilised to achieve sustainability. The study identified a host of factors such as weak regulatory enforcement systems, lack of financial credit availability, and limited banking services, which have created conditions for technological innovations such as mobile phone‐based banking, mPedigree, “cardiopad,” and M‐PEPEA to emerge. The public policy implications and directions for future research are identified and examined.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed the relationship between the utilization of natural capital and economic development in the countries along China's "Belt and Road" initiative using a panel regression model.
Abstract: With the importance of sustainable development widely accepted, the relationship between natural capital utilization and economic development has become a global focus. This study analyzes the relationship between the utilization of natural capital and economic development in the countries along China's “Belt and Road” initiative using a panel regression model. The results show that the labor force, rural and urban populations, and exports and imports have a significant impact on both natural capital consumption and economic development. However, the impact of exports and imports on economic development here is contrary to economic theory and experience. We also find that there is still resource dependence in economic development and that natural capital consumption has a long‐run impact on it. To address this, the “Belt and Road” countries should adopt comprehensive national and regional measures to build a mutually beneficial cooperative mechanism and trade environment.
TL;DR: In this paper, the relevance of inclusive development in modulating the role of governance on environmental degradation is examined, and positive and insignificant effects are elucidated. But, the underlying net effect in the moderating role of inclusion in the governance-CO2 emissions nexus is not significant in regressions pertaining to political governance and economic governance.
Abstract: This research examines the relevance of inclusive development in modulating the role of governance on environmental degradation. The study focuses on forty-four countries in sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2000-2012. The Generalised Method of Moments is employed as the empirical strategy and CO2 emissions per capita is used to measure environmental pollution. Bundled and unbundled governance dynamics are employed, notably: political governance (consisting of political stability/no violence and “voice and accountability”), economic governance (encompassing government effectiveness and regulation quality), institutional governance (entailing corruption-control and the rule of law), and general governance (a composite measure of political governance, economic governance and institutional governance). The following main findings are established. First, the underlying net effect in the moderating role of inclusive development in the governance-CO2 emissions nexus is not significant in regressions pertaining to political governance and economic governance. Second, there are positive net effects from the relevance of inclusive development in modulating the effects of regulation quality, economic governance and general governance on CO2 emissions. The significant and insignificant effects are elucidated. Policy implications are discussed.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore how avoidance behaviours preclude the conflicts that are necessary for achieving integration and identify four factors that contribute to conflict avoidance: the issues for deliberation are too political, the actors know too little or too much about the issues, the deliberation is too abstract, and the bar for consensus is too high.
Abstract: The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) agenda compels nations to face challenges, especially interministerial conflicts, in policy integration. This article seeks to understand whether and how conflict avoidance may hamper the implementation of the SDG agenda. Building on 56 interviews with policymakers and bureaucrats in Finland, Germany, and the Czech Republic, we explore how avoidance behaviours preclude the conflicts that are necessary for achieving integration. The findings suggest that avoided conflicts tend to be long‐standing issues related to environmental protection. We identify four factors that contribute to conflict avoidance: The issues for deliberation are too political, the actors know too little or too much about the issues, the deliberation is too abstract, and the bar for consensus is too high. These factors filter out many impactful conflicts for deliberation, which partly explains why integration regimes have not produced transformational changes.
TL;DR: The authors conducted face-to-face interviews with 48 individuals with disabilities (hearing loss n = 11, visual impairment n = 15, and physical disability n = 22) who were drawn from four districts in the Northern Region of Ghana.
Abstract: Consistently, it has been reported that persons with disabilities face multiple challenges in societies and thus it is important that deliberate intervention programs are initiated to empower them to overcome exclusion. The United Nations has taken the lead through the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) project, which is a framework for assisting countries and donors in their efforts to alleviate poverty. This article documented the experiences of persons with disabilities with respect to global efforts towards poverty reduction via SDGs. Face‐to‐face interviews were conducted with 48 individuals with disabilities (hearing loss n = 11, visual impairment n = 15, and physical disability n = 22) who were drawn from four districts in the Northern Region of Ghana. Analysis of the interview data revealed common themes related to hardship, poverty, limited access to education, and underemployment. The results indicated that the SDG project engendered little tangible improvement in the lives of persons with disabilities. The need for concerted efforts to address barriers faced by individuals with disabilities is discussed extensively.