The future is not what it used to be. A crisis can change the world from one day to the next, with tragic consequences. But the actions countries take as they prepare, respond and recover in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic will lay the foundations for a fair and just transition to the future – a new social contract. That is why, as the UN’s leading agency on development, UNDP is not working to help people “get back to normal”. Normal was not good enough. With the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as our compass, we want people to get back to something better – a future everyone believes in, where no one is left behind. 

2019, just like the decade it brought to a close, was marked by a wave of protests. Movements across all continents lifted the lid on people’s disillusionment, indignity and unmet needs. Today, the streets may be silent but the message still echoes: we need a decade of action to accelerate progress towards everything the Sustainable Development Goals stand for. This is a race against time, and the hurdles just got higher.

As the 2019 Human Development Report sets out, policy makers have a battery of choices that, integrated in the right way, will translate into lifelong investments in equality and sustainability. Making those choices starts with a commitment to tackling the complexity of human development.