It might seem hard to hope in 2023. The headlines chronicle a grim world of conflict, displacement and the struggle to keep up with the rising cost of living. Poverty has increased while trust has receded. With ecosystems out of balance, nature is in revolt.

At UNDP, the development organization at the heart of the United Nations, we work with developing countries on all these issues and more. We know their severity and yet we also know that some of their solutions are at hand. That gives us room for optimism—and a vision of the future that is not just an aspiration but something we are working towards right now. 

Everything that UNDP does is encapsulated in the Sustainable Development Goals, a promise that countries made to their peoples and to each other. The goals take us to a future that leaves no one behind, that protects the planet and that disrupts the cycle of conflict because inclusive development has taken root.

In 2022, UNDP helped to advance that vision with a record delivery of $4.8 billion, achieved amid countervailing challenges around the world. This translated into development results in over 170 countries and improvements to the lives of millions of people. Life-giving health, water and other services offered 25 million people a platform to thrive and create better lives. Jobs and livelihoods sustained 11 million people stranded in crises with few other ways out. UNDP laid the foundations for using new technologies that could eventually provide clean power to nearly 265 million people in 21 African countries, with benefits expected for health care, education, businesses and economies as a whole.

This annual report is proof positive that development works. That alone signals a hopeful future—but we also know that prospects must get better given the tools and knowledge we have today. UNDP is harnessing the power of innovation and digitalization as a public good. Our Accelerator Labs Network backed innovations in 115 countries in 2022, improving air quality, upholding human rights and enhancing food security, among many advances. Digital services, infrastructure and open-source solutions are closing the digital divide—and the development divide, such as through the prompt delivery of over a billion COVID-19 vaccines.