The Kyrgyz Republic ranked 45th in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Index for 2023 and leads among Central Asian countries
• National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic
The Kyrgyz Republic ranked 45th in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Index for 2023 and leads among Central Asian countries
According to the Sustainable Development Report 2023, the Kyrgyz Republic ranked 45th out of 166 countries assessed in terms of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) performance, with a score of 74.4.
The leading countries in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals, according to the ranking, were Finland, Sweden, and Denmark. Among the EAEU member states, following the Kyrgyz Republic in the ranking were the Russian Federation (49th), the Republic of Armenia (56th), and the Republic of Kazakhstan (66th); only the Republic of Belarus holds a higher position, at 34th place.
The National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic serves as the principal body responsible for coordinating data collection efforts, producing statistics for the 2030 Agenda, and building the evidence base related to the SDGs.
Thus, the global report notes that Kyrgyzstan’s Statistical Performance Index stood at 81.5, the highest in Central Asia (Kazakhstan – 78.2; Uzbekistan – 70.6; Tajikistan – 53.4).
To date, the National Statistical Committee monitors 171 SDG indicators, of which 110 are global and 61 are national, all with available disaggregation and metadata (methodology). All indicators are published on the National SDG Reporting Platform of the Kyrgyz Republic – Open SDG KG, accessible via www.stat.gov.kg → “Statistics” → “Sustainable Development Goals”.
It should be recalled that the experience of the National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic in establishing an SDG monitoring and reporting system was featured in the UN global report in 2020 as one of the successful national SDG monitoring systems worldwide.
Like the global community, the Kyrgyz Republic is committed to implementing the global 2030 Agenda, and the achieved results confirm the Kyrgyz Republic’s firm intent to realize the SDGs.
Since the inception of the SDGs, the Kyrgyz Republic has ratified a number of important international agreements, including the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Paris Agreement on climate change, providing further opportunities to accelerate progress toward the SDGs.
It is important to note that the country has demonstrated significant improvements across several indicators, reflecting a positive trend of gradual development. For SDG 1, the Kyrgyz Republic has closely approached the eradication of extreme poverty: approximately 35,000 people now live above the extreme poverty line, and the extreme poverty rate in 2021 was 6% (NSC). The share of the population living below the international extreme poverty threshold of USD 1.90 per day (PPP) is extremely low (0.08% in 2021) (NSC).
Under SDG 2, indicators of wasting and underweight in Kyrgyzstan remain within biological norms and do not exceed 5% across all child groups. The prevalence of underweight among children under five is 2%, more pronounced in those under 18 months (NSC). Since 2013, a school nutrition optimization programme has been implemented to provide balanced meals to students. With support from development partners and local authorities, hot meals are organized in 1,784 out of 2,333 schools (76.4%).
Regarding SDG 3, compared with 2013, child mortality fell by 27.9% in 2022, including a 25.6% decline in infant mortality. Maternal mortality has shown a downward trend, reaching 33.3 per 100,000 live births by 2021 (down from 38.5 in 2015). Due to the introduction of evidence-based advanced perinatal care technologies, a stable decline in maternal mortality is evident, making target levels achievable (NSC). Neonatal mortality decreased by 15% since 2015 (from 14 to 11.9 per 1,000 live births), and under‑5 mortality dropped by 16.7% (from 21.5 to 17.9 per 1,000 live births) (NSC). Immunization coverage remains over 95%, and infant mortality from infectious and parasitic diseases is only about 2%. Road traffic mortality declined from 15.6 to 12.6 deaths per 100,000 population between 2015 and 2021 (NSC).
Under SDG 4, the number of children attending pre-school institutions rose from 46,000 in 2000 to 199,000 in 2022—a 4.3-fold increase. Literacy rates remain high at 99.7% (2019 data).
Concerning gender equality (SDG 5), women account for 52.3% in urban areas, while men predominate in rural areas at 50.7% (NSC). As of early 2021, 19 out of 90 deputies (21%) in Parliament were women. In local kenesh elections in 2021, women constituted 38% of deputies—four times higher than in 2012 (9%) (2021: 37.8%).
Regarding access to clean water and sanitation (SDG 6), from 2015 to 2021, access to safe drinking water increased by 6 percentage points to 95.1% (NSC). In 2020, the share of the population using safely managed sanitation services, including handwashing facilities with soap and water, was 97.9%.
Under SDG 7, in 2021, 100% of the population had access to grid electricity. Renewable energy accounted for 31.8% of total energy consumption that year (NSC).
For SDG 8, GDP per capita grew by 3.6% in 2021, while the unemployment rate was 5.3% (NSC).
In terms of infrastructure access (SDG 9), in 2021, 60.8% of the rural population had access to paved roads; nearly the entire population (98.8%) lived in areas covered by mobile networks, and 96% had access to high-speed (4G) internet.
On reducing inequality (SDG 10), the Gini coefficient stood at 29.0 in 2020, while the Palma ratio was 1.1.
Regarding responsible consumption and production (SDG 12), as of the 2018 inventory, the country had 406 landfills (107 authorized) covering approximately 616,306 hectares. In urban areas, plastic accounted for 21% and food waste 20% of municipal waste; in rural areas, organic waste made up 49% of total municipal waste.
With respect to climate action, CO₂ emissions from fossil fuel combustion and cement production were 1.4 tonnes per capita in 2021. Emissions associated with fossil fuel exports stood at 202.9 kg per capita.
For SDG 15, the Kyrgyz Republic has established a network of protected terrestrial ecosystems covering 7.38% of its land area, including 10 state nature reserves, 13 state national parks, and 64 sanctuaries. The country is classified as sparsely forested; forests are primarily mountain stands, diverse, and rich in valuable species. Forest cover comprises 5.6% of total land (2021 data), with approximately 90% of forest stands located at altitudes between 700 and 2,500 m.
Under SDG 16, as of 2018, birth registration reached a very high level of 98.9% (NSC). The registration rate improved greatly through automation of the system, issuance of national identification numbers at birth, and parental birth allowances under the “Süyunchu” programme.
Concerning SDG 17—partnerships for sustainable development—the national budget is strongly socially oriented, with nearly half (48.9% in 2021) of expenditures allocated to key services in education, health, and social protection. In 2022, public revenues (including proceeds from non-financial asset sales) totaled 37.4% of GDP. The Statistical Performance Index reached 81.5 in 2022.
At the present stage, halfway to the 2030 Agenda, the Cabinet of Ministers, together with stakeholders, is reviewing progress and discussing priorities to accelerate SDG progress.
The Kyrgyz Republic is proud of achieving 45th place in the 2023 Sustainable Development Report. This encourages continued efforts to achieve the SDGs, strive for higher rankings in the future, and develop and implement innovative and effective approaches to sustainable development and ensure a better future for our citizens.