World Vision’s Call to Action for the 12th Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development

The 12th Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development, under the theme: 'Advancing sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs, leaving no one behind in Asia and the Pacific,' aligns with the focus of the 2025 High Level Political Forum (HLPF). It aims to create a forum to assess progress on the SDGs under review: Goal 3 (Good Health and Well-being), Goal 5 (Gender Equality), Goal 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), Goal 14 (Life Below Water), and Goal 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). While assessing progress to ensure no child is left behind and keeping children at the heart of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), World Vision calls on stakeholders to look at the barriers to achieving the goals and develop recommendations to address them. 

Sixty percent of the world’s population lives in Asia-Pacific, which also accounts for half of global severe food insecurity. Women and children are disproportionately affected, with poor nutrition impacting growth, health, and development. Despite progress in Goal 3, barriers to healthcare remain, including high costs and slow improvement in health worker density.

Data gaps hinder tracking violence against children (Goal 16), child labour (Goal 8.7), gender-based violence and early marriage (Goal 5). Additionally, financial resources for statistical capacity (Goal 17) and climate action (Goal 13) are regressing.

Urgent multi-stakeholder action is needed to address child rights and well-being. World Vision puts forward five key recommendations for multi-stakeholder action.