Who do we hold accountable for achieving SDG4?

In 2015, the world roared with applause at the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals.

But there were skeptics who had several reasons to doubt the success of the implementation of these goals.

With 5 years gone, and a decade left, SDG 4 remains far from achieving its goal. In 2017, about 264 million children and youth were out of school. Currently, there are still about 258 million children out of school all over the world.

According to a data forecast by UNESCO in 2019, 1 in 6 children will still lack access to basic primary education in 2030.

These figures are far from our target of ensuring that all boys and girls have access to quality education.

Nevertheless, they do not negate the fact that progress has been made. Rather, the progress made is far from reaching its target goals.

So, the big question remains, if we are to achieve the SDG 4 by 2030, who do we hold accountable? And how does this accountability facilitate a process of effective monitoring of a country’s progress toward the goal and its targets?