increased perception of public sector corruption,6 and that about 23.8 percent of businesses in the region have
engaged in bribery.7 Children and adolescents are particularly vulnerable to violence in the region. Over third of
the women in the region have faced sexual violence. Available data from 21 countries shows that on average
70.7 percent of children aged between 1-14 have experienced physical discipline or psychological aggression by
caregivers in the last month.8 Improving governance statistics is vital for identifying people or groups that are
most affected by poor governance systems and take remedy measures.
II. CURRENT STATUS
SDG 16 is also one of the most challenging goals to implement and measure. SDG 16 targets are composite
and require compound indicators to fully measure progress. In addition, 17 of the 23 indicators are classified as
Tier II and III. Data for these indicators does not exist or is not widely collected to adequately measure progress
or accurately analyse regional and/or subregional trends.9 Further, disaggregated data by sex, age, and other
categories is also not widely available.
But at the same time, there are other surveys that can provide insights into the state of governance in the region,
and thus serve as proxy for the progress measuring of SDG 16 as a whole. The MY World Survey led by the United
Nations and partners is a global citizen survey to bring people’s voices into official debates about the SDGs. It
is a tool to hold governments and institutions accountable and ensure that every person has their say on SDG
achievement.10
The results of the MY World Survey indicate that people’s concerns about the quality of basic services and
issues such as poverty, job creation, and inequalities reveal that institutions may not be effective or responsive
to peoples’ needs.11
Data from the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI)12 provides insights on trends in governance over a period
of time. WGI measures six dimensions of governance: voice and accountability, political stability and no violence,
government effectiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law and control of corruption. Data from 2006 to 2016
shows subregional variance in the performance of the countries on the governance indicators as well as between
individual countries within the subregion. Overall, the performance of countries in South Asia and the Pacific
has stagnated. Countries in East and North-East Asia, South-East Asia, and Central and North Asia show some
improvement. However, when compared to other regions, Central and North Asia countries scores the lowest
on all six dimensions. Pacific countries, on the other hand, score the highest among all subregions in voice and
accountability, political stability, rule of law and control of corruption.
Overall, data shows that average scores fall between 18 and 59 out of a maximum score of 100 in all six
dimensions and across subregions (except in the Pacific). Countries need to do more to improve the overall
quality of governance – without which achieving the SDGs would remain aspirational.
A.
AREAS WHERE GOOD PROGRESS IS MADE
As mentioned above, measuring Goal 16 is challenging. Lack of reliable governance statistics limits the ability
of governments and other actors to develop specific measures to reach those that are most affected by weak
governance systems.
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Transparency International’s Global Corruption Barometer 2017. One in Four people said they paid a bribe when accessing
public services in the last 12 months.
UN Statistics Division, SDG Metadata Repository, Data for indicator 16.5.2. bribery incidence (per cent of firms experiencing
at least one bribe payment request)
UN Statistics Division, SDG Metadata Repository, Data for indicator 16.2.1. proportion of children aged 1-14 years who
experienced physical punishment and/or psychological aggression by caregivers in last month (per cent of children aged
1-14 years)
Pulling together data from different sources (including academia, civil society organizations etc.,) can provide a useful
picture of the state of governance and peace in the region.
MY World Survey http://about.myworld2030.org/
ASEAN MY World Survey http://asean-data.myworld2030.org
See worldwide governance indicators http://info.worldbank.org/governance/wgi/#home