11 December 2015
IAEG-SDGs Calls for Input on “Grey” Indicators
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The Inter-agency and Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goal Indicators (IAEG-SDGs) is holding a consultation on the approximately 70 proposed indicators coded as "gray," where the Group does not yet have consensus.

The consultation, open from 9-15 December 2015, seeks input from non-IAEG Member States, representatives of regional commissions and international and regional agencies, and stakeholders from academia, civil society and the private sector.

iaeg-sdg9 December 2015: The Inter-agency and Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goal Indicators (IAEG-SDGs) is holding a consultation on the approximately 70 proposed indicators coded as “grey,” where the Group does not yet have consensus. The online consultation, open from 9-15 December 2015, seeks input from non-IAEG Member States, representatives of regional commissions and international and regional agencies, and stakeholders from academia, civil society and the private sector.

Feedback from the consultation is expected to be considered in the Group’s last phase of discussion, before it recommends global indicators to the UN Statistical Commission (UNSC) at its 47th Session in March 2016.

According to the questionnaire, several indicators previously coded as “green,” or having general agreement, were re-coded as “grey,” needing further discussion, after a consultation in November. These include indicators on: Target 14.c, related to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS); Target 15.3, related to desertification and land degradation; Target 15.7, related to poaching, trafficking and illegal wildlife products; Target 16.1, related to violence and related death rates; and three targets under Goal 17 on means of implementation, including disaggregated data.

The questionnaire also highlights parallel processes that could help identify indicators in some areas, including on: Target 1.5, related to resilience of poor and vulnerable populations; SDG 11 (cities and settlements); and SDG 12 (sustainable consumption and production (SCP)).

In several areas, the questionnaire requests alternative options for indicators, such as in: SDG 14 (oceans), for an indicator on marine debris and one on the prohibition of certain forms of fisheries subsidies; and SDG 15 (biodiversity, forests and desertification), for an alternative indicator on protected area coverage; on the Red List Index for species in trade; on national legislation relevant to the control of invasive alien species (IAS); and on the proportion of detected illegal trade in wildlife and wildlife products.

For other indicators, the questionnaire suggests combining components currently addressed in more than one indicator, or suggests where the indicator could be included as a different element.

On SDG 13 on climate change, the IAEG recalls that it awaits the conclusion of the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 21) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to finalize the formulation of indicators.

Two SDGs do not have any grey indicators: SDG 5 (gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment); and SDG 9 (resilient infrastructure and inclusive and sustainable industrialization (ISID)).

The 160 indicators coded green by the IAEG-SDGs at its second meeting, in October 2015 in Bangkok, Thailand, were the subject of a consultation in November, which was open for three days and elicited 4,588 comments. Some of those comments called for moving green-coded indicators to “grey” due to lack of agreement.

At a briefing on 4 December, the UN Statistics Division said challenges that the IAEG-SDGs is facing include: keeping the number of indicators limited while maintaining the ambition of all the SDGs and their targets; covering every aspect of all targets; addressing the issues of inequality; and covering all population groups. [Consultation Announcement] [List of Proposed Indicators, as of 2 November] [Consultation Form] [IISD RS Story on November Consultation] [IISD RS Story on December Briefing] [IISD RS Policy Update on Indicators]

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