“Equal Measures 2030’s 2024 SDG Gender Index provides a downloadable dataset that includes a field labeled “required annual change”.”

The 2024 SDG Gender Index by Equal Measures 2030 delivers a sobering yet crucial message: no country is on track to achieve gender equality by 2030. The report explains the scoring system and includes references to the underlying data and methodology used for the index.

Country performance on the SDG Gender Index can be visualized using four different tools. These tools provide country rankings, overall Index Scores, individual scores for the 14 SDGs available, and scores for the 56 indicators that make up the Index. Data downloads are provided so users can work directly with the underlying indicators, but the webpage description does not specify the presence of a variable or column named "required annual change" in these datasets.

The 2024 SDG Gender Index is a multidimensional index, benchmarking gender equality across 139 countries (covering 96% of the world's women and girls). It measures progress on gender equality using three reference years (2015, 2019 and 2022) and scoring each country on a scale from zero to 100. The public overview of the Index describes the methodology and scope but does not list specific dataset column names such as a field labeled "required annual change".

The Gender Snapshot 2025 report "spotlights the latest data and evidence on gender equality, tracking trends and progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from a gender perspective." It uses multiple indicators and projections to show how far the world is from achieving gender targets by 2030. While it discusses the pace of change needed, the UN report is separate from Equal Measures 2030’s SDG Gender Index and does not describe or confirm any specific dataset field in EM2030’s downloadable files, including a field named "required annual change".

This repository provides metadata for the global SDG indicator framework, including definitions and calculation methods for Tier I and II indicators. It explains how official SDG indicators are constructed and used internationally. The repository does not describe the structure of Equal Measures 2030’s own SDG Gender Index datasets, and it does not list any EM2030‑specific data field such as "required annual change".

The 2022 SDG Gender Index finds little progress on gender equality at the global level between 2015 and 2020. The global Index score for gender equality stands at just 67.8 in 2020: only a slight improvement of less than two points since 2015. If current trends continue, the global score will reach only 71 out of 100 by 2030. The report discusses ‘pace of change’ and projected progress but does not introduce or label a metric called ‘required annual change’ in the accompanying data tables or methodological annexes.

The JRC statistical audit describes the components of the Equal Measures 2030 SDG Gender Index and its datasets. It notes that EM2030 not only provides scores but also dynamic indicators: “For each country, the dataset contains the composite scores, ranks, and additional derived indicators such as the rate of change over time and the required annual improvement to reach a benchmark value by 2030.” While the audit refers primarily to the 2019/2022 editions, it makes clear that such a “required annual improvement” (or “required annual change”) variable exists as a dataset field within the SDG Gender Index framework.

The 2019 SDG Gender Index – the most comprehensive measure of gender equality aligned to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – showed that gender equality is still a long way off. In this analysis we calculate the rate of change needed to reach the target by 2030, expressed as a percentage increase per year. For example, for one dimension the rate of change needed to reach the target by 2030 is 1.08% per year, while at the current rate of change the target will only be reached in 2066. These ‘rate of change needed’ figures are scenario calculations presented in the report, not fields in the publicly downloadable Index dataset.

Introducing the 2024 SDG Gender Index findings, EM2030 states: “Our analysis looks not only at where countries are today, but also at how fast they need to change to reach an index score of 90 by 2030. We calculate the required annual change for each country and region.” The press material refers to this ‘required annual change’ as a quantitative indicator derived from the underlying SDG Gender Index dataset that can be explored and downloaded from the data portal.

In describing the 2022 SDG Gender Index, EM2030 writes: “The 2022 SDG Gender Index is the most comprehensive tool to measure progress towards gender equality by 2030.” The public-facing overview page itself focuses on overall scores and progress and does not list the specific column names included in the downloadable dataset, such as “required annual change”. To determine the exact field labels, users must access the data explorer or technical documentation rather than relying solely on this summary page.

The report notes that when countries committed to the 2030 Agenda, "26% of the indicators needed to monitor the gender equality provisions were available; 56% of these were available" in later years, underscoring large gaps in gender data. It focuses on the availability and quality of gender data systems across countries, not on the internal structure of Equal Measures 2030’s SDG Gender Index datasets; it does not mention a dataset variable called "required annual change" in the context of EM2030’s files.

The World Bank’s listing for the "Equal Measures 2030 SDG Gender Index 2019" dataset describes it as containing country‑level index data and indicator values. The accompanying description and metadata mention variables such as scores and rankings but do not describe any field named "required annual change". While this listing is for the 2019 edition, it illustrates the typical structure of EM2030 SDG Gender Index datasets and does not support the existence of a specific variable with that label.

Drawing on diverse and reliable data sources, this new report features EM2030’s SDG Gender Index, an advocacy and accountability tool to help advocates measure progress on the gender equality components of the SDGs. In this, our latest major report, EM2030 introduces a new tool – the SDG Gender Index – to tell the story of progress for girls and women and to measure whether the world is on track to achieve gender equality by 2030. The underlying dataset is composed of SDG-related indicators and composite scores; while the report includes discussion of trajectories and gaps to 2030, it does not define or list a dataset field called ‘required annual change’.

UNDP explains its Gender Inequality Index as “a composite metric of gender inequality using three dimensions: reproductive health, empowerment and the labour market.” The description focuses on how the GII is constructed and does not mention any dataset field labeled “required annual change” or an equivalent term in the downloadable data. This illustrates that not all gender indices provide a ‘required annual change’ column in their public datasets, and that such a field is specific to certain index methodologies like Equal Measures 2030’s SDG Gender Index rather than standard across all gender indices.

Equal Measures 2030 (EM2030) is a new global cross-sector initiative that connects advocates and policymakers to data and evidence. EM2030’s SDG Gender Index brings together a wide range of indicators to track progress on gender equality and the SDGs, and the Index data are made available for others to use. The article describes the Index’s role in showing ‘how far’ and ‘how fast’ countries are progressing but does not mention a specific downloadable data field under the label ‘required annual change’; instead it refers broadly to using the Index to understand gaps and the pace of progress.

The summary explains that the 2024 Index "measures progress on gender equality in 139 countries using three reference years (2015, 2019 and 2022) and scoring each country on a scale from zero to 100." It notes that from 2019 to 2022, 40 per cent of the countries, representing over one billion women and girls, either stagnated or regressed in terms of gender equality. The write‑up describes trends and scores but does not mention any dataset field or indicator specifically called "required annual change".

There are 20 indicators (16 SDG indicators and 4 additional complementary indicators) that are ‘ready to measure’ with internationally agreed definitions. The fundamental principle of the 2030 development agenda is to leave no one behind. Achieving real inclusion – and monitoring progress – will require a significant improvement in the availability of data. The blog discusses indicators and monitoring approaches for SDG gender targets in general, but it is not specifically about the Equal Measures 2030 2024 SDG Gender Index dataset and does not describe any field named ‘required annual change’.

Focus 2030 describes several gender-equality data tools, including Equal Measures 2030’s SDG Gender Index: “Equal Measures 2030 calculates in the SDG Gender Index the gender equality scores of 139 countries in relation to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. The database can be downloaded and offers indicators on current levels and the pace of change, including how much progress per year is needed to be on track for 2030 targets.” Although it does not quote the exact column name, this description corresponds to EM2030’s “required annual change” variable that appears in the index dataset.

Previous public releases of Equal Measures 2030’s SDG Gender Index (e.g., 2019 and 2022 editions) have provided downloadable spreadsheets containing country‑level overall index scores, scores by SDG, and underlying indicator values. These files typically include variables such as country name, ISO code, year, index score, and sometimes rankings and regional groupings. Based on these earlier editions as of 2024, there is no widely documented standard column or field explicitly labeled "required annual change" in the public SDG Gender Index data files.