Public Disclosure Authorized 10544 Missing SDG Gender Indicators Kathleen Beegle Umar Serajuddin Brian Stacy Divyanshi Wadhwa Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Policy Research Working Paper Development Data Group & Development Research Group August 2023 Policy Research Working Paper 10544 Abstract The Sustainable Development Goal agenda lays out an ambitious set of 231 indicators to track progress. Countries continue to fall short in terms of reporting on the indicators in general, and this is particularly the case for the subset of 50 gender-related indicators, where countries reported on average on 31 percent of these indicators in at least one year from 2016 to 2020. A closer look at this low coverage reveals four salient fundings. First, this is not just a problem of missing data; lack of reporting on existing data is detected to be a problem. For example, of the 32 gender-related indicators that are sex disaggregated, if countries that had a population estimate also had a sex-disaggregated estimate (which is almost always feasible), the Sustainable Development Goal gender coverage rate would be 43 percent instead of 31 percent. Second, better statistical systems are a major part of the solution, as statistical system strength is correlated with higher coverage. Third, poorer countries are doing no worse in reporting on gender-related Sustainable Development Goal indicators than high-income countries, despite weaker statistical systems. Lastly, sizable over (and under) performance in reporting, conditional on statistical strength, suggests that country-level advocacy and focus can yield wins in Sustainable Development Goal gender indicator coverage. This paper is a product of the Development Data Group and Development Research Group, Development Economics. It is part of a larger effort by the World Bank to provide open access to its research and make a contribution to development policy discussions around the world. Policy Research Working Papers are also posted on the Web at http://www.worldbank. org/prwp. The authors may be contacted at kbeegle@worldbank.org. The Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about development issues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry the names of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/World Bank and its affiliated organizations, or those of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent. Produced by the Research Support Team Missing SDG Gender Indicators Kathleen Beegle, Umar Serajuddin, Brian Stacy, Divyanshi Wadhwa* Key words: statistical indicators, gender, national statistical system JEL: C8, J16, I00, O1 All authors are with the World Bank. Corresponding author: Kathleen Beegle kbeegle@worldbank.org. The authors are grateful to comments from Hai-Anh Dang, Anna Fruttero, and Lauren Harrison. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the World Bank and its affiliated organizations, or those of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent. 1 Introduction The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) lay out an ambitious agenda including that of achieving gender equality by 2030. This agenda is paired with a set of goals and targets measured by concrete indicators and is adopted by nearly all countries. SDG 5 focuses on gender equality and sets 9 measurable targets (with 14 indicators) on issues that especially affect women and girls (United Nations, 2022). But gender cuts across a far wider range of the SDGs than just the indicators under Goal 5. For example, SDG 3 on ensuring good health and well-being includes a target on reducing maternal mortality (target 3.1). The SDG agenda also calls for sex disaggregated data across several goals where monitoring of gender disparities is essential for effective policy. For example, SDG 8 on promoting decent work and economic growth sets a target of achieving full employment and equal pay for all women and men (targ