Over the next 30 years, the global community has an extraordinary opportunity to erradicate extreme poverty. That will not be easy, given a global context where: two billion more people will be added to today’s 7.3 billion; 90 percent of humanity will live in low- and middle-income countries; and crucial new disruptive influences and demands on natural resources and human capital will need to be confronted.
Finding innovative solutions to complex development challenges will be essential, driving progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals, and enabling billions of people to overcome hardship and reach their full potential.
An agenda of innovation will unleash the power of human enterprise to invent better futures. Innovations in health, agriculture, finance, and other sectors have been vital in the life-saving and life-improving breakthroughs of recent times. Where inadequate practices slow progress, more effective approaches will need to be found. The future depends on how well innovation can spur faster advances.