The Arab region is a diverse one when it comes to sustainable development. In recent years and decades, we have seen both major success stories in prosperity and stability, but we have also witnessed tragic conflicts and wars. At the same time, the 22 countries of the region are bound together by a common history, language and culture. We share many similar challenges and opportunities. Instability and human insecurity are in no one’s interest. While progress in many areas of sustainable development is hindered by conflicts and instability, the opposite is also true: durable regional peace and security can only be achieved if all its countries are able to provide well-being to their populations while protecting their natural resources and the environment.

The Arab Region SDG Index and Dashboards are intended as a tool for governments and other stakeholders to
measure progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and to highlight gaps in both implementation
and data. The 2019 Arab Region SDG Index is the first in its kind and is therefore also intended as a conversationopener
about priority areas, policies and actions.

The 2019 Arab Region SDG Index comprises 105 indicators, each of which have an assigned score (0–100) and a
traffic light colour (green, yellow, orange, or red) to indicate performance. In addition, arrows indicate trends in
progress towards achieving the goals for those indicators where data for multiple years are available.

Compared to the Sustainable Development Report 2019, which contains the SDG Index and Dashboards for all UN
Member States, the Arab Region Index introduces 30 new indicators that reflect regional priorities and challenges.
The selection of these indicators, along with related thresholds, was greatly informed by two rounds of regional
expert consultations, which were conducted in May and August 2019 and collected more than 200 comments
from more than 40 individuals. The regional Index also removes indicators that are not useful or relevant for the
region or where data coverage is currently insufficient.

In addition, the 2019 Arab Region Index includes Palestine, which has so far not been included in the global SDG
Index reports. It also provides a total SDG achievement score for two countries – Libya and Somalia – that did not
receive one in the global Index due to low data availability.