A/71/304 5. The Millennium Development Goals were narrow in scope, focusing on economic and social issues in low-income nations. Health had particular prominence within the Millennium Development Goals, with three of the eight Goals focused on maternal health, child health and HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. The Sustainable Development Goals are broader, covering the economic, social and environmental dimensions of development. They are universal, applying to rich and poor countries, and designed to be integrated, interlinked and cross cutting. Importantly, the 2030 Agenda makes a broad commitment to “[ensuring] that no one is left behind” and “[reaching] the furthest behind first” with the aim of reducing inequalities within and among countries (Goal 10). This is reflected in a number of Sustainable Development Goals and resonates with the key human rights principles of non-discrimination and equality. 6. Health is central to the Sustainable Development Goals, as it is both an outcome of and a path to achieving poverty reduction and sustainable development. Progress in health is both dependent on and a consequence of progress towards other Goals. Goal 3 is a specific commitment to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”. Goal 3 is associated with nine targets, which include addressing child and maternal mortality and infectious and non-communicable diseases. The Special Rapporteur welcomes recognition of the emerging burden of non-communicable diseases, which represent the majority of deaths worldwide, with a disproportionate and devastating impact on the poor and marginalized. 2 There are also cross-cutting, systems-oriented targets, including universal access to sexual and reproductive health care and universal health coverage. 7. Almost all of the 17 Goals have a linkage with health, and many are important underlying determinants of health, including: • Poverty eradication (Goal 1) • Food security and nutrition (Goal 2) • Inclusive and equitable quality education (Goal 4) • Gender equality (Goal 5) • Sustainable water and sanitation (Goal 6) • Reducing inequalities within and between countries (Goal 10) • Making cities and settlements safe (Goal 11) • Climate change and access to energy (Goal 13) • Peaceful and inclusive societies, access to justice and inclusive and accountable institutions (Goal 16) • Global partnerships (Goal 17) 8. The many synergies between the Sustainable Development Goals and the right to health notwithstanding, there are a number of challenges. Many of the health related targets are reductive in their approach and do not reflect critical right-tohealth elements. A superficial interpretation of the health indicators threatens to undermine the fulfilment of right-to-health obligations, for example to ensure that health-care coverage is not merely expanded but that it meets critical right-to-health __________________ 2 4/26 World Health Organization (WHO), Global Status Report on Non-Communicable Diseases 2014 (Geneva, 2014). 16-13597