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Leading international financial and economic experts advocating for a fundamental shift in approaches to measuring economic growth will meet at the United Nations in Geneva this week. The discussion stems from growing concerns that the traditional metric of gross domestic product (GDP) fails to reflect real progress in achieving key social and sustainable development goals, which directly impact the well-being and survival of millions of people worldwide.
The meeting was organized as part of the international "Beyond GDP" initiative, supported by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). This initiative aims to develop and implement more comprehensive and inclusive development indicators. The proposed indicators should take into account not only economic parameters but also social well-being, environmental sustainability, the state of the environment, and overall quality of life.
The initiative's participants emphasize that GDP, despite its widespread use, does not provide a complete picture of the processes taking place in society. UN Secretary-General António Guterres has previously repeatedly stated that global politics and economic planning are overly dependent on gross domestic product (GDP).
"Every day we witness the consequences of our failure to balance the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of development," the UN Secretary-General noted. He emphasized that looking beyond GDP is essential to building an economic system that truly values human well-being, both present and future, for everyone.
This position is shared by many leading global economists. They point out that GDP often overstates the impact of activities that harm the planet and fails to account for the contribution of those sectors that support life, social stability, and the general well-being of the population. Experts emphasize that the problem is becoming especially pressing against the backdrop of climate change, ecosystem degradation, biodiversity loss, rising conflicts, food insecurity, and persistent historical inequalities.
As the Expert Group on Going Beyond GDP notes in its statement, today's global challenges require a rethinking of how the economic success of states and societies is assessed.
The discussions, which will take place at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, will be the expert group's second in-person meeting since its establishment last May. The group's interim report, published in November, emphasized that improving well-being and its key drivers—health, social capital, and environmental health—are not only a public good but also an integral foundation for long-term economic prosperity.
The expert group members also warn of a growing gap between how the economic situation is perceived by politicians, who rely on GDP figures, and the real-life experiences of citizens, which often do not correspond to the optimistic picture created by macroeconomic statistics.
More than ten renowned economists and world-class experts will participate in the discussions in Geneva, including Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz, Indian economist Kaushik Basu, and inequality expert Nora Lustig. The meeting's key objectives include developing a list of national and universal indicators for sustainable development, as well as preparing recommendations for governments to implement the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals.
