Spatial differences of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) among counties (cities) on the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains

doi:10.1016/j.regsus.2024.03.002

Abstract

Abstract:

The county (city) located on the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains is the primary area to solidify and extend the success of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China in poverty alleviation. Its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are intertwined with the concerted economic and social development of Xinjiang and the objective of achieving shared prosperity within the region. This study established a sustainable development evaluation framework by selecting 15 SDGs and 20 secondary indicators from the United Nations’ SDGs. The aim of this study is to quantitatively assess the progress of SDGs at the county (city) level on the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains. The results indicate that there are substantial variations in the scores of SDGs among the nine counties and one city located on the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains. Notable high scores of SDGs are observed in the central and eastern regions, whereas lower scores are prevalent in the western areas. The scores of SDGs, in descending order, are as follows: 62.22 for Minfeng County, 54.22 for Hotan City, 50.21 for Qiemo County, 42.54 for Moyu County, 41.56 for Ruoqiang County, 41.39 for Qira County, 39.86 for Lop County, 38.25 for Yutian County, 38.10 for Pishan County, and 36.87 for Hotan County. The performances of SDGs reveal that Hotan City, Lop County, Minfeng County, and Ruoqiang County have significant sustainable development capacity because they have three or more SDGs ranked as green color. However, Hotan County, Moyu County, Qira County, and Yutian County show the poorest performance, as they lack SDGs with green color. It is important to establish and enhance mechanisms that can ensure sustained income growth among poverty alleviation beneficiaries, sustained improvement in the capacity of rural governance, and the gradual improvement of social security system. These measures will facilitate the effective implementation of SDGs. Finally, this study offers a valuable support for governmental authorities and relevant departments in their decision-making processes. In addition, these results hold significant reference value for assessing SDGs at the county (city) level, particularly in areas characterized by low levels of economic development.

Key words: Sustainable, Development Goals (SDGs)Northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains, Poverty alleviation, Arid lands, Sustainable development capacity

WANG Tao, ZHOU Daojing, FAN Jie. Spatial differences of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) among counties (cities) on the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains[J]. Regional Sustainability, 2024, 5(1): 100108.

Figures/Tables 5

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Table 1

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SDG	Secondary indicator	Mean	Maximum	Minimum	Standard deviation	Coefficient of variation^#
SDG 1	Proportion of residents receiving minimum living allowance (%)	36.56	56.41	15.43	0.140	0.390
SDG 2	Grain yield (kg/hm²)	5752.40	12,870.00	3690.00	2470.090	0.430
SDG 3	Number of physicians per 1000 persons	1.81	4.81	0.62	1.250	0.690
SDG 4	Primary school enrollment rate (%)	99.72	100.00	98.96	0.004	0.004
SDG 4	Junior high school enrollment rate (%)	99.23	100.00	97.28	0.008	0.008
SDG 5	Number of participants in maternity insurance per 1000 persons	97.99	222.21	44.46	59.460	0.610
SDG 6	Water resources pressure (the ratio of irrigation area to cultivated land area)	1.95	3.82	1.34	0.700	0.360
SDG 7	Solar power generation (10⁷ W)	13,810.40	46,200.00	2760.00	12,750.230	0.920
SDG 8	Per capita GDP (CNY)	35,584.30	157,168.20	12,135.47	42,320.140	1.190
SDG 8	GDP growth rate (%)	7.24	15.48	7.47	0.060	0.770
SDG 9	Number of people employed in scientific research per 1000 persons	0.58	1.37	0.06	0.490	0.840
SDG 10	Ratio of the incomes of urban and rural residents	0.43	0.95	0.04	0.230	0.530
SDG 11	Days of good air quality (d)	354.40	359.00	343.00	4.540	0.010
	Access to natural gas fuels of city (%)	98.14	100.00	93.65	0.020	0.020
	Green rate of built-up area (%)	26.67	39.79	16.15	0.080	0.280
SDG 12	Industrial waste gas emission (10⁸ m³ )	0.24	0.93	0.03	0.270	1.120
SDG 13	Industrial emissions per unit of GDP (m³/CNY)	0.78	2.06	0.07	0.590	0.760
SDG 15	Forest coverage (%)	1.94	5.12	0.44	0.010	0.630
SDG 15	Wetland coverage (%)	1.70	5.89	0.35	0.020	0.950
SDG 17	Health and education spending of GDP (%)	8.68	13.48	0.78	4.110	0.470

	SDG 1	SDG 2	SDG 3	SDG 4	SDG 5	SDG 6	SDG 7	SDG 8	SDG 9	SDG 10	SDG 11	SDG 12	SDG 13	SDG 15	SDG 17
SDG 1	1.000
SDG 2	0.034	1.000
SDG 3	0.537	0.317	1.000
SDG 4	-0.434	0.285	-0.314	1.000
SDG 5	-0.145	0.560	0.296	0.510	1.000
SDG 6	0.274	0.735^*	0.316	0.100	0.351	1.000
SDG 7	0.334	-0.384	0.612	-0.492	-0.304	-0.037	1.000
SDG 8	-0.138	0.298	0.298	0.417	0.742	0.132	-0.136	1.000
SDG 9	0.318	0.530	0.886^**	-0.139	0.425	0.353	0.302	0.406	1.000
SDG 10	-0.610	-0.209	-0.545	0.633	0.467	-0.344	-0.459	0.366	-0.417	1.000
SDG 11	0.218	-0.630	0.195	-0.562	-0.047	-0.445	0.472	-0.091	-0.035	0.137	1.000
SDG 12	-0.019	0.225	-0.267	-0.134	-0.593	0.215	-0.162	-0.349	-0.128	-0.479	-0.635^*	1.000
SDG 13	-0.680^*	0.486	-0.322	0.757^*	0.308	0.123	-0.498	0.322	-0.034	0.393	-0.754^*	0.330	1.000
SDG 15	0.360	-0.179	0.764^*	-0.431	-0.015	0.086	0.883^**	-0.069	0.498	-0.447	0.482	-0.425	-0.552	1.000
SDG 17	0.066	-0.308	-0.597	-0.376	-0.842^**	-0.134	-0.165	-0.702^*	-0.611	-0.297	-0.145	0.725^*	-0.145	-0.424	1.000