Development goals
Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Why media and access to information matter for the SDGs
Independent media are not simply instruments for communication — they are enablers of development. Free and pluralistic information ecosystems make it possible for citizens, communities, and governments to identify problems, monitor progress, and hold institutions to account. Without credible public information, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) risk becoming aspirational rather than operational.
The 2030 Agenda in Context
Adopted by all UN Member States in 2015, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development set out 17 Goals and 169 targets to address poverty, inequality, human rights, peace, justice, and climate action. Achieving these goals requires transparent institutions, informed citizens, and mechanisms for accountability — all of which depend on a healthy information environment.
While states bear primary responsibility for implementing the SDGs, progress depends on cooperation between governments, civil society, and the private sector. The European Union, through its development cooperation and external action, plays a key role in enabling these partnerships — but this work can only succeed where citizens have access to trustworthy information and the freedom to participate in public debate.
SDG 16.10 — Public Access to Information and Protection of Fundamental Freedoms
SDG 16 calls for “peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, access to justice for all, and effective, accountable and inclusive institutions.” Target 16.10 commits governments to “ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements.”
This target cannot be achieved through legislation alone. Access to information laws must be accompanied by independent media that can request, interpret, and translate data into public understanding and policy accountability. In practice, media are the vehicle through which the right to information becomes a lived reality.
Why support for independent media is central to SDG 16.10
Turning rights into practice: Laws on access to information are ineffective without actors able to use them. Journalists and media outlets transform data and legal rights into actionable public knowledge.
Accountability and oversight: Investigative and local media make institutions more transparent, deterring corruption and misuse of public funds.
Participation and empowerment: Informed citizens are more likely to engage in democratic and development processes, improving social cohesion and trust.
Policy responses and implementation trends Policymakers and donors pursuing SDG 16.10 increasingly:
Enact and implement access to information laws with enforcement mechanisms.
Protect journalists and sources through legal and safety frameworks.
Invest in independent and community media to ensure diverse, local coverage.
Support journalism training, research, and cross-sector media development.
Integrate information access and media freedom into SDG monitoring frameworks and ODA reporting.
🔗 Why a healthy information environment underpins all SDGs
Access to trustworthy information is both a right in itself and a multiplier across the entire 2030 Agenda.
SDG Area
How media enable progress
Good governance & peace (SDG 16)
Strengthens accountability, reduces corruption, and builds public trust in institutions — improving efficiency and legitimacy of development spending.
Trusted reporting and public information campaigns increase uptake of health services, support evidence-based climate action, and foster behavioural change.
Free media expose corruption, provide reliable market information, and attract responsible investment. As Joseph Stiglitz notes, “Free and independent media can expose corruption, provide a voice for citizens, and enable markets to work better.”
In short, information integrity is development integrity.
Public interest media create the conditions for every other SDG to succeed: better governance delivers better services; informed citizens make better choices; transparent markets drive fairer growth.
“Free and independent media can expose corruption in government and the corporate sector, provide a voice for citizens to be heard, help build public consensus to bring about change, and enable markets to work better by providing reliable economic information”
💡 Key Takeaway
Supporting independent media and access to information is not an optional add-on to development cooperation — it is a prerequisite for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. For the EU and its Member States, integrating media and information integrity into development strategies means investing in the infrastructure of accountability itself: the systems that allow citizens to see, understand, and shape their societies.
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