Governance & Policy

Tier 1/2/3 Indicators

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Definition

The tier classification, maintained by the UN Inter-Agency and Expert Group on SDG Indicators, grades each SDG indicator: Tier I (methodology established, data widely produced), Tier II (methodology established, data not regularly produced), and Tier III (no internationally established methodology yet — a category now eliminated as methods were developed). The classification drives statistical capacity investment, because Tier II status identifies where data production — not standards — is the gap.

References

Source organisationSupporting reference

This reference provides supporting context for how “Tier 1/2/3 Indicators” is defined and used.

unstats.un.orgBulk import source

Source imported for editorial provenance.

Overview

How it is used

The classification structures UN SDG progress reporting, national statistical capacity building, and custodian agency work programmes.

Why it matters

The tier system is how the SDGs admit what they do not yet know — the governance of measurement honesty.