Socio-economic and institutional determinants of sustainable development: a panel data analysis (2000–2023)

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to identify and analyse the impact of socio-economic, technological and institutional factors on countries performance in terms of sustainable development. It presents a study of the structural factors that influence sustainable development using panel data from 165 countries between 2000 and 2023. The UN SDG Index Score has been modelled as a dependent variable, incorporating World Bank predictors related to access to information technology, the labour market, institutional quality, per capita income and economic inequality. Five progressive models have been estimated, applying fixed effects methodology and validating the basic assumptions of linear regression with panel data. The results are partial and subject to revision as new controls and methodological improvements are incorporated in later stages, but it has been observed that access to communication technologies and good institutional quality favour sustainable development goals, while a high level of inequality has a negative impact on these goals. First published online 5 August 2026