There are eight goals nobody can argue with, the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were set out in 2000 and agreed to by 189 countries. The target is to achieve all the goals by 2015. Are the UN Millennium Development Goals achievable, or are they just another pie in the sky promise from politicians? What makes these eight goals different is that they are being measured, that actual programs are being implemented around the world to achieve results. Nobody can argue with the UN Development Goals, there is no political agenda other than helping people achieve a decent quality of life in developing countries.
The goals have not yet been met in most countries, but there is progress, increase in cultivation areas, abolition of school fees, debt relief, health services, reduction of AIDS, promotion of small businesses, housing construction and sustainable living programs have been implemented in Africa, South and Central America, and Afghanistan.
In 2010, the MDG Summit presented an MDG Acceleration Framework which provides a systematic way for countries to develop and pursue their own action plans with the support and guidance of the UN. The key is to ensure that governments address the needs of the vulnerable, particularly women, youth and children who are the most affected by poverty and lack of access to education, health care, jobs, and financial support.
Goal 1 Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
• Reduce by half the proportion of people whose income is less than $1 a day.
• Reduce by half the proportion of people who suffer from hunger.
Goal 2 Achieve universal primary education
• Ensure that all boys and girls complete a full course of primary schooling.
Goal 3 Promote gender equality and empower women
• Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education preferably by 2005, and in all levels of education no later than 2015.
Goal 4 Reduce child mortality
• Reduce by two thirds the mortality of children under-five.
Goal 5 Improve maternal health
• Reduce maternal mortality by three quarters.
Goal 6 Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
• Halt and reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS.
• Halt and reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases.
Goal 7 Ensure environmental sustainability
• Integrate principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes; reverse the loss of environmental resources.
• Halve the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
• Improve the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers by 2020
Goal 8 Develop a global partnership for development
• Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and financial system.
• Address special needs of the least developed countries, landlocked countries and small island developing States.
• Deal with developing countries’ debt.
• In cooperation with developing countries, develop and implement strategies for decent work for youth.
• In cooperation with the private sector, make available the benefits of new technologies, especially information and communications.
MATTERS OF FACT
• 1.2 billion people across the world are hungry. Seven out of 10 of them are women and girls.
• Millions of children start school but eventually drop out — leaving school without basic literacy and numeracy skills.
• Women hold 18 per cent of seats in parliament.
• Every year, 536,000 women and girls die as a result of complications during pregnancy, childbirth or the six weeks following delivery. 99 per cent of them occur in developing countries.
• Two thirds of those living with HIV are in sub-Saharan Africa. Most of them are women.
• 1.2 billion people lack access to basic sanitation. The vast majority of them live in rural areas.
• Aid to the poorest countries falls far short of the 2010 target.
Challenges
The challenges facing the MDGs are numerous.
• While the share of poor people is declining, the absolute number of the poor in South Asia and in sub-Saharan Africa is increasing.
• Rapid reductions in poverty are not necessarily addressing gender equality and environmental sustainability.
• Lack of progress in reducing HIV is curtailing improvements in both maternal and child mortality.
• The expansion of health and education services is not being matched by quality.
MDG progress is also threatened by the combination of high food prices and the impact of the international financial and economic crisis. Sustained poverty and hunger reduction is at risk because of vulnerability to climate change, particularly in the area of agricultural production. Weak institutional capacity in conflict and post-conflict countries also slows MDG progress, and rapid urbanisation is putting pressure on social services.
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