Background

At the United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000, the largest-ever gathering of world leaders, every UN member state agreed to a declaration reaffirming the values and principles of the organization and rededicating themselves to the promotion of peace and security, sustainable development, human rights, democracy, and good governance.

Stating that the “central challenge we face today is to ensure that globalization becomes a positive force for all the world’s people,” world leaders pledged in the Millennium Declaration to “create an environment—at the national and global levels alike—which is conducive to development and to the elimination of poverty.” They also included in the declaration a set of clear, time-bound, and measurable development targets for combating poverty, hunger, disease, and environmental degradation, among others.

Subsequently referred to as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), these targets provide a common global development strategy that has generated an unprecedented level of coordinated action within the UN system, the donor community, and developing countries.

Millennium Development Goals
Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger

• By 2015, halve the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day and those who suffer from hunger.

Achieve Universal Primary Education

• By 2015, ensure that all boys and girls complete primary school.

Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women

• Eliminate gender disparities in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and at all levels by 2015.

Reduce Child Mortality

• By 2015, reduce by two thirds the mortality rate among children under five.

Improve Maternal Health

• By 2015, reduce by three quarters the ratio of women who die during childbirth.

Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Other Diseases

• By 2015, halt and begin to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS and the incidence of malaria and other major diseases.

Ensure Environmental Sustainability

• Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programs and reverse the loss of environmental resources.
  
  
• By 2015, halve the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water.
  
  
• By 2020, achieve significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers.

Develop a Global Partnership for Development

• Develop further an open trading and financial system that is rule-based, predictable and non-discriminatory, and includes a commitment to good governance, development and poverty reduction – nationally and internationally.
  
  
• Address the special needs of the least developed countries, including tariff- and quota-free access for their exports, enhanced debt relief, and more generous official development assistance for countries committed to poverty reduction.
  
  
• Address the special needs of landlocked and small island developing states.
  
  
• Deal comprehensively with developing countries’ debt problems.
  
  
• Develop decent and productive work for youth.
  
  
• In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries.
  
  
• In cooperation with the private sector, make available the benefits of new technologies – especially information and communications technologies.

[Source: United Nations Department of Public Information]


What Makes the MDGs Special?
The MDGs are unique for several reasons. Most importantly, they have unprecedented political support, having been agreed upon by every UN member state. Secondly, they are specific, measurable, and time-bound (most of the Goals are to be achieved by 2015). Lastly, they are achievable, with rapid advances in certain areas demonstrating that the ambitious Goals can be met.

The Role of the United Nations
The MDGs have been placed at the center of the UN system’s development work. As such, they provide a shared framework for aligning development efforts at all levels - making these initiatives more coherent, coordinated and effective.

With its universal membership and global operations, the United Nations is well positioned to direct the international community’s efforts to achieve the MDGs. To do so, the UN has launched the Millennium Campaign (www.millenniumcampaign.org) to build public awareness and political support for the MDGs, is conducting country-level and global monitoring of progress, and is providing countries with practical assistance and operational support for designing and implementing policies to achieve the Goals.

How Are We Doing?

Over the past decade, substantial progress has been achieved toward fulfilling the MDGs, demonstrating that success is possible. However, progress has been uneven, both within and among countries. Some countries and regions have experienced substantial progress, while others have had little success, or have even regressed. The ongoing global financial crisis presents a new and difficult challenge.

Recent Developments

Appearing before world leaders at the United Nations in September 2009, President Obama reaffirmed U.S. support for the MDGs and pledged to bring a global plan for achieving the Goals to the high-level review summit scheduled for September 2010.   

For more information, visit: www.un.org/millenniumgoals.

May 2010