Question

Select one of the United Nations' (U.N.) Millennial Development Goals (MDGs). Visit the website and report on the UN's progress in achieving this goal? How will meeting this goal positively impact the health of the world? What suggestions would you make to help the UN achieve this goal?

Answer 1

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

The MDGs were developed out of several commitments set forth in the Millennium Declaration, signed in September 2000. There are eight goals with 21 targets, and a series of measurable health indicators and economic indicators for each target. The United Nations Millennium Development Goals are eight goals that all 191 UN member states have agreed to try to achieve by the year 2015. The United Nations Millennium Declaration, signed in September 2000 commits world leaders to combat poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation, and discrimination against women. The MDGs are derived from this Declaration, and all have specific targets and indicators.

The Eight Millennium Development Goals are:

1.     to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger;
2.     to achieve universal primary education;
3.     to promote gender equality and empower women;
4.     to reduce child mortality;
5.     to improve maternal health;
6.     to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases;
7.     to ensure environmental sustainability; and
8.     to develop a global partnership for development.

The MDGs are inter-dependent; all the MDG influence health, and health influences all the MDGs. For example, better health enables children to learn and adults to earn. Gender equality is essential to the achievement of better health. Reducing poverty, hunger and environmental degradation positively influences, but also depends on, better health.

The United Nations Millennium Declaration, signed in September 2000, committed world leaders to combat poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation, and discrimination against women. The MDGs were derived from this Declaration, and had specific targets and indicators. The MDGs have been superseded by the Sustainable Development Goals, a set of 17 integrated and indivisible goals that build on the achievements of the MDGs but are broader, deeper and far more ambitious in scope.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) commit the international community to an expanded vision of poverty reduction and pro-poor growth, one that vigorously places human development at the centre of social and economic progress in all countries. The MDGs also recognise the importance of creating a global partnership for change, as high-income nations must reform their domestic and international policies related to agriculture, trade, and sustainable development; enhance the effectiveness of their aid programmes; and help poor countries to reduce their debt burdens. For their part, low-income nations must address fundamental issues related to governance, rights and social justice. In all cases, countries must set their own strategies and policies, together with their global partners, to ensure that poor people receive their fair share of the benefits of development.

Of the eight Millennium Development Goals, three are specifically health related--reducing infant (under-5) and maternal mortality; and combating HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other significant communicable diseases. According to various studies, many developing countries will not achieve the MDGs without concerted efforts and commitment of additional resources.