International Day for the Eradication of Poverty
One-day social media action to raise awareness of MDG successes and push for achievement of the Goals by 2015
The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty has been observed every year since 1993, when the General Assembly, by resolution 47/196, designated this day to promote awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution in all countries, particularly in developing countries - a need that has become a development priority.
At the Millennium Summit, world leaders committed themselves to cutting by half by the year 2015 the number of people living in extreme poverty - people whose income is less than one dollar a day.
This years theme is ”Ending the Violence of Extreme Poverty: Promoting Empowerment and Building Peace”.
UN Resources:
- Eradicate Poverty
- UNDP Poverty Reduction
- IMF Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers
- Rural Poverty Knowledgebase
- Millennium Development Goals
- Millennium Summit
- ECLAC Eradicate Poverty
- DESA
MDG Gap Task Force Report 2012
The Secretary-General launched the 2012 MDG Gap Task Force Report at UN Headquarters in New York yesterday, 20 September. In his address, he notes that “It is clear that we need a stronger global partnership to achieve the MDGs by the 2015 deadline.”
The Task Force Report, issued ahead of the annual high-level General Assembly meetings next week, notes that after reaching a peak in 2010, the volume of official development assistance fell almost three per cent in 2011.
It warns that with no apparent commitment by donor governments to reverse the trend, it is possible that fewer of the MDGs will be reached in fewer countries by the 2015 deadline.
According to the Report, to meet the UN target of 0.7 per cent of donor country gross national income, total overseas development assistance (ODA) should more than double to about $300 billion (in 2011 dollars), thus leaving a delivery gap of $167 billion against that commitment. Least developed countries should receive about one-fourth of this amount.
What will it take to achieve the Millennium Development Goals? An international assessment
Due to the combination of high food prices, climate change and the impact of the international financial and economic crises, disparities in MDG achievement can be seen within and between countries. This report identifies a concrete action agenda which informed the outcome of the World leaders’ MDG Summit in New York that took place in September 2010. Based on a study of what has worked in 50 countries, it provides an eight-point MDG action agenda to accelerate and sustain development progress over the next five years.
See: Fulltext Summary and Fulltext Full report
Born Too Soon: The Global Action Report on Preterm Birth
A new report, Born Too Soon: The Global Action Report on Preterm Birth, shows the extent of the rise of preterm birth in most countries—15 million babies are born too soon, over 1 million die each year. Providing the first-ever national, regional and global estimates of preterm birth, Born Too Soon addresses preterm birth—now the second leading cause of death globally for children under five, after pneumonia—as an urgent priority for reaching Millennium Development Goal 4, which calls for the reduction of child deaths by two-thirds by 2015. Proposing actions for policy, programs and research by all partners, the report shows that rapid change is possible and identifies priority actions for everyone.
The report is a joint effort of almost 50 international, regional and national organizations, led by the March of Dimes, The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health, Save the Children and the World Health Organization in support of the Every Woman Every Child effort, led by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Born Too Soon: The Global Action Report on Preterm Birth (Full Report)
Resources:
Photo: Malnourished Newborn at Maternity Hospital in Kutum, Sudan. UN Photo/Albert Gonzalez Farran.
WHO: World Health Statistics 2012
World Health Statistics 2012 contains WHO’s annual compilation of health-related data for its 194 Member States, and includes a summary of the progress made towards achieving the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and associated targets.
This year, it also includes highlight summaries on the topics of noncommunicable diseases, universal health coverage and civil registration coverage.
Available in 3 languages
Summary:
To order a Print Copy:
United to end AIDS: achieving the targets of the 2011 Political Declaration
The UN Secretary-General has issued his first report to the General Assembly since the High-level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, held in June 2011. The report summarizes results against the targets in the 2011 Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS. Although striking progress has been achieved, the world is not on track to meet the 2015 targets, underscoring the urgent need for all stakeholders to redouble their efforts to strengthen the HIV response.
UN Resources:
UN Security Council Resolutions
Political Delacrations:
Asia-Pacific Regional MDG Report 2011/12
This report, Asia-Pacific Regional MDG Report 2011/12 underlines the extent of disparities across the region, looking especially at the wide gaps in the goals related to health and nutrition where the region is particularly under-performing.Even countries that have been making rapid economic progress still lose shocking numbers of children before their fifth birthday as well as thousands of mothers who die unnecessarily, as a consequence of the natural process of childbirth.
The report also reveals many opportunities for improving health outcomes, highlighting the policies and programmes which, when backed by commitment and adequate resources, could help make the Asia-Pacific region a driving forcebehind the global achievement of all the MDGs.
Progress on drinking water and sanitation 2012
MDG drinking-water target was met in 2010, five years ahead of schedule!
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reports every two years on progress towards the drinking-water and sanitation target under Millennium Development Goal 7.
Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation reveals that, at the end of 2010, 89 per cent of the world’s population used improved drinking water sources, meeting the target. By 2015, an estimated 92 per cent of the global population will have access to improved drinking water.
However, serious challenge remain. The report also indicates that the world is far from meeting the MDG target for sanitation – and is unlikely to do so by 2015.
Documents:
Assessing Progress in Africa toward the Millennium Development Goals
The Economic Commission on Africa(ECA) has released the 2011 Millennium Development Goals(MDG) Report.
This report is organized as follows. After this first introductory section, Section II assesses progress on each of the eight Goals. Section III takes as its thematic focus social protection programs as they relate to the MDGs in a selected number of African countries. Section IV concludes with recommendations on the way forward.
Previous Reports:
Ahead of World Teachers’ Day (5 October), celebrate the teachers that encouraged and inspired you by uploading a photo of your favourite teacher, past or present, to the UN Photo Facebook page or on Twitter using the #teachersday hashtag. Don’t forget to include your name and country and one sentence about why they mean so much to you.
Related story from UNESCO: Two million new teachers needed – mainly women!
Resources on UN Secretary-General’s “Every Woman, Every Child” Event
UN Secretary-General is hosting the “Every Woman, Every Child” event Tuesday (20 September), a global effort bringing together governments, philanthropic institutions and other funders, the United Nations and multilateral organizations, civil society and non-governmental organizations, the business community, health-care workers and professionals, and academic and research institutions around the world that support the “Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health”
*Photo - A Somali woman and a malnourished child exit from the medical tent after the child receives emergency medical treatment from the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), an active regional peacekeeping mission operated by the African Union with the approval of the United Nations… (July 2011) - UN Photo/Stuart Price
New Report from the SG on Millennium Development Goals
A new report from the UN Secretary-General titled “ Realization of the Millennium Development Goals and other internationally agreed development goals for persons with disabilities” (A/66/128) has been published.
The report reflects the UN’s ongoing efforts to realize the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) adopted as part of the UN’s Millennium Declaration in 2000 (A/RES/55/2).
The eight goals the UN has focused on are:
- Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
- Achieve universal primary education
- Promote gender equality and empower women
- Reduce child mortality
- Improve maternal health
- Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
- Ensure environmental sustainability
- Develop a global partnership for development
UN Resources for Millennium Development Goals
- Millennium Development Goals Report 2011 (pdf)
- Secretary-General reports
- General Assembly resolutions
- UN Statistics Division Millennium Development Goals Indicators
Report of Secretary-General transmitting latest WHO Report on the 2001-2010: Decade to Roll Back Malaria
Pursuant to Assembly resolution A/RES/65/273, the latest report of the World Health Organization entitled “Consolidating gains and accelerating efforts to control and eliminate malaria in developing countries, particularly in Africa, by 2015” was transmitted to the General Assembly by the UN Secretary-General and is now available online: A/66/169.
More UN Resources on Malaria
- Roll Back Malaria Partnership - launched in 1998 by WHO, UNICEF, UNDP and the World Bank
- World Health Organization Global Malaria Programme
- Millennium Development Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases
Photo by S. Hollyman, copyright WHO
