In
September 2000, at the United Nations Millennium Summit,
world leaders agreed to a set of time-bound and measurable
goals and targets for combating poverty, hunger, disease,
illiteracy, environmental degradation and discrimination
against women.
The Summit’s Millennium Declaration, signed
by 189 countries, set forth an ambitious agenda for
improving the lives of the world’s poorest citizens
by 2015. It spoke of a world united by common values
and striving with renewed determination to achieve
peace and decent standards of living for every man,
woman and child.
Placed at the heart of the global agenda, they are
now called the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Unfortunately the Millennium Goals have received very
little public attention. On this Island home, our earth,
all of us, individually and collectively, have a responsibility
to work toward the achievement of these goals. It is
imperative that we act.
The Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, through
gatherings at Chapter and Assembly, continue to shape
and to evolve our ministries to meet the current needs
of society.
As gospels of love, we believe
that Jesus came, “...that
they might have life and have it to the full.” In
Matthew, we read, “...the blind recover their
sight, cripples walk, lepers are cured, the deaf hear,
dead men are raised to life and the poor have the good
news preached to them.” We yearn to make these
words reality.
While
the suffering we see in the world sometimes overwhelms
us, we are encouraged by the good we see around us,
by the promise of a better world.
We
urge you to think globally and act locally by finding
out all you can about these goals. There are excellent
websites with further information and updated reports
on the status of the goals.
UN Millennium Development Goals
1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. Achieve universal primary education
3. Promote gender equality and empower women
4. Reduce child mortality
5. Improve maternal health
6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
7. Ensure environmental sustainability
8. Develop a global partnership for development
How Are We Doing? (2000-2007 - Midpoint to 2015)
Overall, progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals has been uneven, both within and among countries. Some countries and regions have experienced substantial progress, while others have had little success.
The 2007 Millennium Development Goals report issued by the UN highlights achievements and challenges . Following is a summary of the progress so far.
The proportion of people living in extreme poverty fell from nearly a third to 10% over this period. If progress continues, the MDG target will be met by 2015. The poorest are getting a little less poor in most regions.
The net enrollment ratio in primary education in the developing regions increased to 88% in school year 2004/05. Two thirds of the increase occurred since 1999. Although Sub-Sahara Africa has made significant progress over the last few years, it still trails behind other regions, with 30% of its school age children out of school. A strong push will be needed over the next few years to enroll all children in school and to fulfill their right to a quality education.
Doors are slowly opening for women in the labor market, although women's labor is more likely than men's to be unpaid, meaning that women continue to lack access to job security and social protection. Women's political participation is growing with very encouraging signs coming from the Arab States.
Child survival rates show slow improvement, but sub-Sahara Africa still lags behind. Measles is one of the leading causes of child death among diseases that can be prevented by vaccines. Routine measles immunization serves as a proxy indicator for access to basic health care services among children under 5. Moreover, measles vaccination campaigns have become a channel for delivering other life-saving interventions, such as mosquito nets to protect against malaria, de-worming medicine and vitamin A supplements. Estimates for 2005 indicate that 10.1 million children died before their fifth birthday, mostly from preventable causes.
Half a million women continue to die each year during pregnancy or childbirth, almost all of them in sub-Sahara Africa and Asia. A number of middle-income countries have made rapid progress in reducing maternal deaths. The vast majority of maternal deaths and disabilities could be prevented through appropriate reproductive health services during and after pregnancy. This needs to be made more available. In some regions a very high rate of adolescent births adds to the problem. A woman's risk of dying from childbirth is 1 in 16 compared to 1 in 3,800 in developed countries.
HIV prevalence has leveled off in the developing world, but deaths from AIDS continue to rise in sub-Sahara Africa. By the end of 2006, an estimated 39.5 million people worldwide were living with HIV. In hardest hit areas, more than half of those living with HIV are women. Though access to AIDS treatment has expanded, the need continues to grow. The magnitude of the problem is growing. Though 700,000 people received treatment for the first time in 2006, an estimated 4.3 million people were newly infected that year, highlighting the urgent need to intensify prevention efforts.
Deforestation continues, especially in biologically diverse regions. Tree plantations increase while old growth forest ecosystems continue to be lost. The international community has been encouraging protection of the Earth's land and marine environments. This is not halting the proportion of species threatened by extinction. Unprecedented efforts will be required to conserve habitats and to manage ecosystems and species in a sustainable way.
(United Nations Millennium Development Goals Report 2007)
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