Zimpapers Logo

Bishow Parajuli Correspondent
In the year 2000, at the United Nations, member-states including Zimbabwe, adopted the Millennium Declaration which gave birth to the Millennium Development Goals — a set of time bound development targets — with the overarching objective of reducing poverty and improving social development.

Since their adoption, the MDGs have become a cornerstone of development policy around the globe.

The MDGs have also served as a powerful tool to galvanise global support for actions for development results. They are arguably the most politically important pact ever made for international development.

I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I said, overall, the MDGs were a success, despite some countries lagging behind in certain areas. The world has reduced poverty by half. The fight against malaria and tuberculosis has shown significant results. In Africa alone, 3 million deaths from malaria, have been averted. Globally, 22 million have been saved from Tuberculosis. About 2.3 billion additional people now have access to safe drinking water. There is now gender parity in school attendance as gender disparities have been eliminated.

Meanwhile, political participation of women has increased across the globe. Global partnerships have been further strengthened with favourable conditions in trade and debt for developing countries. Despite the enormous challenges it faces, Zimbabwe has made significant progress in some MDGs.

While Zimbabwe has already achieved the target on HIV/AIDS, it has made great strides in reducing maternal mortality by one-third, increasing child immunisation to 69 percent and maintaining primary school attendance at a high level of 94 percent.

The United Nations is proud to have been a part of these successes through the ZUNDAF. In this context, the generous contributions of partners and donors in supporting these results is commendable.

With donors support, the UN agencies, through the ZUNDAF, has been able to make an average annual programme delivery of $400 million.

As much as MDGs have made a significant difference in the lives of people, especially the poor, it is half the job done.

There remains an unfinished business. In Zimbabwe, just like many others, poverty and hunger remains a critical development challenge.

In Zimbabwe, 76 percent of the rural population is poor while 23 percent is extreme poor.

Despite some progress made, maternal mortality at 614 per 100,000 live births is still a significant issue. HIV Aids is at 14 percent, which is still very high.

The development landscape has changed significantly since the MDGs came into effect —developing world, especially the emerging market economies pushing the boundaries of economic growth and social development.

New development challenges such as inequality and the threats of climate change have emerged since the adoption of MDGs. We see dry weather and drought spells more frequently.

It is amidst these developments that the quest to end poverty and transform the world to better meet human needs, while protecting our environment, ensuring peace and realising human rights through the new Post 2015 development agenda has begun.

The SDGs are being formulated through an unprecedented consultative process. The secretary-general vividly puts these in his synthesis report on the Post 2015 Agenda, “The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet”. Let me quote a sentence from the SG’s report:

“We have a shared responsibility to embark on a path to inclusive, and shared prosperity in a peaceful and resilient world where human rights and the rule of law are upheld”.

Some essential elements for delivering on SDGs include:

Dignity: To end poverty and fight inequalities

People: To ensure healthy lives, knowledge, and the inclusion of women and children,

Prosperity: To grow a strong, inclusive, and transformative economy

Planet: To protect our ecosystems for all societies and our children,

Justice: To promote safe and peaceful societies, and strong institutions,

Partnerships: To catalyse global solidarity for sustainable development