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Introduction
On September 8, 2000, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Millennium Declaration, which reaffirmed the universal values and principles of freedom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, respect for nature and the UN’s commitment to promoting peace, security, disarmament, human rights, democracy and good governance. The Millennium Declaration also outlined the most ambitious global agenda till date for eradicating poverty and preventable disease, promoting equitable development and protecting the earth’s environment. Thus, it became the ethical basis and pre-cursor for the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals, each further outlined with measurable targets and indicators, which were officially revised in 2008.
The Millennium Declaration has been signed by 193 member countries, who have adopted the MDGs as national commitments, including India. The eight MDGs include:
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MDG 1 – Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
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MDG 2 – Achieve Universal Primary Education |
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MDG 3 – Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
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MDG 4 – Reduce Child Mortality |
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MDG 5 – Improve Maternal Health
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MDG 6 – Combat HIV/AIDs, Malaria and Other Diseases |
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MDG 7 - Ensure Environmental Sustainability
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MDG 8 - A Global Partnership for Development
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India and the MDGs
In India, the work of the UN entities on the Millennium Development Goals takes place within the framework of the:
- UN Development Assistance Framework – the overarching policy document for UN country assistance to India. The UNDAF is implemented under a five-year cycle, in harmonization with the Government of India’s Five Year Plans – the overarching policy document for development planning in the country.
- National Development Goals articulated in the Government of India’s Five Year Plans
The new UNDAF (2013-2017) cycle and 12th Five Year Plan (2012-2017) implementation overlap fully with the remaining period left to achieve the MDGs.
MDGs in India – Snapshot
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Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
- Poverty rate declined from 45 percent in 1993 to 37 percent in 2004, according to new method applied.
- Proportion of underweight 40% in 2006; declined by 3 % since 1998
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Goal 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education
- Primary enrolment of 6-10 age group children 95% in 2007-2008; Survival rate declined from 2004 to 2007-2008, increasing thereafter
- Youth literacy reached 86% in 2007
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Goal 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
- Primary education gender parity achieved in 2007; on track for secondary education
- Share of women in wage employment in non-agricultural sector stood at 18.6 % in 2009; increase of 2 percentage points in five years and recent past
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Goal 4: Reduce Child Mortality
- Under 5 mortality rate declined over last decade down to 64/1000 live births in 2009 (SRS data), ranging from 71/1000 in rural areas to 41/1000 in urban areas. India will reach 54/1000 live births by 2015 missing the MDG target by 12 percentage points.
- IMR declined by 30 points in the last 20 years but likely to be 45.04/1000 live births against the MDG target of 26.67/1000 by 2015.
- Immunaisation coverage against measles reached 72.4% in 2009; will fall short of target by 12 percentage points in 2015.
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Goal 5: Improve Maternal Health
- Decline in MMR from 1990 to 2009 is 51%; India will reach MMR of 139/1000, 000 live births by 2015, which is short of the target by 29 points.
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Goal 6: Combats HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases
- HIV prevalence rate was 0.31 in 2009; for pregnant women (age 15-24) it almost halved from 0.86 % in 2004 to 0.48 % in 2008; number of people with anti-retroviral treatment is approximately 4.5 lakh
- Total malaria cases 1.6 million in 2010; India contributed 24% of total new global cases in 2009
- TB mortality reduced from 42/lakh in 1990 to 26/lakh by 2010
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Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability
- MDG target for access to safe drinking water achieved in 2007; will reduce but miss target on sanitation access;
- Carbon Emissions increase by approx. 100 % since 1990
- Forest cover increased by 728 km between 2005-07
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Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development
- Number of telephone subscribers at the end of June 2011 were almost 886 million; rural subscriber base growing at higher rate than urban; 98% of total inhabited villages in India connected as of end June 2011.
- Internet subscribers approx. 20 million
- Broadcast subscribers approx. 12.5 million by June 2011
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MDG Achievement in India – The Way Forward
MDG 2010 Summit
In September 2010, ten years after the MDGs were adopted, the UN called a high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly to review the implementation of the goals. The Summit provided a unique opportunity to strengthen collective efforts and partnerships for the final push to achieve the goals by 2015. The Secretary General’s 2010 report - Keeping the Promise - provided a comprehensive review of progress made in achieving the Millennium Development Goals through successes, best practices and lessons learned, obstacles and gaps, and challenges and opportunities, leading to concrete strategies for action.
MDG Acceleration Framework
The MDG Acceleration Framework helps to accelerate progress at the country level on those MDGs currently seen as unlikely to be reached by 2015. It can be adapted to different country circumstances and complements existing government planning processes, while also improving the mobilization coordination of efforts and resources contributed by various partners. Countries can use this approach as one way to respond to the shared call to accelerate progress that was made at the MDG Summit in September 2010.
Universal Periodic Review
The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a mechanism of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council (HRC) that emerged out of the 2005 UN reform process. Established by General Assembly resolution 60/251 of 3 April 2006, the UPR periodically examines the human rights performance of all 193 UN Member States and is intended to complement, not duplicate, the work of other human rights mechanisms, including the UN human rights treaty bodies. The Universal Periodic Review process includes examining the delivery of services and citizens’ entitlements outlined under the Millennium Development Goals as basic human rights.
Post-2015 Development Framework
With less than four years left to achieve the MDGs, the international development community, civil society actors, policymakers, inter-governmental organizations, campaigners and public opinion makers have begun the discourse on what the post-2015 development framework should look like. The Rio+20 Summit scheduled to take place in June 2012 will be a key milestone in shaping those discussions.
The UN Millennium Campaign, mandated to support and inspire people across the globe to hold their government accountable on MDG promises, has developed “ The World We Want – Beyond 2015’ Toolkit” in partnership with the Global Campaign Against Poverty (GCAP) and Beyond 2015, a global coalition of over 100 organisations across five continents.
Additional MDG Resources/Relevant Links:
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