MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Millennium Development Goals

Millennium Development Goals

In September 2000, there was a meeting held in New York where all the world leaders were present, passed a National Millennium Declaration. There were 189 countries who dedicated themselves for setting the sets of targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and 2015 was selected as the time period for the achievement of goals. The general plan of the MDGs is to ensure the elimination of poverty and to develop the quality of life. There are 8 important goals connected with each other and having own targets that are: (Attaran 2005 10)

Eradication of severe poverty and hunger

Achieving the global primary education

Promoting the equality of gender and empowerment of women

Decreasing child mortality rate

Improving maternal health condition

Fighting dangerous diseases that are HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other harmful diseases

Ensuring sustainability of environment

An universal partnership for major development

The first goal that is the elimination of severe poverty and hunger contains three prime targets linked with it. The first target is to deduct the number of people living on less than $1 per day into half by 2015. The second target is to acquire 100% employment and productivity for all including young people and women. The third target is to deduct the range of people into half suffering from hunger (from period 1990-2015). (Easterly 2007 36)

The second goal is the achievement of the global primary education by ensuring a target of both the boys and girls studying the complete course of primary education by 2015. There is a confirmation which indicates the location, cost of studies and availability of educational services especially for those people residing in rural areas or slums of urban cities could prevent their presence in school or achievement of primary education. In some areas, the mixture of these elements, along with cultural beliefs, acts as a further obstacle for the participation of girls in primary education. (Singer 2005 14)

The third goal which is the promotion of the equality of gender and the empowerment of women is strongly connected with the second goal but priority is given to the equality of gender especially in the primary, secondary, and tertiary education. There are three important measures inside this goal that is the proportion of girls with boys in primary, secondary, and tertiary education, the ratio of women in employment based on wages in the non agricultural sector and the ratio of seats reserved for women in national parliament (Juma 2005 78). The other reasons that are there for the gender inequality is the backward thinking in rural areas where women are not allowed to study in school, only allowed doing household work. However the scenario is different in the developed countries where the woman represents the good amount of share in the workforce. Therefore lot of work needs to be done in this area in under-developed countries. (McGillivray 2008 35)

The fourth goal is the decrease in the rate of child mortality and it's one of the major health related ...