Millennium Development Goals – Summit 2010
United Nations, New York City
20-22 September 2010

Selected quotes by:

- H.E. Mr. Joseph Deiss, President of the 65th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (Co-Chair)

“At the Millennium Summit in 2000, we adopted the most ambitious programme ever launched to combat poverty. In so doing, we demonstrated that all the people of the United Nations formed a single community and that no one had the right to remain indifferent to the abject poverty and suffering of others. Real progress has been made in some respects: poverty has declined in overall terms. But we are lagging behind in some regions, such as sub-Saharan Africa. And we are also falling short in some areas, especially with regard to eradicating hunger, reducing child mortality and improving maternal health.

In addition to the action taken by Governments, we have also seen unprecedented momentum on the part of civil society and the private sector. It must be stressed that this is remarkable and it is vital to continue working together. But that requires commitment from the donors and commitment from the beneficiaries, leading to a genuine partnership. This partnership must also include civil society and the private sector. If we want to succeed, we have to do it together. (#8 Global Partnerships--develop a global partnership for development.)”

* * * * *

"Particularly gender equality and maternal mortality will not be met without intensified interventions.."

- H.E. Dr. Ali Abdussalam Treki, President of the Sixty-Fourth Session of the General Assembly, Co-Chair of the High-Level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly on the Millennium Development Goals

“Many, many more children are in school today than before; health care is reaching some of the poorest and the most vulnerable; while the treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases (#6 Combat HIV/AIDS Malaria and other diseases)
has shown marked improvement.

Some goals, particularly gender equality and maternal mortality (#3 Promote gender equality and empower women) will not be met without intensified interventions; just under one billion people still suffer from hunger and malnutrition(#1); environmental sustainability remains a huge challenge (#7 Ensure environmental sustainability); and the global partnership still needs to be fully realized.

While the MDGs are an ambitious framework, still they form only part of the conditions needed for change. Development assistance can only accomplish so much. Foreign and domestic financial investment, equitable and pro-poor growth, and intensive job creation are the underpinnings for the transformation of developing countries to self-sufficient economies fully integrated into and benefiting from the global economic system. This is why a strong equitable global partnership is crucial to success. (#8 Develop a global partnership for development)”

* * * * *

“Stay true to your commitment to end the dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty."

- Mr. Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary General remarks to High-Level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly on the Millennium Development Goals

“We are here because the fight for a more prosperous, stable and equitable world is at the heart of the United Nations.

We are here because ten years ago, meeting here at the highest level, the international community promised to spare no effort to free the entire human race from want.

The eight Millennium Development Goals were a breakthrough.

Together, we created a blueprint for ending extreme poverty.

We defined achievable targets and timetables.

We established a framework that all partners, even those with different views, have been able to embrace.

We brought new urgency to an age-old mission.

And now, we have real results.

New thinking and path-breaking public-private partnerships.

Dramatic increases in school enrolment.

Expanded access to clean water.

Better control of disease.

The spread of technology – from mobile to green.

We have more development success stories than ever before. The transformative impact of the MDGs is undeniable. This is an achievement we can be proud of.

But we must protect these advances, many of which are still fragile.

And the clock is ticking, with much more to do…

There is more to do for the mother who watches her children go to bed hungry – a scandal played out a billion times each and every night.

There is more to do for the young girl weighed down with wood or water when instead she should be in school.

And more to do for the worker far from home in a city slum, watching jobs and remittances disappear amid global recession.
You all know where we stand -- the gaps and the gains, what works and what doesn’t.

The reports we have put before you are filled with statistics, analysis and recommendations – everything we need for effective policies and programmes.

We have led you to the river.

So what are we asking of you today?

To stay true.

True to our identity as an international community built on a foundation of solidarity.

True to your commitment to end the dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty.

That means making the smart investments in infrastructure, small farmers, social services... and above all in women and girls.

It means truly fair trade and action on climate change. Deferring the tough decisions to future climate conferences and future generations only increases the costs.”

* * * * *

"The World Bank commits to increasing its zero-interest investment in basic education by an additional $750 million."

- Mr. Robert B. Zoellick, President, World Bank Group, remarks for Opening Plenary of the High-Level UN Meeting on the MDGs

“In 1981, 52 percent of people in developing countries lived in extreme poverty; by 2005, that share had been cut by more than half. Efforts by developing countries were paying off right up until the crisis, with poverty falling sharply in East Asia, Latin America, and Eastern and Central Europe.

The World Bank estimates that 64 million more people are living in extreme poverty in 2010, and some 40 million more people went hungry last year because of the food, fuel, and financial crises.

By 2015, 1.2 million more children under five may die, 350,000 more students may not complete primary school, and about 100 million more people may remain without access to safe water.

And these are challenges not just faced by mothers and fathers, grandparents and children in the poorest countries. Seventy percent of the world’s poor live in middle-income countries.

We are focusing particularly on “The Access Agenda”; helping to ensure access to basic health, quality schooling, clean water, energy, food, and jobs – looking, not just at the numbers, but at the quality of services.

In health, we are increasing the scope of our results-based programs by more than $600 million until 2015 – so people have benefits in their hands before the money flows. We are focusing on 35 countries, particularly in East Asia, South Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa that face challenges in achieving the MDGs due to high fertility, poor child and maternal nutrition, and high rates of child and maternal disease.

To help countries achieve the educations MDGs, the World Bank commits to increasing its zero-interest investment in basic education by an additional $750 million. These investments will focus on the countries – particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa – that are not on track to reach the education MDGs by 2015.

This is what IDA, the World Bank’s fund for the poorest, is doing. Over the last 10 years, IDA has increased its no-interest and grant funding in support of developing countries from $4.4 billion in 2000 to $14.5 billion this year.”

* * * * *

“We must redouble our efforts in the face of this immense human suffering."

- Mr. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund

“We must redouble our efforts in the face of this immense human suffering. We must strive for a speedy return to the pre-crisis path. For this to happen everything hinges on the restoration of balanced, sustainable, global growth.

To regain the momentum, we need a sense of shared responsibility between the various actors – the developing countries themselves, the advanced economies and the international institutions.

Analysis undertaken by the IMF and World Bank for the G20 has shown that cooperative action by the world’s major economies could produce real results – boosting world growth by 2 ½ percentage points over five years, creating 30 million new jobs, and lifting 33 million people out of poverty.”

* * * * *

“ The regions where most progress has been made in eradicating poverty are those that trade most."

- Mr. Pascal Lamy, the Director-General of the World Trade Organization, High-Level Plenary Meeting on the Millennium Development Goals

“Goal 8 tells us that an ‘open, rules based, predictable and non discriminatory trading system’ can be a powerful engine for economic growth and development. The World Trade Organization’s core business is to regulate international trade, reduce trade barriers and ensure a level playing field for all its Members, big or small, rich or poor. The benefits of opening up trade are well known and can be seen in the growth patterns of countries that have opened their borders to trade the more so where they have backed up their action with appropriate domestic measures in the fields of investment, education and social welfare.

There is the fact that the regions where most progress has been made in eradicating poverty are those that trade most. There is a direct correlation between integration into the multilateral trading system and economic growth, between growth and poverty reduction. “

* * * * *

"The MDGs must pay greater attention to inequality."

- Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, Secretary-General of UNCTAD, General Assembly 65th Session High-Level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly on the MDGs

“Efforts to meet the MDGs will be difficult in many countries without a significant rise in public investment. It will also entail better tax administration to ensure rising revenues. But at the same time, the role of the private sector must be harnessed as well.

Targeted sectoral policies are also needed to alleviate poverty. For example, improving agricultural production should be given greater policy attention in countries where food insecurity is still a perennial problem.

In addition to targeted government spending and an increased strategic role for the State, the mobilization of private domestic resources will also be essential for raising long-term productive investment.

The crisis and its negative impact, particularly in the fight to reduce global poverty, are forcing us to reexamine global economic governance, including the international architecture for aid, trade and debt.

The MDGs must pay greater attention to inequality, which has been rising globally, even as the world gets richer. UNCTAD research has demonstrated the strong links between poverty and income inequality; simple progressive fiscal policies could have an immediate and impressive impact on poverty reduction.”


* * * * *

"Progress on the poverty and hunger targets will require boosting agricultural and rural sector development."

-Mrs. Helen Clark, Chair of the United Nations Development Group on the High-Level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly on the Millennium Development Goals

“They are all inter-linked – progress on one can spur progress on others. If we all work together, each in their area of strength and expertise, and invest our resources where they will have the greatest impact across the Goals, we will see remarkable progress.

It will be vital to support country-led development processes, and the strengthening of national and local institutions; as it will be to foster accountability, the rule of law, and human rights - the lack of which are all barriers to full achievement of the MDGs.

Progress on the poverty and hunger targets will require boosting agricultural and rural sector development, especially in low-income, food-scarce countries.

It most definitely will require investing more in opportunities for women and girls, targeting investments in education and health, and in clean water and sanitation; and attending to the needs of the urban poor, including for adequate shelter.

In my work, I have seen how bringing basic generators to communities in Burkina Faso transforms the lives of women. I have seen how small investments in providing clean water have huge benefits for villagers in rural Vanuatu. I have seen in Ethiopia how we can help farmers to sell their produce at fair prices through supporting the development of a commodities exchange.

Achieving MDGs draws us all together – governments, multilateral agencies, civil society, NGOs and foundations, and the private sector.”

-For the full statements of the MDGs Debate on September 20, 2010.