Anti-poverty goals are ambitious but achievable, Ban stresses ahead of MDG summit

(Sept.14,2010) The Millennium Development Goals, MDGs are formidable and ambitious but still achievable, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Monday. Ban urged the world’s leaders to direct their countries’ resources to the areas, where they are needed most in the fight against poverty, hunger and disease. In a call to action, a week before nearly 140 heads of State and government are expected to gather at UN Headquarters in New York, for a summit measuring progress on the MDGs, Ban told journalists that it is clear the targets can be achieved by their 2015 deadline, with the right amount of will and effort. “The MDGs are difficult and ambitious, but many poor countries have made enormous progress. The world as a whole, is on track to reduce poverty by half by 2015, which is a tremendous achievement,” said Ban. But he acknowledged that many countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, are falling short of the targets.
The three-day summit on the MDGs, convened by the General Assembly, kicks off in New York next Monday. It is expected to attract not only heads of State and governments, but dozens of representatives from civil society groups, foundations and the private sector. Ban said that he would use the summit to launch a global strategy for women’s and children’s health, one of the target areas in the MDGs. “Next week’s summit is meant to propel us forward for the next five years, and I look forward to what world leaders will do here next week. In this race against time, we all have promises to keep,” said Ban.