In September 2000, the United Nations (UN) held a Millennium Summit where 189 states of the United Nations made a commitment to work toward a world in which the elimination of poverty and sustained development would have the highest priority. The Millennium Declaration was signed by 147 heads of state and passed unanimously by the members of the UN General Assembly. The resulting Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) grew out of that declaration and the agreements and resolutions at world conferences organized by the United Nations during the 1990s.
The Millennium Development Goals focus the efforts of the world community on achieving significant, measurable improvements in people's lives by the year 2015. They establish targets and yardsticks for measuring results not just for developing countries but for the rich countries that help to fund development programs and for the multilateral institutions that help countries implement them.
The eight Millennium Development Goals listed below guide the efforts of virtually all organizations working in development and have been commonly accepted as a framework for measuring development progress:
How can the Millennium Development Goals be reached, from the World Bank's point of view?
To get results on the scale necessary to reach the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, much more needs to be done by developing countries, developed countries, and by the development agencies. Global poverty can still be cut in half by 2015, if rich countries lower trade barriers and boost foreign aid, and poor countries invest more in the health and education of their citizens. While success depends on the actions of developing countries-which must direct their own development-rich countries must also do their part to reach the targets that are outlined in the eighth goal, Develop a Global Partnership for Development.
In our view, these four steps are essential to meet the Millennium Development Goals:
Push forward world trade talks to reduce agricultural protectionism, thereby reducing poverty in developing countries. As a result, developing countries by 2015 would gain nearly $350 billion, enough to lift 140 million people out of poverty.
Finance debt relief properly, so all highly indebted poor countries shed the burden of unsustainable debt.
Step-up delivery of the "education for all" targets, including 80 million new places in schools in Africa, because there is no single, more effective anti-poverty strategy than education.
Make available substantial extra resources for TB, malaria and HIV/AIDS to eliminate preventable diseases that are devastating the populations of poor countries.
Furthermore, to have a chance of meeting the Millennium Development Goals, a new deal between developing and developed countries has to be made:
Developing countries must tackle corruption and take the series of steps necessary to open up their economies to encourage the investment, trade and growth that will provide jobs.
Developed countries, working with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, must improve the quantity and quality of development aid.
Countries willing to reform should be offered the resources they need to tackle illiteracy, poverty and disease.
Bold initiatives must be undertaken to raise funds on the international capital markets to double available aid from around US$50 billion a year to US$100 billion, because these challenges need to be financed together.
For an assessment of the status of the fight against poverty and the current status of the eight Millennium Development Goals, see the World Bank report, Partnerships in Development, Progress in the Fight Against Poverty.
How has the bank responded to the shortfall of private sector investment in infrastructure in developing countries?
Recognizing that we have a key role to play to meet global needs for infrastructure-related financing and policy advice, we've placed infrastructure front and center in our development agenda to reduce poverty and stimulate economic growth. We've developed an Infrastructure Action Plan, which encompasses innovative ways of financing infrastructure projects. Under the plan, we apply new and/or existing instruments more effectively, including a broad spectrum of public-private partnerships and financing sources and project financing at regional, national and sub-national levels. This is especially important at the municipal level where many infrastructure services are delivered, which calls for more local involvement. We've also strengthened the knowledge base and country analytic work in infrastructure to provide a better framework for policy dialogue and decision-making.
Will the Bank's focus on infrastructure mean less focus on social development issues like education and health?
On the contrary, the renewed focus on infrastructure has an even more positive impact on education and health. Infrastructure investment brings numerous benefits across a wide social spectrum. Investments in water and sanitation services lead to improved health. Proper transportation, electricity and connectivity are relevant to education and help children gain access to schools and higher levels of learning. Rural infrastructure enables poor people to generate income by producing crops and goods with irrigation and electricity. Rural roads provide them access to markets. And investments in telecommunications help build markets and connect buyers and sellers cheaply. Lastly, investment in irrigation is important for water collection and storage, which is essential to protect people in developing countries against floods and droughts that inflict massive shocks on developing country economies.
Does the Bank analyze the results of its infrastructure investments?
Yes. Our Infrastructure Action Plan provides new analytic tools, which enable us to step up analysis of infrastructure investments. This analytic work helps us better understand and measure the key service delivery variables, such as access and affordability. For example, in some rural areas of Latin America, it was found that poor households spend 70% of their income on transport. This information is important because it helps us focus our investments for transport so we can reach those households and work to reduce their expenditures for that service. Improved analytic work also helps to more effectively measure progress.
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