Millennium Development Goals
135,000 ONE members call for the voices of the world’s poorest to be heard
ONE members Billy, Mark and Francesca delivering our Open for Development campaign to the home of UK Prime Minister David Cameron. Photo: ONE
This morning we delivered over 135,000 petition signatures for our Open for Development campaign to 10 Downing Street, home of the UK Prime Minister.
Thousands of ONE members are calling for the next set of poverty-busting goals to reflect the views and priorities of people living in poverty, and to be specific, measurable and accountable.
A High Level Panel, co-chaired by UK Prime Minister David Cameron are in charge of coming up with the new Millennium Development Goals, and we’ve been tracking them down around the world to get our campaign delivered.
Here is the message we delivered today:
As you work with the other High Level Panel Co‑chairs and Panelists to finalise your report and recommendations, and before you travel to New York next week for your final Panel meeting, I am writing on behalf of the 135,000 ONE members who have signed the enclosed ‘Open for Development’ petition. The petition calls on you, President Johnson-Sirleaf and President Yudhoyono to ensure that your recommendations reflect the views of the world’s most vulnerable people in the post-2015 framework, and to ensure that any new goals are specific, measurable and accountable.
Echoing your own development priorities for the UK’s G8 Presidency this year, transparency and accountability must be put at the heart of the post‑2015 framework. As well as robust citizen consultations in the design of the framework, we are calling for:
- transparency and accountability in monitoring investments and outcomes;
- improved statistical systems that are open and user-friendly (ie open data); and
- increased financing through both domestic and international resource mobilisation.At the Monrovia meeting in January, ONE and Save the Children co-hosted an exhibition and panel discussion on transparency, accountability and the post-2015 agenda. The event was attended by members of the Panel, including President Johnson-Sirleaf, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Gunilla Carlsson, Betty Maina and John Podesta, along with Amina Mohammed, members of the Secretariat, and almost 200 Liberians. In the interactive breakout sessions, they drew up a series of recommendations for the Panel to consider, including a more inclusive consultation process and the collection of better data.
At the Bali meeting, we delivered our petition to Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. At that stage, there were 120,000 signatories. In addition, we also presented our preliminary findings from our ‘You Choose’ survey, which asked Malawians, South Africans and Zambians what they wanted from the new framework. The ‘You Choose’ initiative fed into the UN’s ‘My World’ programme which is collating survey results from around the world. More than 140,000 people have taken part in ‘You Choose’: among the top concerns of respondents were “an honest and responsive government” and “better job opportunities”.
As you work to finalise the Panel’s conclusions, please consider the views of our members and the millions of people living in extreme poverty. Setting goals that are specific, measurable and accountable will help to define a path to end extreme poverty by 2030.
ONE Africa Director Dr Sipho Moyo (third from left) with every African member of the High Level Panel at their recent meeting in Bali. Photo: ONE
A huge thank you to everyone who has supported the campaign. We’ll keep you updated on the progress as we keep pushing hard to make sure the voices of the world’s most vulnerable people are heard.
Millennium Development Goals: your questions answered
Last Friday marked 1,000 days until we reach the end of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) – and to celebrate, the UN Foundation launched Momentum1000, a global digital rally to raise awareness and spark action around the MDGs.
ONE joined the event by hosting a Twitter chat with ONE Global Policy Director Ben Leo, who used his Twitter account @AfricaOnTheMove to answer questions on Twitter and Facebook from people around the world including Nigeria, Mexico, UK and the US.
In case you missed it, here’s a Storify of our conversation. We only had enough time to answer 10 of your questions so ONE’s policy team got together to answer the remaining questions, which you can read at the end.
How are we creating institutional strength and capacity for poor countries to make it on their own? Via @malatapi
There are several ways that donors are helping to strengthen capacity in developing countries. Aid transparency is important so that developing countries have a clearer picture of the resources entering their money, what they pay for, and the results they achieve. Donors are increasingly channeling their assistance through country systems, and coordinating technical assistance, so that countries are building and improving sustainable systems. If you want to see how donors are doing, check out ‘Fostering Institutions’ in QuODA: http://www.cgdev.org/page/quality-oda-quoda
What can be done at the community level to help the national programs, especially in East Africa? Greg Kerr USA #MDGMomentum Via @ChildsHeartSDG
People in East Africa are best placed to answer that question! When people are able to access and use information, they are better able to tackle the problems they face. Partly this is about using information to hold governments to account so that public resources are used effectively. Partly it’s about using information to make better choices about accessing health care or education, or which market to sell their produce in. Outsiders can help local people access and use information and then let the people who really know what’s needed get on with it.
What role does #socialmedia play in helping to sustain #MDGMomentum? How will #Post2015 goals reflect new tech landscape? Via @global_convo
Social media has created the opportunity to rally people, raise awareness and inspire action in the final 1,000 days. Tech tools have broadened public discussion on the Post-2015 process and boosted prospects for an inclusive agenda. Technology also has an important role to play in increasing access to data so that citizens can hold leaders to account for their promises as well as helping to turbocharge development by using new technological opportunities.
Mainstreaming of ethical labelling initiatives + resultant ‘feel good’ consumerism risk diluting #MDG targets? Via @mrchalk78
Effective ethical labeling is a useful tool for consumers to make informed decisions about their consumer impact. However, as of yet, there is no evidence that such labels are impacting efforts to achieve the MDGs. Labeling can only go so far in telling you the impact of a product and achieving the MDGs will require significant additional efforts.
Developmentally, what are the realistic challenges to ‘sustainably’ achieving #MDG? Via @mrchalk78
Unsustainable consumption of finite resources, often driven by overconsumption of the rich, creates pressure on the planet. Countries have to make more efficient use of natural assets and review current practices. However, this does not mean that there is a tradeoff between sustainable development and MDG achievement – people can achieve the social foundations of human development as laid out in the MDGs and not exceed such environmental planetary boundaries.
Come 2015, how will the MDGs be revised (or will new goals be written) to ensure that the successes achieved since 2000 are sustainable and the goals that still need to be met are addressed and resolved in new, innovative ways? Emily Dean, Wisconsin
At the moment, it is unclear how the MDGs will carry over. That said lessons learned from the MDGs will definitely shape the next set of goals and many involved in the process have asked for the existing MDGs not to be abandoned with the creation of the post2015 goals. It is important that these new goals build on and scale up the successes achieved so far as well as finding groundbreaking ways to rejuvenate efforts around off-track MDGs.
Often times lofty goals like the MDGs are too generalized for specific communities, populations and countries–with the addition of more contextualized programming, do you think we could see progress in those 26 countries that may not complete any of the goals? Is it too late? Or is this something we should strive for when the next round of goals are drafted? Kate Peters, Seattle, Washington
It is not too late for some of these countries. Although the MDGs are global in nature, they create national and often local political will to tackle pressing development challenges. This political will helps draw attention and resources to the issue but – as with all development interventions – this attention should then be tailored via information on locally appropriate solutions and approaches to ensure the most effective development gains. With sustained commitments and targeted efforts progress can still be made. In fact, many countries around the world are in the process of implementing frameworks to accelerate progress in the MDGs that furthest behind the 2015 targets.
How to confront socio-cultural challenges especially in Southern Africa which are hampering fight against HIV? Via @mrchalk78
In a recent ONE blog post, you can read how locals encouraged us to focus on the socio-cultural factors, relating to HIV/AIDS in Africa. The challenge here of course is picking concrete indicators to track progress on socio-cultural barriers, but it’s something worthwhile to consider as a new health goal is being debated.
Still have more questions? Read “1000 Days to Go: Accelerating the Fight against Extreme Poverty.” Or leave a comment with your question and we’ll get a ONE policy staffer to reply!
How to change the world in 1000 days
In 1000 days from now, the Millennium Development Goals will run out. When world leaders set these eight big challenges back in 2000, there was a huge amount of work to do. Halving extreme poverty, giving every child an education, and reversing the spread of HIV/AIDS were just a few of the targets. But these aren’t just numbers, they are milions of people’s lives, potentially changed forever.
Thirteen years on and just 1000 days from the finish line, a lot has changed. Amazingly, we halved extreme poverty by 2010 – a whole five years early. 65 countries are on track to make sure girls have equal access to education. Eight million people now receive lifesaving AIDS treatments compared with just 300,000 in 2002.
There is a lot of good news, but also some bad. 26 countries are projected to hit either zero or just one of the targets, including Nigeria, Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Over 100 countries are not on track to reduce maternal mortality by three quarters.
So should we accept defeat? Or is there still time to turn things around?
Rewind 1000 days from today, and it’s hard to believe we lived in a world where:
A lot can change in 1000 days. Let’s get on with it.
Find out how the Millennium Development Goals are progressing, and how we really could change the world in 1000 days in our new briefing.
And join us today on Twitter for a live chat with ONE’s Policy Director Ben Leo at 11am EDT / 3pm GMT.
7 things you need to know about the Millennium Development Goals, with just 1000 days to go
Back in 2000, the world made a promise to itself. It set out eight Millennium Development Goals, which if met, would significantly reduce global poverty and disease by 2015. On Friday we will enter the final sprint to the finish line, with 1000 days to go until the 2015 deadline arrives. So how are we doing?
ONE has set its cleverest people to work, analysing the progress made by both developing counties and donors who pledged to support them. Our 1000 Days briefing captures all the important facts and figures, but here are seven headlines you need to know.
If you want to know what we think needs to happen in the next 1000 days to keep the Millennium Development goals on track, have a look at the full briefing.
You can also join us on Friday for a live Twitter chat with ONE’s Policy Director Ben Leo. Find out more and send us your questions now.
How we delivered African voices directly to world leaders
ONE Africa Director Dr Sipho Moyo (third from left) with every African member of the High Level Panel at their recent meeting in Bali. Photo: ONE
Last week, ONE’s team on the ground in Bali continued to lobby the members of the High Level Panel (HLP) on our Open for Development petition and the preliminary results of the You Choose campaign from Malawi, South Africa and Zambia.
Almost 120,000 ONE members from around the world have signed the Open for Development petition so far, and another 150,000 Africans have given their ideas on what development should look like in their countries. We presented both the petition and the results to as many members we could find. In particular, I was particularly pleased and delighted to speak to Co-Chair of the High Level Panel, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, regarding ONE members’ actions.
ONE Africa Director Dr Sipho Moyo with Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Photo: ONE
After explaining to her the transparency and accountability mechanisms we’re proposing in the next set of development goals, I was able to briefly tell her about some of the preliminary results we’re finding from the You Choose campaign survey.
As we promised to take the voices of our African members to the High Level Panel and other world leaders, it was important to demonstrate the connection between ONE’s goals for transparency and the consultations and outreach we’ve done on what Africans want for their development.
President Sirleaf understood and even made the connection with ONE and Save the Children’s event at the HLP meeting in Monrovia, Liberia, back in January.
ONE Africa Director Dr Sipho Moyo (right) presents the Open for Development petition to UK Minister for International Development Justine Greening (centre) alongside ONE Board member Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (left). Photo: ONE
She was also pleased to hear that ONE’s You Choose survey is being adapted to contribute to the UN’s My World process of soliciting citizens’ views on the future of development.
In addition to President Sirleaf, I was able to speak to and present our petition and findings to all of the African members of the HLP. I also spoke to Minister Gunilla Carlsson of Sweden and Minister Justine Greening of the United Kingdom, who was representing Prime Minister David Cameron.
After all the remarks and encouragement, I was particularly struck by what my friend and ONE Board member Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria had to say. After receiving ONE’s petition and reports, she commented that “this is an important process which shows that African citizens want to be engaged on matters that affect them.” Minister, we couldn’t agree more.
Join our Twitter chat on ending extreme poverty with Momentum1000
This Friday will mark 1000 days until we reach the end of the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs). Our friends at the UN Foundation have launched Momentum1000, a global digital rally on 5 April to raise awareness and spark action around the MDGs.
For 1000 minutes, individuals and organisations from around the world will take it in turns to host different online activities that you can be part of. So no matter where you are or what time you check in, there will be something going on.
ONE are taking over from 3pm GMT / 11am EDT with a twitter chat on ”How to speed up the fight against extreme poverty before 2015 – and set the stage for 2030″.
ONE’s own Global Policy Director Ben Leo will discuss ideas to meet existing MDG goals in the next 1000 days and what it will mean to reach “near zero” in the fight against extreme poverty by 2030. Ben has been leading ONE’s latest campaign to bring the world’s poorest voices to the discussion on the post-2015 MDGs. Last week, ONE delivered our post-MDG petition to the UN High Level Panel in Bali. Ben also co-wrote our report on improving post-2015 development goals through more open processes.
GET INVOLVED
1. Ask Ben a question. Use the comments below or send it to @ONECampaign on twitter any time before Friday.
2. Follow the chat on #MDGMomentum on Friday at 3pm GMT / 11am EDT.
Want to know more about the MDGs and what it means to end poverty by 2030? Glad you asked!
-Check out the UN’s MDG website for facts and success stories around the eight different goals.
-Watch Bono’s fantastic TED presentation on reaching the near-end of poverty by 2030.
Listen to what the world is telling us
Edith Jibunoh, ONE’s director for multilateral institutions, is reporting from the UN High Level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda in Bali, Indonesia, where she joined a team of ONE members in delivering your post-MDG petition signatures to world leaders.
Almost 15 years ago, as a young(er) diasporan African, I started working on my first developing country assignment, Indonesia – a country much like my own, Nigeria.
I could draw many parallels between the two former military-ruled, resource-cursed, and poverty-stricken countries. As a freshly minted development professional, I had all the ideals of a young graduate newly empowered with all the solutions to the world’s problems that I had read in books, and I felt ready to rule the world.
Edith and Sipho present ONE’s YouChoose and Open for Development campaigns to two members of the UN High Level Panel
Within a couple of years, the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), without any input from youth like me, were introduced to the world with little consideration for our sense of ownership for this new global development agenda.
Fast forward 15 years, and I have returned to Indonesia. A country that has since achieved measurable progress, and where civil society is active and engaged. My country is among many that have not followed this path, but the civil society, still finding its youthful voice, is joining the voices of thousands around the world to demand a seat at the table.
ONE is in Bali with some of the world’s foremost development thinkers, private and public sector officials, as well as vibrant members of this civil society, at the Fourth Meeting of the United Nations Secretary General’s High Level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda. The panel members spent their first day listening to civil society lay out their desires for a new development framework that they hope will speak to all of their concerns.
The voices here are urgent, backed by hundreds of thousands more, aided in their journey to Bali by the innovation in technology that has birthed movements of voices from around the world seeking to define the new development agenda.
![photo[6]](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8370/8589497109_418142d6f0_z.jpg)
Members of the High Level Panel
Fifteen years ago, there was no such force defining the MDGs – and young people were certainly not a part of their design. But today, young people around the world are participating in efforts like My World and our complementary You Choose campaign, defining their dreams for a future that will deliver a global development agenda that works for them. It’s a BIG IDEA!
Technology today has allowed for hundreds of thousands of voices to be a part of this conversation.
Fifteen years ago, this “big idea” was still waiting to be born.
Earlier in the day, we presented two of ONE’s recent campaigns to members of the High Level Panel. Our Open for Development petition collected 117,000 members’ names in support of an open development process, based on the outcomes of priorities defined through consultations. Our You Choose campaign, our effort to demonstrate the consultation process in practice, collected 144,000 answers from citizens in South Africa, Malawi and Zambia, defining what they want their development future to be premised on.
Read more about the YouChoose campaign here
The busy day at the High Level Panel meetings wrapped up with our participation in Restless Development’s “Big Ideas” event, where ONE Africa Director Sipho Moyo presented findings from You Choose, which identified the priorities of jobs, education and transparency. Restless Development’s “Big Idea” would involve 3.5 billion people, the world’s youth, as the monitors of this new global development agenda. The audience at the “Big Ideas” event included Paul Polman, Chief Executive Officer of Unilever, and Justine Greening, Minister for International Development at the UK Department for International Development.
Both spoke of the power of data in the hands of young people who today utilize the information they gather with the help of technology in a way that previous generations were unable to, networking the information and bringing about change.
When we presented ONE’s campaigns to Paul Polman earlier in the day, he spoke of the collective action needed to achieve the MDGs while he recanted a story of a group of young people in the Netherlands who demanded he took a picture with them as they held a sign which said “We are a part of the solution, ARE YOU?”
Even if you’re no longer a part of the youth group, these big ideas are powerful and definitely worth supporting. Young people are leading the charge but we all need to be a part of the solution. All we have to do is listen to what the world is telling us.
The High Level Panel continues their meetings over the next few days and we’ll be here, encouraging them to keep listening until their work is done.
Edith is tweeting from the High Level Panel meeting in Bali. Follow her tweets at @didijibs.
You Choose: What people are saying
As the current Millennium Development Goals meet their goal-line in 2015, it’s more important than ever to ensure the world’s poorest people have a say in the development of the next set of goals to eradicate extreme poverty.
To this end, ONE launched the pilot You Choose campaign in South Africa, Malawi and Zambia, as a contribution and complementary to the United Nations MY World effort.
Working with more than 20 NGO, faith and private sector partners across Africa, together with some of the continents best-known celebrities including Hugh Masekela, D’banj, Benni McCarthy and Chris Katongo, we are urging people to join the fight against extreme poverty and send their views on what issues matter most to them.
And as the UN High Level Panel meets this week in Bali, we have published our preliminary findings based on the early stages of the campaign.
Our interim results show that more than 130,000 citizens have offered valid responses in the three target countries.
You can download the findings here.
Check out the ONE blog in the coming weeks for more news on the campaign, which runs until the end of April.
D’banj: “Africans must come together and take control of our own destiny”
ONE member and musician D’banj is our guest blogger today, calling for you to be part of the You Choose campaign.
I’ve always been passionate about taking Africa’s music to the world. Now, more than ever, I also want to take Africa’s voices to the world.
My career has taken me to different parts of the world. I have seen the best and unfortunately, the worst of both worlds. One thing is for sure: like many Africans, nothing beats home. I am Nigerian born and Nigerian bred with no regrets. I am proudly African.
So, despite all the things that people say about my beloved motherland, I can testify that Africa is on the rise. With a continental income of USD 2 trillion, it’s on the verge of its much awaited economic and social transformation. Africa’s own rapidly growing and youthful population and its rising middle class are both pushing the boundaries of a rising continent. Today, Africa’s middle class is said to be bigger than India’s. The isolation of most Africans even in remote areas has been ended by the proliferation of mobile based services improving the quality of life.
However, Africa still faces challenges that include high deaths caused by treatable and preventable diseases such as TB, HIV AIDS and malaria. The population still faces chronic malnutrition, and the lack of quality schools and jobs. You and I need to tackle all of these things which are holding back the progress needed to break the cycle of poverty.
It’s time we as Africans from Dar to Banjul, from Harare to Mogadishu say NO to poverty. Africans must come together as ONE and take control of our own destiny.
All of us have a part to play in fighting preventable diseases, poverty and hunger on the continent. Our forefathers said “United we stand, divided we fall”. The end of poverty isn’t a pipe dream its well within reach. We are the generation to make it happen.
Join me and the ONE campaign and get your voice heard.
We’re listening. Tell us what needs to change to make a change for Africa.
D’banj is a founder of Koko Foundation for Youth and Peace Development. He is also Nigeria’s first United Nations Youth Ambassador for Peace.
Everything you need to know about the new Millennium Development Goals
M-D-G: These three letters are going to be at the tip of our tongues for the next few weeks as the UN High-Level Panel (HLP) plans out the next round of development goals. But before you get lost in a sea of acronyms, we want to take a step back and answer some of the frequently asked questions about our campaign to get the HLP to propose development goals that are transparent, accountable and that represent the views of the people.
First things first: Who is the HLP?
The High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the post-2015 Development Agenda is a group of 27 people selected by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to advise on the development framework that comes after the MDG deadline in 2015. The panel has three co-chairs: President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, and Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom. The HLP will submit a report of their recommendations to the Secretary General this May.
Co-chairs of the UN High Level Panel: President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia, Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom, and President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia. Photo credit: UN.
OK, remind me what the MDGs are again?
The original Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are based largely on the International Development Targets, developed by donor nations through the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in the mid-90s. The targets were developed by technical experts from OECD member countries to help rally support around continuing aid programs to developing countries. This was their original purpose, and there was little input from citizens or governments in developing countries. Despite that, the world stood behind the MDGs, and the goals produced unprecedented progress thanks to the mobilization of resources and the focus on development outcomes.
So what is MDG 2.0?
MDG 2.0 is the term we are using for the next set of development goals for 2015 to 2030. The High-Level Panel is in the process of putting together the report they’ll submit to the UN Secretary General in May – their recommendations for what MDG 2.0 should look like. We want voices of citizens to be part of that process.
Why does MDG 2.0 need the voice of the people?
While many of the main concerns of the world’s poorest people may have been addressed in the MDGs, our analysis of regional surveys shows that some key concerns were missing; in the past 12 years, it’s gotten easier to take those concerns into account. So this time, instead of looking back after the MDG 2.0 plans have been finalized to see what they missed, we’re asking the High-Level Panel to open the process and incorporate feedback before targets are finalized and the path for the next 15-20 years has been paved.
Why is “open data” so important to MDG 2.0? And can you give me an example of “open data”?
The MDGs set eight goals (which include 21 indicators) but in many cases the data isn’t available to measure how we’re doing, or how inputs are producing results. MDG 1 – arguably the most important of the eight – focuses on extreme poverty. Target 1.A is to halve the number of people living on less than $1 a day. This is the indicator that tracks extreme poverty around the world, and for 40 (nearly 1/3 of) developing countries, we don’t have enough data to know whether Target 1.A has been met.
The data we do have is constantly being revised and retracted, even 20 years later. To give you a better idea, in the past three years, the baseline data for poverty in 83% of developing countries has changed. How can countries meet targets when someone keeps moving the goalposts?
The poverty data we DO have is old – up to five years old. Data on hunger is four years old, and the majority of the numbers on gender equality, education and HIV/AIDS are three years old. So in addition to an open, transparent and accountable process for deciding the next set of MDGs, ONE* is asking for open, timely reporting on what is spent in pursuit of the goals, and what progress is made, and support to establish and keep up open data platforms so we all know where the goalposts are, and what we have to do to get there.
Great. Where do I come in?
The UN has put together a world-class panel of representatives from around the world to meet this very important challenge. We think they will agree when we tell them that citizens can’t be left out of these discussions, but they need to hear from you that you care – that the goals they set for the next decade or longer take into account the voices of people from around the world, especially those who will benefit most from a renewed push to eliminate extreme poverty.
We need to send our message long before the ink is dry on the High-Level Panel’s recommendations for the next development goals, so we need you now. We need your voice before the High-Level Panel next meets in Bali, Indonesia in March. Help us send the message that the next set of goals should be open for development.
Last question: What can I do to help right now?
Don’t delay. Sign the petition now!
*Along with these other partners: The Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia (CENTAL), Development Initiatives, Fundar (Mexico), Global Witness, Global Movement for Budget Transparency, Accountability and Participation, Integrity Action, International Budget Partnership, Luta Hamutuk Institute (Timor Leste), Publish What You Fund, Publish What You Pay, Revenue Watch Institute, Transparency International, and W3C (Brazil).
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About the Blog
The International ONE Blog is a daily log of the anti-poverty movement. The site is operated by ONE staff, with guest contributions from ONE volunteers, members and allies.
The content of each post and each comment represents the views of that author and does not necessarily reflect the views of ONE. ONE does not support or oppose any candidate for elected office, and any post expressing support or opposition for a candidate is not endorsed by ONE.
TAGS: David Cameron, Millennium Development Goals, ONE Members, Spotlight, Transparency, UK, You Choose