Policy Analysis

As a region, sub-Saharan Africa has already made more than 40% of the progress required to reach the MDG targets for gender parity in education, child mortality, maternal mortality and access to safe water, ahead of the 2015 deadline. et that progress remains uneven and the job is not finished. As the world begins to turn its attention to the post-2015 period, it’s crucial that we build momentum to achieve the current MDGs in the last two-and–a-half years. This will take a concerted effort from African governments, donor governments, and international partners to sustain financing and to ensure transparent and accountable use of all resources for development.

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On June 8th, just days before the 2013 G8 Summit, UK Prime Minister David Cameron will convene world leaders in London for a high-level “golden moment” focused on the issue of undernutrition. Particular attention will be paid to meeting the nutritional needs of mothers and children during the critical “1,000 day” period from pregnancy to two years of age, which has lifelong consequences for growth, health and intellectual capacity.

We confront the concerns about the New Alliance and ask: are investments in the New Alliance designed to deliver these benefits to farmers? Do New Alliance investments treat smallholder farmers as simply buyers of multinational companies’ products, or as entrepreneurs and sellers of their own agricultural products? How are women farmers being included? And finally, what does the New Alliance plan to do about improving interrelated issues like nutrition and postharvest storage that affect the welfare and livelihoods of farmers and their families?

On April 5, 2013, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) deadline will be just 1,000 days away. Where do we stand on these ambitious goals? Have we collectively done enough to convert them into reality? And what needs to happen during the last 1,000 days to ensure that the world not only sprints to the finish line – but blows right through it?