You, I and The MDG - The Role We All Have to Play By Irem Bright Chimezie - Led Project Initiator

Introduction

I and the Millennium Development Goals

By Irem Bright Chimezie, Nigerian

 

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is a set of eight goals that were born from the September 2000 Millennium Declaration and are being recognized and pursued by 189 heads of state and governments.  The MDGs, in fact, reaffirms the global quest to fight poverty, illiteracy, hunger, lack of education, gender inequality, disease, and environmental degradation. The goals and targets firmly commit governments, from both rich and poor countries, to a deadline of 2015. 

The progress in achieving the MDGs rest heavily on specialized agencies in the United Nations system, but includes representatives from the World Bank and IMF as well.  Time-bound and measurable targets for each of the goals were based on 48 selected key indicators, aggregated at the global and regional levels.  For instance, Goal 6, to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, has a target of reducing the maternal mortality ratio by three-quarters between 1990 and 2015, based on indicators such as infant mortality rate, and proportion of one year old children immunized against measles.

Information on the MDGs, and the campaign to include active citizen participation in the achievement of the Goals, is gradually gaining momentum.  Although the MDGs are now becoming a dominant feature in development discourse, there is still a lack of political will and financial support for national governments to fulfill their commitments, and above all, the lack of individual co-orperation and coordination of efforts towards achieving the goals.  Certain criticisms from civil society question the process and believe that quantifiable measures are not enough to assess the success or failure in achieving the MDGs.

Certainly, the collective influence of individuals and civil society plays an active role in successfully achieving the MDGs.  Current efforts should further be strengthened, as activities to link existing campaigns to the Goals, or bring together new public coalitions to heighten awareness of the Goals, are taking shape.  

In the end, if poor countries are expected to deliver on their end of the bargain, the developed countries should also fulfill their promises in terms of development assistance, market access, and debt sustainability.

Why I should be part of Efforts to Achieve the MDGs

WHY SHOULD I ACT TOWARDS ACHIEVING THE GOALS By Irem Bright Chimezie, Nigeria.

WE ARE THE FIRST GENERATION THAT CAN END POVERTY But ONLY WITH OUR VOICE and we refuse to miss this historic opportunity.

Effective statistics have shown that over one billion people across the world still survive on less than one dollar (USD) per day. Is anybody doing anything to end this and make the world a better and safer place? Are our elected leaders doing enough to end poverty? The answer is no. That’s why it’s up to us to remind them of the commitments they made.

At the United Nations Millennium Summit in 2000, 189 Heads of Government jointly agreed and promised to end poverty by 2015. They signed the Millennium Declaration, promising to “free men, women and children from the dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty”, committing developed and developing countries alike to an eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) touching all the aspects of human life.

With all the money, the people, the youths, the technology and know-how the world has at its disposal, achieving these set Goals shouldn’t be a problem for us, right? But even today, 1.2 billion people are forced to survive on less than one dollar (USD) per day, and 133 million young people cannot even read or write, what a tragedy awaits us if we as youths fail to do something now.

To raise awareness on government’s promises to end poverty, the UN and the member nations are inviting me and you to join the United Nations Millennium Campaign and become part of a worldwide movement of people just like me and you who are making our world a better place. They are calling upon me and you; and the world’s six billion people to join their voices towards achieving these goals and our support is highly needed!

WHY ME & YOU?

You might think achieving all of the Goals by 2015 is the responsibility of politicians, or a certain group of government functionaries and that there is little or nothing you can do to help. Nothing could be further from the truth. I am needed likewise you to achieve these goals. To achieve the goals, the world needs me, you and everyone: young people, aids activists, religious leaders, environmentalists, unions, civil society organizations, and women’s rights activists—everyone concerned about our future—to work together and make sure the goals become a reality.

Those of us who live in the rural areas of the developing countries should make sure our governments live up to their commitments on the Goals. Those of us in Nigeria and from other countries should focus on making our governments achieve the first seven Goals.

This is my chance likewise yours and ours to really make a difference. The world needs me, my friends, you, your friends, and our communities to refuse to see another day where another person dies because of broken promises.

The MDGs call for a Global Partnership Of our individual efforts and resources as strong, viable and responsible youths to address the Most Critical Issues of Our Time. The Problem Is Unfortunately Simple: A Lack Of Political Will To Make The Goals A Reality. The year 2015 could be the First Time in History that Nigeria/ the World will be eliminating Poverty, imagine the joy of me and you being part of this history! But We Have To All Work Together And Take Action Now! Especially, now that we are young, strong, viable and responsible as youths, what an opportunity and call to duty.

Why you can Support us Attain the MDGs

WHY THIS INDIVIDUAL/YOUTH ACTION GUIDE TO ACHIEVE THE MDGs: REASON FOR THIS INDIVIDUAL ACTION GUIDE By Irem Bright Chimezie, Nigerian Youth.

This Action Guide is being thought upon and created by Young People like You, to give anyone who wants to make the world around them a better place everything they need to start a campaign, or link up with movements already happening in their region especially now we live in the global village, an era of information super highway networking .

WHAT ARE IN THE MDG INDIVIDUAL YOUTH ACTION/ CAMPAIGN KIT AND ACTION GUIDE?

♠ Information on how to plan and carry out an activity or campaign

♠ Ideas and tips for getting your friends involved

♠ Ideas on how to create and design or access already designed brochures, stickers and postcards to tell others about the Millennium Development Goals and how their individual efforts can lead to the achievement of these set goals

IT’S MY WORLD; IT’S MY FUTURE; I GOT TO ACT NOW

Young people all over the world are making a difference, but we need more to get involved. Youth have to be part of the global movement against poverty, because it’s our world and our future. YOUNG PEOPLE UNDER THE AGE OF 30 YEARS ARE HALF THE POPULATION OF NIGERIA AND LIKEWISE THE WHOLE WORLD. WITHOUT US, HOW CAN NIGERIA AND THE WORLD END POVERTY BY 2015 OR ACHIEVE OTHER COMPONENTS OF THE SET MDGs?

When you start your own projects, we hope you will share your stories and impacts with us so they can inspire us and others. Remember you’re not alone, young people have already started speaking out and demanding their governments keep the promises they made. We need you to join in and get involved! With all our voices combined, Nigerian present leaders will do just as we say!

The MDGs Goals 1 to 8

THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS

The MDGs as are being set to be achieved by the year 2015 are:

GOAL 1    SEEKS TO ERADICATE EXTREME POVERTY AND                      HUNGER

GOAL 2    SEEKS TO ACHIEVE UNIVERSAL PRIMARY                                 EDUCATION

GOAL3     SEEKS TO PROMOTE GENDER EQUALITY AND                           EMPOWER WOMEN

GOAL 4    SEEKS TO REDUCE CHILD MORTALITY

GOAL 5    SEEKS TO IMPROVE MATERNAL HEALTH

GOAL 6    SEEKS TO COMBAT HIV/AIDS, MALARIA AND OTHER               DISEASES

GOAL 7    SEEKS TO ENSURE ENVIRONMENTAL                                         SUSTAINABILITY

GOAL 8    SEEKS TO DEVELOP A GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP FOR                   DEVELOPMENT

“No president, no leader, no king, no emperor...

Nobody’s going to change this, except the people! Especially the youths” Lenny Kravitz

I and the Millennium Development Goals

Introduction

I and the Millennium Development Goals

By Irem Bright Chimezie, Nigeria

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is a set of eight goals that were born from the September 2000 Millennium Declaration and are being recognized and pursued by 189 heads of state and governments.  The MDGs, in fact, reaffirms the global quest to fight poverty, illiteracy, hunger, lack of education, gender inequality, disease, and environmental degradation. The goals and targets firmly commit governments, from both rich and poor countries, to a deadline of 2015. 

The progress in achieving the MDGs rest heavily on specialized agencies in the United Nations system, but includes representatives from the World Bank and IMF as well.  Time-bound and measurable targets for each of the goals were based on 48 selected key indicators, aggregated at the global and regional levels.  For instance, Goal 6, to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, has a target of reducing the maternal mortality ratio by three-quarters between 1990 and 2015, based on indicators such as infant mortality rate, and proportion of one year old children immunized against measles.

Information on the MDGs, and the campaign to include active citizen participation in the achievement of the Goals, is gradually gaining momentum.  Although the MDGs are now becoming a dominant feature in development discourse, there is still a lack of political will and financial support for national governments to fulfill their commitments, and above all, the lack of individual co-orperation and coordination of efforts towards achieving the goals.  Certain criticisms from civil society question the process and believe that quantifiable measures are not enough to assess the success or failure in achieving the MDGs.

Certainly, the collective influence of individuals and civil society plays an active role in successfully achieving the MDGs.  Current efforts should further be strengthened, as activities to link existing campaigns to the Goals, or bring together new public coalitions to heighten awareness of the Goals, are taking shape.  In the end, if poor countries are expected to deliver on their end of the bargain, the developed countries should also fulfill their promises in terms of development assistance, market access, and debt sustainability.