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FACTBOX-U.N. progress report on development goals

02 Jul 2007 12:17:39 GMT
Source: Reuters

July 2 (Reuters) - Following are highlights of a United Nations report charting progress on the Millennium Development Goals, eight international targets adopted in 2000 that are due to be met by 2015.

* GOAL 1 - ERADICATE EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER - The number of people in developing nations living on less than $1 a day fell to 980 million (19 percent of the population) in 2004 from 1.25 billion (32 percent) in 1990.

-- If progress continues at this rate, the United Nations said this goal will be met on a global scale, thanks to rapid economic growth in Asia.

* GOAL 2 - ACHIEVE UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION - Enrolment in primary education in developing nations rose to 88 percent in 2005 from 80 percent in 1991.

-- "A strong push" will be needed in coming years to enroll all children in school, especially in sub-Saharan Africa.

* GOAL 3 - PROMOTE GENDER EQUALITY AND EMPOWER WOMEN - The percentage of employees in non-farming paid work who are women rose to 39 percent globally in 2005, from 36 percent in 1990, in a sign of slowly improving labour market access. * GOAL 4 - REDUCE CHILD MORTALITY - The mortality rate for children under the age of 5 in developing countries fell to 83 per 1,000 live births in 2005, from 106 in 1990. Progress has been uneven, and improvements are needed in sub-Saharan Africa, Southern Asia, former Soviet countries in Asia and in Oceania.

* GOAL 5 - IMPROVE MATERNAL HEALTH - Maternal mortality rates "remain unacceptably high" in developing nations. In sub-Saharan Africa, a woman's risk of dying from complications is 1 in 16, compared to 1 in 3,800 in the developed world.

* GOAL 6 - COMBAT HIV/AIDS, MALARIA AND OTHER DISEASES - The prevalence of HIV has levelled off in the developing world, but AIDS deaths continue to rise in sub-Saharan Africa.

-- An estimated 39.5 million people were living with HIV worldwide at the end of 2006, up from 32.9 million in 2001. About 2.9 million people globally died from AIDS last year compared to 2.2 million in 2001.

-- Efforts to control malaria, need to become more widespread, the U.N. said. Tuberculosis incidence has stabilised in most regions, though the number of new cases continues to rise due to population growth.

* GOAL 7 - ENSURE ENVIRONMENTAL STABILITY - From 1990 to 2005, the world lost 3 percent of its forests, primarily due to conversion to agricultural land in developing countries. "Unprecedented efforts" will be required to conserve habitats and manage ecosystems in coming years.

-- Current trends mean the world is set to miss the target of halving the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation by about 600 million people.

* GOAL 8 - DEVELOP A GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP FOR DEVELOPMENT - In 2005, aid hit a record $106.8 billion, boosted by debt relief for Iraq and Nigeria. Net disbursements fell to $103.9 billion in 2006, or 0.3 percent of developed countries' national income.

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Last updated:Mon Jul 2 12:20:23 2007