The Millennium Development Goals – a turning point in the fight against disparities, poverty and insecurity

Over the last decade enormous economic and technical progress has been made in the world. Globalisation, open markets and intensified trade between countries has seen the global economy grow and seen many more countries participate in the global market place.

However, it has also become apparent that not everybody is profiting from globalisation, trade and economic growth. The disproportion between rich and poor is ever widening, the gap between developed and underdeveloped nations is ever growing.

Social and economic disparities remain at the forefront of unequal development and insecurity. The lack of possibilities and opportunities required for human development remains a global problem which countries have to tackle on a national and local level.

The United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000 marked a turning point In the fight against development disparities, poverty and insecurity. Basing itself on the outcome of numerous UN conferences held throughout the 1990's it saw world leaders agree on eight goals for: reducing poverty, malnutrition and major diseases, for ensuring education health and equal participation and for protecting the environment. They were called the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).