Nothing but the Truth? The United Nations and the Millennium Development Goals

Policy Futures in Education Volume 12 Number 6 2014 www.wwwords.co.uk/pfie Nothing but the Truth? The United Nations and the Millennium Development Goals SHIRLEY PORTER Mathematics Department, Bay of Plenty Polytechnic, Tauranga, New Zealand ABSTRACT The United Nations established eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000, with the target for achievement set at 2015. On the UN website a special section is devoted to the MDGs. In this article the website as it was presented in late 2013 is examined. Although the website was easy to negotiate, it was difficult to ascertain any ideological detail on projects conducted. Results citing quantitative statistical data were numerous and generally positive with lack of progress noted in some aspects and areas. No information was available on the methodology used for creating these statistics. Critique by authors other than the UN s own commissioned writers was not available, but a search on Google produced constructive articles. It appeared the UN was evaluating its own ideology, progress and goals in the light of experience so far, and preparing for a changed way forward in post- 2015. Overview The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were established in September 2000 at the United Nations Millennium Summit and agreed to by the 191 nations of the United Nations (UN), with the aim of achieving fulfilment by 2015. The goals for the world s poor nations were: 1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger: a. Target 1.A: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people whose income is less than $1.25 a day; b. Target 1.B: Achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all, including women and young people; c. Target 1.C: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger; 2. Achieve universal primary education: a. Target 2.A: Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling; 3. Promote gender equality and empower women: a. Target 3.A: Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and in all levels of education no later than 2015; 4. Reduce child mortality: a. Target 4.A: Reduce by two thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate; 5. Improve maternal health: 761 http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/pfie.2014.12.6.761

Shirley Porter a. Target 5.A: Reduce by three quarters the maternal mortality ratio; b. Target 5.B: Achieve universal access to reproductive health; 6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases: a. Target 6.A: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS; b. Target 6.B: Achieve, by 2010, universal access to treatment for HIV/AIDS for all those who need it; c. Target 6.C: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases; 7. Ensure environmental sustainability: a. Target 7.A: Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources; b. Target 7.B: Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the rate of loss; c. Target 7.C: Halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation; d. Target 7.D: Achieve, by 2020, a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers; 8. Global partnership for development: a. Target 8.A: Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and financial system; b. Target 8.B: Address the special needs of least developed countries; c. Target 8.C: Address the special needs of landlocked developing countries and small island developing states; d. Target 8.D: Deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries; e. Target 8.E: In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries; f. Target 8.F: In cooperation with the private sector, make available benefits of new technologies, especially information and communications. The Website The goals are very evident on the website (http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/) and remain there as one scrolls through the headings. There is a host of reading as the links are followed. The site has easy navigation and is comprehensive from its point of view. It appears to have no date of last update so it is difficult to know how current are the comments posted. The Home page has links to its 29 partners and six regional commissions; Background gives details of summits held and there are links to posters, statistics and archives; in Reports there are the latest reports by the UN, assessing results and considering problems encountered; the Calendar lists the upcoming events; a selection of speeches delivered since October is found in Statements; under Media are press releases; Beyond 2015 describes the preparation for planning after 2015, including the 27-member panel commissioned to work together; the last heading, Get Involved, gives details of opportunities for individual participation. It is very difficult to find any information on the site concerning how each project has actually been conducted, and consequently on the ideology of the operations. It is often stated that they worked with the local government or community, but there is no further information. The results are reported in quantified statistics but with no detail as to how those statistics are calculated or any 762

Nothing but the Truth? qualitative results. However, the reports are constantly evaluating and proposing methods to improve the outcomes. Critiques, apart from their own reports, are not given on this site, but by Googling UN MDG critiques many sites can be found. Results So Far These are listed on the site if one follows the links. There have been regular reports and evaluations, and progress is mixed, with unforeseen world events such as the global financial crisis and natural disasters affecting outcomes (see Appendix). Underlying Ideology There appears to be a mix of development ideologies underwriting the MDGs. On the one hand there is strong emphasis on the social theories of development, focusing on developing human capital via improved education, health and fertility control. Poverty and inequality are featured strongly in the goals. On the other hand, the classical liberal theory that capital formation using USES foreign aid for large-scale infrastructure projects has a stronger place than is evident in the UN reports, if critics such as Samir Amin are to be believed (Amin, 2006). The World Bank, which is a partner with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is clearly using neoliberal educational reforms, according to Lincove (2009). Schools are no longer restricted by centralised control and schools have control over their own budgets and curriculum. This is controversial because free markets can have diverse distributional effects. Experience in countries with racial inequities suggests that neoliberal reforms can and should be combined with incentives to promote equity (Lincove, 2009. p. 61). Parents are relied on to make sound choices, but they may not be in the position to do so because of their own educational background, income and culture. As the World Bank is a partner with the UNDP, it is assumed, but possibly incorrectly, that the UNDP operates in a similar manner. Critiques When the MDGs were established in 2000, they appeared to be an exciting blueprint for eradicating poverty and improving the lives of human beings globally. No one could find fault with the altruistic nature of the eight goals established, but there have been many criticisms since and constant evaluations and suggestions for improvements. Ramalingam (2010) suggests that the MDGs represent a direct application of results-based management (RBM) approaches, quoting David Hulme: Results-based management was applied to the MDGs in a very direct fashion. At times goals, targets and indicators were screened for how SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound) they were. Panels of experts were convened to specify targets and indicators, and judgements made on RBM principles impacted directly on MDG form and content. Consequently, there arose the paradoxical situation of We ll give you budget if you tell us for sure what you are doing will work. Development is not necessarily a linear process - it is not easy to predict or steer. Vernon and Baksh (2010) argue that the MDGs represent the wrong view of change. They suggest three broad areas for action for replacing the MDGs in 2015: 1. Reframe the development discourse especially benefiting from those already working in the area who know the inadequacies; 2. Create a new narrative of development; 3. Make the institutions fit for purpose. Back in 2006, Samir Amin, an Egyptian described as a Marxist economist and a philosopher, made interesting reading, especially his critique of the MDGs (Amin, 2006). He was suspicious that the MDG are just a cover for capitalist domination by the Triad, the name given to the USA, Europe 763

Shirley Porter and Japan as a consortium. He was concerned about the lack of debate on conditions required to reach the MDGs. The litany of pious hopes commits no one (Amin, 2006). There appeared to be the assumption that liberalism was perfectly compatible with the achievement of the goals being forced to accept the dictates of liberalism in the service of dominant globalized capitalism (Amin, 2006). Reid-Henry (2012) supports this idea, stating: Neoliberalism is any idea that is pro-market and anti-government intervention... support[ing] the interests of big business, transnational corporations and finance. It seeks not so much a free market, therefore, as a market free for powerful interests. Many authors have commented that the big mistake was to assume that the MDGs were the be-all and end-all of development; that the gathering of statistical evidence is flawed; and that the world has since changed, especially with the global financial crisis. There is an increased awareness that one size fits all is not valid, and, indeed, never has been and that neo-liberalism is not the only theory to use in development. There is seen to be a need to restructure and involve all levels of peoples in discussions and planning, and there is growing awareness that the problems are not unique to under-developed countries. In its own evaluation of the UNDP s contribution to the reduction in poverty (UN, 2012a), recommendations are made to forge stronger links with national stakeholders; it also states that projects need an explicit pro-poor basis, that there needs to be more emphasis on integrating areas such as livelihoods, governance, environment and crisis prevention and recovery, and that the right balance needs to be achieved between downstream and upstream activities, accompanied by stringent evaluation processes. The management response is somewhat defensive but has committed to strengthening responses in these areas (UN, 2012b). The UN is already looking ahead to post-2015; its system task team published a document in March 2012 containing 12 considerations. While retaining the concept of measurable goals, there is a much stronger emphasis on inclusiveness of the country s governance, culture and human sustainability; of greater flexibility, better accounting for demographics and more realistic evaluation (UN, 2012c). It continually seems to avoid the topic of the theories of development including neo-liberalism. Obama, speaking at the MDG conference in 2010, placed economic growth squarely at the centre of development policy (including sustainable and broad-based ). He was also strongly on the side of improving systemic capability as opposed to a focus on a series of specific targets (despite the fact that the MDGs are just that); this would indicate a movement away from neoliberalism to more centralised control. He also underlined the need for innovation and rigorous evaluation. His fourth point, by omission, according to Pritchett (2010), was the fact that there was no dollar figure, but rather a let s do better. In essence, all goals are founded on education learning how to. One goal cannot be achieved satisfactorily without others also being achieved. Helen Clark, in her speech in Tauranga on 7 August 2013, spoke of the crisis created by producing educated youth when there were no jobs at the end of it and this was universal, not just in poor countries. In Africa, extreme poverty cannot be eradicated unless there is a sustainable environment and a focus on women s health and control of birth rates, and unless jobs are there at the end of it all. Two new attributes that Clark felt were vitally important were resilience to disaster and helping people to help themselves. I was delighted to realise that in our own small discussion group our comments were right on the nail, even if we didn t think of the resilience point! References Amin, Samir (2006) The Millennium Development Goals: a critique from the south. http://monthlyreview.org/2006/03/01/the-millennium-development-goals-a-critique-from-the-south (accessed 15 August 2013). Lincove, J. (2009) Are Markets Good for Girls? The World Bank and Neoliberal Education Reforms in Developing Countries, Whitehead Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations, Winter/Spring, 59-75. Pritchett, L. (2010) Lant Pritchett on What Obama Got Right about Development. http://aidwatchers.com/2010/09/lant-pritchett-on-what-obama-got-right-about-development (accessed 15 August 2013). 764

Nothing but the Truth? Ramalingam, B. (2010) MDGs and Theories of Change. http://aidontheedge.info/2010/10/05/mdgs-and-theories-of-change (accessed 17 August 2013). Reid-Henry, S. (2012) Neoliberalism s Trade Not Aid Approach to Development Ignored Past Lessons. http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2012/oct/30/neoliberalism-approachdevelopment-ignored-past-lessons (accessed 20 August 2013). United Nations (UN) (2012a) Evaluation of UNDP Contribution to Poverty Reduction. http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/corporate/executive%20board/2013/english/eval uation%20of%20undp%20contribution%20to%20poverty%20reduction.pdf United Nations (UN) (2012b) Management Response to the Evaluation of UNDP Contribution to Poverty Reduction. http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/corporate/executive%20board/2013/english/eval uation%20of%20undp%20contribution%20to%20poverty%20reduction.pdf United Nations (UN) (2012c) UN System Task Team on the Post-2015 UN Development Agenda. http:// www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/mdg_assessment_aug.pdf Vernon, P. & Baksh, D. (2010) Moving Beyond the Millennium Development Goals: a more honest conversation? http://www.opendemocracy.net/phil-vernon-and-deborrah-baksh/moving-beyondmillennium-development-goals-more-honest-conversation (accessed 17 August 2013). APPENDIX Results: progress towards achieving the MDGs listed on the website in late 2013 The target of reducing extreme poverty rates by half was met five years ahead of the 2015 deadline. The global poverty rate at $1.25 a day fell in 2010 to less than half the 1990 rate; 700 million fewer people lived in conditions of extreme poverty in 2010 than in 1990. However, at the global level, 1.2 billion people are still living in extreme poverty. Globally, 384 million workers lived below the $1.25 a day poverty line in 2011 a reduction of 294 million since 2001. The gender gap in employment persists, with a 24.8 percentage point difference between men and women in the employment-to-population ratio in 2012. The hunger reduction target is within reach by 2015. Globally, about 870 million people are estimated to be undernourished. More than 100 million children under age five are still undernourished and underweight. Enrolment in primary education in developing regions reached 90% in 2010, up from 82% in 1999, which means more kids than ever are attending primary school. In 2011, 57 million children of primary school age were out of school. Even as countries with the toughest challenges have made large strides, progress on primary school enrolment has slowed. Between 2008 and 2011, the number of out-of-school children of primary age fell by only 3 million. Globally, 123 million youth (aged 15 to 24) lack basic reading and writing skills; 61% of them are young women. Gender gaps in youth literacy rates are also narrowing. Globally, there were 95 literate young women for every 100 young men in 2010, compared with 90 women in 1990. The world has achieved equality in primary education between girls and boys, but only 2 out of 130 countries have achieved that target at all levels of education. Globally, 40 out of every 100 wage-earning jobs in the non-agricultural sector were held by women in 2011. This is a significant improvement since 1990. In many countries, gender inequality persists and women continue to face discrimination in access to education, work and economic assets, and participation in government. For example, in every developing region, women tend to hold less secure jobs than men, with fewer social benefits. Violence against women continues to undermine efforts to reach all goals. Poverty is a major barrier to secondary education, especially among older girls. Women are largely relegated to more vulnerable forms of employment. 765

Shirley Porter Despite population growth, the number of deaths in children under five worldwide declined from 12.4 million in 1990 to 6.9 million in 2011, which translates into about 14,000 fewer children dying each day. Since 2000, measles vaccines have averted over 10 million deaths. Despite determined global progress in reducing child deaths, an increasing proportion of child deaths are in sub-saharan Africa, where one in nine children die before the age of five, and in southern Asia, where one in 16 die before age five. As the rate of under-five deaths overall declines, the proportion that occurs during the first month after birth is increasing. Children born into poverty are almost twice as likely to die before the age of five as those from wealthier families. Children of educated mothers even mothers with only primary schooling are more likely to survive than children of mothers with no education. Maternal mortality has nearly halved since 1990. An estimated 287,000 maternal deaths occurred in 2010 worldwide, a decline of 47% from 1990. All regions have made progress, but accelerated interventions are required in order meet the target. In eastern Asia, northern Africa and southern Asia, maternal mortality has declined by around two-thirds. Nearly 50 million babies worldwide are delivered without skilled care. The maternal mortality ratio in developing regions is still 15 times higher than in the developed regions. The rural urban gap in skilled care during childbirth has narrowed. More women are receiving antenatal care. In developing regions, antenatal care increased from 63% in 1990 to 81% in 2011. Only half of women in developing regions receive the recommended amount of health care they need. Fewer teens are having children in most developing regions, but progress has slowed. The large increase in contraceptive use in the 1990s was not matched in the 2000s. The need for family planning is slowly being met for more women, but demand is increasing at a rapid pace. Official development assistance (ODA) for reproductive health care and family planning remains low. New HIV infections continue to decline in most regions. More people than ever are living with HIV due to fewer AIDS-related deaths and the continued large number of new infections, with 2.5 million people newly infected each year. Comprehensive knowledge of HIV transmission remains low among young people, along with condom use. More orphaned children are now in school due to expanded efforts to mitigate the impact of AIDS. While the target was missed by 2011, access to treatment for people living with HIV increased in all regions. At the end of 2011, 8 million people were receiving antiretroviral therapy for HIV. This total constitutes an increase of over 1.4 million people from December 2010. By the end of 2011, eleven countries had achieved universal access to antiretroviral therapy. The global estimated incidence of malaria has decreased by 17% since 2000, and malaria-specific mortality rates by 25%. In the decade since 2000, 1.1 million deaths from malaria were averted. Countries with improved access to malaria control interventions saw child mortality rates fall by about 20%. Thanks to increased funding, more children are sleeping under insecticide-treated bed nets in sub-saharan Africa. Treatment for tuberculosis has saved some 20 million lives between 1995 and 2011. Forests are a safety net for the poor, but they continue to disappear at an alarming rate. Of all developing regions, South America and Africa saw the largest net losses of forest areas between 2000 and 2010. Global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) have increased by more than 46% since 1990. 766

Nothing but the Truth? In the 25 years since the adoption of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, there has been a reduction of over 98% in the consumption of ozone-depleting substances. At Rio+20, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, world leaders approved an agreement entitled The Future We Want, and more than $513 billion was pledged towards sustainable development initiatives. More areas of the earth s surface are protected. Since 1990, protected areas have increased in number by 58%. Growth in protected areas varies across countries and territories and not all protected areas cover key biodiversity sites. By 2010, protected areas covered 12.7% of the world s land area but only 1.6% of total ocean area. The world has met the target of halving the proportion of people without access to improved sources of water, five years ahead of schedule. Between 1990 and 2010, more than two billion people gained access to improved drinking water sources. The proportion of people using an improved water source rose from 76% in 1990 to 89% in 2010. Over 40% of all people without improved drinking water live in sub-saharan Africa. In 2011, 768 million people remained without access to an improved source of drinking water. Over 240,000 people a day gained access to improved sanitation facilities from 1990 to 2011. Despite progress, 2.5 billion in developing countries still lack access to improved sanitation facilities. The target was met well in advance of the 2020 deadline. The share of urban slum residents in the developing world declined from 39% in 2000 to 33% in 2012. More than 200 million of these people gained access to improved water sources, improved sanitation facilities, or durable or less crowded housing, thereby exceeding the MDG target In 2012, 863 million people are estimated to be living in slums, compared with 650 million in 1990 and 760 million in 2000 Despite the pledges by G20 members to resist protectionist measures initiated as a result of the global financial crisis, only a small percentage of trade restrictions introduced since the end of 2008 have been eliminated. The protectionist measures taken so far have affected almost 3% of global trade. Tariffs imposed by developed countries on products from developing countries have remained largely unchanged since 2004, except for agricultural products. Bilateral aid to sub-saharan Africa fell by almost 1% in 2011. There has been some success for debt relief initiatives in terms of reducing the external debt of heavily indebted poor countries (HIPCs), but 20 developing countries remain at high risk of debt distress. Aid to landlocked developing countries fell in 2010 for the first time in a decade, while aid to small island developing states increased substantially. At this time, it appears developing countries weathered the 2009 economic downturn, and in 2011 the debt-to-gdp (gross domestic product) ratio decreased for many developing countries. Vulnerabilities remain. Expected slower growth in 2012 and 2013 may weaken debt ratios. Resources available for providing essential medicines through some disease-specific global health funds increased in 2011, despite the global economic downturn. There has been little improvement in recent years in improving availability and affordability of essential medicines in developing countries. Among inhabitants of developed countries, 74% are Internet users, compared with only 26% of inhabitants in developing countries. The number of mobile cellular subscriptions worldwide by the end of 2011 reached 6 billion. 767

Shirley Porter SHIRLEY PORTER is a mathematics lecturer and learner facilitator (mathematics specialist) at Bay of Plenty Polytechnic, Tauranga, New Zealand. She is currently affiliated to the University of Waikato, where she is completing an MEd in Global Studies in Education. Correspondence: shirley@shirleyporter.co.nz 768