The International Projects Unit’s mission to strengthen political parties in our region will help us attain the MDGs.

Date:  17 October 2008

The drafting of the Millennium Declaration in 2000 has brought political governance into sharp relief as aid donors and recipient governments strive to build responsive institutions that will facilitate the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Since November 2007, the MDGs have moved to centre stage in Australia’s approach to development assistance as underpinning the Rudd Government’s emphasis on Partnerships for Development, the last of the MDGs.

The Partnerships approach is designed to deliver on Labor’s commitment to development effectiveness and to provide accountability to the taxpayers whose money government ultimately operates on.

The MDGS offer the global community an agreed pace for development and a means by which to measure results.

For more than 70 of the poorest countries, the main strategic tool is a nationally-owned poverty reduction strategy funded by the national budget and a series of development activities.

The transition from international agreement to domestic policy means that the MDGs are intimately linked to broader political processes, at the centre of which lay political parties.

The pursuit of the MDGs is therefore a timely reminder that strengthening local political systems will help us achieve our policy priorities.

Strengthening political parties through training and advice will be one of the best ways of progressing the MDGs in our region.

What are the Millennium Development Goals?

At the Millennium Summit in 2000, world leaders pledged to achieve the 8 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015.

These are:

Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education

Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empowerment of women

Goal 4: Reduce child mortality

Goal 5: Improve maternal health

Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases

Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability

Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development