After the relaunch of World Food Programme of their newly designed website, United Nations Development Programme also launches their new website too. It is more organized and focusing on the three areas their work, the United Nations Millennium Development Goals and their perspective as a UN organizations.
Bangkok, 17 October 2010— Decent and productive work is one of the most effective ways to fight poverty and accelerate the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, says the United Nations Millennium Campaign in observance of the 2010 International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.
This year’s observance focuses on decent work, meaningful employment, income-generating livelihoods under the theme of ‘From Poverty to Decent Work: Bridging the Gap.’ The theme underlines that combating poverty is linked to the satisfaction of basic social needs, including education, health, food, sanitation, shelter and clothing, as well as the provision of sufficient work opportunities as stipulated in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
“Different facets of poverty are manifested in every MDG being off track. When a child doesn’t go to school or a family cannot afford health or sanitation, the underlining cause is poverty,” says Minar Pimple, Regional Director, UN Millennium Campaign Asia and the Pacific Regional Office.
Almost 70% of the world’s poor live in Asia and the Pacific region, according to the UN Asia-Pacific Regional MDG Report 2009/10. Whilst Asia and the Pacific is anticipated to serve as the engine that pulls the global economy out of recession, the same report shows a contrast picture to that speculation. Hundreds of millions of people in this region are still left in appalling destitution—living on less than $1.25 a day, lacking clean water and sanitation, their families devastated by the tragic and needless deaths of mothers and children.
“Asia and the Pacific region are at greater risk of losing development gains made during the past decade and even plunging deeper into poverty should the global economic crisis persist. Thus the fight against poverty is of extreme urgency and should be put at the forefront of national development policy. It must go hand in hand with efforts to accelerate the achievement of the MDGs,” he continues.
A clear resonance of the global call against poverty was made last month when millions of people around the globe joined the annual Stand Up Take Action Make Noise campaign, sending a message to end poverty to the world leaders gathering at the Millennium Development Goals Summit in New York.
The subsequent MDG Summit agreed on an action agenda to intensify the global poverty fight, recognizing the importance and urgency of investing in economic and social policies that foster job creation and promoting decent labour conditions as measures to eradicating poverty, strengthening economies and building peaceful and stable societies.
Echoing the UN Secretary-General’s message on this occasion, Mr. Pimple emphasizes that, “Widespread economic uncertainty and fiscal austerity should not be excuses to do less. Rather, they are reasons to do more to meet the target of ending global poverty by the 2015 target. One way of doing so is to strive to expand job opportunities and safe working conditions everywhere.”
According to World Health Organization, every year there are 1.4 million reported child mortality because of water related diseases like diarrhea, most this cases happens in developing countries in Asia and Africa. The main reason of those reported death is because of most of the people on this nations doesn’t have access on clean and safe water.
The United Nations declares 2005-2015 as International Decade for Action on Water for Life, putting importance on water and how it will affect on the achievement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goal at the same time this is our 2010 Blog Action Day to put emphasize on water as basic and important to the lives of everyone. Mentioning the UN MDG, water plays a vital role on the 4 Goals, (MDG 1) Eradication of Hunger and Poverty, (MDG 4) Reduce Child Mortality, (MDG 6) Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other diseases and (MDG 7) Ensure Environmental Sustainability.
In our campaign to achieve the MDGs 1, 4 and 6, water plays a very important role, in Africa children and women who are basically front liners of hunger were forced to bring a water container in their back which weighs more than their weights in order to bring home safe water for their family. But because of the scourging heat of the sun and long walk, some of them end up drinking unsafe water that leads to waterborne diseases and leads to their death because even medical help can hardly reach them. Africa is one of the developing nations that are suffering of safe water scarcity. In the International Decade Action for Water for Life, Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General give emphasize on the importance of sanitation in regards to water. "Access to sanitation is deeply connected to virtually all the Millennium Development Goals, in particular those involving the environment, education, gender equality and the reduction of child mortality and poverty" he says.
In the Human Development Report 2006 of the United Nation Development Programme, in 2006 there’s only 62% of world population has access to improved sanitation which includes clean water, but the sad part is on the 2015 even we reach the half of sanitation in the MDG Target 10 there is still 1.7 billion people without access of basic sanitation. When we talk about sanitation in water as our campaign for the MDGs 4, 6 and 7, water doesn’t only thirst quencher, but it connects to human hygiene, as mention in the International Decade Action on Water for Life, they emphasized on water as basic and improved sanitation.
Connecting Water and Sanitation, we end up on one of the major reason why water became unsafe and hinders the achievement of sustainable environment. Water pollution is the product of human irresponsibility. Human throws their waste on the water and pollutes it with chemicals, in the end water like seas and rivers as basic source of food can no longer sustain our needs. Sometimes, those chemicals and garbage thrown in the sea and rivers blocks the flow of water, we Filipinos saw the wrath of Ondoy and Pepeng that kills hundreds and leaves thousands homeless.
Sometimes we missed the basics and sometimes we see it not that important because it is not popular as it not shown on headlines on media. Water is a basic human need, but most of us don’t give importance on the conservation and preservation of water. Sadly, for countries who neglect it, doesn’t see how it is precious more than gold in other countries that is facing drought and kills each other just to have water. Let Blog Action Day on Water, be an eye opener along with the campaigns of UNICEF, WWF, GreenPeace, UNDP, WFP and other NGOs that water conservation and preservation is now, not tomorrow neither next month and next year.
World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), there are 925 million people who are undernourished as of 2010-- almost a billion individuals including women and children experience chronic hunger.
WFP and FAO launch the campaign “1 Billion Hungry” to educate everyone about the present situation of those who are under extreme poverty and victims of calamities such as drought that are facing hunger. This campaign takes part on the quest of the United Nation Millennium Campaign (UNMC) to achieve MDG number 1, which is eradication of poverty and hunger. Three-fourths of the world’s population is experiencing chronic hunger, especially in Asia and the Pacific and Sub-Sahara Africa regions. The campaign involves hunger fighters, advocates, and individuals to take part with this advocacy to be part of the one billion people who will stand up for the one billion hungry and reaching out to them. A signature campaign is currently ongoing on FAO’s website (http://www.1billionhungry.org) as sign of support.; There are also donation pages at WFP’s website (http://www.wfp.org) to raise funds to support their projects that include nutrition for children and pregnant women who are front liners of hunger, school meal, calamity and agricultural support.
WFP also opened its donation page to Paypal users for easy transfer of financial support for its projects. For every five dollars donated, it would give healthy school meals for a child, or $25 dollars could provide nutritious food for a new mother and her child.
On September 20 to 22, world leaders will convene at the United Nations headquarters in New York for the UN MDG Summit. Leaders from nations that are facing chronic hunger should have concrete and comprehensive projects from their countrymen, and at the same time, establish global relationship to strengthen the support coming from developed nations. The countdown towards 2015 begins as MDG 1 challenges us on how we would fight hunger, and be part of the one billion people helping the one billion hungry. As FAO and WFP said, “One billion people live in chronic hunger and I’m mad as hell.” Let’s be aware of it, stand up, take action, and make noise to achieve MDG 1!
This year’s Stand Up and Take Action to End Poverty campaign (SUTA) of the United Nations, organized by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), UN Millennium Campaign (UNMC) and various UN agencies, is very special since this is a pre-event for the upcoming UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Summit, which will be held on 21st to 22nd of September, 2010 at New York.
Happening on September 17-19, 2010, the goal for this year’s SUTA is to make noise or making the world leaders hear the concerns of the people who want the MDGs to be fulfilled. Aside from making noise, SUTA would like to encourage all the citizens to take action by joining other MDG advocates to monitor their leaders and government offices with their implementation of their projects that will help to eradicate poverty and hunger, achieve and promote universal primary education, to lessen child mortality rate, promote gender equality, execute comprehensive maternal care, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, to have sustainable environment, and to establish strong global relationship among nations.
In my two years of supporting the MDG campaign of the United Nations and working with various UN agencies as an advocate such as in World Food Programme (WFP), UNAIDS, UNDP, non-government organizations such as WWF-Philippines, Greenpeace Philippines, Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines (DSWP), Probe Foundation’s Mulat Pinoy, Philippine Legislators' Committee on Population and Development (PLCPD), Philippine National AIDS Council (PNAC) and other much more,I saw the issue the pertinent issues that pertain mostly to human rights, health and the effects of climate change to the humanity. I would like to emphasize on the 50 peso test (US$1.25 test) of UN Millennium Campaign (UNMC), where I was one of those who took the challenge on how a person can live for a day with that amount of money. However in reality, 50 pesos is not for a single person, but for a family with four to five members. I had doubts on how 50 pesos could provide the family members with decent food and shelter, provide children with right nutrition, education and health care and same with the maternal care that women needs especially those who is bearing a child.
According to United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA) in its Women Delivers Congress, everyday there are 11 mothers around the world that die during child bearing. Like other reproductive health advocates, I believe that mothers should not die in giving birth. Sadly, in developing nations like the Philippines, the number and the equipment in health centers are not sufficient to serve its patients. In the case of the Philippines, there are only 9 health centers from every 13-15 urban or rural barangays (villages).
Aside from maternal and child healthcare, one of the major concerns of the MDG is the eradication of hunger and poverty. WFP and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of UN launched the 1 Billion Hungry campaign to let the world know that there are more than a billion hungry mouths to feed and most of them are children and women. The campaign challenges individuals to take part and aid the hungry, and everyone has the chance to start that change.
Same challenge that UNAIDS calls individuals and advocates spreading awareness and not the virus in combating HIV/AIDS. With the mindset of “modern lepers” toward the people with AIDS, UNAIDS and other NGOs are faced with the problem on how to halt the spread of virus, like in the case of Malawi where they imprisoned a gay couple because of the sexual preference and other countries imposing travel restrictions to those who had the virus. In the 110th Parliamentary Assembly in Bangkok, Thailand, one of the challenges that were raised to the leaders was to put down travel restrictions and impose a law that would safeguard the welfare of people with AIDS.
Each one has the responsibility to take part in making poverty, history. Let’s all Stand Up to show unity, Take Action on issues concerning their respective nations, and Make Noise so that their leaders going to the UN Summit will hear and have no excuses not to fulfill their promise. 2015 is just a few sleeps away!
I am Flow Galindez, blogger and a proud advocate of UN World Food Programme Against Child Hunger and Protection. WFP's Bloggers Against Hunger Philippine Connector and MDG advocate. Also advocates for climate change and HIV/ AIDS awareness, education, child and women's rights. I also blog about entertainment, events, lifestyle, news, tech and gadgets, movies and theaters and foodie stuff--- Opinions expressed here are my own.
