Senior Seminar in International Studies (Global Development)

This volume examines the impact of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on Africa's development post-2015. It assesses the current state of the MDGs in Africa by outlining the successes, gaps and failures of the state goals, including lessons learned. A unique feature of the book is the exposition on post-MDG's agenda for Africa's development. Chapters on poverty, south-south partnership, aid, gender, empowerment, health as well as governance and development explore what feasible alternative lie ahead for Africa beyond the expiry date of the MDGs.  

The book brings together implementation studies from the Asia Pacific countries in the context of the deadline of 2015 for achieving the Millennium Development Goals. The contributors to this volume are scholars belonging to the Network of Asia Pacific Schools and Institutes of Public Administration and Governance (NAPSIPAG). NAPSIPAG is the only non-West governance research network presently located at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi after having shifted from its original location at INTAN (Government of Malaysia) at Kuala Lumpur in 2009. 'Implementation' is a less understood but a much debated area of governance research. It requires micro-level analysis of government agencies, service delivery departments and stakeholders on one hand and its national and global policy level connections on the other. Implementation studies are above disciplinary divides and subsequent disjunctions which inhibit explorations on policy downslides or failures. The studies relate to the new initiatives which governments across the region have undertaken to reach out to the MDG targets agreed upon in 2000. The focus of analysis is the policy framework, local capacities of both the government agencies and people in drawing partnerships with relevant expert groups, ability to bring transparency and accountability measures in transactions for cost-effective results, leadership and sustainability dimensions which influence the functioning of local agencies. The book is especially important in the background of 15 voluminous Administrative Reforms Commission Reports accumulating dust in India and similar efforts lying unattended in many other countries of this region as well. Countries like Malaysia, which has focused upon 'implementation strategies' combined with timely evaluation and supervision of administrative agencies has almost achieved most of their committed MDGs. A special report of Malaysian efforts, initiates the debate of moving beyond the 'best practice research' in implementation arena. The central idea of this book is to demonstrate the role of communities in making governance effective and government responsive to the needs of people.

The Global Monitoring Report 2013: Rural-Urban Dynamics and the Millennium Development Goals examines rural-urban disparities in the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and how urbanization, if managed well, can contribute to the attainment of these goals. The report provides information about the differences in progress toward the MDGs across geographical areas and recognizes that urban populations are better off than their rural brethren. However, unfettered urbanization can cause migrants and the urban poor to end up in slums where attainment of the MDGs lags. GMR 2013 calls for an integrated strategy to better manage the planning-connecting-financing formula of urbanization. Notwithstanding the importance of urbanization in poverty reduction and MDG attainment, rural areas remain a huge challenge?one that underscores the importance of policies that can improve rural livelihoods. The rural-urban spectrum ranges from small towns to large cities. The general experience is that poverty is lowest in the largest cities and considerably higher in smaller towns. The MDGs reflect the basic needs of all citizens, and governments should aim to meet them fully in both urban and rural areas. However, resources are scarce, so priorities must be set and trade-offs made. The report argues that the sequencing of actions be tailored to local conditions when it comes to the degree of urbanization and rural-urban differences in MDG outcomes. The world has met four global MDG targets. New estimates confirm the 2012 reports that MDG 1.a?reducing the $1.25-a-day poverty rate (2005 purchasing power parity)?was reached in 2010, falling below half of its 1990 value. The world also met part of MDG 7.c?to halve the proportion of people without safe access to drinking water?in 2010. MDG 7.d?to improve significantly the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers by 2020?was also achieved. Finally, the first part of MDG 3.a?to eliminate gender disparity in primary education? was accomplished in 2010. Global progress on the full MDG 3.a (to eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education) is close to being on track. Global Monitoring Report 2013 was prepared jointly by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, with consultations and collaborations with regional development banks and other multilateral partners.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have contributed to reductions in poverty and improvements in the human condition in many parts of the world since their "invention" in 2000 and 2001. It nonetheless remains the case that today, as on all the previous days of the twenty-first century, almost one billion people will go hungry. Debates about whether the MDGs have made a positive contribution to poverty eradication and/or whether they have achieved as much as they should have done are becoming more frequent as 2015 and the "end of the MDGs" approaches. This book highlights that active debate about what the MDGs have achieved and what that means for the crafting of a post-2015 international framework for action, must become a priority. The work begins by examining the global context of the goals from a variety of perspectives, and moves on to focus on the region that continues to be the most impoverished and which looks likely to fall short of meeting many of the MDGs: Africa. Presenting both a broad overview of the issues and drawing together prestigious scholars and practitioners from a variety of fields, this work provides a significant contribution to debates surrounding both global poverty and the success and future of the MDGs.

This book reviews the progress, prospects and challenges of meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Africa. Each chapter corresponds with one of the eight goals of the Millennium Declaration. The introduction sets the stage for the discourse contained in the main text while the conclusion forms an opinion from the findings and prescribes the way forward. The goals, in sequence, include: bull; Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger bull; Achieve universal primary education bull; Promote gender equality and empower women bull; Reduce child mortality bull; Improve maternal health bull; Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases bull; Ensure environmental sustainability bull; Develop a global partnership for development. While it is apparent that most North African countries are on track to achieve the above goals by 2015, few countries in sub-Saharan Africa are expected to succeed in this. As well as reviewing progress towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals, the authors also analyse the obstacles and challenges that stand in the way of achieving the goals. These include internal, economic and cultural obstacles as well as external and environmental factors such as reductions in funding, problems in accessing global markets and the implications for Africa of climate change.

This study investigates the relationship between financial sector development and progress in reaching the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It assesses the contribution of countries' financial sector development to achieving the MDGs. The focus is on the relationships between financial development and economic welfare and growth, and the following four MDG-themes: Poverty, Education, Health, and Gender Equality. In doing so, the book reviews the theoretical channels, surveys existing empirical evidence--both cross--country and case study evidence, and provides new evidence. 'Financial Sector Development and the Millennium Development Goals' finds that financial development is an important driver for economic welfare in that it reduces the prevalence of income poverty and undernourishment. In addition, new evidence is provided of a positive association between financial development and health, education, and gender equality.

This book examines general Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) roles and comparative advantages in the broad fight to end global poverty, as well as roles and opportunities specific to particular Millennium Development Goals sectors.

The eight Millennium Development Goals represent a unique global compact. Derives from the Millennium Declaration, which was signed by 189 countries, the MDGs benefit from international political support. As such, they reflect an unprecedented commitment by the world's leaders to tackle the most basic forms of injustice and inequality in our world: poverty, illiteracy and ill health. The health-related MDGs do not cover all the health issues that matter to poor people and poor countries, but they do serve as markers of the most basic challenges ahead: to stop women dying during pregnancy and child birth, to protect young children from ill-health and death, and to tackle the major communicable diseases, in particular HIV/AIDS. This report explains some of the reasons for the slow progress and suggests solutions. It looks beyond the statistics to discuss strategic and policy areas where change is needed and support should be provided. As such, it summarizes WHO's contribution to the debates on the MDGs in 2005, and to the United Nations' Millennium + 5 Summit.

This study explores the appropriateness of health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for the countries of the Europe and Central Asia region, and the implications for policy choices at the regional, subregional and country levels. Findings include that, for the region as a whole, proportionately more gains in life expectancy would accrue from the control of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) than from achieving the targets in the classic MDGs. Other issues highlighted include the importance of reducing morbidity and premature mortality from NCDs and external causes across the entire region; and the need to focus on the classic MDG indicators (infant mortality rates, under-five mortality rates and maternal mortality ratios) in the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus.

This report contains four papers which examine how countries can improve efficiency levels in order to meet the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG) in terms of improvements in education, health and poverty reduction indicators. World panel data is used to analyse country-level efficiency, as well as province and state level data from Argentina and Mexico to examine within-country experiences.

This text explores the issue of gender inequality through the lens of the Millennium Development Goals, particularly the first one of halving world poverty by 2015.

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 and 5, created under the auspices of the United Nations, challenged political, financial, medical and civil society leaders to improve both child and maternal health. The 58th RCOG Study Group brought together a range of experts - including midwives, obstetricians and gynaecologists, anaesthetists and paediatricians - to provide an up-to-date review of progress to date and the challenges around meeting these MDGs. This book presents the findings of the Study Group, with sections covering: * the size of the problem * clinical problems and solutions - maternal * clinical problems and solutions - neonatal * training and development * specific challenges in specific countries (Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Egypt and Sri Lanka).