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 Throughout the 1990s, various global conferences, including the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, convened by the United Nations and attended by world leaders, laid out some of the pressing issues facing the world. With the dawn of the new century, the Millennium Declaration was signed in September 2000 by 147 heads of state under the auspices of the United Nations.
The eight Millennium Development Goals contained within the declaration outline specific interrelated goals and targets to be achieved by 2015. The ultimate aim of these goals is “to create an environment—at the national and global levels alike—which is conducive to development and the elimination of poverty.”
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the Millennium Declaration of 2000. And while progress has been made on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), it is not to the extent needed for them to be achieved in every developing country within the set time-frame. As world leaders prepare to gather to discuss development issues and progress on the MDGs in September 2005, it is more important than ever to assess the impact that the private sector can have on helping to achieve these goals.
The Millennium Development Goals
The eight goals and accompanying targets are:
| Goals |
Targets (to be achieved by 2015) |
| Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger |
- Halve the proportion of people whose income is less than $1 per day
- Halve the proportion of people who suffer from hunger
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| Achieve universal primary education |
- Ensure that all children complete a full course of primary schooling
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Promote gender equality and empower women
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- Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and to all levels of education no later than 2015
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| Reduce child mortality |
- Reduce by two thirds the under-five mortality rate
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| Improve maternal health |
- Reduce by three quarters the maternal mortality ratio
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Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
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- Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS
- Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases
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Ensure environmental sustainability
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- Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programs and reverse the losses of environmental resources
- Halve proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
- Have achieved by 2020 a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers
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| Develop a global partnership for development |
- Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and financial system
- Address the special needs of the least developed countries regarding tariffs, quotas, debt relief
- Address the special needs of landlocked countries and small island developing states
- Deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries
- In cooperation with developing countries, develop and implement strategies for decent and productive work for youth
- In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries
- In cooperation with the private sector, make available the benefits of new technologies, especially information and communications
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Achieving the MDGs will require the involvement of civil society groups, national governments and, increasingly, private enterprise. The World Economic Forum and many others believe that through the concerted and collaborative action of these three sectors of society, significant and sustainable progress can be made in creating a more equitable world.
Why should business become involved in the Millennium Development Goals?
One reason is the potential benefits that stronger economies and new markets return to business. A business case of sorts for being involved in the MDGs includes:
- License to operate/reputation. The building of trust with stakeholders is essential as you enter, build, and maintain presence in any new market. In developing countries, relationships with government, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and community representatives can be especially critical to business success.
- Risk mitigation. The operating conditions of a country—its physical infrastructure, educational system, and health conditions—influence a firm’s productivity, costs, and risks. Taking a leadership role in social and environmental issues can improve a company’s operating environment.
- Revenue opportunities. There may be an untapped market of consumers (increasingly referred to as the “bottom of the pyramid”) that can be reached through innovative product design and marketing.
Center In Focus Report offers recommendations for business involvement
The Center's newest In Focus report, "The Millennium Development Goals: Putting Global Poverty on Business Agenda," examines some of the “on ramps” companies can use to get involved in global development issues and places these within The Center’s corporate citizenship framework. Through the use of corporate case studies, we outline some of the challenges companies face along with the successes which can accrue from aligning corporate citizenship with international development needs. In addition, we provide an assessment of what is needed in order for the MDGs to be achieved by 2015.
» Download the full report (PDF; available to members only)
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