New York, 26 September 2012President Kagame today at the UN General Assembly in New York, co-chaired the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) Advocacy Group with Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard. Convened by Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, this group brings together advocacy individuals from different fields who have led by example to rally support and political will to achieve the MDGs by 2015.
With the deadline just three years and three months away, many of the millennium development goals are yet to be fulfilled especially in many developing countries.
President Kagame praised the new momentum and new ideas in addition to the work that has been done. He emphasized that improvements had been registered in terms of organization and mobilization in many countries. President Kagame made the remarks while addressing a press conference alongside Australia’s Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
Watch the full speech: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1MaidgFEEg
Prime Minister Julia Gillard delved into the issue of agricultural productivity, one of the things she said could be attained within one season.
President Kagame also echoed his co-chair’s remarks saying some of the issues that need to be addressed are in real sense simple but require to a large extent the citizen’s participation.
The MDGs are eight goals launched in September 2000, where some 193 UN member states agreed to achieve by the year 2015 in order to encourage development by improving social and economic conditions in the world’s poorest countries.
According to the national institute of statistics of Rwanda, five of the MDG’s are well on their way to attainment in Rwanda. These include; access to universal primary education, promotion of gender equality and women empowerment, reduction of maternal and child mortality rates and combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases.