The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are a set of 8 goals that were agreed upon by United Nations Member States in September 2000 following the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg. The combined objective of the Millennium Development Goals is to address the problem of underdevelopment and eradicate poverty. The deadline for nations to achieve the goals is the year 2015.

The Millennium Development Goals:

• HALVE EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER
• ACHIEVE UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION
• EMPOWER WOMEN AND PROMOTE EQUALITY BETWEEN WOMEN AND MEN
• REDUCE UNDER-FIVE MORTALITY BY TWO-THIRDS
• REDUCE MATERNAL MORTALITY BY THREE QUARTERS
• REVERSE THE SPREAD OF DISEASES, ESPECIALLY HIV/AIDS AND MALARIA
• ENSURE ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
• CREATE A GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP FOR DEVELOPMENT, WITH TARGETS FOR AID, TRADE AND DEBT RELIEF

The Millennium Development Goals are important because they represent a set of common goals that can be used to guide the work of aid agencies, governments, and non-governmental organizations alike. Instead of general objectives such as reduce poverty or increase literacy, many of the Millennium Development Goals set explicit, measurable targets to be achieved, such as reduce under-five mortality by two-thirds.

The success of the Millennium Development Goals hinges on the cooperation and actions of both developed and developing nations, international aid agencies and development organizations. Each nation is expected to contribute 0.7% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to the effort. International focus and the effective allocation of resources and efforts over the next decade towards the MDGs would make significant progress in combating underdevelopment and poverty.

United Nations Resources on the Millennium Development Goals

United Nations Millennium Development Goals Website

United Nations Development Programme Millennium Development Goals Website

Millennium Development Goals Indicators

EarthTrends Resources related to the Millennium Development Goals

National and sub-national maps of poverty distribution for many developing countries are available in the Poverty Resource

Data on AIDS/HIV, Literacy, Education, Public Health, and Population

A collection of poverty-related features from World Resources 2005: The Wealth of the Poor—Managing Ecosystems to Fight Poverty

Empowering Communities Through Free, Prior, and Informed Consent

Findings of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: How do the Poor Fare?

Globalization, Governance, and Poverty

Health, Environment, and Poverty

How Community-Based Resource Management Can Benefit the Poor

Life on a Dollar a Day

Poverty and Governance in a Global Frame

The Dimensions of Poverty

Understanding the Scope of Resource Tenure