Feature story

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon launches annual progress report on the Millennium Development Goals

07 July 2011

MDG Report 2011

On 7 July, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon launched the annual progress report on the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), the MDG Report 2011, shining a spotlight on where progress is being made and where stronger efforts are urgently needed. The report presents the latest statistics on each of the Goals, globally and regionally, collected through more than 25 UN and international agencies.

This year's report shows that the world is on track to reducing the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by half. It also shows that some developing countries such as Burundi, Madagascar, Rwanda, Togo and Tanzania have achieved, or nearly achieved, the goal of sending all children to primary school. On the other hand, 2.6 billion people still live without access to a toilet or latrine, almost a billion people go hungry every day, and more than 350 000 women die from complications of pregnancy or child birth each year.

Investments in preventing and treating HIV are yielding results

The report highlights that new HIV infections are declining steadily—between 2001 and 2009 the HIV incidence rate declined by nearly 25% worldwide—and that, thanks to increased funding and the expansion of major programmes, the number of people receiving antiretroviral therapy for HIV increased 13-fold from 2004 to 2009.

The publication also notes that women and young people are especially vulnerable to HIV with young people (aged 15 to 24) accounting for 41% of new infections among those aged 15 or older and according to UNAIDS, young women aged 15-24 account for 26% of all new infections globally. The MDG report emphasizes the need for improved comprehensive and correct knowledge of HIV among young men and women in developing regions

According to the new report, more children orphaned by AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa are now in school, increasing their chances of receiving protection and support. The publication also notes a steady progress being made in reducing the risk of HIV in newborns.

The Secretary-General is in Geneva to give a keynote address at the high-level segment of the 2011 substantive session of Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).