Interview: "China will be able to reach all MDG goals by 2015" -UNDP China chief

21 September 2010

by Xinhua writer

Hou Lijun, Liang Linlin

BEIJING, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- A senior United Nations (UN) official said here Tuesday the UN is confident that, with its attention and sustained commitment, China will be able to reach all of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) by 2015.

"China is a very good MDG performer," said UN Resident Coordinator and UN Development Program (UNDP) Resident Representative in China Renata Dessallien at a press briefing in Beijing.

China has already met several MDG targets ahead of schedule, including reducing poverty and hunger, enrolling children in school, and reducing child and under-five mortality, she said, adding that China's success in lifting millions out of poverty is unprecedented.

The MDG were established at the Millennium Summit in 2000. They are eight international development goals designed to reduce poverty and improve the lives of people in less developed countries.

About 140 heads of state and government are gathering in New York this week for a three-day summit to assess progress toward their commitment to meet the MDGs by 2015.

According to China's MDG Progress Report 2010, China is the first developing country to achieve the MDG poverty reduction target ahead of schedule.

The number of the poor people in China's rural areas fell from 85 million people in 1990 (9.6 percent of the total rural population) to 35.97 million people in 2009 (3.8 percent of the total rural population), said Bernard Coquelin, representative of the UN Population Fund.

He said China has achieved the overall primary education target of the MDG ahead of schedule. By the end of 2009, primary school enrolment rates had reached 99.4 percent, up 0.3 percent from 2000.

As for MDG number 8, which concerns global partnerships in development, Dessallien said China has made important contributions to the global MDG efforts.

Since 2000, China has carried out some 1,000 projects in over 120 countries, many of which were directly related to the MDGs, such as assistance for agriculture, fisheries, education and public health, she said.

Although China has made great progress in achieving the MDGs, there is still a lot of work left to be done, said Dessallien.

She said the most critical areas for China are: environmental sustainability; gender equality;

HIV/AIDS; wealth disparities; and rural-urban divides.

"It is really important now for China to focus on its environment. We have seen targets being set and strategies being put forward. I think the Chinese government is approaching it the right way, but it will take time," she said.

She said China's recently established energy efficiency targets and green cities initiatives demonstrate the nation's commitment to tackling environmental issues.

While inequality within countries tends to rise during periods of rapid economic growth, Dessallien suggested China take policy measures to contain the gap between rich and poor.

With only five years remaining until the MDG target date of 2015, Dessallien called on countries around the world to boost their commitment to achieving the goals.