Executive Summary

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set by world leaders more than ten years ago have made a huge impact on the lives of billions of people. In particular, extreme poverty has decreased in every region and substantial progress has been made in access to safe-drinking water, decent housing and life-saving HIV treatment, while between 2000 and 2011 the world has achieved parity in primary education between girls and boys with more than 40 million children attending school. However, progress has been uneven: more than one billion people still live in extreme poverty and there are persistent challenges in eradicating hunger, improving health, promoting gender equality, enhancing access to clean water and sanitation, among others. As the United Nations continues to promote prosperity, equity and peace beyond 2015, a global conversation has begun to define a concrete sustainable development framework that embodies these bold, ambitious and universal values.

Related Subject(s): Democracy and Governance