FIFTH REPORT ON MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS INTRODUCED

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ An event to introduce the fifth report on implementation of the Millennium development goals ran at the Foreign Ministry on Monday. Present were MPs, members of the government, chiefs of the public agencies, foreign ambassadors, UN permanent representatives, and development partners and the press. The report reveals that there are rooms for improving living standards of the entire population, creating more jobs, increasing productivity and subsequently delivering equal and accessible growth in wages and income that falls behind the rapid economic growth over the last couple of years. To address these concerns, the Government’s policy priorities focus on the implementation of major mining projects and programs, infrastructure development and sound management of the mining proceeds, small and medium enterprises promotion, as well as on ensuring of macroeconomic stability. It is encouraging to note that this Report, aiming at combating poverty, reducing unemployment, achieving gender equality, fighting tuberculosis, and reducing pollution, should be included in the government policies to intensity realization of the national goals, within the remaining period until 2015 that is to be implemented in partnership with UN, foreign partner organizations, public sector and NGOs, the report notes. The report is of special importance because there is now less than thousand days remaining until final deadline for MDG progress and timely policy intervention can be very effective to reach the planned targets. There is a strong national ownership of MDG goals in Mongolia; while the original 2000 Millennium Declaration has 8 goals with 34 targets and 60 indicators, Mongolia has consistently broadened the scope for the MDG goals adding its own 9th goal for Governance as well as having wide number of targets and indicators.