The report, Investing in Development, calls for affordable interventions with long term benefits for development. These "quick wins" include bed-nets to fight malaria, vaccinations to fight infectious disease, bore wells for safe drinking water and antiretroviral therapies to fight AIDS. If implemented on a wide scale, many of its recommendations could make a measurable difference in the lives of children, UNICEF said.
Launched at the UN Headquarters, the report calls for governments and the international community to commit resources and take urgent and sustained actions to the universal achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). UNICEF welcomed this focus and encouraged its government counterparts to do their part in investing in development.
“The MDGs are all about investing in children, and this report is fundamental to the global effort to create a world that is fit for children,” said UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy. “We could not support it more strongly.”
The Millennium Goals present a series of time-bound, quantifiable development targets, many of them focused directly on children. Some examples of how UNICEF is working with governments to achieve the goals include:
The Millennium Project report was presented to Secretary-General Kofi Annan today.
For further information, please contact:
Jehane Sedky-Lavandero, UNICEF Media, 1 212 326 – 7269, jsedky@unicef.org
Links
The Report: Investing in development
