ALL STAKEHOLDERS MUST WORK TOGETHER TO ENSURE THAT COLLECTIVE EFFORTS ARE GREATER

THAN SUM OF INDIVIDUAL ONES, DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TELLS ‘MDG 4 + 5’ EVENT

Following is the text of remarks by Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro to the “MDG 4 + 5” Event in New York on 26 September:

At the outset, let me thank you all for your participation in this important event.  Achieving Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 is, without any doubt, one of the most urgent tasks before us.  I congratulate Prime Minister [Jens] Stoltenberg for leading the charge by advancing the Global Campaign for the Health Millennium Development Goals.

I also wish to commend Canada, France, Germany and the United Kingdom for their significant contributions to this good cause.  I thank UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) and WHO (World Health Organization) for collaborating on the Campaign.  This event is an excellent testimony to our readiness to work collectively with such an important and timely initiative.  It is in the context of this Campaign that the goals of the advocacy drive launched today, called “Deliver now for women and children”are all fitting.

That in the last two decades little progress has been made on maternal and newborn health in many developing countries is a sombre commentary on the global village we live in.  By the time I finish this short statement, 300 children and five mothers in labour will have suffered death that could have been avoided.  Does it have to go on like this?  Do we have to continue to do business as usual?  Or can we do something to change it?  This event offers hope that the world is ready to challenge the status quo.

The reasons for slow progress in reducing maternal and child mortality are many and complex, ranging from inadequacy of the health system to lack of funding.  These issues will need to be earnestly addressed in order to make sustained progress.  Greater efficiency in the use of existing resources and improvement in the delivery system can play an important role in expanding access to maternal and child health services; yet it will ameliorate financial constraints only in a limited way.

It is a simple fact that the poorest countries, especially African and least developed countries, are not in a position to pay for their health-care costs.  Substantial increase in donor funding and concomitant improvements in aid modality and quality are among key determinants of success in fighting maternal and child mortality.  Reaching Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 must be part of our overall poverty reduction efforts.  It is, therefore, essential that donors keep their promises on ODA (official development assistance) and improve aid effectiveness.

It is vital that all stakeholders work in concert, so that the outcome of our collective efforts is greater than the sum of our individual contributions.  This is the essence of the approach we have taken in the MDG Africa Steering Group, which the Secretary-General convened earlier this month.  Health being a key sector under this initiative, we have a large stake in the success of the Global Campaign for the Health Millennium Development Goals.  And we must not accept anything short of its full success.

Thank you.

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For information media • not an official record