9 September 2015: A report by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) on progress in relation to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) finds “a mixed picture”: while the region as a whole has made significant strides toward some MDG targets, progress has been uneven from one country to the next.
The report seeks to serve as a starting point for “a more analytical reflection in relation to what must be achieved by 2030,” the deadline set by the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, the outcome document of the upcoming UN summit to adopt the post-2015 development agenda (UN Sustainable Development Summit).
According to the authors, results from the study reflect the “increasing ownership” of the MDGs, their gradual adjustment to the realities in each country, and the efforts deployed by governments during a period of favorable conditions that preceded the economic crisis. They also note that the region’s achievement stands in “stark contrast” with the “insufficient efforts” made by developed countries on resources for development cooperation, trade and technology transfer.
On MDG 1 (Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger), the report states that countries of the region have made significant progress in reducing extreme poverty in the past two decades: by around 2008, the “region was already on the verge of halving the poverty levels of 1990” and in 2011, the percentage of people living on less than US$1.25 a day was 4.6%, a 63% reduction on the 1990 figure (12.6%). It adds that the target of halving the proportion of people who suffer from hunger has already been achieved, and that today’s figures for labor participation and employment are at their best levels in 20 years.
On MDG 2 (Achieve universal primary education), ECLAC reports that: about 92% of 15- to 19-year-olds in Latin America have completed a full cycle of primary schooling, but these primary completion rates fall short of the universal completion target; illiteracy among young people aged 15 to 24 years has fallen by more than 75% since 1990; and functional illiteracy continues to be a matter of concern.
On MDG 3 (Promote gender equality and empower women), the report outlines that significant progress has been made in girls’ access to formal education, and the situation in the labor market and with regard to decision-making has improved, but efforts in these areas have not been sufficient to achieve the proposed targets. It also notes that since the beginning of the 1990s, the region has almost tripled the number of seats held by women in national parliaments and, in the past decade, has increased the number of women at the highest levels of national government.
The report highlights the achievement of MDG 4 (Reduce child mortality), noting that the region reduced by two-thirds the mortality rate for children under 5 year old, and managed to almost completely eradicate measles at the beginning of the 2000s with national programmes and campaigns to vaccinate children.
On MDG 5 (Improve maternal health), the authors report high levels of maternal mortality, high levels and scant reduction of adolescent fertility and poor antenatal care coverage in some countries of the region, but high rates of antenatal care and births attended by skilled personnel.
On MDG 6 (Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases), the report shows that HIV/AIDS in the region (0.4%) is lower than the global average, but this figure rises to 1.1% in the Caribbean, the second highest rate after sub-Saharan Africa. It also states that malaria has been significantly reduced, and that the region has met the target of stopping and reversing the incidence of tuberculosis by 2015.
On MDG 7 (Ensure environmental sustainability), ECLAC mentions that efforts made by Latin America and the Caribbean have not been sufficient to ensure environmental sustainability and the region faces significant challenges to achieving the proposed targets. According to the report, the region: reduced the consumption of substances that deplete the ozone layer; increased protected terrestrial and marine areas; halved the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water; and was “very close to achieving the target” of halving the proportion of the population without access to improved sanitation facilities in 2015. Also, in 2012, total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for the region, including emissions from energy use, land use change and deforestation, and other gases besides CO2, amounted to 7.7 tons per capita, compared to a global average of 6.7 tons per capita.
On MDG 8 (Develop a global partnership for development), the report states that: the percentage of total global official development assistance (ODA) decreased between the early 1960s and the current decade; ODA flows to the region are smaller than foreign direct investment (FDI), remittances and portfolio investments; and countries of the region have taken large strides in access to information and communications technologies (ICTs) in recent years, albeit with major differences depending on the type of indicator used for measurement purposes. [Publication: Latin America and the Caribbean: Looking Ahead after the Millennium Development Goals – Regional Monitoring Report on the Millennium Development Goals in Latin America and the Caribbean, 2015] [ECLAC Press Release]