On 30 November 2007, the Office of the UN Deputy-Secretary General in partnership with the UN Development Programme (UNDP), Bureau for Development and Policy, hosted the Second Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Africa Working Group at UN headquarters in New York, US.

The MDG Africa Initiative was launched by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on 14 September 2007, and aims to bring together the UN system, international financial institutions such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the African Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, and the European Commission. The MDG Africa Initiative is focusing on seven thematic sectors considered of relevance to boost the implementation of the MDGs in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2015, including: health; education; infrastructure; agriculture and food security; statistical capacity; aid predictability; and strengthening joint efforts at the country level. The initiative has a political and a technical forum represented by the MDG Africa Steering Committee, chaired by the Secretary-General with the heads of agencies as members, and the MDG Africa Working Group, with membership across agencies.
On the occasion of the Second MDG Africa Working Group, Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro requested that three strategic recommendations be contained in the business plans for each thematic sector, including how international mechanisms should be strengthened or reformed to support a scaling up for the achievement of the MDGs in Africa. Before closing, she noted that, as agreed by the MDG Africa Steering Group, its next semi-annual meeting is scheduled for early 2008 with the venue and date to be confirmed soon. The MDG Africa Steering Committee is expected to consider the recommendations and the business plans presented by the MDG Africa Working Group.
Link to further information
MDG Africa Steering Group website