26 September 2012: The UN Development Programme (UNDP) hosted a high-level event on the sidelines of the 67th Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 67) to discuss global progress on achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and action needed to complete the goals in their remaining three years.

UNDP Administrator Helen Clark noted that “development will only endure and succeed if it is sustainable,” and looked forward to the post-2015 development agenda and discussion around Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Clark said the current focus on the post-2015 agenda, however, does not detract from the need to complete the MDGs on time, and that UNDP remains very focused on this objective. She highlighted the MDG Acceleration Framework (MAF), which identifies barriers to success in each country and helps to overcome them.

Government officials from the Central African Republic, Colombia, Indonesia, Kenya and Niger spoke of their successes and difficulties with the MDGs. Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, Indonesia, said the post-2015 framework must be more sensitive to inequality within countries. Others stressed: the need to focus on the most vulnerable areas in a country, and to address poverty-related issues in a holistic manner; that positive statistics can hide injustices and excluded groups; and that international aid should support national development strategies.

Representatives of Spain, the UK, and the US expressed their commitment to help all countries achieve the MDGs in the next three years. Justine Greening, Secretary of State for International Development, UK, said delivering on the MDGs is vital to provide credibility for the next set of development targets. Donald Steinberg, USAID, recognized the needs of fragile and conflict-affected States, none of which have achieved a single MDG. He also stressed that a post-2015 development agenda must have the flexibility to adapt to a changing world in the next two decades. [UNDP Press Release] [Statement of UNDP Administrator]