Full Coverage: MDGs

30.11.2007 The Central Park of the Indian capital was lit up by aspirations for peace in the region, as more than 20 organisations celebrated the South Asian Women's Day for peace, justice, human rights and democracy. This was also the spot where Anusheh Adil and her popular band BANGLA played a special piece for the day, as part of the SAARC Band Festival.

29.11.2007 A report by the United Nations World Food Programme, released ahead of World AIDS Day on 1 December, highlights links between hunger, poor health and HIV/AIDS. Life-saving drugs are more effective when people are well nourished and healthy, the report says.

27.11.2007 Current sanitation systems will not help in reaching the Millennium Development Goal, concluded experts at the recent meet of the World Toilet Association (WTA) at Seoul. Flush toilets have to become eco-friendly as newer ways to dispose human waste get developed.

23.11.2007 The United Nations has officially launched 2008 as the International Year of Sanitation to highlight the need for global investments in sanitation. About 42,000 people die every week from diseases caused by poor drinking water and the lack of toilets, while also being denied dignity, privacy, and in case of women – safety too.

22.11.2007 Ten vans will travel to the remote interiors of Tamil Nadu, India’s southern state, to help people test for HIV/AIDS in a programme supported by the Red Cross Societies. According to National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), India has 2.5 million people infected by the virus.

21.11.2007 An intensive reassessment of data by India earlier this year has emerged as a single biggest reason for reduction in the global HIV prevalence figures. A report, 2007 AIDS Epidemic Update, released by the UNAIDS on November 20, says the number of people living with the dreaded virus has drastically come down to 33 million from a previous estimation of nearly 40 million.

19.11.2007 November 19 is World Toilet Day. WaterAid, an international NGO, brings out a report, The State of the World's Toilets, on the occasion. The report ranks the worst countries in the world for sanitation provision, with 40% of the world's population lacking somewhere safe to go to the toilet. India comes second on poor sanitation list.

19.11.2007 Muhammad Yunus, Nobel laureate and founder of the Grameen Bank, says Bangladesh will eradicate poverty by 2030 and wants India to take up the challenge as well. On a recent visit to India, he spoke on the bank’s role, poverty museums, and issues close to his heart.

16.11.2007 The UN in India has set up Legislators’ Forums with the state assemblies to assist legislators discuss developmental issues in a more structured manner. In its first meeting in the state of Rajasthan, the Forum focused on the issue of water.

16.11.2007 A new cash prize will award print and web reporting on tuberculosis and the resistant strains of the disease in developing countries.

16.11.2007 A two-day Sub-Regional Conference in support of Global Literacy organised by the UNESCO will be held from November 29 at New Delhi. The First Ladies of 10 countries — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Maldives, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan — have been invited to attend.

15.11.2007 The MDG Monitor is a new resource offering from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with several other UN bodies with assistance from Google and Cisco. It is a quick and easy MDG tracking tool for policymakers, journalists, students and development professionals.

15.11.2007 A new resource, the MDG Monitor, created by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with several other UN bodies with assistance from Google and Cisco, is an excellent tool for policymakers, journalists, students and others to learn about the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

12.11.2007 The performance of the South Asian countries is offset by persisting gender inequality with the significant exception of Sri Lanka, reveals the recent Global Gender Gap Report 2007 released by the World Economic Forum. The report advocates a multi-stakeholder community approach to tackle its various challenges and opportunities while being a benchmark tool for policy makers to define national priorities.

08.11.2007 An international conference is being organised by Deshkal Society in the Indian capital New Delhi from 14-16 December. The conference will discuss new frameworks through comparative study of teaching and learning experiences in plural societies in the context of school education.

07.11.2007 Tamil Nadu State Government in India has made school text books available online. Readers can access the text books on the government website.

07.11.2007 The newly released Trade and Development Index of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development indicates an emerging positive picture. Even the world’s poorest countries are approaching the Millennium Development Goals, it claims.

06.11.2007 The Musahar community, one of the most disadvantaged sub caste within Dalits in Uttar Pradesh, India, have seen abject poverty for generations. Action Aid is now helping the community discover the power of collective action by spreading awareness and making use of an innovative communal grain bank.

06.11.2007 Safe drinking water remains one of the biggest challenges in urban Asia-Pacific. Water experts are now debating whether water should be tagged a financial price to make consumers value clean water.

05.11.2007 New Delhi based NGO Development Alternatives and PricewaterhouseCoopers will host a conference on ‘What it takes to eradicate poverty’ at the Indian capital New Delhi, on December 4-6. This conference will explore interventions that have the highest potential for eradicating poverty.