Millennium Development Goals

The target for gender parity in primary and secondary education in 2005 was missed; girls are disproportionately out of school compared to boys.

credit: Abigail Falik

In 2000, at the United Nations Millennium Summit, 189 countries agreed to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDGs are eight goals to be achieved by 2015 and were developed to meet the needs of the world’s poorest people. The goals span issues such as health care, the environment, gender equity, extreme poverty and education.

Millennium Development Goals
Goal 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education
Target: Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling

Goal 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
Target: Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and in all levels of education no later than 2015

At the current rate of progress, about 86 countries are not on track to achieve the goal of universal primary education. The delay in achieving the goal will have devastating effects on eradicating poverty and combating diseases.

Ever wonder how much achieving Goal 2 would cost? Here’s some info…

External funding requirements for reaching universal primary education are estimated at over $10 billion a year, which is over three times more than the current level of international funding.