The MDGs - challenges and opportunities: Bangladesh Perspectives
Speakers:
Dr. A. B. Mirza Azizul Islam - Honourable Adviser (Minister) for Finance and Planning, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh
Mark Lowcock - Director General, Country Programmes, Department for International Development
Chair:
Simon Maxwell - Director, ODI
Dr. Azizul Islam
Honourable Adviser (Minister) for Finance and Planning, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh
- The MDGs mark a shift in the perception of development, away from GDP and per capita growth rates.
- Progress on MDG yardsticks can be assessed by ascertaining: the extent to which the MDGs are mainstreamed in the development agenda; progress towards the MDGs themselves; progress relative to comparator countries; and the likelihood of the MDGs being reached.
- For the vast majority of MDGs, Bangladesh is closer to achieving these goals than most Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Where there are exceptions to this rule, such as in the case of the percentage of underweight children, Bangladesh exhibits marked progress over time.
- The international community could enhance its support to Bangladesh by: ensuring duty and quota free access for all Bangladesh’s exports; reversing the decreasing amount of funding for trade-related technical assistance, in order to boost Bangladesh’s supply capacity; and, improving both the level and effectiveness of Overseas Development Aid.
- Bangladesh is likely to meet the MDGs. Success will be partly due to: the mainstreaming of the MDGs (into PRSPs, for example); public finance reforms; economic structure diversification; increasing rates of growth (currently at 6%); growing exports and remittances; and social protection programmes.
- However, to secure the achievement of the MDGs, Bangladesh must ensure: faster and more diversified industrialisation; improved agricultural productivity and food security; better economic governance (in the private as well as the public sector); continued macro-economic stability; overcoming gaps in skill shortages; and adapting to climate change.
Description
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) represent a global commitment to tackle poverty, hunger, disease, education, inequality and environmental degradation. Since their launch in 2000 the MDGs have been a useful tool for international development and to reach the targets by 2015 is no mean achievement.
At this event, Dr. A. B. Mirza Azizul Islam, Honourable Adviser (Minister) for Finance and Planning, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, will present the successes and challenges of MDG’s in Bangladesh and the actions for the international community to accelerate progress towards meeting the goals.