Aid pledges will save lives of 10 million mothers and babies
25 September 2008
Aid commitments made today in New York will save the lives of 10 million mothers and newborn babies in the developing world over the next seven years.
The pledges from heads of state and leading development figures were made in response to the findings of a major report into progress on health in the world's poorest countries.
Although increased investments in health are paying off on the ground - with more people in recent years receiving AIDS treatment and fewer children dying from malaria and measles - more money is needed urgently to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on child and maternal mortality. The Goals call for reductions in maternal deaths by three-quarters and child deaths by two-thirds by 2015.
The commitments - made at the United Nations, where the world has gathered for a week of action on fighting poverty - are aimed specifically at strengthening poor countries' health systems.
UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced £450 million over the next three years to support national health plans in eight countries, and Robert Zoellick, President of the World Bank, revealed that teams of expert staff will be sent to Africa over the coming months to improve maternal, newborn and child health. Over 1 million new health workers will be trained and recruited as a result of the pledges made today.
Also announced was the establishment of a high-level taskforce focussed on finding new approaches to health sector financing. The taskforce will make recommendations to the Italian G8 Summit in 2009 on how innovative aid mechanisms can complement other sources of finance to deliver vital extra resources.
Emphasising that the world had "much much further to go" to achieve the health MDGs, International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander encouraged those present at the UN to participate in the taskforce. "I believe it is by such joint actions that we can build on the kind of momentum and progress that we have seen here today," he said.
Links
- Action on poverty: Major UN meeting on the MDGs
- International Health Partnership - Initiative launched September 2007 to improve donor support for national health plans
UN website about the New York meeting
- Millennium Development Goals
