Off-Track MDGs High On The Agenda

Off-Track MDGs High On The Agenda

22 October, 2012 (Suva, Fiji) Representatives from government and civil society from Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu as well as development partners will meet in Fiji this week to identify priority interventions for the off-track Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The MDGs Acceleration Framework Pacific Methodological Workshop will also assist participants to develop a plan to fast track the achievement of specific MDG targets that have been identified as lagging behind.

Tonga has chosen to combat non-communicable diseases (NCDs - MDG target 6.C), Tuvalu is looking at improving primary school completion rates (MDG target 2.A) and Vanuatu is improving access to reproductive health focusing on adolescent birth rates and unmet need for family planning (MDG target 5.B).

The MDGs Acceleration Framework is an innovative approach designed to help countries identify and resolve barriers to eradicating extreme poverty and achieving sustainable development. It provides a systematic way for countries to develop their own action plan based on existing plans and processes to pursue their MDGs priorities. It also helps governments to focus on disparities and inequalities, two of the major causes of uneven progress, by particularly responding to the needs of the vulnerable.

The United Nations Resident Coordinator and UN Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative, Knut Ostby and the Tongan Minister for Education and Training, Honourable Dr ‘Ana Maui Taufe'ulungaki will deliver remarks at the opening of the workshop.

The workshop, organized by UNDP will take place at the Holiday Inn in Suva from 23-25 October 17, 2012.
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Note to Editors:
The workshop is closed to the media. Interviews and photo opportunities can be arranged by contacting Sheryl Ho, UNDP Knowledge Communications Analyst

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