UN report card on anti-poverty goals shows mixed picture of progress and obstacles

23 June 2010 –The world continues to make advances towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), despite the global economic downturn, but the rate of improvement remains too slow and countries must step up their efforts if the MDGs are to be achieved by their target date of 2015, a new United Nations report says.

“As we continue to consolidate our political and economic independence, the poverty reduction objective has now acquired a central position in our development policies. The MDG targets we have set for ourselves as a Nation, will now serve as social development benchmarks for all our development priorities and intervention.  As such, our national economic and social development plans, will henceforth seek to achieve the poverty reduction goals and targets outlined in the Report,” 
HIS EXCELLENCY R.G. Mugabe - President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, speaking at the Launch of the Zimbabwe  Millennium Development Goals  2004 Progress Report

Zimbabwe is part of the 189 Head of States and Governments who were signatories to the UN Millennium Summit in September 2000.  For Zimbabwe, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) represent a concerted effort by Government, business, civil society and development partners to work towards an agreed set of Goals and Targets for sustainable growth and development, especially for the most marginalized members of society. On the UN side the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the lead coordinating agency working with government.

THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS STATUS AS OF 2009   

Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger

· Approximately 5.1 million require food assistance.
· According to 2003 PASS, 58 percent of households in Zimbabwe consumed less than 3 meals per day.
· 4.4 percent acute malnutrition in children under 5 years
· The population living below the Total consumption Poverty Line (TCPL) increased from 55 percent in 1995 to 72 percent in 2003.
· In 2003, 63 percent of rural households and 53 percent of urban households were living below TCPL.
· Feminization of poverty as depicted by higher prevalence of poverty among female-headed households at 68 percent TCPL in 2003.
· Higher levels of malnutrition with children under 5 – years of age increasing from 13 percent in 1999 to 17 percent in 2006.    

Achieve Universal Primary Education

 · Enrolments in primary schools increased from 820,266 in 1979 to 2,445,516 in 2006, a growth of 198 percent.
· The primary school NER has remained positive or higher and equal to Net attendance Ratio (NAR). It had reached 96 percent in 2002 to a peak of 99 percent in 2004 and declining slightly in 2006 at 97 percent.
· The 2009 Zimbabwe Multiple Indicator monitoring Survey (MIMS), Preliminary report, indicates a NER of 91 percent –meaning 9 percent of children of primary school-going age were not enrolled. Urban areas had a higher NER (94 percent) and rural area (90 percent).
· Reasons for non-attendance in 2009 were attributed to financial constraints (50 percent), early marriage or pregnancy (16 percent) and satisfied with levels attained (12 percent), among other reasons.

Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women

· Significant progress in narrowing gender disparities in both primary and secondary education with NER both by boys and girls reaching parity at 91 percent in 2009.
· Female university enrolment increased from 23 percent in 2006 to 37 percent in 2007 but still below the target of 50 percent by 2015.
· Zimbabwe signed and ratified the CEDAW (1991), Beijing Platform of Action (1995), SADC Declaration on Gender and Development, National Gender Policy 2003, constitution of Zimbabwe section 23 and the national gender machinery.
· A full-fledged Ministry of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development established in 2005.
· To mainstream gender in public service, the 2004 Public Sector Gender Policy put in place with gender focal points in all Ministries and parastatals.
· Women participation in political and economic decision-making still lagging. The Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM) has increased from 0.361 in 1995 to 0.402 in 2003 which is low and indicating that females are still far behind male empowerment.
· The participation of women in lower house at Parliament in Zimbabwe is still low and the  target is to increase to 50 percent by 2015   

Zimbabwe MDG Progress Report 2000 - 2007

Zimbabwe MDG Progress Report 2005

Zimbabwe MDG Progress Report 2004