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Friday 26 September 2008

Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma has asked governments to consider the incorporation of social protection at a UN High Level Event on Africa's Development Needs in New York (held on Monday 22 September). The move has been welcomed by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), Britain’s leading think tank on international development.

Speaking today from New York, Andrew Shepherd, a Director of Programmes at the ODI and the Chronic Poverty Research Centre, said:

"I am delighted that the Commonwealth Secretariat has taken up this vital policy. Our research shows that the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) currently exclude millions of the poorest people, who are the most vulnerable to the kind of shocks the world is currently experiencing – in food price rises and global financial turmoil.

“I hope the Commonwealth Secretary-General’s call for consideration of an update of the MDGs to include social protection will be heeded and used to adjust the Millennium Development Goals.”

At the High Level Event, ODI and the Chronic Poverty Research Centre co-hosted a meeting to put forward the case for a new MDG target or goal from 2010, with a process to agree it between now and then.

Notes to Editors:

1) Based on recent research, ODI and the CPRC have outlined three options for inclusion of social protection in the MDG’s. They are: 

• By the inclusion of a new Millennium Development Goal  

Goal – ‘Half the world’s extreme poor are able to access basic social assistance by 2015 and all poor people by 2025’.

Targets - (i) 50% of the $1 a day poor (or children in extreme poor households) able to access basic social assistance by 2015 (ii)  95% of  $2 a day poor people able to access basic social assistance by 2025.’ 

• By the inclusion of a new target within an existing goal (e.g. MDG1)

Target - '50% of children in extreme poverty supported by social assistance programmes by 2015.' 

• By a new commitment within a revised Millennium Declaration

A new commitment recognising the importance of social protection, and especially social assistance in (i) achieving the MDGs; (ii) addressing the vulnerability of the extreme poor, the impossibility of escaping poverty and improving human capital levels for many without significant social assistance, and (iii) the importance of preventing the descent of more people into extreme poverty through social assistance. It would recommend that the international community continue to work with developing countries to put social assistance programmes in place and that countries develop their own goals, targets and indicators on social assistance.

2) A press release from the ODI calling for the inclusion of social protection in the MDGs was released on Monday 22nd September: http://www.odi.org.uk/media/newsreleases/2008/080922.htm

3) The Chronic Poverty Report 2008 is available here: http://www.chronicpoverty.org/pubfiles/CPR2_whole_report.pdf

4) Chronic Poverty: Poverty experienced by individuals and households for extended periods of time or throughout their entire lives, and may be passed to the next generation.

5) More information on ODI work on the MDG Call to Action is available here: http://www.odi.org.uk/odi-on/call-to-action-mdgs/index.asp

6) The Commonwealth is an association of 53 independent states consulting and co-operating in the common interests of their peoples and in the promotion of international understanding.

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