Formal Launching of Post-2015 Global Development Framework Deliberations in Nigeria

It gives me pleasure to address you today on the current critical global development issue tagged “post-2015 MDGs development framework” as it affects Nigeria.

In order to address the problem of poverty and promote sustainable developments, the 8 millennium goals were adopted in September 2000 at the largest gathering of Heads of States committing both rich and poor countries to do all they can to eradicate poverty, promote human dignity and equality, and achieve peace, democracy and environmental stability. By this commitment the world has an unprecedented opportunity to improve the lives of billions of people by adopting practical approaches to meeting the Millennium Development Goals. The MDGs and related targets and indicators serve as benchmarks of progress towards the shared vision of where we want to go and commitment to work together to get there. There are 18 targets and 48 indicators set to achieve the 8 goals by 2015.

Twelve years on from the original adoption of the MDGs at the 2000 Millennium Summit, it seems all the efforts by stakeholders towards achieving MDGs by 2015 were not drastic enough. Though there is some remarkable progress made in some countries, collectively we are falling short in the achievement of MDGs especially in Nigeria. The consequence of these shortfalls, further aggravated by the combined effects of the global food, climate, energy, economic crises, and recently, terrorism, is that improvements in the lives of the poorest are happening at an unacceptably slow pace. Nigeria is fraught with despondency in the face of bad leadership, hunger, starvation, preventable diseases, moral decadence and corruption.

At the current pace, several of the eight MDGs and associated targets are likely to be missed in Nigeria. Nigerians are suffering amidst plenty as we have both human and material resources. About 72 % Nigerians are still living in poverty (Nigeria Bureau of Statistics 2011) while our youths are passing out from higher institutions without jobs thus turning some of them to emergency robbers while many are desperate to get out of the country. Our educational system from primary to tertiary level is in shambles while our health systems are in abysmal decay as our national budget on health has never reached 15% as canvassed for internationally. Both infant mortality and maternal mortality ratios are increasing by the day as women are still dying while giving birth.

Myriads are the challenges against attainment of MDGs in Nigeria. Things that are supposedly to work are not working. Vision 20-2020 cannot see any vision for Nigeria to be one of the 20 topmost economies of the world as industries are relocating to neighboring countries like Sierra Leone and Ghana while many are folding up. Power supply in Nigeria is an albatross and has been erratic or epileptic throwing many into further poverty. Our oil is a paradox as we import what we produce because the greedy cartels and political saboteurs are not making our refineries work for selfish reasons. Religious and ethnic crises have become the order of the day. Insecurity has become a major challenge and the bane of development especially with Boko Haram unleashing terror on innocent Nigerians while the federal government seems helpless.

Nigeria needs good leadership, not political caterwauls. It needs leaders that have political will to transform Nigeria from this state of squalor to an enviable position among the comity of nations. Nigeria needs committed leaders that are ready to stamp out corruption by sealing the leakages of public funds into private pockets and genuinely prosecuting sleazebag.

Looking beyond MDGs 2015 globally, the focus now is post-2015 development framework which centers on sustainable development goals. The need to look beyond 2015 MDGs is emphasized in the 2010 Annual Report of the Secretary-General (11 July 2011) titled, “Accelerating progress towards the Millennium Development Goals: options for sustained and inclusive growth and issues for advancing the United Nations development agenda beyond 2015”. The Millennium Development Goal summit requested the Secretary-General to make recommendations in his annual reports, as appropriate, for further steps to advance the United Nations development agenda beyond 2015.

Between now and coming months, structured discussions, in different United Nations forums, will enable Member States (including Nigeria) and other relevant stakeholders especially the CSOs to make their own assessments on how the Millennium Development Goals should be reviewed and rethought. Fortunately, Nigeria is one of the fifty countries that UN-led national deliberations would be organized while two Nigerians are on the High Level Panel set up by the UN Secretary-General. The post-2015 development framework is likely to have the best development impact if it emerges from a broad-based, inclusive, open and transparent process with multi-stakeholder participation. Using established global, regional and national mechanisms and processes is one way to ensure that such deliberations benefit from the wide range of lessons learned and the experiences of different stakeholders.

Campaign2015+ International believes that civil society as well as the fourth estate of the realm has a key role to play in the various deliberations towards post-2015 development agenda. And thus, it is the only coalition so far in Nigeria that has started discussions already on post-2015 agenda as its members have been organising deliberations at the grassroots level. This southwest zonal deliberation is an effort geared at sensitising the people to participate actively in post-2015 global development agenda by making their voices count in the process and implementation of the new sustainable development goals. The deliberations which have started at the local level would go through the six geo-political zones of Nigeria to be consummated at the national level to coincide with the UN-led national deliberation before March2013. We encourage individuals, organizations, and the press to make input into these post-2015 development framework discussions so that the voices of Nigerians would be heard on the kind of world they want, in particular, the kind of Nigeria they desire.

We therefore call on the Nigerian government, the Nigerian members of the High Level Panel, UN systems, development agencies, civil society organisations and all stakeholders to join in a synergistic partnership with Campaign2015+international to ensure that the poor and those highly affected by poverty in Nigeria have a voice in the process of developing a more sustainable global development framework.

– See more at: http://localhost/campaign2015/an-address-presented-by-dr-tola-winjobi-convener-campaign-2015-international-marking-the-formal-launching-of-post-2015-global-development-framework-deliberations-in-nigeria/#sthash.si7FZe61.dpuf

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