More financial resources needed to spur developing countries to MDGs

Accra, Dec. 8, GNA - Attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) hinges on the ability of developed countries to provide the needed financial resources that could help to transform the economies of developing countries.

Mr Daouda Toure, UN Resident Coordinator, said to make it easier for developing countries to meet the targets, official development assistance from the rich nations must be increased substantially and maintained at high levels to allow for accelerated growth in such countries.

It is estimated that at least 50 billion dollars would be required annually to fill financing gaps in developing countries. He was speaking at a day's workshop on how the media could play a crusading role in sensitising the public and in scrutinising government programmes to ensure that they fell in line with the targets set under the MDGs.

About 25 journalists drawn from electronic and print media are attending the training on the theme: "Achieving the Targets of the MDGs - The Role of the Media."

Mr Toure, who described achieving the MDGs targets as a shared responsibility, said the developed countries could do more to help the plight of the poorer nations by removing tariffs and other barriers that hindered access to their markets. He said whatever policies were drawn up to attain the targets; the cardinal goal should be the reduction of poverty at all levels of the economy.

Ms Margaret Novicki, Director of the United Nations Information Centre, underscored the need for Ghanaians to spearhead their own development agenda as far as the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were concerned.

She stressed local ownership of programmes, saying Ghanaians themselves must be agents of their own development. Ms Novicki lauded the progress made by Ghana towards attaining the goals but called for sustained efforts to meet the targets. "There is a real danger that if we do not consolidate and strengthen our efforts now, five years after the MDGs were adopted, we may fail to reach the Goals by 2015."

The MDGs represent a global partnership agreed by all the world's countries and all the world's leading development institutions to halve extreme poverty, halt the spread of HIV and AIDS and provide universal primary education by 2015. 08 Dec. 05