MDG Gap Task Force Report 2008: Delivering on the Global Partnership for Achieving the MDGs

Document Summary

There has been much progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, but in most parts of the world much more needs to be done. With respect to the eighth goal—to create a global partnership for development—Member States have made concrete commitments focusing in particular on the areas of trade, official development assistance, external debt, essential medicines and technology.

The first report of the MDG Gap Task Force, released in 2008, identifies major shortcomings in the progress towards these commitments and provides recommendations for all major stakeholders on how to address them. It calls for donors to increase aid and to mobilize additional resources for debt relief in the poorest countries. It is also important for nations to develop new information and communications technology strategies. The Task Force urges countries’ governments and pharmaceutical companies to take measures to improve access to essential medicines, including treatments for the most neglected diseases and medicines in children’s dosages.