Updated 13 October 2010

On 15 September 2010, The World Federation’s NGO Development Manager, Imran Janmohamed, attended a high profile Bond event which had an aim of demonstrating the support to the Millennium Development Goals and engaging with the UK Government who were commitment in achieving it. The keynote speakers at this event were British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, Secretary of State for International Development Andrew Mitchell, and the Head of Water Aid (Nigeria), Ms. Juanita. The event sought to promote the important leadership role of the UK Government at the MDG Review Summit that was held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from 20 September.

The British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg’s has said the UK government will meet its commitments to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). "With the 2015 deadline looming we need to make sure the next five years are marked not by warm words and platitudes but firm, concrete action. The UK can be proud of the leadership it is showing on international development. At next week's Millennium Development Goals Summit in New York I will be fighting hard to secure commitments from other nations and the private sector that will deliver real progress towards meeting these vital goals. Over the last decade the UK has played a major part in getting 47 million children into school and helping four million people living with HIV get vital treatment."

The Secretary of State for International Development, Andrew Mitchell, in outlining the UK priorities for the MDGs, said: "It is profoundly shocking that, in the twenty-first century, giving birth is not a blessing but a death sentence for hundreds of thousands of women every year. That's why we have made the most off-track of all the MDGs - to reduce the number of maternal deaths by 75% - the UK's top priority for next week's MDG Summit. International action on maternal health has the potential to save countless lives. In addition, another priority for the UK will be to galvanise international action to tackle malaria, a disease which causes nearly a million entirely preventable deaths every year."

Ms. Juanita, the head of governance at Water Aid in Nigeria, spoke from an African perspective on the challenges of achieving the MDGs. She said, “Despite huge progress made in the past decade, critical areas of development still lag behind: child mortality, maternal health and sanitation. We need an integrated aid system that is dictated less by who can shout the loudest and more by where the need is greatest, as told by the poor and most vulnerable in the developing world for whom the MDGs are literally a matter of life and death”

During the event, Bond revealed that 1.3 million people in Britain have taken part in campaigns to advocate support for the MDGs in the last year and were calling on a show support for the UK Government’s commitment to increasing its aid funding to 0.7% of GNP and for prioritising the MDGs.

The Chief executive of Bond, Nick Roseveare, added: "The UK Government has a crucial role to play in developing a strong and ambitious rescue plan for the MDGs; a plan that secures urgent action and financial support from all UN member countries. Only then will the world be able to achieve the MDGs and lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty."

The World Federation have been part of the Bond's Disaster Risk Reduction Group and has been taking part in its deliberations. Bond is a membership organisation representing over 370 international development organisations which The World Federation is a member of.

The World Federation has also attended the MDG Review Summit that was held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from 20 September.

The World Federation NGO development manager Imran Janmohamed, said, “The role of Britain in the MDGs leading the discussion on the achievements of MDGs is remarkable. With the focus on the maternal and child health which has the potential to save countless lives, The World Federation will ensure that new stategies are put in place."

For further information, email ngo@world-federation.org