MDG Progress Reports - Asia and the Pacific

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MDG Progress Reports - Asia and the Pacific

July 7, 2015

Asia and the Pacific has led the world in the drive to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), with the proportion of people living on less than $1.25 per day projected to fall from 53% in 1990 to 12% by the end of the year.  

The final assessment of regional progress towards the MDGs presents an optimistic picture of how far the region has come. Yet, it underlines the crucial need to address ongoing challenges in the post-2015 development agenda.

The report notes that technology will play a key role in the post-2015 era. It calls for developed countries to provide easy access to new technologies, and stresses the importance of developing and adapting technologies available in the region.

The report, jointly published by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), comes at a critical point, as the United Nations transitions from the development focused MDGs to a post-2015 development agenda.

Highlights

  • Between 1990 and 2012, the proportion of the region’s population living on less than $1.25 per day fell from 53 to 14 %, and is expected to fall to 12% by end 2015.
  • More than two-thirds of countries are expected to halve the proportion of the population without access to safe drinking water by 2015
  • The rates of under-five and infant mortality fell short of the required two-thirds reduction, but passed the 50 percent mark