Review of Decade for Eradication of Poverty 1997-2006

United Nations E/CN.5/2006/3

Economic and Social Council Distr.: General

12 December 2005

Original: English

Commission for Social Development

Forty-fourth session

8-17 February 2006

Item 3 (a) of the provisional agenda*

Follow-up to the World Summit for Social Development and

the twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly: priority theme: review of the first United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006)

Review of the first United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006)

Report of the Secretary-General

Summary

The present report is prepared in response to Economic and Social Council decision 2005/230 of 20 July 2005, in which the Council approved the provisional agenda of the forty-fourth session of the Commission for Social Development with the priority theme "Review of the first United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006)". The report reviews the first United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006) and focuses on key developments during the Decade,  including  the  strengthened  commitment  to  poverty  eradication  at  the national and international levels, the evolution of strategies for poverty eradication, the enhanced coordination within the United Nations system to support the efforts of Member States and the obstacles and challenges that still face development partners in their fight against poverty around the world. The report concludes with a set of recommendations for consideration by the Commission.

* E/CN.5/2006/1.

05-60834 (E) 081205

*0560834*

Contents

Page

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2. KeydevelopmentsovertheDecade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

1. Strengthenedcommitmenttonationalactionandinternationalsupport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2. Enhancedglobalpartnership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3. Evolutionofpovertyreductionstrategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4. Improvedcoordination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

3. Progressinpovertyeradication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

1. Trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2. Obstaclesandchallenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3. Lessonslearned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

4. Lookingforwardandrecommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

1. Introduction

1. Inaccordancewiththemulti-yearprogrammeofworkfor2002-2006adopted atthethirty-ninthsessionoftheCommissionforSocialDevelopment,thepresent reportaddressestheprioritythemefortheforty-fourthsession,"Reviewofthefirst UnitedNationsDecadefortheEradicationofPoverty(1997-2006)".
2. ThescopeofthefirstUnitedNations DecadefortheEradicationofPovertyis broad and inclusive. Its objective, to achieve the goal of eradicating absolute povertyandreducingoverallpovertysubstantiallyintheworld,throughdecisive nationalactionsandinternationalcooperationinimplementingfullyandeffectively all agreements, commitments and recommendations of major United Nations conferencesandsummitsorganizedsince1990astheyrelatetopovertyeradication, underscoresitslong-termvisionofsustainedandconcertedeffortatthenationaland internationallevelstoeradicatepoverty.
3. Theproposaltodesignate a decadefortheeradicationofpovertywasagreed uponintheProgrammeofActionofthe World SummitforSocialDevelopmentand wasformallylaunchedbytheGeneralAssemblyatitsfiftiethsession.Thevarious activitiesthathadbeenundertakenduringtheInternational Year fortheEradication ofPovertyin1996underthetheme"Povertycanandmustbeeradicatedthroughout theworld"helpedtolaythefoundationsfortheDecadebyraisingawarenessofthe issuesandsustainingeffortsatthenationalandinternationallevelsinsupportof povertyeradication.
4. The review presented in the present report focuses on key developments duringtheDecade,includingtheenhancedpolicyframeworkforpovertyeradication at the national and international levels, the evolution of strategies for poverty eradication,enhancedcoordinationwithintheUnitedNationssystemtosupportthe efforts of Member States and the obstacles and challenges that still face developmentpartnersintheirfightagainstpovertyaroundtheworld.Thereport shouldbereadinconjunctionwiththereviewofthefurtherimplementationofthe World SummitforSocialDevelopmentandtheoutcomeofthetwenty-fourthspecial sessionoftheGeneralAssembly(E/CN.5/2005/6),theReportonthe World Social Situation, 2005 (A/60/117) and the report of the Secretary-General entitled "Towards achieving internationally agreed development goals, including those containedintheMillenniumDeclaration"(E/2005/56),whichproviderecentandin- depthanalysesofpovertyissuesandrecommendationsforaction.Thisreviewofthe DecadewillprecedethecoordinationsegmentoftheEconomicandSocialCouncil in2006,whichhasasitstheme"Theeradicationofpovertyandhunger,alongwith sustainedeconomicgrowthforsocialdevelopment".

2. Key developments over the Decade

1. Strengthenedcommitmenttonationalactionand internationalsupport

5. The eradication of poverty is a cornerstone of the United Nations comprehensivedevelopmentagendathatemergedfromthemajorUnitedNations conferences and summits since the 1990s. At the World Summit for Social Development,Governmentscommittedthemselvestotheeradicationofpovertyas an ethical, social, political and economic imperative of humankind. The CopenhagenDeclarationonSocialDevelopmentandtheProgrammeofActionof theSummitrecognizedthatpeoplemustbeatthecentreofdevelopmenteffortsand acknowledged the intrinsic link between poverty, unemployment and social integration. Governments resolved to develop national strategies to substantially reduceoverallpovertyandtoestablishtime-boundandspecifictargetstoeradicate absolutepoverty.

6. TheSocialSummitalsocalleduponGovernmentstofocustheireffortsand policies on addressing the root causes of poverty, providing basic needs for all, especiallywomenandothervulnerablegroups,andensuringthatpoorpeoplehave accesstoproductiveresources,includingcredit,educationandtraining.Inaddition, poorpeopleshouldparticipateindecision-makingtocreatepolicyand a regulatory environment that would reduce inequalities and enable them to benefit from expandingemploymentandeconomicopportunities.Whilerecognizingthatnational Governments have the primary responsibility for eradicating poverty, the Social SummitacknowledgedthecriticalroleoftheUnitedNationssysteminthisrespect. International organizations, particularly multilateral institutions, and donors were encouraged to support policies and programmes aimed at achieving the goal of povertyeradicationandensuringprovisionforthebasicneedsofall.
7. The twenty-fourth special session of the General Assembly, held in 2000, calleduponGovernmentstoputpovertyeradicationatthecentreofeconomicand socialdevelopmentandtobuildconsensuswithallrelevantactorsonpoliciesand strategiestoreducetheproportionofpeoplelivinginextremepovertybyonehalf by2015.Thespecialsessionalsoemphasizedtheneedforcomprehensivenational strategies for poverty eradication that are integrated into policies at all levels, includingeconomicandfiscalpolicies;capacity-buildingandinstitution-building; andgivingprioritytoinvestmentsin education andhealth,socialprotectionand basicsocialservices.Governmentswerealsoencouragedtodevelopandimplement sustainable pro-poor economic growth strategies that enhance the potential and ability of poor people by empowering them; providing access to productive resourcesandactiveemployment;encouragingsmallandmedium-sizedenterprises; andstimulatingagricultureandruraldevelopment.
8. ThespecialsessioninvitedtheEconomicandSocialCounciltoconsolidate ongoinginitiativesandactionsestablishedintheoutcomeoftheSocialSummit,the Decadeandtherecommendationsemergingfromthespecialsession,with a viewto launching a globalcampaigntoeradicatepoverty.Inviewofthecentralplacethat povertyeradicationoccupiesamongthegoalsoftheMillenniumDeclaration,the global campaign for the eradication of poverty was integrated into the broader globalcampaignfortheimplementationoftheMillenniumDevelopmentGoals,the Millennium Campaign. This integration was strongly supported by the United NationsSystemChiefExecutivesBoardforCoordination(CEB)atitsfirstregular sessionin2002.
9. Since1995,thepolicyframeworkonpovertyeradicationthatwasarticulated at the Social Summit has continued to figure prominently in the outcomes of conferencesandsummits,includingtheMillenniumSummitoftheUnitedNations. The Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing, and its follow-up addressedlinksbetweenabsolutepoverty andthefeminizationofpoverty,andthe contributions of women and their empowerment were seen as key in combating poverty,asequalityofrightsstrengthenswomen'sopportunitiestoparticipatein productive activities. Likewise, the World Food Summit called for the implementation of policies to eradicate poverty. It explicitly recognized the link between poverty, inequality and food insecurity and stressed that sustainable progress in poverty eradication was critical to improving access to food. At the InternationalConferenceonFinancingforDevelopment,theeliminationofpoverty and the improvement of social conditions worldwide were framed as systemic challenges that must be approached from a broad perspective. The Conference calledforeffortstoreinforcenationalcapacity-buildinginareasthatincludedsocial and gender budget policies. In addition, the World Summit on Sustainable Developmentemphasizedthatpovertyeradicationandadequatemanagementofthe natural resource base that allows for social development were overarching objectivesofsustainabledevelopmentandadvocatedtheimportanceofpromoting sociallyandculturallyacceptablepolicies,equalandequitableaccesstoeducation, health-care services and economic opportunities and initiatives that enable economicandsocialempowerment.

10. Moresignificantly,thecommitmenttoeradicatepovertymadeattheSocial SummitandreflectedintheobjectivesoftheDecadewasreaffirmedstronglyinthe MillenniumDeclaration,inwhichMemberStatesresolvedtohalve,by2015,the proportion of people living in extreme poverty and hunger. The Millennium DevelopmentGoalshavehelpedtogalvanizeeffortstowardspovertyeradication, butthequantificationoftheMillenniumDevelopmentGoalpovertytargetinterms ofthepovertythresholdof a dollar a daytendstoovershadowthecomprehensive approachsetoutattheSocialSummit,inwhichpovertywascharacterizednotonly by lack of income and consumption, but also by exclusion, marginalization and inequality.
11. The 10-year review of the implementation of the Social Summit and the outcomeofthetwenty-fourthspecialsessionoftheGeneralAssemblywasheldat the forty-third session of the Commission for Social Development, at which the Commission adopted a declaration recognizing that the implementation of the Copenhagen commitments and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals were mutually reinforcing.1 It reaffirmed that enhanced international cooperationandactionatthenationallevel wereessentialtotheimplementationof the Copenhagen commitments, in particular to the people-centred approach to development, and underlined that policies and programmes designed to achieve povertyalleviationshouldincorporatespecificmeasurestofostersocialintegration, includingbyprovidingmarginalizedsocio-economicsectorsandgroupswithequal accesstoopportunities.
12. Therecent2005 World SummitOutcomereaffirmedthevitalroleplayedby themajorconferencesandsummitsinshaping a broaddevelopmentvisionandin identifyingcommonobjectivesandreaffirmedthecommitmenttoeradicatepoverty and promote sustained economic growth, sustainable development and global prosperityforall.Itexpressedconcern overtheslowandunevenprogresstowards povertyeradicationandtherealizationof otherdevelopmentgoalsinsomeregions and emphasized the need for urgent actions, including more ambitious national developmentgoalsandeffortsbackedbyincreasedinternationalsupport.

2. Enhancedglobalpartnership

13. Thedevelopmentof a globalpartnershipbetweenrichandpoorcountries,as agreedintheMillenniumDeclarationandreaffirmedandelaboratedupon atthe InternationalConferenceonFinancingforDevelopmentandthe World Summiton SustainableDevelopment,hasyettobefullyrealized.Nevertheless,someimportant strideshavebeenmadetowardsachievingthisgoal.
14. At the 2005 World Summit, Governments of donor and developing nations made strong and unambiguous commitments to achieve the Millennium DevelopmentGoalsby2015.Thosecommitmentsincludeanadditional$50billion a year by 2010 for fighting poverty, which will become available as a result of commitmentsbymanydevelopedcountriestoachievethetargetof0.7percentof grossnationalproductforofficialdevelopmentassistanceby2015,andtoreachat least0.5percentofgrossnationalproduct forofficialdevelopmentassistanceby 2010and0.15percentto0.20percentfortheleastdevelopedcountriesbynolater than2010.Therewerealsocommitments toprovideimmediatesupportforquick- impactinitiativestosupportanti-malaria efforts,educationandhealthcare. With regardtofinancingfordevelopment,therewerecommitmentstoinnovativesources offinancing,includingeffortstoimplementanInternationalFinanceFacility,and otherinitiativestofinancedevelopmentprojects,inparticularinthehealthsector.
15. At the 2005 World Summit there was also agreement with respect to considering additional measures to ensure long-term debt sustainability through increased grant-based financing, the cancellation of 100 per cent of the official multilateralandbilateraldebtofheavily indebtedpoorcountries,including,where appropriate, significant debt relief or restructuring for low- and middle-income developing countries with unsustainable debt burdens that are not part of the HeavilyIndebtedPoorCountriesInitiative.Countriesalsoagreedtopursuetrade liberalization and expeditious work towards implementing the development dimensions of the Doha work programme. Developing countries for their part, committedtoadoptingnationalplansforachievingtheMillenniumDevelopment Goalsbytheendof2006

3. Evolutionofpovertyreductionstrategies

16. TheSocialSummitandtheDecadenotonlyhighlightedtheproblemofglobal poverty,butalsogaveaddedimpetustotheevolutionofthinkingonpovertyand poverty reduction efforts. During the Decade, there has been a progressive broadeningofthedefinitionandmeasurementofpoverty,fromusingincomeas a yardstick, to a definition that encompasses other dimensions of poverty, such as access to health services and education. More recently, that definition has been furtherexpandedtoembraceconcernsaboutriskandvulnerability,socialexclusion, powerlessness and lack of voice or representation. For the policymaker, the correlationsbetweenthevariousdimensionsofpovertyofferanexpandedsetof policiesrelevanttopovertyreduction.2
17. Thegrowingacceptanceof a moreholistic,multidimensionalviewofpoverty has,inpart,beendrivenbynegativepastexperienceswiththeso-calledneo-liberal developmentparadigm.TheworseningofpovertyinthewakeoftheAsiancrisisof 1997,forexample,generatedwidespread dissatisfactionovertheadverseoutcomes ofstructuraladjustmentprogrammesandover-relianceonmarketmechanisms.At the same time, many low-income countries that had pursued primarily growth- oriented development strategies found themselves facing rising inequality and worseningpoverty,especiallyamongthepoorest,whenthe"trickledown"effectof economicgrowthtopoorandmarginalizedgroupsinthosesocietiesdidnotoccurto theextentanticipated.

18. SincetheSocialSummit,therehavebeen a numberofinternationalinitiatives to tackle the problem of poverty and address the weaknesses of previous developmentefforts.Implicitineachof theserecentinitiativesis a specificviewof the nature, if not the causes, of poverty. In response to the Social Summit, the UnitedNationsDevelopmentProgrammelaunchedthePovertyStrategiesInitiative (PSI)in1996.3Withaninitialfundingof $11 million,mostoftheselectedcountry projectswerestartedin1997or1998. TheInitiativesupportedcountryeffortsto diagnosepovertyandimprovetheircapacityforpolicyanalysisandimplementation, whichinturnhelpedinthedevelopmentofnationalandlocalstrategiesforreducing poverty. The country-specific PSI efforts focus on various areas, including qualitative poverty assessment, household surveys and poverty maps, poverty reductionstrategiesandprogrammes,analysesofsocialspendingandaidflowsto basicservices,nationalhumandevelopmentreportsandcapacitydevelopmentfor coordinationandpovertyreduction.
19. PSI,therefore,helpedrefocuspoverty reductionasthe coreconcern ofthe development agenda. More importantly, PSI advanced poverty awareness, stimulated national debate and mobilized national actors behind common policy goalsinpovertyreductionstrategies.
20. In 1999, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) introduced the programme of poverty reduction strategies as a precondition for obtainingdebt relief and concessional financing frombothinstitutionsunderthe HeavilyIndebtedPoorCountriesInitiativeanditssuccessor,theenhancedHeavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative. The poverty reduction strategy framework is seen as a vehicletoorientaidtowards addressingkeyissues and achieving key objectives in the poorest countries through a participatory process, emphasizing country ownership and linking overall national policy to external assistance programmes. Its use reflects an attempt to place renewed emphasis on national ownershipofdevelopmentandhighlightstheimportanceandurgencyofcapacity- buildingtoenablecountriestodesignandimplementsuchstrategies.
21. AsofSeptember2005,49countries,overhalfofwhichareinsub-Saharan Africa,havepreparedPovertyReduction StrategyPapers(PRSPs).However,only abouthalfofthecountriesthathavepreparedPRSPsareundertheHeavilyIndebted PoorCountriesInitiative.ThePRSPisbeing exploredas a meanstoorientbilateral developmentassistanceby themembersoftheDevelopmentAssistanceCommittee oftheOrganizationforEconomicCooperationandDevelopment(OECD).
22. However,thePRSPframeworkhasbeenviewedashavinganunnecessarily narrowfocus.TheCommissionforSocialDevelopment,initsagreedconclusions onnationalandinternationalcooperationforsocialdevelopment,notedthatitwas necessary to place PRSPs within a wider context in which all social objectives wouldadequatelybetakenintoaccount.Atthesametime,IMFrecognizesthatits main contribution to the Millennium Development Goals (including poverty reduction) is in promoting macroeconomic and financial stability a crucial

prerequisite for poverty reduction and economic growth.4 IMF is clear about its priority. Thus, to the extent that poverty reduction conflicts with macroeconomic and financial stability, it is likely to have lower priority in the PRSPs. Nevertheless, the focus of PRSPs is increasingly being aligned with the achievement of the development goals of the Millennium Declaration, principally with the first target of the Millennium Development Goals, to halve extreme poverty by 2015.

4. Improvedcoordination

23. AnothermajordevelopmentduringtheDecadehasbeenthestrenuousefforts toensurebettercoordinationofactionat theintergovernmentallevelandwithinthe UnitedNationssystem.

1. Coordination at the intergovernmental level General Assembly

24. TheGeneralAssembly,primarilythroughitsannualreviewsoftheprogress andimplementationoftheDecadefortheEradicationofPoverty,hassince1998 adoptedresolutionsthathavereaffirmedtheDecade'sgoals.5Forthefirsthalfofthe Decade,theAssemblyadoptedthepracticeofrequestingtheSecretary-Generalto reporton a selectedthemetopicinordertofocusitsdeliberationsonkeypoverty- relatedissuessuchasglobalization,microcreditandwomen'semployment.
25. At its twenty-fourth special session, in 2000, the Assembly undertook an overallreviewandappraisaloftheimplementationoftheoutcomeoftheSocial Summitandconsideredfurtheractionsandinitiativestoachievethecommitments adopted at Copenhagen,6 including the goal of eradicating poverty. The special sessionagreedto"placepovertyeradicationatthecentreofeconomicandsocial developmentandbuildconsensuswithall relevantactorsatalllevelsonpolicies andstrategiestoreducetheproportionofpeoplelivinginextremepovertybyone halfbytheyear2015with a viewtoeradicatingpoverty".7Thistime-boundgoal wasreaffirmedintheUnitedNationsMillenniumDeclaration.
26. To achieve the goal of halving extreme poverty, the 2005 World Summit emphasized the crucial role of national policies and development strategies. Developing countries resolved to adopt, by 2006, comprehensive national developmentstrategiestoachievetheinternationallyagreeddevelopmentgoalsand objectives.Developedcountriespledgedtosupporttheseeffortsthroughincreased development assistance, the promotion of international trade as an engine for development, the transfer of technology on mutually agreed terms, increased investmentflowsandwideranddeeperdebtrelief.

Economic and Social Council

27. The Economic and Social Council has a leading role in the fight against poverty. The issues addressed and decisions taken at the Council's substantive sessionsthroughouttheDecade,especiallythethemesithaschosentohighlight duringitshigh-levelandcoordinationsegments,haveservedtohighlightandfocus attentiononcriticalissuesofpolicy,implementationandcoordinationwiththeaim ofacceleratingthepaceofpovertyreduction.

28. In May 1998, the Council devoted a special session to the integrated and coordinatedfollow-uptomajorinternationalconferencesandsummitsasthefirst subject-oriented session of its kind. It adopted resolution 1998/44, in which it providedguidancetotheUnitedNationssystemforbetterintegratingitseffortsto implement the outcome of major conferences and conducted a review of the functional commissions with specific responsibilities for the follow-up of major conferencesandsummits.
29. Thedraftministerialcommuniquéentitled"Theroleofemploymentandwork in poverty eradication: the empowerment and advancement of women" (E/1999/L.21), which was adopted at the Council's substantive session of 1999, recommended actions in support of national efforts to eradicate poverty, with particularattentiontoemployment creation and work and the empowerment and advancementofwomen.
30. The Council's consideration of African development at its 2001 high-level segment resulted in the first formal international endorsement of the New PartnershipforAfrica'sDevelopment.Itsresolutiononthecontributionofhuman resourcestodevelopmentin2002explicitlyrecognizedthecriticalcontributionof health and education to human resources development and the need to fully integrate these considerations into macroeconomic policies, including poverty reduction initiatives and to give them appropriate priority in national budgetary allocations.
31. Mostrecently,theoutcomeofthe2005high-levelsegmentoftheEconomic andSocialCouncilconstituted a majorinputtothe2005high-levelreviewbythe GeneralAssemblyoftheprogressmadeintheimplementationoftheinternationally agreeddevelopmentgoalsandtheglobalpartnershiprequiredfortheirachievement. The2005substantivesessionoftheCouncilalsointroducedtheinnovative "Voices againstpoverty"session,whichgavenon-UnitedNationsactors a chancetointeract andsharetheirviewsontheMillenniumDevelopmentGoalswiththemembersof theCouncil.
32. The2005 World Summitexplicitlyrecognizedtheneedfor a moreeffective Council as a principal body for coordination, policy review, policy dialogue, recommendations on issues of economic and social development and implementationoftheinternationaldevelopmentgoalsagreedatthemajorUnited Nationssummitsandconferences,includingtheMillenniumDevelopmentGoals. The Council was entrusted with adapting its organization of work, agenda and currentmethodsofworktofulfilthisimportantrole.8
33. Outsideofitssubstantivesessions,theCouncilinitiated,in1998, a traditionof meetingeachAprilwithfinanceministersheadingkeycommitteesoftheBretton Woods institutions.Theseconsultationsinitiatedinter-institutionalcooperationthat pavedthewayfortheMonterreyConsensus.9TheCouncilwasassigned a primary role in monitoring and assessing follow-up to the Monterrey Consensus. These Councilconsultationshavebeenconsideredimportantfordeepeningthedialogue between the United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions, and for strengtheningtheirpartnershipforachievingthedevelopmentgoalsagreedatthe globalconferencesofthe1990s.

Commission for Social Development

34. During the Decade, the Commission for Social Development has played a majorrolebyaddressingtheeradicationofpovertyinitsvariousdimensions.The agreedconclusionsandresolutionsthathaveresultedfromthedeliberationsofthe Commissionhavecontributedsignificantlytotheglobaldiscourseonpovertywithin thebroadercontextofsocialdevelopment.Inparticular,theadoptionofpriority themesbytheCommissionforitsannualsessionshasservedasanimportantvehicle to focus the debate among Members States on many issues critical to poverty eradication.10Forexample,theeradicationofpovertywasthefirstprioritytheme addressedbytheCommissionaftertheSocialSummit,in1996.
35. Duringitsthirty-fifthsession,theCommissionexaminedthetopic"Productive employment and sustainable livelihoods". In its agreed conclusions, the Commissionemphasizedtheimportanceofsettingtime-boundgoalsandtargetsfor expanding employment, reducing unemployment and increasing productivity in ruralandurbaninformalsectorsthroughimprovingaccesstocredit,fertileland, productiveinputs,infrastructure,basicsocialservices,informationand extension services.
36. OnthetenthanniversaryoftheSocialSummit,theCommission,atitsforty- third session, reviewed the further implementation of the outcome of the Social Summitandthetwenty-fourthspecialsessionoftheGeneralAssembly.Centralin its deliberations was the commitment to poverty eradication. In the ministerial declaration adopted at the high-level segment of its forty-third session, the Commissionurgedthatthepeople-centredapproachtodevelopmentenvisionedin the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development be restored and called for policies to link the efforts of poverty eradication to the fostering of social integrationandtothepromotionofemploymentstrategies.Ofparticularimportance wasthecallfortheissuesofemploymentandsocialintegrationtobeinjectedinto the Millennium Development Goals in order to broaden the concept of poverty eradication.TheCommissionrequestedthatitsDeclarationbetransmittedtothe 2005 World Summit,throughtheEconomicandSocialCouncil,as a contributionto thereviewoftheMillenniumDeclaration.

Coordination within the United Nations system

37. The organizations of the United Nations system have made significant progress in integrating the Millennium Development Goals and the goals of the UnitedNationsdevelopmentagendaintheirprogrammesofworkandindeveloping system-wideapproachestosupporttheimplementationofthedevelopmentagenda atthecountrylevel.TheUnitedNationssystemstrivestoimprovethecoordination of its work in the area of economic and social development so as to avoid duplicationandoverlapandthusensurethatthevariouspartsoftheUnitedNations systemarebetterplacedtocomplementanddrawuponeachother'swork,bothat headquarters and in the field. CEB, the Executive Committee on Economic and Social Affairs and the United Nations Development Group (UNDG) have been taskedwithcoordinatingtheactivitiesof theUnitedNationssystemintheareaof povertyeradication.
38. Since 2001, CEB formerly the Administrative Committee on Coordination hasbeenactivelyengagedinreviewingandassessingactionsby the organizations of the system at all levels to ensure that the Millennium DeclarationandtheGoalscontainedthereinare a key, integralpartofthepriorities orientingtheworkofthesystem.Inaddressingkeystrategicissuesthatcutacross the programmatic, sectoral interventions of its member organizations, CEB has soughttoreinforcesynergiesamongtheimplementationactivitiesofUnitedNations organizations.

39. Povertyeradicationandtheobjectiveofpromotingequityandequalityatboth thenationalandinternationallevelshavebeentheoverarchinggoalsthatguideCEB in contributing to the development of a focused global agenda, based on the outcomesofglobalconferences.During1998,thethenAdministrativeCommittee on Coordination addressed the problem of poverty eradication, issuing at the conclusionofitsspringsession a policystatementonthesubjectandendorsing a set ofguidelinestofosterinter-agencycooperationatthefieldlevel(seeE/1999/48).At thefirstregularsessionoftheAdministrativeCommitteeonCoordinationin2000, executive heads underscored the fact that poverty eradication was the greatest challengeofglobalization.Atitsfall2000session,anditsfirstregularsessionof 2001, the Committee addressed the role of the United Nations system in the processestofollowuptheMillenniumSummit,particularlyinrespectofthefirst target of the Millennium Development Goals, to halve poverty by 2015 (ACC/2001/4).Thisfocusonorchestratingcloserinter-agencycooperationtowards the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals has remained a guiding principleoftheworkofCEB.
40. The establishment of the four Executive Committees was an important componentofthereformprocesslaunchedbytheSecretary-Generalinearly1997. TheaiminestablishingtheseExecutiveCommitteeswastosharpenthecontribution thateachentitymakesto theoverallobjectivesof theOrganization byreducing duplicationofeffortandfacilitatinggreatercomplementarity andcoherence.The Executive Committees are designed, therefore, as instruments of policy development, decision-making and management in which the heads of United Nationsentitiesconsultwithoneanotheronworkprogrammesandothersubstantive and administrative matters of collective concern in order to identify and exploit ways of pooling resources and services so as to maximize programme impact, minimizeadministrativecostsand,moregenerally,facilitatejointstrategicplanning anddecision-making.
41. To facilitate its role as envisioned in the Secretary-General's reforms, the Executive Committee on Economic and Social Affairs has prepared four major substantivereportsrelatedtocriticalcontemporaryissuesineconomicandsocial developmentthatunderliethecomprehensiveUnitedNationsdevelopmentagenda, including efforts to eradicate poverty.11 These reports are the product of a collaborativeandcoordinatedeffortoftheExecutiveCommitteeonEconomicand SocialAffairsandrepresentthecollectivepositionoftheUnitedNationsSecretariat intheeconomic,socialandrelatedfieldsonthesepressingissues.
42. UNDG is also an instrument for United Nations reform created by the Secretary-General in 1997 to improve the effectiveness of United Nations development efforts at the country level. UNDG brings together the operational agenciesworkingondevelopmentanddevelopspoliciesandproceduresthatallow member agencies to work together and analyse country issues, plan support strategies,implementsupportprogrammes,monitorresultsandadvocateforchange. TheseinitiativesincreasetheUnitedNationsimpactinhelpingcountriesachievethe Millennium Development Goals, including the overarching goal of poverty eradication. The results-oriented priorities of UNDG for 2005 include achieving nationalownershipandprogrammecoherenceatthecountrylevel,strengtheningof theresidentcoordinatorsystemandachievinganeffectiveUnitedNationsrolein situationsoftransitionfromrelieftodevelopment.

43. In addition to the more institutionalized forms of inter-agency cooperation, suchasCEBanditshigh-levelcommittees,UNDGandtheExecutiveCommittees, there are extensive networks of informal collaborative arrangements and joint initiatives that focus on supporting the implementation of the Millennium Declarationandtheoutcomesofotherglobalconferences.Forexample,theFood and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the International Fund for AgriculturalDevelopmentandthe World FoodProgramme,haveformed a United Nations system Network on Rural Development and Food Security, while the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations Secretariat and the World Bank closely collaborate on youth employment issues in the Secretary- General'syouthemploymentnetwork.Cooperationschemesalsoexistinvarious otherfields:humanitarian,educationforall,health,youth,gender,environmental sustainability,governance,humanrightsandHIV/AIDS.
44. Instrumentsatthecountrylevel,suchasthecommoncountryassessment,the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) and its results matrix, thematic groups and joint programming initiatives, are working towards delivering more strategic and integrated approaches. The UNDAF process, in particular,isincreasinglybeingfocusedtoassistGovernmentsintranslatingand realigningtheinternationallyagreeddevelopmentgoals,includingthosecontained intheMillenniumDeclaration,intonationalpolicies,strategiesandprogrammes. The results matrix in the UNDAF process enables United Nations system organizationstoorient theirprogrammesandoperationsaroundthe development goals,monitorandevaluatetheeffectivenessoftheiroperationsandbuildnational capacitiestomonitorandevaluateimplementation.

3. Progress in poverty eradication

1. Trends

45. ProgressinpovertyeradicationovertheDecadehasbeenmixed.Attheglobal level, the proportion of poor people living on less than one dollar a day in developingcountriesdeclinedfrom27.9to21.3percentbetween1990and2001, a transitionofroughly 118 millionpersonsoutofextremepoverty.Ifcurrenttrends aremaintained,thegoalislikelytobeachievedatthegloballevelin2015,andthe numberofpeoplelivinginextremepovertywouldjustfallbelow735millionby 2015,fromabout1.22billionin1990.
46. However,thisglobalpicturemasksimportantdisparitiesattheregionallevel. GlobalpovertyreductionhasbeendrivenbythesuccessofEastAsiaandthePacific andSouthAsia,whoareontracktoachievetheMillenniumDevelopment Goal targetofhalvingextremepovertyatthenationallevelby2015.China,infact,has already achieved the poverty reduction target: the number of people living in extremepovertytherefellfrom377millionto212millionbetween1990and2001, orfrom33percentto16.6percentofthepopulation.