In the past four years infant mortality has come down by a third

Dr. Tajudeen

FOR the past six weeks I have been travelling in the western, eastern and southern parts of Africa. The mission (as these trips are grandiosely described in United Nations’ vocabulary) has been to assess situations on the ground regarding the implementation and achievement of the Millennium Development goals (MDGS) in the various countries.

This is the mid-year in the 15-year terminal date set for the achievement of the goals. The other and more immediate reason for the travels is to see what preparations are being made by various partners of the UN millennium Campaign for this year’s Guinness Challenge to beat the record set last year for standing up against poverty.

The UN Millennium Campaign’s Global Director, Salil Shetty, led the missions. It involved meeting with various UN country teams, Government officials, National Coalitions for the Global Call Against Poverty (GCAP) / MDG campaigners and local and international NGOs, among others. We have been either together or individually in Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Malawi.

There have been a number of activities; reports and media focus during July (the exact mid-point of the MDGs being, July 7, 2007 in many countries indicating slow progress on a number of the goals in many countries. But there is a general pessimistic consensus that on the current pace most of our countries may not achieve the goals by 2015.

A disproportionate focus on what has not been achieved may actually make one lose sight of the progress being made and what more could be done. For instance, all the countries we visited have made tremendous progress in the area of increasing access to education for both boys and girls. Millions of children who could not have passed by the gates of a school are now in school. In some countries they are moving access beyond primary school to secondary school. While it is true that there are issues about retention and quality, the minimum threshold is being pushed. It is now up to citizens to press harder for better education through a general improvement in teaching and learning conditions.

In a country like Kenya, the provision of mosquito nets has dramatically brought down the number of people, especially children, dying from malaria. Malawi today is only second to Peru globally in the most dramatic reduction of infant mortality. In the past four years, infant mortality has come down by more than a third.

In Ghana and Malawi, the interlink age between poverty and lack of access to education even when it is officially free and universal, has led to complimentary programmes including giving children from poorer homes a decent meal in school and also providing transport. These successful initiatives are proof of the integrated nature of the MDGs. They are not cocktails that states and communities can cherry-pick as they go along.

Progress in one goal must demand progress in others if the success is to be sustainable. In all the countries there are sad paradoxes that both governments and campaigners have to focus upon. As infant mortality is coming down, maternal mortality remains scandalously high. In Zambia, Nigeria, Malawi and Tanzania, they are so high that it is really amazing that there is no public outrage about them. If our children are living longer, why are our mothers dying often so young? Who is going to look after these children? How can we achieve the lofty goals on gender and women empowerment if so many women continue to die in childbirth? While we welcome the patchy and slow progress that has been made so far, it is important to use this mid-point year to realign our national priorities to ensure that the MDGs are met and even surpassed.

As a football supporter and a lifelong Liverpool one, at that, the analogy I can draw is that of the European finals of 2005. At half time, Liverpool was trailing AC Milan 3:0.

As the whistle was blown both managers went into the dug-out. Liverpool manager was furious and he read out the riot act to his players. On resumption, we saw a changed team who had levelled the scores by full time and refused to concede any even at the extra time. Finally, in the shootout, Liverpool won.

We should use the same tactics for our governments.

The fact that they are making uneven progress at mid-point should not mean that the outcome is necessarily doomed. More can be done. One of our key partners, The Micah Challenge (a global group of ecumenical churches campaigning on MDGs) has dubbed their campaign: blowing the Whistle.

We need to blow the whistle on our political leaders at local, national, Pan-African and globally that they fulfil the commitments made under the MDGs.

There is no point in being cynical. Seven years may be short but it is long enough for all states to meet these goals if citizens insist and continue to put pressure on the policy makers whether government or parliamentarians or politicians at all levels.

Indifference is the enemy of delivery and a great ally of insensitive politicians.

On October 16, 2017 everyone of us will have the opportunity to show we care about the poor and support the MDGs by helping to beat the Guinness record that we set last year.

Over 23.5 millions of people around the world stood up against poverty in support of the MDGs. You can do so anywhere you are. Look at www.standupagainst poverty.org or www.millenniumcampaign.org for details.