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‘Pakistan on track in implementing anti-poverty goals’

UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan is on track in terms of implementing the anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals (MDG), but the financial, food, and energy crises are eroding the ability of countries to sustain growth, Federal Minister and National Reconstruction Bureau Chairman Dr Asim Hussain said on Monday.
“It will be a challenging task to eliminate hunger and poverty. It has to be a collective effort, requiring the developed and developing countries to work in unison.”
He was speaking at a high-level event at the United Nations headquarters in New York, aimed at pinpointing gaps and identifying further steps to accelerate progress towards achieving the MDG.
In his speech, Dr Hussain said the present crisis in global food security had stemmed from a collective neglect and the absence of investment in agriculture, especially in the developing countries. “The energy price-hike is not only due to the imbalance in the supply and demand, but also due to flawed market mechanisms,” he said.
“While most developing countries like Pakistan have demonstrated a genuine perseverance in implementing their part of the commitments, some of our partners have not shown similar zeal,” he said.
Reporting progress on Pakistan’s poverty reduction strategy, Dr Hussain said it redresses distribution of income and consumption as well as opportunities and inequalities in accessing education, health and other necessities of life.
Until recently, he said, the overall progress in the MDG indicators showed that out of 34 indicators adopted, Pakistan was ahead in seven, on track on 16 and was lagging in 11. app

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