High Level Panel Talks on Post-2015 Development Agenda Conclude in Bali
The UN Secretary-General’s High Level Panel (HLP) on the post-2015 development agenda met this week in Bali, Indonesia to discuss priorities specifically related to the role of global partnerships.
From The Guardian:
Speaking after a meeting of the panel in the Indonesian resort of Bali, [Liberian President Ellen] Johnson Sirleaf said that, despite the success of the MDGs, not enough attention had been paid to the very poorest and the marginalised.
“In many ways, the millennium development goals were very successful, but we need more emphasis … on those left aside to eradicate extreme poverty,” she said.
This was a recurring theme during the Bali talks, particularly during meetings between the panellists and civil society, which stressed the importance of addressing the needs of the most vulnerable, including disabled people, women and children.
Along with the High Level Panel proceedings and resulting communique, side events also held in Bali provided venues for reflecting on the MDGs.
PMNCH Executive Director Carole Presern, during the Public Sector Outreach meeting, positioned women’s and children’s health as a critical development issue for the Post 2015 development agenda. Congratulating the MDGs on having stimulated some progress, she notes that more remains to be done as women and children continue to die.
Dr. Presern pointed to areas in need of increased focus such as stillbirths, which were not counted in the MDGs, newborn deaths which constitute an increasing proportion of child deaths, preterm births which are a major problem in both developed and developing countries and adolescent pregnancies – as complications from pregnancy are the leading cause of death for girls between the ages of 15 and 19.
For more on maternal health and the post-2015 development agenda, visit The Lancet to read “A manifesto for maternal health post-2015.”
For more on the agenda itself, read The Guardian’s timeline of events for setting the post-2015 agenda.
To share your perspective on what issues should take priority and see the views of citizens from around the world, visit the My World global survey.