Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development

Hundreds of young people bussed to Canberra in November with the Make Poverty History Roadtrip to let our leaders know that they want to Make Poverty History.

Target: To increase development aid, relieve debt and develop fair international trade.

Goal 8 is perhaps the most controversial of the Millennium Development Goals. It recognises the role of both poor and rich countries working together to reduce poverty and focuses on issues of money and economics: aid, trade and debt.

It calls on developed countries to commit 0.7% of Gross National Income (GNI) as aid or official development assistance (ODA) to poor countries. Only Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden meet this commitment at present. In September 2005, Australia announced its aid budget would increase to $4 billion a year by 2010 – or 0.35% of GNI.

Goal 8 also recognises the importance of debt relief to enable poor nations to increase spending on areas like health and education. For example, debt relief allowed Mozambique to provide all children with free immunisation, and Tanzania to abolish primary school fees, leading to a 66% increase in attendance.

The poorest countries include more than 40% of the world’s population, but account for less than 3% of world trade. Goal 8 wants developed countries to adopt a fairer international trading system that would allow developing countries better participation to meet their development needs. This is the area where the least progress has been made in the global partnership to eradicate global poverty.

Aid and development organisations like World Vision have joined together in the Make Poverty History and Micah Challenge campaigns to promote this target in developed countries. Click on the links to find out how you can participate.