A RIGHTS group monitoring implementation of the country’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) has singled out political tension, corruption and economic decline as some of the factors that have stifled progress.
BY VENERANDA LANGA
“We are not achieving MDGs because of many factors like politics, corruption and non-inclusiveness of the grassroots,” Zimbabwe United Nations Association (Zuna) president Fischer Chiyanike said in a statement this week.
MDGs are eight international development goals that were established following the Millennium Summit of the United Nations in 2000, following the adoption of the United Nations Millennium Declaration.
These include poverty eradication, universal primary education, promotion of gender equality and empower women, reduction of child mortality, improvement in maternal health, eradication of HIV and Aids, malaria, and other diseases, ensuring environmental sustainability and working towards a global partnership for development.
“Information on MDGs was not available to everyone and up until now many Zimbabweans do not even know what MDGs are, people are not involved and yet we are only one year to the end of MDGs in 2015,” Chiyanike said.
He urged government to inform citizens about the transition from MDGs to Sustainable Development Goals this year.
“Eradicating extreme poverty and hunger was not visible in Zimbabwe as more than three quarters are living below the poverty datum line, which has been worsened by sharp economic decline. Prisoners are sleeping without food at times, but even in some households they sleep without a meal or manage one meal. Empowering women and youths is embarked upon without prior training and it results in projects failing to take off, and unemployment rates have gone up giving rise to corruption,” he said.
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On achievement of universal primary education, they said it was actually costly to attain education in Zimbabwe, while the Basic Education Assistance Module saw many underprivileged students failing to benefit.
“Government should consider offering free primary and secondary education because the economic situation for the average Zimbabwean family has worsened.”
He, however, said progress was noted in reducing the gender inequality gap, but recommended the curriculum needed to be improved to socialise girls at a tender age to empower them with leadership qualities.
He added that a marked improvement was also noted in the health MDGs although these were affected by the mass exodus of health personnel to the Diaspora and the shortage of equipment and drugs at most health institutions.
