ET Q&A - `World Won't Achieve Its Development Goals Without India Coming Through'
BILL GATES TECH MAGNATE & PHILANTHROPIST
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"Sustainable Development Goals will be effective only if incorporated into national plans"
Last week, the United Nations adopted 17 ambitious goals, known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aim to wipe out poverty, fight inequality and tackle climate change over the next 15 years. Tech magnate and philanthropist Bill Gates has been on the forefront of the global fight against extreme poverty, thanks to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which has an endowment of $ 41.3 billion. Gates has also lent his support to the Global Goals campaign, a brainchild of filmmaker Richard Curtis, which hopes to popularise the 17 SDG goals with 7 billion people in 7 days. In an exclusive email interview with ET's T V Mahalingam, Gates tells about these 17 audacious goals, why they are important and what India needs to do to achieve them. Edited Excerpts:How do the SDGs differ from Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)?
When I first heard about the MDGs 15 years ago, I was cautiously optimistic that the eight specific targets with timelines, including goals to reduce extreme poverty, improve maternal health and cut child mortality, could catalyze global action on the issues that affect the most vulnerable communities. Over time, my optimism grew as they started to drive real progress. Today, it's clear that the MDGs have been instrumental in fostering global collaboration and accountability among wealthy and developing countries, the private sector and NGOs. In particular, the targets for maternal and child mortality have been critical in focusing the world's attention on the most urgent problems.
Child mortality has been cut by half since 1990 globally. Maternal mortality has been reduced by nearly as much. India is a great example of the progress made. In 1990, 3.3 million children died before their fifth birthday. Last year, that number was down to just over 1.3 million. Keep in mind that over that time, the population of India has grown by 400 million people, which makes the achievement even more impressive.India's record on maternal health is just as strong. The maternal mortality rate is down 62%.
Building on the progress the world has made over the last 15 years, the SDGs put forward a shared vision of a world where -by 2030 -we will eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, foster inclusive economic growth and combat climate change.This is an extremely ambitious aspiration, but given what has been achieved over the last 15 years I am optimistic that the next 15 will be even better.
Where is the funding going to come from for these 17 goals?
Unlike the MDGs, the SDGs are not a largely aid-driven agenda. There are three sources of finance for the SDGs: domestic in-country re sources, traditional aid and private finance. The main source of financ ng for the SDGs will be resources from developing countries themselves, through domestic revenues ike taxes which should be applied towards development outcomes.Even assuming that they will grow, these resources will not be enough to self-finance poverty reduction for the foreseeable future in many countries. Aid therefore remains very important, especially for the poorest countries and for the poorest people. Unfortunately, we see aid plateauing and in fact current trends show aid to the poorest countries actually declining. This should be reversed, especially given that there has been so much progress. Finally, private finance is increasingly seen as a crucial source of financing the SDGs. The level of ambition is high and all sources need to be tapped.
What's your take on how the MDGs have fared?
never viewed the MDGs as a test the world was meant to pass or fail.To me, they were like a report card.Without the MDGs, we would not have the clear, measurable goals that have proven so helpful in focus ng the world's attention on the biggest challenges. Not would we have an honest measure of where we are succeeding and where we are falling short. Despite all the progress, our work is far from complete. More than 6 million children under the age of five still die each year, and preventable causes such as diarrhoea, pneumonia, malaria and pre-term birth complications account for 83% of these deaths. Hundreds of millions of children are still chronically undernourished. The most important thing with the SDGs is to keep the focus on what we know works, and to finish the job in eliminating extreme poverty and its related effects -hunger, malnutrition, women dying in childbirth and children who die young or don't have a chance to grow up healthy. One thing the SDGs make explicit is the promise to “leave no one behind.“ This is a big change from the MDGs, where averages were measured and often the most vulnerable including women, rural or marginalized populations were not reached. All eyes are on India. India is to the SDGs what China was to the MDGs: .e., the world could not have achieved its poverty reduction targets without China coming through he world will not achieve many of ts SDGs targets without India com ng through.
What are going to be the biggest challenges in achieving SDGs?
The SDGs will require strong ownership by countries, robust implementation plans for each country, and enough financing. They will be effective only if they are incorporated into national plans. In India, for instance, an effective national plan, along with sub national plans, will be crucial to address the variation in maternal and child mortality rates from state to state. The Indian health care system will not only need to deliver on the unfinished agenda of MDGs, but also be prepared to address the rapidly emerging burden of non-communicable diseases, and ensure better financial protection from health shocks, all this in the context of greater fiscal devolution.
How will the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation realign itself to help achieving these goals?
At the Foundation, our mission will not change. Our focus has always entered on the needs of the poorest, and therefore our resource investments after September will con inue to emphasize the “unfinished agenda“ of the current MDGs: key manifestations of extreme poverty including health, agriculture and nutrition, and sanitation.
What are the areas where India can make the most progress in help achieving the SDGs?
India has made significant progress in achieving some of the MDG targets, particularly in education and health, aided by clear, quantifiable targets and regular monitoring of progress. The SDGs present the Government of India with an opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to providing quality primary health care to all. What we have seen is that this requires setting robust national and sub-national level plans while targeting the most vulnerable. Investments must be made to develop strong, resilient primary healthcare systems which have the requisite infrastructure and are fully functional.
Don't 17 goals make things too unwieldy?
The MDGs included eight goals, with 21 measurable targets, which helped focus the world's attention on the most urgent problems. The SDGs have 17 goals and 169 targets.This reflects a more comprehensive set of aspirations and a broader consultative process. At the same time, a broader agenda carries the risk of a diminished focus on the highestpriority challenges. As developing countries start to think through the implementation of this agenda, the priorities of the poorest should remain central. On the plus side, the fact that SDGs have such broad support from the beginning will help with the implementation of the agenda.
(For complete interview, log onto economictimes.com)
When I first heard about the MDGs 15 years ago, I was cautiously optimistic that the eight specific targets with timelines, including goals to reduce extreme poverty, improve maternal health and cut child mortality, could catalyze global action on the issues that affect the most vulnerable communities. Over time, my optimism grew as they started to drive real progress. Today, it's clear that the MDGs have been instrumental in fostering global collaboration and accountability among wealthy and developing countries, the private sector and NGOs. In particular, the targets for maternal and child mortality have been critical in focusing the world's attention on the most urgent problems.
Child mortality has been cut by half since 1990 globally. Maternal mortality has been reduced by nearly as much. India is a great example of the progress made. In 1990, 3.3 million children died before their fifth birthday. Last year, that number was down to just over 1.3 million. Keep in mind that over that time, the population of India has grown by 400 million people, which makes the achievement even more impressive.India's record on maternal health is just as strong. The maternal mortality rate is down 62%.
Building on the progress the world has made over the last 15 years, the SDGs put forward a shared vision of a world where -by 2030 -we will eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, foster inclusive economic growth and combat climate change.This is an extremely ambitious aspiration, but given what has been achieved over the last 15 years I am optimistic that the next 15 will be even better.
Where is the funding going to come from for these 17 goals?
Unlike the MDGs, the SDGs are not a largely aid-driven agenda. There are three sources of finance for the SDGs: domestic in-country re sources, traditional aid and private finance. The main source of financ ng for the SDGs will be resources from developing countries themselves, through domestic revenues ike taxes which should be applied towards development outcomes.Even assuming that they will grow, these resources will not be enough to self-finance poverty reduction for the foreseeable future in many countries. Aid therefore remains very important, especially for the poorest countries and for the poorest people. Unfortunately, we see aid plateauing and in fact current trends show aid to the poorest countries actually declining. This should be reversed, especially given that there has been so much progress. Finally, private finance is increasingly seen as a crucial source of financing the SDGs. The level of ambition is high and all sources need to be tapped.
What's your take on how the MDGs have fared?
never viewed the MDGs as a test the world was meant to pass or fail.To me, they were like a report card.Without the MDGs, we would not have the clear, measurable goals that have proven so helpful in focus ng the world's attention on the biggest challenges. Not would we have an honest measure of where we are succeeding and where we are falling short. Despite all the progress, our work is far from complete. More than 6 million children under the age of five still die each year, and preventable causes such as diarrhoea, pneumonia, malaria and pre-term birth complications account for 83% of these deaths. Hundreds of millions of children are still chronically undernourished. The most important thing with the SDGs is to keep the focus on what we know works, and to finish the job in eliminating extreme poverty and its related effects -hunger, malnutrition, women dying in childbirth and children who die young or don't have a chance to grow up healthy. One thing the SDGs make explicit is the promise to “leave no one behind.“ This is a big change from the MDGs, where averages were measured and often the most vulnerable including women, rural or marginalized populations were not reached. All eyes are on India. India is to the SDGs what China was to the MDGs: .e., the world could not have achieved its poverty reduction targets without China coming through he world will not achieve many of ts SDGs targets without India com ng through.
What are going to be the biggest challenges in achieving SDGs?
The SDGs will require strong ownership by countries, robust implementation plans for each country, and enough financing. They will be effective only if they are incorporated into national plans. In India, for instance, an effective national plan, along with sub national plans, will be crucial to address the variation in maternal and child mortality rates from state to state. The Indian health care system will not only need to deliver on the unfinished agenda of MDGs, but also be prepared to address the rapidly emerging burden of non-communicable diseases, and ensure better financial protection from health shocks, all this in the context of greater fiscal devolution.
How will the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation realign itself to help achieving these goals?
At the Foundation, our mission will not change. Our focus has always entered on the needs of the poorest, and therefore our resource investments after September will con inue to emphasize the “unfinished agenda“ of the current MDGs: key manifestations of extreme poverty including health, agriculture and nutrition, and sanitation.
What are the areas where India can make the most progress in help achieving the SDGs?
India has made significant progress in achieving some of the MDG targets, particularly in education and health, aided by clear, quantifiable targets and regular monitoring of progress. The SDGs present the Government of India with an opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to providing quality primary health care to all. What we have seen is that this requires setting robust national and sub-national level plans while targeting the most vulnerable. Investments must be made to develop strong, resilient primary healthcare systems which have the requisite infrastructure and are fully functional.
Don't 17 goals make things too unwieldy?
The MDGs included eight goals, with 21 measurable targets, which helped focus the world's attention on the most urgent problems. The SDGs have 17 goals and 169 targets.This reflects a more comprehensive set of aspirations and a broader consultative process. At the same time, a broader agenda carries the risk of a diminished focus on the highestpriority challenges. As developing countries start to think through the implementation of this agenda, the priorities of the poorest should remain central. On the plus side, the fact that SDGs have such broad support from the beginning will help with the implementation of the agenda.
(For complete interview, log onto economictimes.com)
Source: Economic Times, 30-09-2015
