Launch of the 2003 Human Development Report
Global Launch of the 2003 Human Development ReportGovernment Buildings, DublinTuesday, 8th July 2003 at 11.00am
Your Excellency, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Ireland, invited guests, ladies and gentlemen.
It is with great honor that I address your Excellencies on the occasion of the launching of the UNDP Human Development Report. It is with pleasure that our capital city, Maputo, hosts this important ceremony that happens for the first time in Africa. The choice of Mozambique enhances the efforts of the government and the people of Mozambique to eradicate absolute poverty as designed in our poverty reduction plan, known as PARPA , which is being implemented at the national level.
Our development strategy is based on the improvement of the social and economic conditions of the citizens. That's why we give high priority to rural development through the promotion of agriculture based on knowledge, because we feel that this is the most efficient and sustainable method to fight poverty. In order to increase opportunities, to improve the income of the rural families, Mozambique tries to promote agriculture productivity and practice of an agriculture that generates jobs. In Mozambique, we all understand that only people with knowledge can face properly the development challenges. That's why this we launched the Decade to Combat Illiteracy.
It is a major campaign throughout the country, that aims at allowing more and more Mozambiquans to know how to read and write. We believe that by the end of the first year of its implementation, the program will have covered more than one million people. This program is also in line with our vision of using education as the best tool to empower our people. Ladies and gentlemen, despite all our efforts to improve living conditions of our citizens, we face great challenges in the health sector, namely in the fight against the spread of HIV/AIDS, and the other pandemic diseases, such as malaria, tuberculosis and cholera.
Our strategy is to educate the people, so that they behave responsibly. Our priorities are groups such as women and child-bearing age, children and adolescents. These efforts, aiming at generating sustainable development in Mozambique are firmly supported by the UNDP. The relationship between Mozambique and UNDP is based on the cooperation framework for the period 2002-2006. This framework is the result of a consultation process involving UNDP, the Mozambiquan government, its main bilateral cooperating partners and the Civil Society Organizations.
The content of this framework was taken from the National Development Priorities as defined by PRSPs. The main objective is to support the national efforts on the reduction of absolute poverty in 30 percent by 2010. This objective will be achieved through initiatives with direct impact on the poverty alleviation, such as the promotion of macro-economic strategies, development of small and medium scale enterprises and reduction of the impact of HIV/AIDS in the development process. This objective will also be achieved by supporting good governance through the reinforcement of democratic institutions, the improvement of the public sector efficiency and the promotion of local governance.
Ladies and gentlemen, the launching of the UNDP Human Development Report happens in a moment of particular importance to Mozambique, and to Africa. It is important to Mozambique because the country will be taking over the Chairmanship of the African Union and has historical responsibility to lead the continent in its search for the path to development. It is also an important moment for African because the whole continent is meeting in Maputo for the Second African Heads of State Summit, an event that will deal mainly with the development challenges. The continent feels in NEPAD the new partnership for African development its main social and economic policy. The fundamental economic objective of NEPAD is to alleviate poverty in Africa. It also seeks to promote the role of women in all the social and economic activities which will have a significant impact on development. NEPAD is above all a partnership between Africans themselves for their own sustainable development. African people must mobilize domestic resources and reinvest them in development programs according to their primary needs and capacities. Cooperation with international partners is fundamental. The most important thing is to move from mere donations to partnership. We need to attract more investments, and at the same time make sure that our goods and services have access to international markets.
Your Excellency, Mister Prime Minister of the Republic of Ireland, we are delighted and encouraged by the commitment of your government to contribute to the sustainable development of the people of the developing world, including Africa. We are happy to learn that your government, aims at achieving the U.N. objective of providing 0.7 percent of the GDP for development assistance by 2007. We congratulate the involvement of the Republic of Ireland in the development as well as in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Mozambique.
We are informed that as a result of the partnership between the Irish government and the Bill Clinton Foundation, Ireland will contribute with 40 million euros next year toward fighting HIV/AIDS in Mozambique. The fund will help Mozambique to provide more treatment and medication to the people infected with HIV virus. The simultaneous launching of this report in Maputo and in Dublin is a proof of the partnership efforts between Ireland, UNDP and Mozambique. This is an example of cooperation and effective partnership we can build to achieve our development goals.
I thank you.
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