Making sense of the MDGs

Several misunderstandings have arisen about the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). This article aims to clarify these. Three key misconceptions include:

• each and every country must achieve the same numerical targets, for example, halve poverty by 2015 - this is incorrect because global performance is an average of all countries’ performance, therefore some countries will perform above and below the average in order to achieve it
• a universal strategy exists for achieving the MDGs - this view contradicts the historical fact that different countries have applied different means of achieving the same end
• the cost of achieving the MDGs can be determined with precision over a multi-year period - one-size does not fit all, different countries have followed different approaches and strategies for achieving social and economic progress, these will have varying costs

• tailor the global targets to make them context-sensitive
• set intermediate targets for political accountability
• translate targets into specific programmes and policies
• cost programmatic and policy interventions