§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the number of new jobs that need to be created annually in the developing world if the Millennium Development Goal to eradicate extreme poverty is to be achieved. [167210]
§ Hilary BennThe MDG for income poverty targets a reduction by 50 per cent. of the proportion of the population living in extreme poverty (defined as an income of less than US$1 per capita per day in purchasing power parity terms) between 1990 and 2015. The World Bank's1 latest estimates indicate that about 1.1 billion people worldwide live in extreme poverty. If projected growth remains on track global poverty rates will fall to 13 per cent.—less than half the 1990 level.
Reliable estimates of the number of new jobs required to eliminate extreme poverty do not exist. The majority of poor people in developing countries are outside formal employment, and progress, towards the MDG can be achieved by improving opportunities in subsistence agriculture and the informal economy as well as by creating more formal sector jobs. Thus 770W poverty can be reduced without necessarily involving the creation of additional formal sector jobs—for example, India has witnessed a sharp fall in poverty with little expansion of the formal sector job market. While a well-paid job can lift an entire household out of poverty, a poorly paid job may not lift anyone out of poverty. The International Labour Organisation (ILO)'s 'Decent Work' agenda2 emphasises that the quality as well as the quantity of jobs is important. The rate of economic growth is the most critical factor in determining the attainment of this MDG.
1 World Bank, "Global Economic Prospects 2004", Chapter 1 page 45.2 ILO, "Working Out Of Poverty", 2003.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of progress towards the Millennium Development Goal of reducing maternal mortality by 75 per cent. by 2015. [167212]
§ Hilary BennThe Millennium Development Goal of improving maternal health has a target to reduce the maternal mortality ratio (the number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births) by three-quarters between 1990 and 2015. This is equivalent to an annual reduction of 5.4 per cent. Approximately 529,000 women die annually from complications of pregnancy and childbirth.
Trends in maternal mortality are difficult to measure, but available data suggest that progress in reducing the maternal mortality ratio has been slow in recent years. With an average annual decline of 3.2 per cent. in the 1990s, the developing world as a whole is off target. While some countries have reduced maternal mortality, data suggest that some parts of Africa have seen an increase. A recent World Bank analysis suggests that only 17 per cent. of developing countries, containing 32 per cent. of the world's population, are on track to achieve the target.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of progress towards the Millennium Development Goal of reducing infant mortality by 66 per cent. by 2015. [167214]
§ Hilary BennThe Millennium Development Goal (MDG) for child health is to reduce the rate of mortality in children under five by two-thirds between 1990 and 2015. The indicator that measures progress against this target directly is the under-five mortality rate. Infant mortality (deaths of children under one year old) and the proportion of one-year old children immunised against measles are used as intermediate indicators of progress.
Globally child mortality is declining, and between 1990 and 2000 the under-five mortality rate was reduced from 92 to 82 deaths per 1,000 live births. The infant mortality rate declined from 64 to 57 deaths per 1,000 live births in the same period. There is, however, considerable regional variation in the rates of progress being made. Latin America is expected to meet the MDG target, but there has been much slower progress in South Asia, and slowest progress in sub-Saharan Africa, which accounts for over half of all under-five 771W deaths. Recent World Bank analysis suggests that only 16 per cent. of developing countries are on track to achieve the target.