Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Development Diary: Sachs and Bono blog about MDGs

Jeffrey Sachs and Bono are writing a blog for the FT from the MDGs summit starting today. Here is a link to the blog.

Earlier, development economist Paul Collier wrote an Op-Ed in the NYT calling for vigorous pursuit of MDGs, increase in aid, and offering a sense of hope to help the bottom billion.

Easterly would stab this paragraph:

The laggards in the struggle for the MDGs are not the poor countries or their ostensibly corrupt governments.  The laggards are the rich world, so full of promises and high rhetoric and so low on delivery.  The MDGs are falling short because of a lack of promised financing to put in place the clinics, schools, roads, power, and other investments needed for their success.  Six years ago, the rich countries pledged in Monterrey, Mexico to “make concrete efforts toward the international target of 0.7 per cent of GNP in official development assistance.”  Yet the United States stands are 0.16 per cent, Japan at 0.17, Italy at 0.19, Canada at 0.28, Germany at 0.37, and France at 0.39.