In Preparation for the Millennium Development Goals Report for Zarqa Governorate

Governmental and Civil Society Organizations in Zarqa Discuss their Governorate’s Development Priorities

Amman, 14 May 2008 — A series of workshops is currently underway in Zarqa Governorate as part of the “Localization of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the Governorate of Zarqa” project, implemented by the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MoPIC) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in cooperation with the Governorate of Zarqa.

The Zarqa Governorate has been selected in view of its priority on the national poverty alleviation agenda. Findings of Jordan Human Development Report 2004, the MDG Report for Jordan 2004 and the World Bank’s Poverty Assessment 2004 indicated that poverty rates in Zarqa Governorate had risen during the period from 1997 to 2002, despite the decline of the rates at the national level. Hence, the project seeks to set in motion efforts aiming at achieving human development at governorate level through monitoring the current situation and, subsequently, guaranteeing that local strategies are geared towards the achievement of the MDGs.

The MDGs are drawn on the basis of the “Millennium Declaration” which 191 Member States, including Jordan, committed themselves to achieve by the year 2015. The MDGs are eight goals that aim to reduce poverty and hunger by half, guarantee basic education for all boys and girls, empower women and eliminate gender disparity, reduce under-five mortality rates by half and maternity mortality rates by three fourths, stop high HIV infection rates, control the spread of malaria and other diseases, secure a sustainable environment and guaranteeing the industrialized countries’ commitment to give more assistance to the developing world.

UNDP has been tasked to advocate and build awareness on MDGs among all types of organizations, since the key to achieving the Goals’ is first build knowledge and subsequently ensure the adoption and ownership of the goals at all levels. All sectors of governmental and non-governmental institutions, civil society organizations and the private sector have a crucial role to play in the participatory formulation of workable, transparent and accountable national and local strategies for alleviating poverty and guaranteeing a better life for all citizens.

Hence the importance of this series of workshops, which started on the 6th of this month, is to introduce and call on the people’s attention to the essence of the MDGs and their relation to national objectives.   The workshops will also analyze the Governorates strengths and challenges that impact the applicability of these goals in Zarqa Governorate.

Within this series, five workshops were organized to discuss each goal of the MDGs separately. Each of these workshops was attended by 15–20 representatives of Zarqa’s local actors, including governmental and non-governmental organizations relevant to the goal discussed.

The series will end on the 15th of May with a plenary session attended by all the participants in the five workshops. The plenary will affirm the findings of the workshops and agree on a set of goals for Zarqa Governorate in the framework of the MDGs from the viewpoint of Zarqa citizens, who are closer to the current developmental situation in their Governorate.

The Zarqa MDG report will be the second at the governorate level in Jordan prepared in cooperation with Ministry of Planning & International Cooperation and UNDP.  The first report being the “MDG Report for the Governorate of Aqaba” was launched earlier this week in cooperation with the Community Development Directorate of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority.

For further information, please contact Dr. Abla Amawi, UNDP Regional Coordinator & Capacity Development Adviser at mobile (+962 79) 5077779 or e-mail: abla.amawi@undp.org