India and Environmental Sustainability
Goal 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability
The Millennium Declaration was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on September 8, 2000. It set eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to outline the global agenda to “reaffirm the universal values and principles of freedom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, respect for nature and the UN’s commitment to promoting peace, security, disarmament, human rights, democracy and good governance” (United Nation in India, 2011). Each goal has been set to achieve by the year of 2015 and has several targets, which can be measured by the indicators. As of now, 193 countries, which of course include India, have signed the Millennium Declaration and making their efforts to achieve the goals. According to the United Nation in India, the MDGs in India work within the framework of UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) and the Government of India’s Fiver Year Plans. UNDAF is “the overarching policy document for UN country assistance to India,” which is implemented as a five-year cycle, so that it can overlap with the India’s Five Year Plan (United Nation in India, 2011). There has been a lot of progress to achieve the MDGs by 2015. However, at the same time, many countries are having difficulties to improve several targets in the MDGs. In this paper, India’s progress on the 7th goal of MDGs, which is “Ensure Environmental Sustainability,” will be discussed. The Goal 7 includes four targets of: A) Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources, B) Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the rate of loss, C) Halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, D) By 2020, to have achieved a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers (United Nations, 2013). The latest
The Millennium Declaration was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on September 8, 2000. It set eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to outline the global agenda to “reaffirm the universal values and principles of freedom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, respect for nature and the UN’s commitment to promoting peace, security, disarmament, human rights, democracy and good governance” (United Nation in India, 2011). Each goal has been set to achieve by the year of 2015 and has several targets, which can be measured by the indicators. As of now, 193 countries, which of course include India, have signed the Millennium Declaration and making their efforts to achieve the goals. According to the United Nation in India, the MDGs in India work within the framework of UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) and the Government of India’s Fiver Year Plans. UNDAF is “the overarching policy document for UN country assistance to India,” which is implemented as a five-year cycle, so that it can overlap with the India’s Five Year Plan (United Nation in India, 2011). There has been a lot of progress to achieve the MDGs by 2015. However, at the same time, many countries are having difficulties to improve several targets in the MDGs. In this paper, India’s progress on the 7th goal of MDGs, which is “Ensure Environmental Sustainability,” will be discussed. The Goal 7 includes four targets of: A) Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources, B) Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the rate of loss, C) Halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, D) By 2020, to have achieved a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers (United Nations, 2013). The latest
Cited: "Goal 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability." We Can End Poverty 2015. United Nations. Web. 22 Feb 2013. <http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/environ.shtml>. "MDGs." United Nations in India. United Nations, n.d. Web. 22 Feb 2013. <http://www.un.org.in/_layouts/UNDP/MDG.asp&xgt;. "MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS INDIA COUNTRY REPORT 2011." . Government of India, n.d. Web. 22 Feb 2013. <http://www.undp.org/content/dam/india/docs/mdg_india_2011.pdf>. Nath, Anita. "India 's Progress Toward Achieving the Millennium Development Goals." Indian Journal of Community Medicine. Indian Journal of Community Medicine, n.d. Web. 22 Feb 2013. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3180952/>