BONN, Germany, June 9 (Reuters) - Rich nations will have to step up aid to reach U.N. goals of cutting poverty by 2015 with funds lagging especially in Africa, according to the draft conclusions of a U.N. summit due in September.
A 14-page U.N. text, distributed to governments last week and obtained by Reuters, outlines a new drive to meet goals set in 2000 including halving extreme poverty, halting the spread of AIDS and ensuring primary education for all children.
"Progress has been uneven and, without additional efforts, several of the Millennium Development Goals are likely to be missed in many countries," according to the first draft for Sept. 20-22 summit at U.N. headquarters in New York.
The draft conclusions say leaders will "resolve to mobilize adequate, consistent and predictable financial support" to meet the Millennium goals.
It said that the world faced "formidable new and emerging challenges…from the food, fuel, financial and economic crises of the past few years to the continuing process of climate change".
"We are concerned that aid to Africa lags far behind commitments and needs," the text said. The Group of Eight (G8) leading industrialised nations is far behind a 2005 pledge to double aid to Africa.
Overall, the draft text said that progress since 2000 had been "a mixed story — successes, uneven progress, challenges and opportunities".
HEALTH
"We are especially concerned that progress has been slow in improving maternal health and reducing maternal mortality," it said. The G8 plans to boost aid especially for maternal health and young children at a summit later this month in Canada.
"There has also been insufficient progress on gender equality and empowerment of women. There is also limited progress on environmental sustainability," it said.
"In particular, with almost half of the population of the developing world without access to basic sanitation the sanitation target is out of reach," it said. About 2.5 billion people lack access to a toilet.
The text urged "rapid achievement" of a promise at the G8 2005 Gleneagles summit for doubling aid to Africa by 2010 as part of a goal of sharply higher aid for developing nations.
It said nations were "committing to … ensuring rapid achievement" of Gleneagles promises by raising aid "by $35 billion a year to reach the promise of $154 billion in current values, with Africa receiving an additional $20 billion to reach the target of $63 billion for the region by 2010." The document said the world would also have to agree on "a concrete and specific new time line for accelerated aid delivery" beyond 2010 to meet the 2015 goals.
