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In September 2000, 189 member states of the United Nations
unanimously ratified the Millennium Declaration and determined
fundamental values regarding the international relations of
the 21st century. The governments emphasized their endeavor
to make the world more peaceful, promote development and fight
against poverty, protect the common environment and respect
human rights as well as the rules of democracy and good governance
in government.
In 2001, the Millennium Declaration was specified by formulating
eight development objectives for reducing poverty and towards
comprehensive development, including targets and indicators:
the Millennium Development Goals (MDG). Never before has there
been such a wide consensus in the global community regarding
objectives and timeframe for the development and collaboration
between the nations. The development cooperation is defined
within a clear frame: the progress of the associated countries
and the donations of the bi- and multilateral investors will
be measured by the extent to which they contribute to reaching
the Millennium Development Goals.
In the meantime, the Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals have begun to change international relations. The Millennium Development Goals have a high impact on development policy, as they are clear and comprehensible, but at the same time put a strong emphasis on specific, directly poverty-reducing spheres of action. The new aspect of the Millennium Development Goals is the straight-forward orientation towards concrete objectives and specific targets and a corresponding timeframe for the achievement (2015).
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