End session calls for much tougher battle against poverty

President Barack Obama called for greater urgency in the fight against the world’s social ills as a UN poverty summit ended late on Wednesday with tens of billions of dollars of pledges but lingering pessimism about the impact.

Mr Obama unveiled a new “big hearted” but “hard headed” US aid policy to push the poorest countries toward prosperity. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon launched a $40 billion drive to save the lives of millions of women and children. Britain, China and Japan also promised more help.

But many leaders still accused wealthy nations of failing to keep their promises to provide assistance. Aid groups said millions would still die unnecessarily in the final five years of UN Millennium Development Goals initiative launched in 2000.

Mr Obama and the UN chief highlighted advances made to reduce poverty and disease, spread education and increase opportunities for women since the Millennium summit in 2000 set eight key development targets.

But the US leader said progress “has not come nearly fast enough. Not for the hundreds of thousands of women who lose their lives every year simply giving birth. Not for the millions of children who die from the agony of malnutrition”.

“We must do better,” Mr Obama told the assembled leaders.

He said the US would now concentrate on countries that invest in their future and boost democracy, good governance and free trade.

“Our focus on assistance has saved lives in the short term, but it hasn’t always improved those societies over the long term,” he said.

“Consider the millions of people who have relied on food assistance for decades. That’s not development, that’s dependence, and it’s a cycle we need to break.”

The UN chief said governments, philanthropists and private groups pledged $40 billion in initiatives to boost the health of women and children.

Mr Ban estimated that his Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health would save 16 million lives by 2015.

Of the eight key development targets set a decade ago, cutting deaths of women during pregnancy and childbirth and those of children younger than five have seen the least progress.

Japan’s Prime Minister Naoto Kan promised $5 billion over five years to help meet the UN’s health goals and $3.5 billion for attempts to meet the target of establishing universal primary education.

British deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg vowed that his country’s aid would reach 0.7 per cent of gross national income by 2013. He called on other countries to follow suit.

Among the final speakers before the summit closed was Melinda Gates, whose husband Bill Gates, the world’s richest man, is ploughing much of his fortune into the fight against disease.