Globally, there have been a reduction in poverty levels and diseases with the adoption and implementation on the global millennium development goals from year 2000 to 2015. In September 2015, the world gathered to adopt yet another set of goals, this time 17 sustainable development goals with 169 indicators for the next 15 years. The presentation delivered at IMANI Ghana organized Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy-SYPALA at the University of Ghana businesses school, tried to answer the question of "how Africa fared with the MDGs and whether Africa should bother with the new SDGs.

1. How did Africa fare with the
MDGs? Should we bother with
the SDGs? When are we going to
have our own blueprint for
development?
SYPALA 2015, ACCRA
Yaw Adu-Gyamfi
Social Entrepreneur
Atlas Corps Fellow, 2011

2. Background of MDGs
• Millennium Declaration at
2000 World Summit--- 8
goals derived
• World united by common
values and renewed
determination to achieve
peace and decent
standards of living for every
man, woman and child.
• Aspirations of the
international community
captured in actionable
goals

3. MDGs: How has Africa fared?

4. Goal 1: Eradicate Extreme
Poverty
• 1990- nearly half of developing world
pop. lived on ≤ $1.25 per day. 2015-
proportion decreased to 14%
• Continuous decline in poverty rates in
Africa despite global downturns.
• Poverty rates in Africa fell from
56.5% in 1990 to 48.5% in 2010.
Projected to fall further to 42.3% by
end 2015. Rate of annual decline
1.29%
• Africa’s slower poverty reduction is
attributed to lower economic growth
elasticity of poverty
• Ghana: 3 northern regions report
poverty levels of 45-47% above Nat.
avg of 33.6%
Source: World Bank, 2012, Ravallion, 2013,
UNDPMDG Report, 2010

5. Goal 2: Achieve
Universal Primary
Education
• Primary net enrollment rate in
developing regions has reached 91%
in 2015, up by 83% from 1990
• Global out of school children: 2015-
57million down from 100million in
2000
• Globally: literacy rate 15-24 age
bracket increased from 83%-91% bet.
1990- 2015
• 30million out of school children live
in Africa South of Sahara-ASS,
whereas 10million live in South West
Asia.
• 36% of out of school children live in
conflict affected zones
• ASS achieved a 20% increase in net
enrollment from 2000-2015
• Ghana’s primary school enrollment
rate stands at 95%
Source: UN MDG Report 2015

6. Goal 3: Promote Gender
Equality and Empower
Women
• Increased enrollment of girls in
school as compared to 15 years ago
• Improvement in elimination of
gender disparity in primary,
secondary and tertiary education in
ASS
• West Africa: Best performers in
improved gender parity secondary &
tertiary education.
• 1990-2015: women in vulnerable
employment has declined 13%
•Women’s share of paid employment
outside agriculture increased by 35%
in 1990 to 40% in 2010.
• Reproductive sexual health as a
human right in Africa requires special
attention.
• Cultural barriers and conflicts
hamper efforts
Source: UN MDG Report 2015, UNDP MDG
Africa Report, 2013

7. Goal 4. Reduce Child
Mortality
• Global U5 mortality rate declined from 90 to
43 deaths per 1,000 – from 1990- 2015
• Developing regions: mortality declined
from12.7m to 6m
• Africa South of Sahara: rate of reduction
five-times faster 2005-2013 compared 1990-
1995
• North Africa performed better: 89 deaths
per 1,000 in 1990-2011 to 41 deaths per
1,000
• Central Africa progressed slowest with 139
deaths per 1,000, partly due to malaria
incidence
• Ghana: 2008- 80 deaths per 1,000, 2014-
60 deaths per 1,000---- likely to miss target
• Keep doing what works: Project focus
(Bole, Kintampo, Wenchi areas) 10 deaths
per 1,000 in 2013.
•Source: Source: UN MDG Report 2015, UNDP MDG
Africa Report, 2013

8. Goal 5: Improve
Maternal Health
• Since 1990, maternal mortality ratio
declines by 45% globally, most
occurring after 2000
• ASS rate fell by 49%
• Annual rate of decline 3.5% is ≤ half
needed to achieve target of 75%
reduction.
• Equ. Guinea, Cape Verde & Rwanda
are on track to achieve target
• Ghana: 1990-2013, 760-380 deaths
per 100,000
•Ghana- 2014: skilled birth attendance
increased 74%, ANC 97%
• 2015 projection: 358 deaths per
100,000 likely to miss goal of 190 per
100,000
•Source: MoH-UNFPA, UNMDG report 2015,
UNDPAfrica Report 2013

9. Goal 6: Combat
HIV/AIDS, Malaria and
other Diseases
• New HIV cases fallen by 40% between 2000-
2013--- 3.5m to 2.1m
• 13.6m people on antiretroviral therapy (ART)
globally.
• Over 6.2m deaths averted between 2000-2015
for U5 children in Africa South of Sahara
• More than 900m LLINs delivered to malaria
endemic areas
• Tuberculosis: 37m lives saved bet. 2000-2013.
Mortality and prevalence rates fall to 45% and
41%
• Directly Observed Treatment Short-Course-
DOTS makes progress
• Southern and Central Africa: 1 in 10 adults lives
with HIV/AIDS
• Prevalence rate in Africa drop from 5.9% to
4.9%
• Eritrea, Madagascar and Zambia to reduce
malaria admissions by 50-75% by end of 2015
• Malaria reduces productivity by 1.3% and
causes over 40% of OPD attendance in Ghana

10. Goal 7: Ensure
Environmental
Sustainability
• 2015- 91% of global population gain
access to improved drinking water
• Southern, East, Central and West Africa
is off-track to meet improved sanitation
facility target. 45% shared facility usage,
25% open defecation
• Sanitation coverage in rural areas is
below 50%
• 62% of urban populations live in slums
• Africa is far off Goal 7 but progress made
in CO2 emissions
• Ghana: Forest cover decreasing by
24.2% annually
• Worsening environmental conditions due
to illegal small scale mining in Ghana

11. Goal 8: Develop Global
Partnership for
Development
• Official development assistance from
developed countries increased by
66% 2000-2014, reaching $135.2
billion
• 2015: Global cellular network
coverage is 95%
• Internet penetration: 2000- 6%
increased to 43% in 2015 globally
• 2014: 19% of Africans have internet
access
• FDI in Africa 2014 stable at $54bn.
Ghana attracted $3.26bn
• Ghana: Mobile voice subscription =
31,154,420= 115.64%
• Corruption and bad governance
continue to hamper efforts

12. Despite gains, challenges
exist
• Gender inequality persist
• Big gaps exist between poorest and richest households
• Climate change and environmental degradation undermine
progress
• Conflicts remain the biggest threat to human development
• Millions of poor people still live in poverty and hunger, without
access to basic services
• World’s common development goals are not local enough
• Limited bottom up development

13. Should we bother
about the SDGs?
•The successes of the MDG
agenda prove that global action
works. It is the only path to
ensure that the new development
agenda leaves no one behind
• But there has to be a paradigm
shift
•Localization of the SDGs
 Increased local education
 R&D followed by increased
funding on local areas for
accelerated development
 Redirect focus to triple helix
collaboration: government,
academia, private sector focused
on clustering

14. Paradigm Shift
•What is our understanding of
development beyond what is told us?
• How can we make use of our unique
environment and indigenous African
institutions to develop?

15. Conclusion
• Development as a
planned process (bottom
up)
• Setting goals for
development does not
necessarily guarantee
improvement in livelihood
without local buy-in and
active collaboration

16. Next Steps
• Focus on cluster based approach to
supporting sustainable development
agenda
•Localization of efforts: need to
conduct Health Safety and
Environment-HSE research and
training for African economic clusters
•Ghana: Perhaps IMANI should
consider HSE Research, Training and
Cluster Investment a key program to
support the notion that:
“Clusters are a vehicle for
development but they need the fuel of
long-term effort and the form of this
effort itself requires constant
innovation”
•Source: Adu-Gyamfi Y. etal, PACF
2010

17. Thank you for your attention
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