MDGs and PRS as human development frameworks for the Caribbean

1. MDGs and PRS as human development frameworks for the Caribbean by Leisa Perch Programme Manager, Poverty Reduction UNDP Barbados and the OECS

2. Guiding Vision for Poverty and Sustainable Human Development Everybody has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of him/herself and of his/her family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his/her control. (United Nations, Declaration of Human Rights Article 25 (1))

3. Varying Perspectives of Development in Action

4. Poverty and Human Development in the OECS – Some characteristics Above 30% below poverty line in 4 countries High gini-coefficients High incidence of poor female-headed households Frequent natural events and hazards Income loss Decline in Functional literacy Reduced levels of attainment by males Increased incidence of crime Environmental degradation Increasingly marginalized young men High incidence of HIV/AIDS High incidence of NCDs Development setback by disasters High unemployment Aging population Sustaining livelihoods challenging Indigenous peoples marginalized Limited monitoring or assessment capacity Limited market options Poverty and growth increasingly linked Decline of agriculture Dependence on imports Vulnerable groups who could fall into poverty Education not always translating into livelihood Limited engagement of civil society

5. The Millennium Development Goals Eradication of extreme poverty and hunger Achieving universal primary education Promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women Reduction of child mortality Improvement of maternal health Combating HIV/AIDS and other diseases Ensuring environmental sustainability Promotion of a global partnership for development

6. MDGs as a Barometer of the status of Human Development? Taking guidance from a UNFPA Framework, MDGs should be able to tell us: Where is the country in relation to HDI? What progress has been made in past ‘n’ years since 1990 baseline? What are the linkages with other national/regional targets? What are the constraints for achieving MDG targets? - community, local, national and international governance issues How can constraints be overcome? -frameworks, policies, strategies and resource needs Are there multi-sectoral plans to meet MDG targets? This session could include a Q and A on the Millennium Declaration and the MDGs, inlcuding the preparation of MDG Reports.This session could include a Q and A on the Millennium Declaration and the MDGs, inlcuding the preparation of MDG Reports.

7. MDGs as a Monitoring Framework?(Relevance, Efficiency, effectiveness, Impact) Simplify SHD and its context (efficient) Relevant to the issues in the region (relevance) Demonstrate Interlinked nature of issues (effective) Reflect SD paradigms (effective) Are inherently Flexible (impact) Don’t require new indicators/build on previous efforts (efficient) Reflect larger development goals (impact) Present an opportunity to get it right (impact)

8. Simple Vision of SHD

9. MDGs show Interlinked nature of issues: example of Health/Development

10. The Opportunity of the MDGsExample of HIV-AIDS Impact of HIV/AIDS on progress towards: Goal1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger The loss of productive capacity among families affected by HIV/AIDS has a major impact on economic growth, food production and nutritional well-being (in the hardest-hit countries, economic growth has fallen by 4% and labour productivity has been cut by up to 50%). In Burkina Faso, the proportion of people living in poverty is projected to increase from 45% to nearly 60% by 2010 as a result of HIV/AIDS. Studies have shown that in Thailand food consumption in affected household fell from 15% to 30%.

11. The Opportunity of the MDGsExample of HIV-AIDS cont’d Impact of HIV/AIDS on progress towards: Goal 3. Promote gender equality and empower women Girls are more likely to be kept out of school to provide care, or when resources are limited. Women take on greater burdens of caring and face greater economic insecurity when wage earners fall ill. While gender equity (social and economic) is a critical factor in reducing risk, AIDS exacerbates burdens on women and gender inequalities. Goal cannot be met in seriously affected countries. In some of the worst affected countries nearly 50% of children who lose their parents to HIV/AIDS drop out of school, the majority of them girls. (Taken from UNDP National HDR HIV/AIDS Practice Note, 2003)

12. Progress so Far: Regional MDG Consultation/Assessment (2004) Findings: Barbados and OECS on the way or have already met some of MDGs – IMR, MMR, Universal Primary Education Need to localize/national MDG targets (US$1 rate level not really relevant to most Caribbean countries) HIV/AIDs is a significant development threat if not tackled immediately and consistently Need to Recognize inter-linkage between issues (often not recognized in policy documents) Commitment and consistency needed to meet targets

13. The Facts: Progress with Poverty MDG – what does it tell us?

14. Other Poverty Stats Grenada: 21% of all female heads below the poverty line are unemployed 24% of all female heads below the poverty line are outside of the labour force 20% of persons living below the poverty line are unemployed Over 64% of the poor have no educational certification SVG 37.5 percent population poor 30.6 percent Households lived in poverty High level of unemployment; estimated 30 percent among young male population High level of income inequality

15. What Needs to be done Statistically to make the MDGS operational ? Identify ways and means of measuring factors as well as progress in areas Identify the most appropriate measurement tools that can assist in responsive decision-making Indicators for Monitoring and Evaluation of interventions Modelling of interlinked nature of issues e.g. (poverty and health), (poverty, health and development), and (poverty, environment and health i.e. incidence of dengue) Measure epidemiological factors and impacts on development Assist in the identification of proxies if a specific survey is too costly Define ways of identifying “groups at risk” Identify communities and individuals at risks Collaborate with specialized national and regional institutions to define appropriate tools

16. MDGs: a ConceptualFramework for Development The MDGs help us by: Setting the context for SHD Pointing us the direction (Establishing deadlines and proposing targets) Enabling institutional cooperation (e.g. cannot be one Ministry alone) Promoting the use of indicators and statistics – take data to the centre-stage Making partnerships key Reinforce the need for evidence-based decision-making

17. Poverty Reduction Strategies – Enabling the achievement of the MDGs

18. UNDP Strategic Approach to MDG Fulfillment and Monitoring Facilitate development of sub-regional/national MDG targets and meeting them (OECS sub-regional programme) Strengthen Data collection and M&E capacity at national and regional level Advocate for cross-sectoral and integrated approaches for sustained success (policy) Encourage integration of targets and approaches in national planning (policy) Advocate for pro-poor, pro-health, pro-education budgeting and allocation of resources (policy) Analytical work on linkages between issues Support to national HDR/MDGR Reporting (Barbados) Donor coordination/collaboration (All goals)

19. UNDP Poverty InterventionsTo-date (broadly) National Activities Community empowerment and development Social Policy Formulation Formulation of IPRSPs Capacity-building Strengthening of statistical capacity for data collection Regional Activities CoRICS Project Establishment of Social Indicators and MDGs Committees Micro-enterprise development Poverty Measurement, Strengthen of PRS process)

20. Iterative Process for Sustainable Human Development Policy (Where we should be)

21. How can Policy assist in achieving the MDGs (How do we get there)? By Setting the framework Identifying the issues Identifying who is vulnerable and disadvantaged Setting goals and targets Identifying who does what and why? Clarifying responsibilities Bringing everyone together to serve one main goal

22. Current Social Policy Environment(Where are we now) Disjointed and disconnected Sometimes singular Not always or very participatory Not evidence-based Sectoral and segmented Competitive Unstructured Does not address vulnerability/susceptibility very well Gender often not well mainstreamed Not well linked to economic planning or realities

23. Opportunities presented by the PRSP Framework In one document: Strategic: Link economic and social development Efficiency of government services Empowerment of communities and civil society Create enabling opportunities for investment Specific: Facilitate the development of Micro-enterprise through support for micro-credit/finance institutions Increase effectiveness and efficiency in social service delivery Special attention to HIV/AIDS Greater and better Investment in Human Capital Strengthening Engendering policy Linking SIF, BNTF, PRF,MED and other mechanisms for the first time in one operational framework

24. Current Gaps in Caribbean PRSPs Link to economic development and planning still weak Have been limited in the main to PR Not many specific targets set (SVG has a few) Participation of civil society still needs to be improved Implications of and link to DR not always clear Not much mention of potential benefits from expertise in the region Concept of vulnerability not well integrated Implementation Frameworks weak Limited contingency planning

25. Operationalizing the MDGs/PRS for the Caribbean – A Partnership between countries and donors Development visioning and planning Localization/Regionalization of Indicators and Targets Improving assessment of quality of impact Improved PRS with M&E linked MDGs Avoiding complacency Poverty Reduction Strategies which speak to Sustainable Human Development An operational development framework – with short, medium and long-term objectives

26. The Way Forward Sustaining Commitment to the achievement of the goals National policy incorporating MDG Framework Strengthening of data collection and analysis Commitment to Regional Integration and CSME Strengthening global partnership for development

27. For More Information Contact: Leisa Perch, Programme Mgr, Poverty Reduction UN House, Marine Gardens Hastings, Ch. Ch Barbados, West Indies Tel: 246 467-6005 Fax: 246 429-2448 Email: leisa.perch@undp.org Website: www.bb.undp.org/poverty/html