Mesenbet Firew, 33, and Tewodros Belete, 41 are teachers at a public school in Addis Abeba. They were asked by Fortune on January 17, 2008, whether they have any clue about what the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are and what they will bring to the population at large if the ambitious targets are reached.
 

“I do not have a good understanding of what they are though I was supposed to know them in detail,” Mesenbet, a history teacher, told Fortune. Even though I am meant to have a deep understanding of MDGs as they include education components, I learned of them vaguely through mass media.” 

Tewodros, a math teacher, also claims a mixed understanding of the goals.
 

“I think they will be achieved if and only if society knows them well and participates in the effort to bring them to reality,” Tewodros told Fortune. But I do not see those things occurring.”  

The MDGs, adopted by all United Nations (UN) member states in 2000, are universal frameworks for development and a means for developing countries and their partners to work together in pursuit to the benefit of all.
 

After the Millennium Declaration was achieved, political consensus has been reached as to what should be done by whom. Therefore, it was agreed that all the member states would strive towards lofty ideals ranging from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/Aids and providing universal primary education, all by the target date of 2015.
 

According to a recent UN report, so far the collective record in meeting the goals is mixed in different parts of the world. It disclosed that while there have been some gains and that success is still possible in most parts of the world, there are indications much needs to be done to catch-up.
 

“Countries progress towards meeting the MDGs greatly depends on how much effort they exert to inform and educate the general public about them,” Endeshaw Mulatu, representative of Poverty Action Network of Civil Society Organisations in Ethiopia (PANE), said during a two-day training for local journalists held from January 10 to 11 at the Desalegn Hotel.  “Otherwise, it will just be an endless effort as the pubic will turn a blind eye to them.”
 

He complained that let alone the mass population, even the woreda and keble officials are not familiar with the MDGs and are confused as to how to work on them.  

The MDGs are now at the midpoint between the adoption and the 2015 target date. However, current trends show that 62 out of 100 countries may not achieve all the goals should they continue with the current speed.

Accordingly, the recent UN document advised governments that inclusive sound governance, increased production, enhanced productive society and the creation of jobs are attainable only when the public is aware of what the goals are and strive to achieve them.

“If the public is not well informed about the issued involved in the MDGs, it is just like driving your car without knowing the destination,” Abraha G. Kidan (PhD), an economics lecturer at a private college, told Fortune.

Abraha further explained that strong government leadership, good policies and practical strategies for scaling up public investments in vital areas with adequate financial and technical support from the international community are necessary additional ingredients for the MDGs to be realised.
 

Though the prospects are gloomy for most countries, impressive and encouraging results have been achieved in certain regions. For example, the UN report further explained that boosting agricultural productivity, increasing primary education enrolment, controlling malaria and widening access to basic rural health services, reforesting areas on a large scale and increasing access to water and sanitation are well underway in African countries like Malawi, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Niger, Senegal, Togo and Uganda. 

The Ethiopian government is conducting the second five-year Plan for Accelerated and Sustained Development to End Poverty (PASDEP) that is widely accepted as a step forward to achieving the widely acclaimed MDGs. 
 

“We have come a long way and should continue to concentrate on the development endeavours put forward on PASDEP,” Getachew Adem, an official at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED), told participant journalists at the closing of the two day training.

While the second phase of PASEP is in its third year, some see increased awareness as lacking in Ethiopia’s strategy.
 

Zekaria Mohammed, public relations officer at PANE, said that journalists should share in this responsibility by providing the public with the necessary information and conducting analyses that help to shape citizen’s perspectives and views on the MDGs.
 

Seble Tiruneh, 46, however, is not comfortable with what has been done by the media so far and demands a shift of attitude in that regard. 

“I always hear about it but it is presented neither in an attractive way nor does it explain in plain language,” she told Fortune.

In one way or another, many are emphasising the need for the government and all the other concerned bodies including the media, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) to inform the society about the benefits that could be drawn from achieving the MDGs.

“The MDGs can only be achieved when governments are held to account for their promises and this can only be done by an informed citizen,” Zadig Abraha (LLB), a researcher at Addis Ababa University (AAU), told Fortune. “Awareness building of is pivotal.”