Though there are positive socio-economic achievements in Africa, the continent still needs to scale up all interventions in order to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by the year 2015, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) said in Addis Ababa Thursday.

Abdoulie Janneh, UN undersecretary-general and executive secretary of ECA, said governments, development partners, private sector, civil society organizations and citizens in Africa should strive to scale up progress in order to reach the targets by the due date.

Janneh made the remarks while opening the 26th meeting of the committee of experts of the ministers of finance, planning and economic development.

African ministers of finance, planning and economic development are to meet in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa from April 2 to 3 to discuss how to accelerate growth on the continent to meet the MDGs. The meeting of the committee of experts precedes the conference from Thursday to Sunday.

Janneh, who is from Gambia, admitted that various efforts have been undertaken in Africa since the MDGs were outlined in 2000.

The MDGs, which were established in 2000 at the Millennium Summit in New York, include eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, achieving universal primary education; promoting gender equality and empower women; reducing child mortality; improving maternal health; combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; ensuring environmental sustainability; and developing a global partnership for development.

It is now critically important that African should review both the progress they made and the obstacles they encountered in order to learn from experience and become more operational, he said.

At the same occasion, Ethiopia's State Minister of Finance and Economic Development Mekonnen Manyazewal said Africa was at risk to achieve MDGs over the past years due to failure in bringing about economic growth and in reducing poverty.

However, he said the continent is registering considerable socio-economic increases in the recent few years, though it is gradual.

He said many African countries including Ethiopia have been registering promising changes in reducing infant mortality, expanding elementary education as well as in provision of safe drinking water and nutritious food stuffs.

The Ethiopian official urged African countries to exert utmost efforts in promoting equitable share of benefits to bring about sustainable development and in reducing poverty.

The outcomes of the discussion are expected to be proposed to the ministerial meeting due to be held here on Monday at the ECA headquarters. The meeting, chaired by Ethiopia, attracts over 200 experts, scholars and researchers drawn from the member states.

Source: Xinhua