Ending poverty is within our grasp

If we do nothing, if world governments, including our own, fall short of their commitment and we fail to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, we can expect major global implications.

If we fail to take action on HIV and AIDS businesses and governments, both of which are reliant on economic growth, in developing countries face potentially crippling conditions. Some African nations are predicting that AIDS will wipe out up to 60 per cent of their working populations - this could destroy local markets and deplete local workforces.

If the Australian government is to make a difference, and meet its promises to the world’s poor, it must take a number of steps to better help people in the developing world. None of these are large, but they are all important.

The first step is for the Australian government to commit to more and better aid, and a timeline to lift Official Development Assistance to 0.5 per cent of Gross National Income by 2010 and 0.7 per cent by 2015.

Australia should also: consider debt relief for those countries that need it to meet their own targets set out under the MDGs; ensure that multilateral trade agreements meet the human development needs of poor countries; and expand support for good governance efforts in poor countries.

We also need to take urgent action to cut Australian greenhouse pollution and participate fully in international conventions to combat climate change. There needs to be greater priority in overseas aid to renewable energy and energy efficiency projects and an increase in support to help the poorest communities prepare for the impacts of climate change.

We have an unprecedented opportunity to end world poverty. Failing to act would be one of the greatest moral failures of our nation.