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Chapter 9 Human Rights and Extreme Poverty (excerpts) . . . III. Action at the National Level 82. All Governments shall formulate integrated poverty eradication strategies and policies and implement national poverty eradication plans or programmes in a participatory manner, to address the structural causes of poverty, encompassing action at local, national, subregional, regional and international levels. Those plans should establish, within each national context, strategies and affordable time-bound goals and targets for the substantial reduction of overall poverty and the eradication of absolute poverty. 83. The United Nations Consultative Committee on Programme and Operational Questions (CCPOQ) adopted in September 1998 a matrix entitled “Freedom from Poverty: Actions and Partnerships” for inclusion in its Operational Activities Reference Manual. The matrix provides a common United Nations approach to poverty eradication and people-centred sustainable development. In particular, the following action areas are suggested: (a) Creating a broad enabling environment to combat poverty and promote pro-poor economic growth (through both internal and external measures); (b) Investing in and maintaining needed physical infrastructure, including infrastructure targeted for low-income communities; (c) Promoting access to basic social services for all, including health, reproductive health and family planing services, education and sanitation, adopting special measures to reach women and children; (d) Securing sustainable livelihoods for the poor, including access to productive assets such as credit; Report submitted by Ms. A.-M. Lizin, independent expert, Commission on Human Rights, E/CN.4/1999/48. (e) Advancing gender equality and equity, including the economic, legal and political empowerment of women; (f) Ensuring sustainable food security in low-income households and the right to food; (g) Regenerating the natural resource base on which the poor depend; (h) Good governance and political empowerment of the poor; and (i) Providing social protection for vulnerable people, including indigenous peoples. 84. The United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) has developed a list of indicators to facilitate the United Nations system’s assessments at the country level. Account has been taken of the World Summit for Children, the International Conference on Population and Development, the World Summit for Social Development and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. All United Nations Funds and Programmes conducting development activities in a country shall join together, under the leadership of the resident coordinator, to prepare UNDAF, in full consultation with the Government concerned as well as with civil society, local NGOs and international donors. Entities such as the specialized agencies and the Bretton Woods institutions are encouraged to join in the preparation of UNDAF, in order to maximize the United Nations system’s collaboration in support of country priorities. 85. Some of these indicators are particularly relevant for the eradication of extreme poverty, among them the estimated population size by age and sex, urban-rural population distribution, life expectancy at birth, and mortality and fertility indicators such as infant mortality rate by sex, under-Wve mortality rate by sex, maternal mortality rate, total fertility rate and current population growth rate. Regarding health conditions, UNDAF indicators suggested were: proportion of the population with access to health services; proportion of under-Wve children underweight by sex; proportion of births attended by appropriately trained health personnel; contraceptive prevalence rate, by method and age; and HIV adult prevalence rate. 86. In addition, the World Social Summit set four immediate health and nutrition related goals: that by the year 2000, life expectancy should be not less than 60 years in any country; mortality rates of infants and children under Wve years should be reduced by one third of the 1990 level or 50 to 70 per 1,000 live births, whichever is less; reduction in maternal mortality by one half of the 1990 level; and attainment by all peoples of the world of a level of health that will permit them to lead a socially and economically productive life and, to this end, ensuring primary health care for all. 87. As regards education, UNDAF used indicators reXecting the basic educational status of the population, with emphasis on basic education. They are: adult literacy rate by sex; net primary enrolment ratio by sex; percent reaching grade 5; and net secondary enrolment ratio by sex. 88. Since universal primary education is central in the Wght against poverty, the World Social Summit set a target of universal access to basic education and completion of primary education by at least 80 percent of primary school-age children by the year 2000. Human Rights and Extreme Poverty 607 [18.221.41.214] Project MUSE (2024-04...

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