Target 2: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger

'Over 9 million people die worldwide each year because of hunger and malnutrition.'
'In the United Kingdom _20 billion worth of food is thrown away, every year. In the US 40-50% of all food ready for harvest never gets eaten.'

Source: Global Issues

Target 3: Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling

"Seven million cases of HIV/AIDS could be prevented in the next decade if every child received an education.
A child born to a literate mother is 50% more likely to survive pass the age of 5 years.
A single year of schooling increases a woman's wages by 10-20%."

Source: Campaign for Education, 2007

Target 4: Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and to all levels of education no later than 2015

"Out of 862 million illiterate people worldwide, two-thirds of them are women."

Source: UNESCO, 2004

Target 5: Reduce by two-thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate

"Of the 10 million children under age 5 who die each year, 2 million die within the first 24 hours of life."

Source: Save the Children, 2006 (quoting The Lancet. Volume 365, Issue 9462)

Target 6: Reduce by three-quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the number of women who die giving birth

'Of all health indicators, maternal mortality reveals the greatest gap between rich and poor women, both between and within countries. Each year, 536 000 women die from complications of pregnancy and childbirth—99% in the developing world—and another 10–20 million women have severe health problems, including obstetric fistula. In 2005, women in developed countries had a one in 7300 lifetime risk of dying from pregnancy-related causes, compared with a one in 75 risk in developing countries. In Africa , the lifetime risk is one in 26.1 Little change has been seen in the hardest hit areas and the gap is widening. At the midpoint in the timeline to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), the absence of progress in reduction of maternal mortality and morbidity is unacceptable.'

Source: www.womendeliver.org/pdf/Delivering_for_Women_Ann_Starrs.pdf

Target 7: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS

"Life expectancy in Botswana: 34 years ñ it would be 72 years without AIDS. Six other countries, from Angola to Zambia, now have average life expectancies under 40 years"

Source: New Scientist, 2005

Target 10: Halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water

"In a world of unprecedented wealth, almost 2 million children die each year for want of a glass of clean water and adequate sanitation. Millions of women and young girls are forced to spend hours collecting and carrying water, restricting their opportunities and their choices."

Source: Human Development Report 2006 Beyond scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis, UNDP

Target 15: Deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries through national and international measures in order to make debt sustainable in the long term

"Future debt payments for 29 heavily indebted countries have fallen by $59 billion since 1998, bringing their debt service to less than 7 per cent of export earnings. But for many poor countries, even this reduced level is too high."

Source: The Millennium Development Goals Report 2006