Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
The global mobilization that drives campaigns and crusades that strive to reduce the
levels of hunger and poverty aims at achieving a better lifestyle for the majority of people living
in the contemporary society. The growth and subsequent development of any country is pegged
upon its ability to sustain its citizens while at the same time maximize capital generation and
production. This process can only be made possible if the political structures and systems in a
country are managed effectively such that every person is assured of their basic, secondary and
even tertiary needs. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper. The absence of the latter subjects most individuals into a state of penury and hopelessness as evidenced in most African and Asian states.
The introduction of the Millennium Development Goals happened to be the saving grace
to virtually all the countries facing alarming levels of hunger, poverty and even disease. The core
objective of these goals was to halve the percentage and proportion of people that were living in
abject poverty or were undergoing an extreme hunger crisis. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper. This process was set to be achieved over a fifteen year period so that it would lift most people out of the deplorable lives that they were presently leading. This entailed the inclusion and embracement of measures, strategies and policies that could bring this vision into fulfillment. This paper is a research essay that discusses the Millennium Development Goals with regards to how they were instrumental in reducing the
levels and rates of hunger and poverty across the globe. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
Thesis Statement
The process of unifying and galvanizing efforts that are geared towards the achievement
of a major objective perfectly characterizes the Millennium Development Goals and how they
remained visionary in making sure people were lifted out of starvation and scarcity.
Essay Topic
The first UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG) set out to halve 1990 poverty and
hunger rates by the end of 2015. While the goal for hunger rates was not achieved, the goal for
poverty reduction was reportedly reached five years ahead of schedule, in 2010. At the same
time, there is some debate about the way in which global poverty reduction was measured and
some question about whether the goal, on a global scale, was ever reached at all. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
Research Questions
i) What are the efforts, successes and failures to achieve the first Millennium Development Goal
concerning both poverty and hunger?
ii) In light of your analysis, what is your view of the prospect of achieving the new Sustainable
Development Goals which have been proposed now that the MDGs have expired?
Body of the Essay
a) Efforts, successes and failures to achieve the first Millennium Development Goal
concerning both poverty and hunger. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
The birth and genesis of the Millennium Development Goals or MDGs was geared
towards the fulfillment of a number of targets that were bound by time and effort. These
objectives endeavored to drastically and significantly minimize the levels of poverty and hunger
across most countries within a fifteen year period (Aguilar et al, 2007). What’s more, these goals
also strived to provide aid to millions of people across the globe who were living in miserable
and deplorable conditions. The largest effort that the MDGs managed to accomplish was to
mobilize and convince governments and heads of state to donate financial resources that would
be used in the process of feeding the hungry and lowering the levels of poverty (Sokolović et al,
2012). Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
In addition, the majority of state authorities were convinced to provide further donations
in the form of medicine such as the antiretroviral drugs that would be used in the reduction of
HIV/AIDS infection rates. These Millennium Development Goals were valuable in the sense that
they prompted high levels of co-operation when it came to the private, public and even nonprofit
organizations (Uzbay and Pifpirili, 2015). This unified effort provided a common platform that
was appropriately used in combating some of the persistent problems in the developing world.
Apart from the reduction and elimination of poverty and starvation, the MDGs also centered on
matters related to gender equality, infectious diseases, child mortality and even maternal health
issues (Uzbay and Pifpirili, 2015). Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
The drafting of these Millennium Development Goals was such that each objective was
supported by its own specific targets that also had their own set of indicators. The latter came in
handy when it came to the process of tracking down how each goal was fairing own after a
specific time interval. The largest success of the goal that was geared towards poverty reduction
is the fact that it managed to minimize the number of people who were living on one dollar a day
from at list two billion people to less than eight hundred million (Ghosh, 2015). These statistics
are sufficient proof that the goals managed to halve the number of people who were wallowing in
penury and misery. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
The targets of this goal were divided into two such that they capitalized on enabling people
increase their earnings from one dollar a day to a higher amount that could be sufficient to cater
for their domestic and disposable needs (Husaini and Tuteja, 2013). The second part entailed the
halving of the percentage of people who were actually staring at the pangs of hunger on a daily
basis. The governments, stakeholders as well as the frontiers of the Millennium Development
Goals campaign identified that the second part could be effectively achieved and fulfilled by
focusing on the children. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
This is because in most developing countries, the number of young ones account for a
very high percentage. It is the guardians and parents to these same children that live on a dollar
per day or even less, meaning that they do not actually have enough to eat (Munang and
Andrews, 2014). Consequently, most children end up dying due to extreme starvation,
malnourishment or even prolonged durations of eating less nutritive foods. The Millennium
Development Goals understood that a child who is not well fed or is facing looming hunger is at
risk of suffering from all other opportunistic and health issues (Nelson, 2015). Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
For instance, it is these same category of children that end up being threatened by
diseases, mortality issues as well as lack of education. Hence, the efforts that were focused
towards eradication of poverty on the children were very successful when it came to minimizing
the number of infections and diseases among children (Quental et al, 2011). Similarly, the
access to proper meals, education and health care was achieved once the parents to these young
ones could afford better and decent ways of earning a living. In the same regard, the achievement
of this goal was also successful in the sense that is also reduced the mortality rates (Quental et al,
2011).
Children who are not well fed tend to be undernourished and this is a condition that directly
contributes to retardation and stunting of growth. This predisposes young kids under five of
years of age to being underweight such that they are also at risk of contracting other
communicable diseases. The fact that the MGDs were able to drastically halve this number
enabled more children to grow up healthy, have access to quality medical care and even combat
other forms of infectious illnesses (Uzbay and Pifpirili, 2015). When it comes to poverty, the
Millennium Development Goals aimed at empowering more people to take charge of their lives
by improving their financial abilities. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
This was to be made possible by placing more individuals in developing countries in
active and productive employment where they would have decent jobs to take care of their
families and their dependents (Ghosh, 2015). Moreover, the fact that they would have permanent
jobs would mean that they would be guaranteed of leading better lives where nutritive and
quality meals could become more affordable and accessible at the same time. This approach was
not only limited to the men, but also to the women as well (Husaini and Tuteja, 2013).
It is through this tactic that the Millennium Development Goals saw a decline of the
number of impoverished people to approximately fourteen percent. This means that more people
have seen their income rise from the minimum amount of one dollar to nearly four dollars per
day. It is this pioneering efforts that have brought significant improvement and change across the
universe where most people have been lifted out of poverty and have seen an end to hunger and
starvation (Husaini and Tuteja, 2013). Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
Despite these widespread achievements, there are still some failures that the Millennium
Development Goals did not fully address. To begin with, these objectives did not manage to
reduce the level of poverty to at least half of its original proportion. As of the end of 2015, there
were still more people in developing countries wallowing in poverty and struggling to clothe,
feed and even take care of their families (Aguilar et al, 2007). What’s more, the percentage of
people that could comfortably afford a decent place to stay were quite many and did not appear
to have reduced over the fifteen year period.
There are more people presently that are still grappling with the effects of low paying
jobs that place them at the edge of remaining poor and underfed (Sokolović et al, 2012). It is for this reason that the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs were developed so that they could
fulfill what the MDGs did not accomplish. The following part of this essay discusses at length
the Sustainable Development Goals and the prospects that hold when it comes to the
accomplishments of the goals that have not yet been met.
b) Discuss the prospects of achieving the new Sustainable Development Goals which have
been proposed now that the MDGs have expired. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
The concept of the Sustainable Development Goals was born out of the Millennium
Development Goals so that they could effectively address all the objectives that were not initially
met. They were universally and unanimously established by the majority of countries so that they
could combat poverty, disease, sustainability and even child mortality in a much better way
(Uzbay and Pifpirili, 2015). Some of the issues that were not fully accomplished by the MDGs
directly relate to matters of nutritious and healthy eating, education, women empowerment as
well as food security. The goal on poverty reduction and elimination was targeted to be
transformed into a reality by the year 2030.
The governments and authorities that came together agreed that this could only be made
possible by implementing the protection systems and social policies that could empower people
to become more financially stable (Aguilar et al, 2007). Further, the ability of women to have
similar rights as their male counterparts would provide a better platform that would see more
communities evolve and more children educated. The process of empowering the women is one
of the Sustainable Development Goals that is believed to hold the potential of improving the
livelihoods of people and in turn bring an end to the alarming levels of poverty. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
The Sustainable Development Goals came into the effect at the beginning of this year
and they are projected to be achieved over a fifteen year period (Munang and Andrews, 2014).
This means that by the year 2030, poverty and hunger are anticipated to become a thing of the
past. The introduction of sustainable methods of farming and agriculture are seen as the most
viable solution that would see to it that hunger in most developing nations and states is mitigated.
These techniques mostly embrace technology such that the crops are genetically engineered to
give them desirable qualities that can see them mature faster, obtain more yields and also
withstand the harsh weather conditions (Nelson, 2015). Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
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The current era is struggling with matters of food insecurity that has only worsened the
issue of hunger and starvation. Besides the fact that some people cannot afford food, the climate
change phenomenon has impacted negatively on farming and agriculture such that low amounts
of harvests are being recorded. This in turn means that people have to strain to ensure that they
set their eyes on food since there is not enough for everyone. It is for this reason that the
Sustainable Development Goals focus on the “sustainable” part which strives to make sure that
there is enough food, water and other natural resources for both the present and future
generations.
This standalone target of SDGs also endeavors to achieve better economic growth via
employment that is both guaranteed and productive at the same time. Further, the fact that the
population in most countries has astronomically risen over the years means that there are more
people to feed and more people to lift out of poverty (Quental et al, 2011). Therefore, the
emphasis of these goals lies in the sustainability part where every approach that is used to
achieve them can be employed and implemented over the fifteen year period. This is why bio-
fortification and genetic modified technology has gained a lot of popularity in most countries
because it has helped them achieve food security. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
The two methodologies concentrate on the production of the staple crops where they are
made to mature much faster and even give higher levels of productivity even in the wake of
extreme weather patterns (Quental et al, 2011). The Sustainable Development Goals have indeed
reinforced the previous MDGs and are presently striving to ensure that hunger and poverty are
significantly minimized. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
Conclusion
The prosperity and progression of any state lies in the ability of its people to fend for
themselves and even acquire the most basic of needs. A society that is characterized by high
levels of poverty among its people stands a very low chance of becoming successful when it
comes to matters of the economy and national stability. The creation of the Millennium
Development Goals or MDGs was done with the sole aim of improving the livelihoods of people
all across the globe. This would begin with the eradication of poverty and hunger since these are
the two pressing concerns that affect the quality of life of any human being. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
By the close of 2015, the level of hunger had been reduced by almost half while that of
poverty had also dropped considerably. However, the fact that there are still many people that
struggle to feed themselves or even rise out of poverty led to the establishment of the Sustainable
Development Goals that aim at fulfilling the failures of the previous goals. The beginning of this
year saw the onset of the realization of this dreams that have saw far accomplished encouraging
results. It is definitely anticipated that the end of the fifteen year period will bring much
excitement and elation since both starvation and poverty will become a thing of the past. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
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References
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Ghosh, J. (2015). Beyond the Millenium Development Goals: A Southern Perspective on a Global
New Deal. Journal of International Development, 27(3), 320-329. doi:10.1002/jid.3087
Husaini, A. M., & Tuteja, N. (2013). Imperative for achieving the Millenium Development Goals
and sustainability of agriculture in the climate change era. GM Crops & Food, 4(1), 1-9. Introduction to International Politics Essay Paper.
doi:10.4161/gmc.22748
Munang, R., & Andrews, J. (2014). The Next Steps: Africa’s Sustainable Development Goals and
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Nelson, P. (2015). Global Development Goals and Global Health: The Power and Problems of
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