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.....................................................................
(Original Signature of Member)

H. CON. RES. l
111TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION

Supporting the ideals and objectives of the United Nations Millennium Dec-
laration and related Millennium Development Goals and calling on the
President to ensure the United States contributes meaningfully to the
achievement of the Millennium Development Goals by the year 2015.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Ms. LEE of California submitted the following concurrent resolution; which

was referred to the Committee on lllllllllllllll

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Supporting the ideals and objectives of the United Nations
Millennium Declaration and related Millennium Develop-
ment Goals and calling on the President to ensure the
United States contributes meaningfully to the achieve-
ment of the Millennium Development Goals by the year
2015.

Whereas at the 2000 United Nations Millennium Summit on

September 8, 2000, the United States joined 189 nations
in adopting the United Nations Millennium Declaration,
which set a series of time-bound targets to reduce ex-
treme poverty by 2015 known as the Millennium Devel-
opment Goals;

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Whereas the Millennium Development Goals set measurable
targets related to ending hunger and poverty, universal
education, gender equity, child health, maternal health,
combating HIV/AIDS, environmental sustainability, and
global partnership, all to be achieved by 2015, includ-
ing—
(1) reducing by half the proportion of people living
on less than $1 a day;
(2) reducing by half the proportion of people who
suffer from hunger;
(3) ensuring that all boys and girls complete a full
course of primary schooling;
(4) eliminating gender disparity in primary and sec-
ondary education preferably by 2005, and at all levels by
2015;
(5) reducing by two-thirds the mortality rate among
children under 5;
(6) reducing by three-quarters the maternal mor-
tality ratio;
(7) achieving, by 2015, universal access to reproduc-
tive health;
(8) halting and beginning to reverse the spread of
HIV/AIDS;
(9) achieving, by 2010, universal access to treatment
for HIV/AIDS for all those who need it;
(10) halting and beginning to reverse the incidence
of Malaria and other major diseases;
(11) integrating the principles of sustainable devel-
opment into country policies and programs to reverse loss
of environmental resources;
(12) reducing biodiversity loss, achieving a signifi-
cant reduction in the rate of loss by 2010;

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(13) reducing by half the proportion of people with-
out sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic
sanitation;
(14) achieving significant improvement in the lives
of at least 100,000,000 slum dwellers, by 2020;
(15) developing further an open trading and finan-
cial system that is rule-based, predictable, and non-dis-
criminatory and includes a commitment to good govern-
ance, development, and poverty reduction nationally and
internationally;
(16) addressing the least developed countries’ special
needs which includes tariff-free and quota-free access for
their exports, enhanced debt relief for heavily indebted
poor countries, cancellation of official bilateral debt, and
more generous official development assistance for coun-
tries committed to poverty reduction;
(17) addressing the special needs of landlocked and
small island developing countries;
(18) dealing comprehensively with developing coun-
tries’ debt problems through national and international
measures to make debt sustainable in the long term;
(19) developing decent and productive work for
youth in cooperation with the developing countries;
(20) providing access to affordable essential drugs in
developing countries in cooperation with pharmaceutical
companies; and
(21) making available the benefits of new tech-
nologies, especially information and communications tech-
nologies, in cooperation with the private sector;
Whereas the Millennium Development Goals have been
agreed to by 192 United Nations Member States includ-
ing the United States as well as leading international de-
velopment and financial institutions such as the World
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Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and re-
gional development banks;
Whereas the United Nations Millennium Declaration re-
affirmed the values and principles of the United Nations
General Assembly, including fundamental values of free-
dom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, respect for nature,
and shared responsibility;
Whereas, on March 22, 2002, the United States, the Euro-
pean Union, and other countries concluded the Monterrey
Consensus, which included agreement on new develop-
ment aid commitments, debt relief, fighting corruption,
country ownership, and policy coherence to fulfill inter-
nationally agreed development goals including those con-
tained in the Millennium Declaration;
Whereas in 2005, the United Nations General Assembly con-
vened a high level meeting known as the ‘‘2005 World
Summit’’, reiterating a determination by both developed
and developing nations to ensure the timely and full real-
ization of development goals and objectives including the
Millennium Development Goals and recognizing that ‘‘de-
velopment, peace and security and human rights are
interlinked and mutually reinforcing’’;
Whereas at the 2005 World Summit, developing nations com-
mitted to the development and implementation of na-
tional plans to achieve the Millennium Development
Goals, and identified good governance and the rule of law
as ‘‘essential for sustained economic growth, sustainable
development and the eradication of poverty and hunger’’;
Whereas nearly one decade after the signing of the United
Nations Millennium Declaration, the international com-
munity has made significant progress in addressing the

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root causes of extreme poverty, particularly in the areas
of global health, education, and safe drinking water;
Whereas net official development assistance by the United
States, totaling $28,700,000,000 in 2009, has roughly
tripled since 200l;
Whereas the United States was the leading source of remit-
tances, which totaled $34,700,000,000 in 2008;
Whereas in the developing world as a whole, enrollment in
primary education rose from 83 to 88 percent from the
year 2000 to 2007;
Whereas the deaths of children under 5 declined from
12,600,000 to 9,000,000 annually, from the year 1990 to
2007;
Whereas from 2001 to 2008, new HIV infections declined by
16 percent globally, and in 2006, the annual number of
AIDS deaths began to decline for the first time since the
earliest reported cases of the HIV/AIDS epidemic;
Whereas access to lifesaving antiretroviral therapy (ART) to
treat HIV/AIDS continues to increase, and an estimated
5,000,000 people are now receiving AIDS treatment, or
about one-third of those currently in need;
Whereas based off the 1990 estimate for global drinking
water coverage of 77 percent, studies indicate that the
world is ahead of schedule in reducing by half the propor-
tion of the global population without sustainable access
to safe drinking water;
Whereas the lasting impacts of the global economic crisis,
food, and natural resource price volatility, the persistence
of conflict, and rising scarcity of food and water re-
sources have increased the vulnerability of the world’s
poor, and threaten to impede or even reverse progress
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made in improving and protecting the health, environ-
ment, physical, and economic security of those suffering
from extreme poverty;
Whereas the United Nations Department of Economic and
Social Affairs indicates that in June 2009, progress was
either insufficient, absent, or deteriorating for more than
half of key targets related to compliance with the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals;
Whereas gaps in strategy, implementation, policies, capacity,
and resources have resulted in regional disparities incon-
sistent with the spirit of the Millennium Declaration to
uphold the international community’s collective responsi-
bility and duty ‘‘to all the world’s people, especially the
most vulnerable’’;
Whereas according to the United Nations Department of
Economic and Social Affairs, 100 percent of key targets
in Sub-Saharan Africa fall into underperforming cat-
egories;
Whereas the World Bank estimates that in 2005,
1,400,000,000 people across the globe, and more than
one-quarter of the developing world’s population, were ex-
periencing extreme poverty, living on less than $1.25 a
day;
Whereas the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organiza-
tion (FAO) estimates that the number of undernourished
people in the world rose to 1,020,000,000 in 2009, equiv-
alent to 15 percent of the world population and rep-
resenting an increase of roughly 200,000,000 people from
1990;

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Whereas in 2007, 72,000,000 children were denied the right
to education, half of these children having never seen the
inside of a classroom;
Whereas the agreed upon target for eliminating gender dis-
parities in primary and secondary education by 2005 has
already been missed;
Whereas recent estimates indicate that 342,000 to half a mil-
lion women and girls, nearly all of them in developing
countries, die each year as a result of obstetric complica-
tions during pregnancy, during childbirth, or in the weeks
following delivery, the vast majority of which are prevent-
able or treatable with quality reproductive health services;
Whereas in 2006, 1,400,000,000 people remained without ac-
cess to basic sanitation, which has been tied to the need
for improvements in health and the quality of the envi-
ronment;
Whereas studies indicate that more than 20 percent of all
known mammals, 35 percent of freshwater fish species,
25 percent of reptiles, and 70 percent of plant species
around the world are under threat of extinction due to
a variety of factors including loss of habitat, change in
climate, invasive species, over-hunting or harvesting, pol-
lution, and disease;
Whereas President Obama has committed to doubling United
States foreign assistance to $50,000,000,000;
Whereas, on May 5, 2009, President Obama announced a
new Global Health Initiative, pledging $63,000,000,000
over 6 years, to strengthen national health systems and
better integrate and coordinate the delivery of health
services across a range of existing programs with a par-
ticular focus on improving the health of women,

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newborns, and children through programs addressing in-
fectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, nutrition, maternal
and child health, neglected tropical diseases, safe water,
and sanitation;
Whereas, on July 10, 2009, Secretary of State Hillary
Rodham Clinton announced that the United States De-
partment of State and United States Agency for Inter-
national Development will conduct the first Quadrennial
Diplomacy and Development Review to provide short-,
medium-, and long-term blueprints for a whole-of-govern-
ment approach to diplomacy and development including a
clear statement of objectives, necessary tools and re-
sources, and expected results;
Whereas, on August 31, 2009, President Obama signed a
Presidential Study Directive (PSD) on Global Develop-
ment Policy, which authorizes a United States Govern-
ment-wide review of global development policies and pro-
cedures;
Whereas, on September 25, 2009, Secretary of State Hillary
Rodham Clinton announced a new Global Food Security
Initiative ‘‘to sustainably reduce chronic hunger, raise the
income of the rural poor, and reduce the number of chil-
dren suffering from under-nutrition’’, for which President
Obama has pledged $3,500,000,000 over 3 years;
Whereas, on January 6, 2010, United States Secretary of
State Hillary Rodham Clinton declared development a
‘‘strategic, economic, and moral imperative’’ and called
for ‘‘elevat[ing] development as a central pillar of our
foreign policy’’;
Whereas, on April 21, 2010, Secretary of Defense Robert
Gates expressed in writing to the Senate Budget Com-

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mittee, ‘‘the work performed by diplomatic and develop-
ment professionals helps build the foundation for more
stable, democratic and prosperous societies’’;
Whereas United Nations Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon has
indicated his intention to make 2010 the ‘‘year of the
Millennium Development Goals’’, with a particular focus
on sustainable development;
Whereas broad-based country- and community-ownership, in-
cluding the engagement of marginalized populations and
vulnerable groups such as women, are critical to the long-
term success of development programs aimed at reducing
extreme poverty;
Whereas efforts to improve health and governance, expand
access to education, address gender disparity, empower
women and girls, sustain and develop global partnerships,
and ensure environmental sustainability will not be suc-
cessful in isolation and are all essential and mutually re-
inforcing activities in the fight to eradicate extreme pov-
erty;
Whereas at the opening of the 65th Session of the General
Assembly of the United Nations from September 20,
2010, to September 22, 2010, global leaders will convene
a high-level summit, the largest gathering of heads of
state since the 2000 United Nations Millennium Summit,
to review the implementation of the 2000 United Nations
Millennium Declaration and redouble efforts to meet the
Millennium Development goals;
Whereas, on September 24, 2009, President Obama affirmed
the United States ‘‘will support the Millennium Develop-
ment Goals, and approach next year’s summit with a

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global plan to make them a reality. And we will set our
sights on the eradication of extreme poverty in our time’’;
Whereas, on July 30, 2010, the United States Agency for
International Development, the lead United States agen-
cy responsible for administering nonmilitary foreign as-
sistance, released ‘‘The United States’ Strategy for Meet-
ing the Millennium Development Goals’’ to be guided by
four imperatives to leverage innovation, invest in sustain-
ability, track development outcomes and not just dollars,
and enhance the principle and practice of mutual ac-
countability;
Whereas in preparation for the 2010 high-level summit, and
in recognition of the vital role of indigenous and inter-
national civil society, the private sector, and Diaspora
networks in reviewing and implementing strategies for
sustainable development, from June 14, 2010, to June
15, 2010, the United Nations convened ‘‘Informal Inter-
active Hearings of the General Assembly with Non-gov-
ernmental organizations, Civil society organizations and
the Private sector’’;
Whereas studies indicate that a majority of the people of the
United States support United States efforts abroad to
improve health, build climate resilience, and reduce hun-
ger and poverty in poor countries, including by increasing
public funding to achieve the Millennium Development
Goals; and
Whereas the strong support of individuals, businesses, and
philanthropic organizations across the United States for
foreign assistance programs and the achievement of the
Millennium Development Goals demonstrates United
States values and ideals, including the compassion, gen-
erosity, and openness to the exchange of ideas and knowl-
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edge of the people of the United States: Now, therefore,
be it
1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
2 concurring), That Congress—
3 (1) supports the ideals and objectives of the
4 United Nations Millennium Declaration and related
5 Millennium Development Goals and targets including
6 to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, achieve
7 universal primary education, promote gender equal-
8 ity and empower women, reduce child mortality, im-
9 prove maternal health, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria,
10 and other diseases, ensure environmental sustain-
11 ability, and develop a global partnership for develop-
12 ment;
13 (2) commends the progress made to date
14 through international efforts to reduce instances of
15 poverty, hunger, disease, and environmental deg-
16 radation, as well as the sustained commitment of the
17 international community to build upon these achieve-
18 ments in future years;
19 (3) acknowledges the achievements of devel-
20 oping nations that have prioritized principles of ac-
21 countability and inclusive ownership in the design
22 and execution of development-related programs and
23 the contribution of these efforts to the universal re-
24 alization of the Millennium Development Goals;
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1 (4) recognizes the critical importance of global
2 development programs and partnerships to the na-
3 tional security of the United States;
4 (5) calls on the President to ensure the United
5 States contributes meaningfully to the achievement
6 of the Millennium Development Goals, and specified
7 targets therein, by the year 2015, including by pro-
8 viding the global plan that was affirmed on Sep-
9 tember 24, 2009, and that supports the goals and
10 commitments of the 2010 Millennium Development
11 Goals Summit;
12 (6) commits to work with and support the Ad-
13 ministration in its efforts to accomplish by 2015 the
14 goals and targets set forth in the United Nations
15 Millennium Declaration and related Millennium De-
16 velopment Goals, including by providing the nec-
17 essary resources to achieve these development objec-
18 tives;
19 (7) encourages the President to recommend and
20 work in coordination with Congress to implement re-
21 forms to United States foreign assistance programs
22 in order to achieve the Millennium Development
23 Goals;
24 (8) requests that the President’s forthcoming
25 United States development policy include bench-

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1 marks, timelines, and resource estimates to guide
2 the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of
3 these efforts;
4 (9) commends private sector institutions as well
5 as indigenous and international civil society organi-
6 zations seeking to hold their governments account-
7 able to the achievement of the Millennium Develop-
8 ment Goals by 2015; and
9 (10) urges all responsible nations within the
10 international community to uphold their commit-
11 ment to meet the Millennium Development Goals, in-
12 cluding through actions to improve governance and
13 the rule of law, expand debt relief programs, provide
14 additional resources and technical assistance, and
15 promote sustainable and responsible trade opportu-
16 nities in order to support development efforts in the
17 poorest nations.

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