24/08/2006                                                                    Progress achieved in realising the Millennium Development Goals 1- The second regional report on the Millennium Development Goals (Egypt 2004), issued by the Egyptian Ministry of Planning in cooperation with the UN, highlighted that Egypt is on the right path towards implementing the expected results related to the majority of the millennium development indicators. However, progress rate varies from one goal to another. In other words, the rate is steady and rapid in some fields (such as decreasing the children’s and maternal death rates, providing clean water, and enhancing general health), whereas progress rates are acceptable in other fields (such as education and poverty reduction). Nonetheless, they are still slow in other fields (such as enabling women, and environment). Consequently, Egypt should exert more efforts to keep up the current progress rates in the fields of poverty reduction, death rates, and combating diseases.  2- As for poverty reduction, the report shows that, in comparison to the majority of the developing countries, Egypt witnessed a lower level of income poverty, and a remarkable reduction in poverty levels during the last decade, in contrast with the majority of developing countries. Poverty reduction is one of the main goals of the long-term development plans in Egypt, and aims at reducing it to about 6% of the population by the year 2022. 3- In 2002, the general poverty level in Egypt reached 16.7% of the population. Rural areas in Upper Egypt registered the highest poverty rate (34.2%), then comes urban areas in Upper Egypt (19.3%), whereas the lowest rates were in the urban areas of the governorates (5.1%). The report highlighted that Egypt does not suffer from lack of food among its population, as the average per capita daily calories reached 2960 cal. in 1999-2000, which is about 119% of the international level. 4- The report stated that school enrolment rates increased during the 90s. The primary level enrolment rates increased during the period from 1995 to 2002, the increase rate was 5% in males and 9% in females, bringing the total percentage up to 94% in males and 91% in females. The report indicated the possibility of generalizing primary education on the national level by the year 2015. 5- Meanwhile, the report indicated the possibility of variation among different governorates, as the governorates on the borders in Lower Egypt will not be able to achieve this for females, and the Upper Egypt governorates will not be able to achieve a comprehensive coverage for both males and females. However, other governorates reached a comprehensive primary level enrolment rate in males and females (Cairo, Alexandria, Suez, Damietta, Ismailia). On the other hand, other governorates have not reached this level yet. For instance, Sohag ranked last with the percentage of 77% in males and 75% in females. 6- A regional seminar entitled "Accelerating the Actions for Achieving the Millennium Development Goals in the MENA Countries" was held in Cairo, on 19 July 2006, in which Assistant Minister for International Economic Relations, Ambassador Hagar El-Eslamboli, participated as a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and delivered a speech on the progress Egypt is achieving.