“EDUCATION IS THE MOST IMPORTANT CAPITAL”.

On the occasion of the G8 summit in early June, UNICEF calls on all states – including the G8 – to deliver on their promises and to implement the United Nations Millennium Development Goals against poverty.

“Growth and responsibility” is the leitmotif of the German G8 presidency.

But while the global economy is booming, around one billion children worldwide live in poverty. Every second child in southern Africa is not in school and has little chance of contributing to the economic and social development of his/her country. “Economic growth is there, but the poorest barely benefit. Therefore, governments must be reminded time and again of their responsibility to create decent living conditions for all children. Compliance with the Millennium Development Goals is the benchmark for the credibility of governments, “said UNICEF Managing Director Dietrich Garlichs.

Already in the year 2000, the G8, like all governments in the world, agreed on the Millennium Development Goals – including the central promises to provide all children with education by 2015 and to reduce child mortality by two-thirds.