Abstract
This book highlights the need for attending to smaller governance initiatives and practices which have successfully withstood the turbulence of the times and delivered goods and services to people. Governments belligerently adopt mega-reforms which remain underperformed due to their inability to resonate with the requirements of local people. The contributors have analysed some successful practices from across the region of Asia-Pacific and suggested ways in which such community led initiatives could involve governments, universities and NGOs to upscale and replicate them as the deadline to achieve MDGs approaches, and country governments face a performance test in United Nations.
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Notes
- 1.
There has also been a scathing criticism of MDGs. Samir Amin the economist writes, ‘while commendable the goals are vague, “ideological cover” for western neo-liberals and redolent of “pious hope”.’ (Special Report, “Rating Asia’s Progress”, Development Asia, Oct–Dec. 2009)
- 2.
To enable monitoring and objective performance evaluation of the progress towards MDGs leading experts from UN, OECD, IMF and World Bank agreed to set 18 targets and 48 technical indicators to the 8 MDGs. i.e.; Goal 1 is to eradicate extreme hunger and poverty. This is divided into two targets, first, to halve between 1990 and 2015 the number of people below $1 a day. Second target is to halve between 1990 and 2015 the number of people who suffer from hunger. The indicators for achieving the first target are, (1) proportion of population below $1 (1993PPP), (2) Poverty Gap Ratio (3) Share of poorest quintile in national consumption. The indicators for the second target are, (1) prevalence of under five underweight children (2) proportion of population below minimum level of dietary energy consumption. (55/2 Millennium Declaration in the 8 th General Assembly Plenary Meeting, 8 Sept. 2000; UN Millennium Project 2005)
- 3.
Ibid p. 9.
- 4.
Cooptation is a kind of cultural appropriation when subcultures replace a settled way of living and transacting in society. Cooptation is a strong theme in the literature that looks at developing countries (Tandon 1989; Najam 2003; Fisher 1998). Third sector organisations have a long and illustrious track record of influencing (i.e. coopting) government policy to reflect their interests.
- 5.
Asia-Pacific Regional Report, “Achieving the Millennium Development Goals in an Era of Global Uncertainty”
2009/10, ESCAP, ADB, UNDP, 9–37.
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Singh, A., Venkatachalam, A. (2013). Tracking Implementation. In: Singh, A., Gonzalez, E., Thomson, S. (eds) Millennium Development Goals and Community Initiatives in the Asia Pacific. Springer, India. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-0760-3_1
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