The Philippines is gaining headway in its bid to meet by 2015 the United Nations Millenium Development Goal (MDG) of ensuring environmental sustainability nationwide.
National Economic Development Authority Director Erlinda Capones reported this matter at the two-day 10th National Convention on Statistics at EDSA Shangri-La Hotel in Mandaluyong City where she said the country will likely meet such goal.
MDGs are time-bound and measurable targets which UN member-countries committed to meet so poverty, hunger, diseases, illiteracy, environmental degradation and discrimination against women can be addressed.
During the event, Capones presented data available as of September 2007 on the country’s progress in making sustainable development principles as part of its policies and programs on reversing loss of environmental resources.
The data showed proportion of the country’s urban population with access to improved sanitation already exceeded the MDG goal of 83.8 percent as this soared from 67.6 percent (1990) to 86.2 percent (2004).
Proportion of Philippine population with sustainable access also improved water source jumped from 73 percent (1990) to 80.2 percent (2004) which is about 6.3 percent below the 86.5 percent MDG target by 2015.
While that of forest-covered land nationwide rose to 23.9 percent (2003) from 20.5 percent (1990) while area protected to maintain bio-diversity increased to 12.7 percent (2006) from 8.5 percent (1990) of the Philippines’ total surface area.
Data also indicated that consumption of ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons dipped to 681 tons (2006) from 2,981 tons (1990) and proportion of households using solid fuels for cooking decreased to 42.1 percent (203) from 66.2 percent (1990).
Capones also identified ways to accelerate implementation of MDG-related programs and projects.
These include curbing high population growth rate, improving agricultural performance, boosting efforts to push reforms on basic education and health and ensuring transparency and accountability in government transactions.
She also said strengthening local government units’ capacity to deliver basic services and bolstering government’s links with other nations and the private sector are needed to accelerate the Philippines’ bid to meet MDG goals.
--PNA
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