UNITED NATIONS - The United Nations has singled out China - the world's most populous country, with over 1.3 billion people - as one of the key success stories in the longstanding battle against poverty. Although extreme poverty rates have fallen in every developing region, says a new 60-page report released here, China is way ahead of the pack.
In China, extreme poverty dropped from 60% in 1990 to 16% in 2005 and 12% in 2010. Still, "poverty remains widespread in sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia, although progress in the latter region has been substantial," according to the Millennium Development Goals [MDGs] Report 2013, released on Monday.
Following the launch of the report in Geneva, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon hailed the MDGs as "the most successful global anti-poverty push in history".
Despite impressive achievements at the global level, the study said, 1.2 billion people are still living in extreme poverty. While trumpeting some of the successes, including big gains in improved health and reduction in hunger, the report says progress towards achieving the MDGs has been uneven.
In China, extreme poverty dropped from 60% in 1990 to 16% in 2005 and 12% in 2010. Still, "poverty remains widespread in sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia, although progress in the latter region has been substantial," according to the Millennium Development Goals [MDGs] Report 2013, released on Monday.
Following the launch of the report in Geneva, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon hailed the MDGs as "the most successful global anti-poverty push in history".
Despite impressive achievements at the global level, the study said, 1.2 billion people are still living in extreme poverty. While trumpeting some of the successes, including big gains in improved health and reduction in hunger, the report says progress towards achieving the MDGs has been uneven.
