Remarks by His Majesty King Abdullah II At the High Level Plenary Meeting on Millennium Development Goals

In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Compassionate,

Secretary-General Ban,
Your Excellencies,
My friends,

Ten years ago, meeting here, our countries began an unprecedented effort to end human poverty. The millennium development goals spoke to some of the most important truths of the 21st century: that global security and prosperity are in danger while billions of people live in want; that our modern era offers the knowledge, and our world has the resources, to end this threat, and lift lives everywhere; and that both developing countries and donor countries have vital responsibilities if we are to succeed.

Today, our 15-year timeline to achieve the millennium goals has only five years to go, and real work lies ahead.

We meet this week to energise a fresh drive forward. There is every reason to succeed. Each gain we make reinforces others: from better education and health care, to higher living standards; from empowered women and youth, to greater economic opportunity. By integrating this work into national and global strategies, we can maximise change. But we cannot consolidate our gains without ensuring the conditions that development depends on: peace, partnership, and global opportunity.

My friends,

The foundations are in place. Our world understands more than ever before that a developing country must own its path to development. There are no one-size-fits-all, outside-in solutions. But the developed countries have deep interests in supporting global advances, and important tools to do so. Their commitment is essential during times of global economic crisis; not only to raise the world's poorest people, but to support and sustain those who are implementing good policies until their progress can be stabilised.

In Jordan, partnership, public and private, has long been part of development success. We have integrated the millennium goals into our national strategy of structural reform, sustainable economic growth and sound development. We have worked not only to scale up development efforts, but to scale out; expanding participation, and taking advantage of synergies in many fields. Today, due to the work of thousands of Jordanians in schools, in health care, in communities across the country, we are in the process of achieving many of our millennium goals. Goal 2, for example, has effectively been achieved: ensuring that all children enrol in primary school and stay in school, ending youth illiteracy and giving our students the foundation they need to advance in life.

A burden faces development across our region: the lack of regional peace. When warfare and violence divert resources from social needs and economic growth, economies and community life are undermined and poverty and frustration grow.

Development programmes can help build a foundation for peace, but they ultimately depend on peace to succeed long-term. This is why friends of development must also be friends of peace. The Middle East has for long been denied the peace that could unleash its enormous potential for development. We count on the support of the international community, to help us reach a comprehensive regional peace, which can only be realised through the resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, on the basis of the two-state solution.

My friends,

Jordan stands ready to work with you, to address our countries' shared concerns and meet the millennium goals. In the five years that remain until 2015, much can be achieved. I believe that together, we can make life better for all our peoples. Let us put our will with our wisdom, and move forward now.

Thank you.