ABSTRACT
For more than a decade now, one of the centerpieces of socio-economic
development, and foreign aid has been the effort to attain the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDGs have been an influential
framework for global development cooperation, not only in shaping the
international discourse, but in driving the allocation of resources
towards key global development priorities. They have proved to be a
useful communication tool because their established time bound and
concrete targets are meant to galvanise political leaders, civil society
organizations, media and international organizations around a clearly
defined agenda intended to improve human development. Despite the
attention given, its dynamism in national policies, the enormous
technical and financial energy expended towards the attainment of the
MDGs, many countries and Nigeria is reported to be "off-track" (MDGR
Nigeria, 2010). The thrust of this study therefore has been a critical
interrogation of where some of those gaps emanate from. The thesis
argues that gender equality and the empowerment of women as contained in
MDG 3, is at the core of all MDGs, ranging from improving health and
fighting disease to reducing poverty and mitigating hunger, expanding
education and lowering child mortality, increasing access to safe water
and ensuring environmental sustainability. It reiterates that gender is
an essential ingredient for the successful achievement of all MDGs.
These arguments have been outlined in the review of literature in
chapter two and in the methodology chapter which adopted a content
analysis of the issues in the report. The discussion chapter offers the
researcher‟s thoughts. The study concludes that implementation of
development projects, and the narration of the processes and impacts
should pay attention to gender for purposes of inclusion and equity. As
such, the study provides gender dimensions of each MDG reporting and
highlights the need to make available adequate resources at all levels;
and to address inequitable global economic policies, as well as gaps
between rich and poor countries. The study provides arguments, key
findings and learning relevant to the achievement of MDGs from the
standpoint of gender equality; and argues extensively that gender
inequality is more pervasive than other forms of inequality and is a
feature of social relations in most societies. Consequently, the
researcher argues that understanding the causes and consequences of
gender inequality should concern and inform all societies.