Ministry of Economy and UN in Ukraine launched a public information campaign “Ukraine 2015. Millennium Development Goals”

Kyiv, 8 November, 2007. - UN in Ukraine in close cooperation with the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine have announced about organizing a nation-wide public information campaign entitled "Ukraine 2015. Millennium Development Goals".  Francis O'Donnell, UN Resident Coordinator in Ukraine and Valeriy Muntiyan, Deputy Minister of Economy informed about this during a press-conference, dedicated to the campaign's launch.

In 2000 during the UN Millennium Summit in New York Ukraine signed the Millennium Declaration and in that way took the responsibility of reaching The Millennium Development Goals till 2015.

Reminding of this fact, Francis O'Donnell stated that uneven prosperity and widening gaps with the poor can undermine society's cohesion. So it is very important for Ukraine to spread the benefits of its recent rapid growth more evenly.  "In fact most countries face this challenge, and that is why it is so important to urgently improve performance towards the Millennium Development Goals. We are now half-way there in time, but not yet in results. We need a campaign to boost performance on many fronts."

Working with the Ukrainian Government, UN Agencies fully understand that raising public awareness on Millennium Development Goals and national development will favour and stimulate greater impact, and ensure support by Ukrainian citizens for Ukraine's development agenda. According to Mr. O'Donnell, this Campaign will help organisers pursue long-term national development strategies by making sure that all Ukrainians appreciate the Goals' priorities, and the urgency for more effective action.

"When Ukraine signed the Millennium Declaration it not only recognised the existing human development problems in this country, but it also promised to take full responsibility for overall human development prospects to ensure that Ukrainians live in a secure environment. It is time to deliver the promises. The Millennium Goals will not be achieved at United Nations events or places.  At the UN we can only help create a platform for governments to make commitments but we cannot force compliance by our Member States. Popular demand by countries' citizens and Parliaments, and by the media, can be the main pressure to drive governments to better performance in reform, prosperity, and sustainable development.  So, spread the message, and demand results!" - Mr. O'Donnell said.

The Millennium Development Goals for Ukraine were adapted as following: Poverty reduction (Goal 1), Quality life-long education (Goal 2), Sustainable environmental development (Goal 3), Improved maternal health and reduced child mortality (Goal 4), Reducing and slowing down the spread of HIV/AIDS and TB (Goal 5), Gender equality (Goal 6). Each goal has been designed so that it is easy to understand, easy to implement and easy to measure.

"In fact, MDGs could be a main driving force and a basis for the Government's action plan. Saving the human potential and ensuring sound human security environment for its further development should be our top national development priorities," Mr Muntiyan said.

Global campaign was launched in 2000 and right now it is half-way through its execution. The success of the campaign is obvious. But at the same time there is a need in organising a new wave of public information campaign "Ukraine 2015. Millennium Development Goals in Ukraine". 

The necessity of the campaign has to do with the fact that UN office in Ukraine and the Government of Ukraine understand that the acknowledgment of the Goals on every level can contribute greatly to reaching the Goals in Ukraine. The execution of the public information campaign will be the continuation of the current dialogue between UN and the Government of Ukraine aimed at reflecting the Goals in the long-term national development strategies and informing Ukrainian people about the priorities of the Goals.

During the press conference, Mrs Ludmyla Musina, Deputy Director National Economic Research Institute, Mrs Ludmyla Cherenko, Deputy Director Demography and Social Studies Institute, and Mr Oleg Sobchuk , front man of "S.K.A.Y." group, offered their support and willingness to cooperate within the campaign's implementation.

The conference participants agreed that the campaign's success would mostly depend on the active involvement by the representatives of all target groups, especially, national leaders, civil society organisations, private sector, and media.

The activities within the campaign are designed to draw attention of politicians, government officials, leaders, representatives of business, academic circles, mass media, non-governmental organizations and general audience to the necessity of providing further support for reaching the Goals in Ukraine by increasing public awareness of Millennium Development Goals and ensuring their achievement.

Through the joint measures of lobbying and political consultations the campaign will focus on supporting the further elaboration and introduction of comprehensive plans of national and regional development in Ukraine and specific activities according to the Millennium Development Goals and Millennium Declaration.

In order to achieve the desired results UN Office in Ukraine will give full support to the Government of Ukraine in the elaboration of the public information campaign.

Campaign "Ukraine 2015. Millennium Development Goals" will be launched in November 2007 and will be executed during a year (2007-08). The strategy of the campaign is designed to raise Millennium Development Goals awareness, provide information to the targeted audiences about the progress in achieving Millennium Development Goals in the country, challenges lying ahead to make them reachable by 2015, communicate the concept of the Millennium Development Goals and its importance to the citizens of Ukraine in a simple and plain language, revealing ‘real' goods Ukraine could obtain by 2015. According to the campaign's strategy, it is planned to use various printed materials, audio and video channels, outdoor advertising, etc.

Tabasco advertising agency became a creative and media partner for the project "Ukraine 2015. Millennium Development Goals".  The creative ideas by Tabasco have won an open tender of Social Advertising Exchange announced by All-Ukrainian Advertising Coalition

For more information please contact UNDP Communications Officer Mr. Sergiy Grytsenko This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , tel. (044) 254 0035, or UN Communications Officer Ms. Veronika Vashchenko, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , tel. (044) 253 9363.

UN in Ukraine

The UN representative office in Ukraine was opened in 1992. Currently, the UN Country Team in Ukraine consisting on 13 UN agencies, international organizations and associated institutions including the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee (UNHCR), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the World Health Organisation (WHO) as well as the World Bank (WB), the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Advertising agency Tabasco