Mdg Priorities for Your Country

Priority List on MDGs in Your Country

Country of Study: Botswana

The list is based on a format that gives high priority to the goals Botswana is unlikely to achieve as has been noted in its MDG Report of 2010.

Priority 1: Reduce Child Mortality (MDG4)

MDG Target: Reduce by two-thirds between 1990 and 2015 the under-five mortality rate.

In my opinion focus should be on:

(a) applying more preventive and treatment child birth interventions in the formal health system. It has been noted that out of the twenty four available only four are widely used (immunization against measles, breastfeeding, vitamin A and providing a clean delivery).

(b) Community and household interventions, despite having a high impact in reducing high mortality are given low priority instead of being incorporated at a large scale to the formal health system.

Priority 2: Improve Maternal Health (MDG5)

MDG Target: Reduce by three quarters the maternal mortality ratio

(a) Community based child birth accounts for 50% of child births yet have minimal formal support structures.

(b) We find ourselves with legal restrictions on medical practises that prevent registered nurse-midwives from practising critical child birth procedures.

Priority 3: Combat HIV/AIDS and Other Diseases (MDG6)

MDG Target 7: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS

MDG Target 8: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases

Some commendable effort has been put in when it comes to target 7. It is however of concern on target 8 particularly the disease tuberculosis which has not received enough awareness in my opinion and has impacted negatively on the achievement of this goal.

Priority 4: Eradicate Poverty and Hunger (MDG1)

MDG Target 1: Halve between 1990 and 2015 the proportion of people living on less than $1 per day

MDG Target 2: Halve between 1990 and 2015 the proportion of people who suffer from hunger

The...