The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are a popular and much supported set of goals to cut poverty in half by 2015. But will they achieve these goals? This power point presentation takes a hard look at the goals, both their positive and negative dimensions and focuses on Goal 8 as the key for success or failure.

"This week the 2005 Summit of the Group of 8 leaders of industrialized countries took place in Gleneagles, Scotland. The Summit stood high among the frantic series of high-level meetings, reports and other advocacy moments that, because of their focus on development issues and on Africa, held promise for a 2005 in which important decisions would improve the living conditions of thousands. However, clouded by despicable terrorist attacks in London that threatened to derail the agenda of the meeting –and at some point the meeting itself –the Summit failed to meet expectations," says this article.

Aldo Caliari and Jessica Walker-Beaumont succinctly explain some of the ways in which imbalances in the trade and debt system nurture each other.

This paper summarizes current positions on debt held by members of the CIDSE and Caritas Internationalis networks in 2002.