1. An international conference titled “Asian Perspectives on the Post-MDG Development Agenda,” sponsored by the Foreign Ministry and co-chaired by the Korea Development Institute and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Seoul Policy Centre, will be held in Seoul on June 12-13.

2. With the deadline for achieving the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) about three years away, discussions to prepare the post-2015 period are gaining momentum in the international community. The conference will be held in the ROK against this backdrop. The MDGs have served as a guideline for poverty reduction and human development in developing countries.

3. At the meeting, government officials and academics from major Asian countries, as well as experts from international organizations, will assess the achievements of the MDGs and lessons learned. Based on the assessment, they will exchange views on the direction and content of new global development goals after 2015. The meeting is expected to produce substantive results that can be used for the post-MDG discussions, which will be in full swing at the UN General Assembly in September.

4. The upcoming conference will provide a significant opportunity for the ROK to expand contributions to global discussions to set the direction and goals of post-MDGs after 2015, taking into account political, economic and social changes in the international community since the adoption of the MDGs.


                              Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFAT

* unofficial translation