Jerusalem: UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro has warned that the pledges to slash poverty, hunger, disease and illiteracy by 2015, made by world leaders at the UN seven years ago, are at risk unless countries pay greater attention to empowering women and achieving gender equality.

Addressing an international conference in Jerusalem on women's leadership for sustainable development, Migiro highlighted the "deep and unbreakable" connection between women and development, particularly in reaching the set of global anti-poverty targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

"We know that achieving gender equality and empowering women is not only a goal in itself," she said, adding it is also a condition for building healthier, better educated, more peaceful and more prosperous societies.

Noting that one of the MDGs is specifically on gender equality and the empowerment of women, she stressed that a gender perspective is "imperative" in the other Goals as well.

The Deputy Secretary-General pointed out the disproportionately high incidence of poverty among women, as well as the fact that the majority of the more than 800 million adults around the world who cannot read are women. In addition, women are increasingly bearing the brunt of the HIV/AIDS.

Unless careful attention is paid to the discrimination of women across all MDGs, the achievement of the Goals will be jeopardised, she stated, adding that greater efforts are required to combat extreme poverty, disease, illiteracy and gender discrimination around the world.

Source : PTI