Montenegro

MDGs in the context of European integration

In November 2004, the European Commissioner in charge of Development and Humanitarian Aid, Louis Michel, eloquently described his passion to see the realization of the MDGs in a European Commission report:
“For me, the Millennium Goals must remain the beacon. My motto being ‘dare to dream, dare to try, dare to lose, dare to succeed,’ the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals is what I will fight for as a human being, as a citizen, as a politician, as EU Commissioner.” (page 1)
The Millennium Declaration dovetails closely with the EU’s Social Charter. Both documents seek to promote human development by expanding people’s choices and opportunities while ensuring that all individuals enjoy at least a minimal degree of social protection.”
The intentions of the two organizations are so similar that they made a decision to align them. In April 2004, UNDP and the EC recognized their common interest and concerns over social inclusion in a jointly organized workshop on aligning the EU social inclusion process and the MDGs, in Vilnius, Lithuania.