At the Millennium Summit in September 2000, all the then 189 members of the United Nations adopted the United Nations Millennium Declaration.19 Based on the Millennium Declaration, primarily Section III on development and poverty eradication, the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were established. Four out of eight MDGs relate to reproductive and sexual health and rights. MDG 5 concerns maternal health and contains two targets: a) to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by three quarters between 1990 and 2015 and b) to achieve universal access to reproductive health by 2015.20 MDG 4 is to reduce the mortality of children under five with two thirds between 1990 and 2015. MDG 3 deals with promoting gender equality and empowerment of women. Finally, MDG 6 concerns the combat of HIV/ AIDS, malaria and other diseases. Based on current data, MDG 5 is considered the least likely of all the MDGs to be achieved within the timeline set.21 The World Summit in 2005 was a follow up to the Millennium Summit in 2000. The 2005 World Summit Outcome22 confirms the commitment to the Millennium Declaration and reiterates the “determination to ensure the timely and full realization of the ... Millennium Development Goals”. In addition, the World Summit Outcome contains new commitments, four of which became part of the revised MDGs during 2006-2007. One is the achievement of universal access to reproductive health by 2015 (that became an addition to MDG 5); another is universal access to HIV/AIDS treatment by 2010 (that became an addition to MDG 6). As mentioned above in Chapter 1, these international declarations and statements are underpinned by binding human rights instruments that contain the specific standards of reproductive rights. This will be further elaborated in Chapter 4. 19 United Nations General Assembly Resolution A/55/L.2. 20 This latter element of MDG 5 was only agreed to at the World Summit in 2005. 21 According to Francesca Perucci, chief of the Statistical Planning and Development Section, UN DESA, MDG 5 has seen the least progress and is the least likely to be achieved, cf. http://www.endpoverty2015.org/es/node/576. 28 22 UNGA Resolution A/RES/60/1.