On April 21^st the European Commission released a communication entitled "A twelve-point EU action plan in support of the Millennium Development Goals."

This Communication is in preparation for the UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG) Review High Level Plenary Session in September. It will form the basis of the discussions between Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Development on 5^th May and 14^th June and it is expected that Heads of State will adopt the EU position at the June Council.

This extraordinary UN plenary session called by UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon will be held ten years after the adoption of the MDGs which aim to halve poverty by 2015. It will be an occasion to reflect, review and learn lessons from what has been achieved (or not) since 2000.

Even if some progress has been made, it does not hide the reality : Industrialized countries are off track regarding their MDG commitments and enormous challenges remain for the next five years. The economic crisis has also resulted in additional hardships and more people falling into poverty in some of the developing countries as well as a shortfall in international development assistance.