The Malta Labour Party will beef up the Overseas Development Aid Policy and hold consultation meetings with the stakeholders implementing the policy early on in the government’s legislature, Labour MP Leo Brincat said yesterday.

Mr Brincat was speaking at a press briefing about a parliamentary debate organised by SOS Malta, held earlier yesterday morning, about the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

There are eight MDGs that have to be reached by 2015: eradicating extreme hunger and poverty, achieving universal primary education, promoting gender equality and empowering women, reducing child mortality, improving maternal health, fighting HIV, AIDS, malaria and other diseases, ensuring environmental stability and developing a global partnership.

Mr Brincat spoke about the importance of increasing awareness about MDGs both locally and even in a European perspective.

“88 per cent of Europeans are not even aware of what MDG stands for,” he said.

Mr Brincat also called on Malta not to fall into the same trap and link development aid with geo-political alliances and security issues.

Jan Szcyncinski from the United Nations Development Programme said that the MDGs had achieved good results.

“Poverty has decreased but more still needs to be done,” he said.

SOS Malta Director Claudia Taylor East said that only four per cent of the Maltese population knew about the MDGs and added that SOS Malta would focus on improving awareness about the eight goals.

Professor David Hulme from the University of Manchester said that Malta was on the borderline between two worlds – developed wealthy Europe and poor developing Africa.