Toespraak minister-president bij lancering Global Campaign for Health Millennium Development Goals in New York

Tekst van de Engelstalige toespraak:

I am cautiously optimistic about global health. In recent decades we have managed to increase life expectancy in most countries. But there is still a lot to be done. Although we are reducing child mortality, we are not making enough progress towards achieving our Millennium Development Goals. And we cannot slacken our efforts at a time when a woman dies every single minute due to pregnancy-related causes.

Strong societies need strong families. Strong families need strong and healthy mothers.

That's why the Netherlands welcomes the Global Campaign. We should make the best use of existing funding. But extra funding is also needed.

The Netherlands will make a substantial contribution to this very important campaign. Over the next three years we will make an extra 125 million euros available. Our priorities are:

• to make health systems stronger and to fight infectious diseases;
• to consider the needs of young people and women in conflict and post-conflict countries;
• to address violence against women;
• to increase access to reproductive health services.

The Millennium Development Goals are closely interlinked. In many societies women are not equal to men. We cannot make progress on our Health Goals unless we address the poor status of women. AIDS, for example, is increasingly becoming a women's problem. We cannot let this happen. Women's rights are human rights.

We need bold action to strengthen the position of women and give them greater opportunities. As global leaders we can make a difference to the lives of mothers and children worldwide.