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Ebola frightens Eldoret residents

Moi Teaching and Referal Hospital admitted a patient with a viral disease Ebola on thursday.
The patient who had travelled from Juba in Southern Sudan through Uganda to Eldoret was put in isolation as doctors attending to him put on protective gear to avoid possible infections.

A case in which Mau Mau veterans are seeking compensation from the British Government over alleged torture during the struggle for independence enters a crucial stage next week.

The veterans are expected to give evidence from Monday in the UK.

The case, by survivors of the infamous detention camps operated by the colonialists in the 1950s and 60s, will go on for 11 days in which Kenya’s freedom fighters will seek to prove that they were tortured.

In the argument brought to the court last year, Ndiku Mutwiwa Mutua, Paulo Muoka Nzili, and Wambugu Wa Nyingi argued that they, with others, were herded to detention camps for opposing the colonial government.

Last year, the British Government argued that their claims are time-barred and should be struck out. It also stated that since it had left Kenya, that all liabilities were transferred to the Kenyan Government after independence in 1963.

But Mr Justice McCombe ruled that the elderly Kenyans had an “arguable” case to present before the court.

“There is ample evidence even in the few papers that I have seen suggesting that there may have been systematic torture of detainees during the Emergency.

“The materials evidencing the continuing abuses in the detention camps in subsequent years are substantial, as is the evidence of the knowledge of both governments that they were happening,” he ruled in July last year.

The claimants say they represent the wider community of hundreds of elderly Kenyans who survived the brutality, including castrations, beatings and sexual assault at the hands of British officials.

President Obama’s grandfather, Hussein Onyango Obama, was among those who were allegedly detained and abused at the time of the Mau Mau uprising against the British colonial administration.

The Kenya Human Rights Commission and the Kenya Government have pushed for the case that now enters a crucial stage.

KHRC has hired the Leigh Day and Co law firm to represent the three. Kenya supports the case especially since it argues that it should not inherit the burden of compensation that squarely lies before the British.

According to the Kenyans' lawyer Martyn Day, this is an exceptional case in which the Judge should exercise his discretion to allow the claims to proceed.

“The British Government has thrown everything at these claims in an effort to derail them on technicalities. The Court has already disapproved of these tactics and found that there is ample evidence to support the claims. We are confident that justice will be done,” he said in a statement on Thursday.

Last year, it was uncovered that the British Government had tried to hide important documents about the Emergency as a way of reducing the viability of the case.

Prof David Anderson, a British researcher on Kenya’s colonial history and author of Histories of the Hanged, a book on detention camps, discovered 17,000 files on the then Kenya colony that had either been concealed or ‘lost.’

He is one of the three academicians on the Kenya Emergency, who have put in lengthy statements to support the torture claims.

VSEPR....(Orbital hybridisation)

Orbital hybridisation

Four sp³ orbitals.

Three sp² orbitals.

In chemistry, hybridisation (or hybridization) is the concept of mixing atomic orbitals to form new hybrid orbitals suitable for the qualitative description of atomic bonding properties. Hybridised orbitals are very useful in the explanation of the shape of molecular orbitals for molecules. It is an integral part of valence bond theory. Although sometimes taught together with the valence shell electron-pair repulsion (VSEPR) theory, valence bond and hybridization are in fact not related to the VSEPR model.^[1]
The hybrids are named based on the atomic orbitals that are involved in the hybridization, and the geometries of the hybrids are also reflective of those of the atomic-orbital contributors. For example, in the methane (CH₄) a set of sp³ orbitals are formed by mixing one s and three p orbitals on the carbon atom, and are directed towards the four hydrogen atoms which are located at the vertices of a regular tetrahedron.

Contents

Historical development

Chemist Linus Pauling first developed the hybridisation theory in order to explain the structure of molecules such as methane (CH₄).^[2] This concept was developed for such simple chemical systems, but the approach was later applied more widely, and today it is considered an effective heuristic for rationalizing the structures of organic compounds.
For quantitative calculations of electronic structure and molecular properties, hybridisation theory is not as practical as molecular orbital theory. Problems with hybridisation are especially notable when the d orbitals are involved in bonding, as in coordination chemistry and organometallic chemistry. Although hybridisation schemes in transition metal chemistry can be used, they are not generally as accurate.
Orbitals are a model representation of the behaviour of electrons within molecules. In the case of simple hybridisation, this approximation is based on atomic orbitals, similar to those obtained for the hydrogen atom, the only atom for which an exact analytic solution to its Schrödinger equation is known. In heavier atoms, like carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen, the atomic orbitals used are the 2s and 2p orbitals, similar to excited state orbitals for hydrogen. Hybridised orbitals are assumed to be mixtures of these atomic orbitals, superimposed on each other in various proportions. The theory of hybridisation is most applicable under these assumptions. It gives a simple orbital picture equivalent to Lewis structures. Hybridisation is not required to describe molecules, but for molecules made up from carbon, nitrogen and oxygen (and to a lesser extent, sulfur and phosphorus) the hybridisation theory/model makes the description much easier.
The hybridisation theory finds its use mainly in organic chemistry. Its explanation starts with the way bonding is organized in methane.

Types of hybridisation

sp³ hybrids

Hybridisation describes the bonding atoms from an atom's point of view. That is, for a tetrahedrally coordinated carbon (e.g., methane, CH₄), the carbon should have 4 orbitals with the correct symmetry to bond to the 4 hydrogen atoms. The problem with the existence of methane is now this: carbon's ground state configuration is 1s² 2s² 2p_x¹ 2p_y¹ or more easily read:

The valence bond theory would predict, based on the existence of two half-filled p-type orbitals (the designations p_x p_y or p_z are meaningless at this point, as they do not fill in any particular order), that C forms two covalent bonds, i.e., CH₂ (methylene). However, methylene is a very reactive molecule (see also: carbene) and cannot exist outside of a molecular system. Therefore, this theory alone cannot explain the existence of CH₄.
Furthermore, ground state orbitals cannot be used for bonding in CH₄. While exciting a 2s electron into a 2p orbital would, in theory, allow for four bonds according to the valence bond theory, (which has been proved experimentally correct for systems like O₂) this would imply that the various bonds of CH₄ would have differing energies due to differing levels of orbital overlap. Once again, this has been experimentally disproved: any hydrogen can be removed from a carbon with equal ease.
To summarise, to explain the existence of CH₄ (and many other molecules) a method by which as many as 12 bonds (for transition metals) of equal strength (and therefore equal length) may be explained was required.
The first step in hybridisation is the excitation of one (or more) electrons (we consider the carbon atom in methane, for simplicity of the discussion):

The proton that forms the nucleus of a hydrogen atom attracts one of the lower-energy valence electrons on carbon. This causes an excitation, moving a 2s electron into a 2p orbital. This, however, increases the influence of the carbon nucleus on the valence electrons by increasing the effective core potential (the amount of charge the nucleus exerts on a given electron = Charge of Core − Charge of all electrons closer to the nucleus). The effective core potential is also known as the effective nuclear charge, or Z_eff.
The solution to the Schrödinger equation for this configuration is a linear combination of the s and p wave functions, or orbitals, known as a hybridized orbital.^[3] In the case of carbon attempting to bond with four hydrogens, four valence-shell orbitals are required. (Core orbitals are almost never involved in bonding.) Therefore, the 2s orbital "mixes" with the three 2p orbitals to form four sp³ hybrids (read as s-p-three). See graphical summary below.
becomes
In CH₄, four sp³ hybridised orbitals are overlapped by hydrogen's 1s orbital, yielding four σ (sigma) bonds (that is, four single covalent bonds). The four bonds are of the same length and strength. This theory fits our requirements.
translates into
An alternative view is: View the carbon as the C⁴⁻ anion. In this case all the orbitals on the carbon are filled:

If we now recombine these orbitals with the empty s-orbitals of 4 hydrogens (4 protons, H⁺) and then allow maximum separation between the 4 hydrogens (i.e., tetrahedral surrounding of the carbon), we see that at any orientation of the p-orbitals, a single hydrogen has an overlap of 25% with the s-orbital of the C, and a total of 75% of overlap with the 3 p-orbitals (see that the relative percentages are the same as the character of the respective orbital in an sp³-hybridisation model, 25% s- and 75% p-character).
According to the orbital hybridisation theory, the valence electrons in methane should be equal in energy but its photoelectron spectrum^[4] shows two bands, one at 12.7 eV (one electron pair) and one at 23 eV (three electron pairs). This apparent inconsistency can be explained when one considers additional orbital mixing taking place when the sp³ orbitals mix with the 4 hydrogen orbitals.

sp² hybrids

Ethene structure

Other carbon based compounds and other molecules may be explained in a similar way as methane. Take, for example, ethene (C₂H₄). Ethene has a double bond between the carbons.
For this molecule, carbon will sp² hybridise, because one π (pi) bond is required for the double bond between the carbons, and only three σ bonds are formed per carbon atom. In sp² hybridisation the 2s orbital is mixed with only two of the three available 2p orbitals:

forming a total of 3 sp² orbitals with one p-orbital remaining. In ethylene (ethene) the two carbon atoms form a σ bond by overlapping two sp² orbitals and each carbon atom forms two covalent bonds with hydrogen by s–sp² overlap all with 120° angles. The π bond between the carbon atoms perpendicular to the molecular plane is formed by 2p–2p overlap. The hydrogen–carbon bonds are all of equal strength and length, which agrees with experimental data.
The amount of p-character is not restricted to integer values; i.e., hybridisations like sp^2.5 are also readily described. In this case the geometries are somewhat distorted from the ideally hybridised picture. For example, as stated in Bent's rule, a bond tends to have higher p-character when directed toward a more electronegative substituent.

sp hybrids

A schematic presentation of hybrid orbitals sp

The chemical bonding in compounds such as alkynes with triple bonds is explained by sp hybridization.

In this model, the 2s orbital mixes with only one of the three p-orbitals resulting in two sp orbitals and two remaining unchanged p orbitals. The chemical bonding in acetylene (ethyne) (C₂H₂) consists of sp–sp overlap between the two carbon atoms forming a σ bond and two additional π bonds formed by p–p overlap. Each carbon also bonds to hydrogen in a sigma s–sp overlap at 180° angles.

Hybridisation and molecule shape

Hybridisation, along with the VSEPR theory, helps to explain molecule shape:

• AX₁ (e.g., LiH): no hybridisation; trivially linear shape
• AX₂ (e.g., BeCl₂): sp hybridisation; linear or digonal shape; bond angles are cos⁻¹(−1) = 180°
• AX₃ (e.g., BCl₃): sp² hybridisation; trigonal planar shape; bond angles are cos⁻¹(−1/2) = 120°
  • AX₂E (e.g., GeF₂): bent / V shape, < 120°
• AX₄ (e.g., CCl₄): sp³ hybridisation; tetrahedral shape; bond angles are cos⁻¹(−1/3) ≈ 109.5°
  • AX₃E (e.g.,NH₃): trigonal pyramidal, 107° (Note: The existence of a lone pair of electrons distorts bond angles slightly due to increased s-orbital character in the lone pair and increased p-orbital character in the orbitals used to make the bond pairs. It is not due to increased electron repulsion which is a very common misconception.^{[citation needed]})
• AX₅ (e.g., PCl₅): sp³d hybridisation; trigonal bipyramidal shape
• AX₆ (e.g., SF₆): sp³d² hybridisation; octahedral (or square bipyramidal) shape

This holds if there are no lone electron pairs on the central atom. If there are, they should be counted in the X_i number, but bond angles become smaller due to increased repulsion. For example, in water (H₂O), the oxygen atom has two bonds with H and two lone electron pairs (as can be seen with the valence bond theory as well from the electronic configuration of oxygen), which means there are four such 'elements' on O. The model molecule is, then, AX₂E₂: sp³ hybridisation is utilized, and the electron arrangement of H₂O is tetrahedral. This agrees with the experimentally-determined shape for water, a non-linear, bent structure, with a bond angle of 104.5 degrees (the two lone-pairs are not visible).
In general, for an atom with s and p orbitals forming hybrids h_i and h_j with included angle , the following holds: 1 + _ij cos() = 0. The p-to-s ratio for hybrid i is _i², and for hybrid j it is _j². In the special case of equivalent hybrids on the same atom, again with included angle , the equation reduces to just 1 + ² cos() = 0. For example, BH₃ has a trigonal planar geometry, three 120° bond angles, three equivalent hybrids about the boron atom, and thus 1 + ² cos() = 0 becomes 1 + ² cos(120°) = 0, giving ² = 2 for the p-to-s ratio. In other words, sp² hybrids, just as expected from the list above.

Explanation of the shape of water

Commonly, the hybridization of the oxygen in water is described as sp³ following the guidelines of VSEPR and the tetrahedral electron geometry it implies.^[5] In order for this to be true, the two electron pairs would be in equal-energy, symmetrical, sp³ hybridised orbitals (two electron-pairs and two hydrogen atoms making the tetrahedron). However, molecular orbitals calculations give orbitals which reflect the symmetry of the molecule.^[6] One of the two lone pairs is in a pure p-type orbital, with its electron density perpendicular to the H-O-H framework.^[6] The other lone pair is an orbital that is close to an sp²-type orbital that is in the same plane as the H-O-H bonding. It is not a purely sp²-type orbital, but is extra rich in s-character.^[6] Photoelectron spectra confirm the presence of two different energies for the nonbonded electrons.^[7]
In contrast, the orbitals used to make the O-H bonds are close to sp² hybrids, but are extra p-rich.^[8] However, molecular orbital theory does not give two equivalent bonds, but two delocalised orbitals which are in-phase and out-of-phase combinations of the H-O bond orbitals.^[6] It has been argued that it is this change in the mixing of the orbitals that is responsible for the compression of the H-O-H angle down to the experimental 104.5 degrees, not some change in the repulsion of electrons.^[8] However, if the molecular orbitals are localised, leaving the total wave function unaltered, one obtains two equivalent lone pairs and two equivalent bonds.^[9]
An accurate prediction of the bond angle requires however that polarisation d functions be added to the molecular orbital calculation.^[10] Thus while VSEPR and its application to hybridisation predicts the correct atomic framework for water, it may do so for the wrong reason.

Controversy regarding d-orbital participation

Hybridisation theory has failed in a few aspects, notably in explaining the energy considerations for the involvement of d-orbitals in chemical bonding (See above for sp³d and sp³d² hybridisation). This can be well-explained by means of an example. Consider, for instance, how the theory in question accounts for the bonding in phosphorus pentachloride (PCl₅). The d-orbitals are large, comparatively distant from the nucleus and high in energy. Radial distances of orbitals from the nucleus seem to reveal that d-orbitals are far too high in energy to 'mix' with s- and p-orbitals. 3s – 0.47, 3p – 0.55, 3d – 2.4 (in angstroms). Thus, at first glance, sp³d hybridisation seems improbable.
However, a closer examination of the factors that affect orbital size (and energy) reveals more. Formal charge on the central atom is one such factor, and it is obvious that the P atom in PCl₅ carries quite a large partial positive charge. Thus the 3d orbital contracts in size to such an extent that hybridisation with s and p orbitals may occur. Further, note the cases in which d-orbital participation was proposed in hybridisation: SF₆(sulfur hexafluoride), IF₇, XeF₆; in all these molecules, the central atom is surrounded by the highly electronegative fluorine atom, thus making hybridisation probable among s, p and d orbitals. A further study reveals that orbital size also depends on the number of electrons occupying it. And, even further, coupling of d orbital electrons also results in contraction, albeit to a lesser extent.
The molecular orbital theory, however, offers a clearer insight into the bonding in these molecules.

Hybridisation theory vs. MO theory

Hybridisation theory is an integral part of organic chemistry and in general discussed together with molecular orbital theory in advanced organic chemistry textbooks although for different reasons. One textbook notes that for drawing reaction mechanisms sometimes a classical bonding picture is needed with two atoms sharing two electrons.^[11] It also comments that predicting bond angles in methane with MO theory is not straightforward. Another textbook treats hybridisation theory when explaining bonding in alkenes^[12] and a third^[13] uses MO theory to explain bonding in hydrogen but hybridisation theory for methane.
Although the language and pictures arising from hybridisation theory, more widely known as valence bond theory, remain widespread in synthetic organic chemistry, this qualitative view of bonding has been largely superseded by molecular orbital theory when a more detailed analysis is required. Advanced texts often stress that while hybrid orbital theory is still useful for problems requiring a rough approximation, it provides an incomplete picture that cannot account for many chemical phenomena.^[14][15] One specific problem with hybridisation is that it incorrectly predicts the photoelectron spectra of many molecules, including such fundamental species such as methane and water. From a pedagogical perspective, hybridisation approach tends to over-emphasize localisation of bonding electrons and does not effectively embrace molecular symmetry as does MO theory.
Bonding orbitals formed from hybrid atomic orbitals may be considered as localized molecular orbitals, which can be formed from the delocalized orbitals of molecular orbital theory by an appropriate mathematical transformation. For molecules with a closed electron shell in the ground state, this transformation of the orbitals leaves the total many-electron wave function unchanged. The hybrid orbital description of the ground state is therefore equivalent to the delocalized orbital description for explaining the ground state total energy and electron density, as well as the molecular geometry which corresponds to the minimum value of the total energy.
There is no such equivalence, however, for ionized or excited states with open electron shells. Hybrid orbitals cannot therefore be used to interpret photoelectron spectra, which measure the energies of ionized states, identified with delocalized orbital energies using Koopmans' theorem. Nor can they be used to interpret UV-visible spectra which correspond to electronic transitions between delocalized orbitals.

See also

• Linear combination of atomic orbitals molecular orbital method
• MO diagrams

References

1. ^ Gillespie, R.J. (2004), "Teaching molecular geometry with the VSEPR model", Journal of Chemical Education 81 (3): 298–304, DOI:10.1021/ed081p298
2. ^ Pauling, L. (1931), "The nature of the chemical bond. Application of results obtained from the quantum mechanics and from a theory of paramagnetic susceptibility to the structure of molecules", Journal of the American Chemical Society 53 (4): 1367–1400, DOI:10.1021/ja01355a027
3. ^ McMurray, J. (1995). Chemistry Annotated Instructors Edition (4th ed.). Prentice Hall. p. 272. ISBN 0-13-140221-8
4. ^ photo electron spectrum of methane 1 photo electron spectrum of methane 2
5. ^ Petrucci R.H., Harwood W.S. and Herring F.G. "General Chemistry. Principles and Modern Applications" (Prentice-Hall 8th edn 2002) p.441
6. ^ ^{a b c d} Levine I.N. “Quantum chemistry” (4th edn, Prentice-Hall) p.470-2
7. ^ Levine p.475
8. ^ ^{a b} Laing, Michael J. Chem. Educ. (1987) 64, 124–128 "No rabbit ears on water. The structure of the water molecule: What should we tell the students?"
9. ^ Levine p.481-2
10. ^ A.Szabo and N.S.Ostlund, "Modern Quantum Chemistry: Introduction to Advanced Electronic Structure Theory" (MacMillan 1982) p.202 quotes calculated bond angles of 111.2° for a 4-31G basis set without d functions, and 105.5° for a 6-31G* basis set with d functions, compared to the expermimental 104.5°.
11. ^ Clayden, Jonathan; Greeves, Nick; Warren, Stuart; Wothers, Peter (2001). Organic Chemistry (1st ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 105. ISBN 978-0-19-850346-0.
12. ^ Organic Chemistry, Third Edition Marye Anne Fox James K. Whitesell 2003 ISBN 978-0-7637-3586-9
13. ^ Organic Chemistry 3rd Ed. 2001 Paula Yurkanis Bruice ISBN 0-13-017858-6
14. ^ G. L. Miessler and D. A. Tarr “Inorganic Chemistry” 3rd Ed, Pearson/Prentice Hall publisher, 2003. ISBN 0-13-035471-6.
15. ^ Shriver, D. F.; Atkins, P. W.; Overton, T. L.; Rourke, J. P.; Weller, M. T.; Armstrong, F. A. “Inorganic Chemistry” W. H. Freeman, New York, 2006. ISBN 0-7167-4878-9.

ROWSTOW'S THEORY OF DEVELOPMENT

         
          Introduction
   In the 1950's countries were suffering from the aftermath of World War Two. They became independent thus there became a need for new development policies. After the success of the 'US Marshall plan,' countries began to see the need for development and thus Rostow's theory was developed. It was considered a step by step process for an underdeveloped country to become a developed country. It was divided into five stages and was considered a 'linear,' theory.         Stage one - "traditional society
," It is like Smith's hunting and Marx's feudal stage. This stage is very similar to the times of Medieval Britain. The key idea in this stage is survival. Agriculture is the most important industry and the main form of employment. In stage one manufacturing is very basic; it entails the production of basic tools. There is a poor infrastructure in transportation which makes most stay in one area for a lifetime and trading happens in one area. The small amount of trade which does occur is done by 'barter,' where one good is swapped for another. This trade is rare as most output is consumed only by the producers. The work is labour intensive and there is a limited quantity of capital.
        Stage two  -pre-conditions to takeoff.
 For this stage to-happen the society generally needs to experience a shock such as a civil war or technology leap. The people here recognise the need for change. This is where the financial sector emerges causing savings and investments to grow. Trade is here further encouraged by newly developed transport advantages but still most trade remains in one area. The manufacturing increases and the growth potential is recognised. All of this is required for a change to stage 3.
        Stage three,-the takeoff;
 this is considered the most important stage to a country. In this stage the saving and investment ratio is increased and the growth becomes self-sustaining because the increased investments lead to increased incomes. Hence political and social institutions are evolved to support the rise in the productive investment. Markets replace the barter trading and cause another rapid income increase. Soon the possibility of market failure becomes apparent and the need for market regulation is acknowledged. Also the importance of land is also applied to the importance of manufacturing and 1 or 2 industries begin their growth, industrialisation also increases and becomes a new factor to the economic growth.
        Stage four;- the drive to Maturity.
The entire country grows, traditional lifestyles become extinct and the new industrialisation encourages migration from rural to urban areas. The technology advances and supports all the migration and becomes a new investment. The production starts on a wide range of goods and there becomes less reliance on goods.        
        Stage 5; -high mass consumption,
 the final stage of economic development, this is the where the beginning idea of survival is no longer a concern because all obstacles appear to have been cleared, now there is more time for leisure. The field of goods and services are readily available and the service industry is increasingly dominant. There are higher output levels and more consumer durables are produced. Society is able to have more disposable income and use it to improve there own quality of lifestyles.

Critical Appraisals of Rostows Theory
        Rostow's theory is limited in many ways it is considered too generalised and only applicable to western countries. It works on the assumption that funds are effectively put into investment projects. If financial institutions are not effective this will not take place. From this failure the next assumption will not occur. The government should develop an infrastructure, to develop roads, ports, hospital and schools, if this does not occur takeoff will not take place. Many countries don't follow the linear order e.g. Canada entered stage 5 before stage 4. If a disaster occurs countries are often set back and have to repeat stages. Rostow's theory doesn't allow for such occurrences and makes another assumption that there will be no extreme changes to affect the progress. Rostow definitely could not for see the technology innovations such as the internet that changes a countries way of communication. He definitely could not for see the speed of growth such as Canada and Australia's growth after learning from Britain and France. Rostow's theory is still used and is very credible for a 40year old theory. It highlights a country's need for investment and savings and recognises the importance of political, social and economic conditions for growth.

Millennium Development Goals

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015. The goals are:

• eradicating extreme poverty and hunger,
• achieving universal primary education,
• promoting gender equality and empowering women
• reducing child mortality rates,
• improving maternal health,
• Combating HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases,
• ensuring environmental sustainability, and
• developing a global partnership for development.^[1]

Each of the goals have specific stated targets and dates for achieving those targets. To accelerate progress, the G8 Finance Ministers agreed in June 2005 to provide enough funds to the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the African Development Bank (ADB) to cancel an additional $40–55 billion debt owed by members of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) to allow impoverished countries to re-channel the resources saved from the forgiven debt to social programs for improving health and education and for alleviating poverty.
Debate has surrounded adoption of the MDGs, focusing on lack of analysis and justification behind the chosen objectives, the difficulty or lack of measurements for some of the goals, and uneven progress towards reaching the goals, among other criticisms. Although developed countries' aid for achieving the MDGs have been rising over recent years, more than half the aid is towards debt relief owed by poor countries, with remaining aid money going towards natural disaster relief and military aid which does not further development.
Progress towards reaching the goals has been uneven. Some countries have achieved many of the goals, while others are not on track to realize any. A UN conference in September 2010 reviewed progress to date and concluded with the adoption of a global action plan to achieve the eight anti-poverty goals by their 2015 target date. There were also new commitments on women's and children's health, and new initiatives in the worldwide battle against poverty, hunger and disease.
Government organizations assist in achieving those goals, among them are the United Nations Millennium Campaign, the Millennium Promise Alliance, Inc., the Global Poverty Project, the Micah Challenge, The Youth in Action EU Programme "Cartoons in Action" video project and the 8 Visions of Hope global art project.

The aim of the MDGs is to encourage development by improving social and economic conditions in the world's poorest countries. They derive from earlier international development targets,^[2] and were officially established following the Millennium Summit in 2000, where all world leaders present adopted the United Nations Millennium Declaration.
The Millennium Summit was presented with the report of the Secretary-General entitled ‘We the Peoples: The Role of the United Nations in the Twenty-First Century’.^[3] Additional input was prepared by the Millennium Forum, which brought together representatives of over 1,000 non-governmental and civil society organisations from more than 100 countries. The Forum met in May 2000 to conclude a two-year consultation process covering issues such as poverty eradication, environmental protection, human rights and protection of the vulnerable. The approval of the MDGs was possibly the main outcome of the Millennium Summit. In the area of peace and security, the adoption of the Brahimi Report was seen as properly equipping the organization to carry out the mandates given by the Security Council.^{[citation needed]}

 Ideas behind the MDG

This graph shows the proportion of world population in extreme poverty 1981–2008 according to the World Bank.

The MDGs originated from the Millennium Declaration produced by the United Nations. The Declaration asserts that every individual has the right to dignity, freedom, equality, a basic standard of living that includes freedom from hunger and violence, and encourages tolerance and solidarity.^[4] The MDGs were made to operationalize these ideas by setting targets and indicators for poverty reduction in order to achieve the rights set forth in the Declaration on a set fifteen-year timeline.^[4][5]
The Millennium Summit Declaration was, however, only part of the origins of the MDGs. It came about from not just the UN but also the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The setting came about through a series of UN-led conferences in the 1990s focusing on issues such as children, nutrition, human rights, women and others. The OECD criticized major donors for reducing their levels of Official Development Assistance (ODA). With the onset of the UN's 50th anniversary, then UN Secretary General Kofi Annan saw the need to address the range of development issues. This led to his report titled, We the Peoples: The Role of the United Nations in the 21st Century which led to the Millennium Declaration. By this time, the OECD had already formed its International Development Goals (IDGs) and it was combined with the UN's efforts in the World Bank's 2001 meeting to form the MDGs.^[3][6]
The MIB focus on three major areas of improving infrastructure, and increasing social, economic and political rights, with the majority of the focus going towards increasing basic standards of living.^[7] The objectives chosen within the human capital focus include improving nutrition, healthcare (including reducing levels of child mortality, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, and increasing reproductive health), and education. For the infrastructure focus, the objectives include improving infrastructure through increasing access to safe drinking water, energy and modern information/communication technology; amplifying farm outputs through sustainable practices; improving transportation infrastructure; and preserving the environment. Lastly, for the social, economic and political rights focus, the objectives include empowering women, reducing violence, increasing political voice, ensuring equal access to public services, and increasing security of property rights. The goals chosen were intended to increase an individual’s human capabilities and “advance the means to a productive life”.^[7] The MDGs emphasize that individual policies needed to achieve these goals should be tailored to individual country’s needs; therefore most policy suggestions are general.^[7]
The MDGs also emphasize the role of developed countries in aiding developing countries, as outlined in Goal Eight. Goal Eight sets objectives and targets for developed countries to achieve a “global partnership for development” by supporting fair trade, debt relief for developing nations, increasing aid and access to affordable essential medicines, and encouraging technology transfer.^[7][8] Thus developing nations are not seen as left to achieve the MDGs on their own, but as a partner in the developing-developed compact to reduce world poverty.

Goals

The MDGs were developed out of the eight chapters of the Millennium Declaration, signed in September 2000. There are eight goals with 21 targets,^[9] and a series of measurable indicators for each target.^[10][11]

Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

• Target 1A: Halve the proportion of people living on less than $1 a day
  • Proportion of population below $1 per day (PPP values)
  • Poverty gap ratio [incidence x depth of poverty]
  • Share of poorest quintile in national consumption
• Target 1B: Achieve Decent Employment for Women, Men, and Young People
  • GDP Growth per Employed Person
  • Employment Rate
  • Proportion of employed population below $1 per day (PPP values)
  • Proportion of family-based workers in employed population
• Target 1C: Halve the proportion of people who suffer from hunger
  • Prevalence of underweight children under five years of age
  • Proportion of population below minimum level of dietary energy consumption^[12]

 Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education

• Target 2A: By 2015, all children can complete a full course of primary schooling, girls and boys
  • Enrollment in primary education
  • Completion of primary education
  • Literacy of 15-24 year olds, female and male^[13] Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women

• Target 3A: Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education preferably by 2005, and at all levels by 2015
  • Ratios of girls to boys in primary, secondary and tertiary education
  • Share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector
  • Proportion of seats held by women in national parliament^[14]
  • For girls in some regions, education remains elusive^[15]
  • Poverty is a major barrier to education, especially among older girls^[15]
  • In every developing region except the CIS, men outnumber women in paid employment^[15]
  • Women are largely relegated to more vulnerable forms of employment^[15]
  • Women are over-represented in informal employment, with its lack of benefits and security^[15]
  • Top-level jobs still go to men — to an overwhelming degree^[15]
  • Women are slowly rising to political power, but mainly when boosted by quotas and other special measures^[15]

 Goal 4: Reduce child mortality rates

• Target 4A: Reduce by two-thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate
  • Under-five mortality rate
  • Infant (under 1) mortality rate
  • Proportion of 1-year-old children immunized against measles^[16]

 Goal 5: Improve maternal health

• Target 5A: Reduce by three quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio
  • Maternal mortality ratio
  • Proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel
• Target 5B: Achieve, by 2015, universal access to reproductive health
  • Contraceptive prevalence rate
  • Adolescent birth rate
  • Antenatal care coverage
  • Unmet need for family planning^[17]

[edit] Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases

• Target 6A: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS
  • HIV prevalence among population aged 15–24 years
  • Condom use at last high-risk sex
  • Proportion of population aged 15–24 years with comprehensive correct knowledge of HIV/AIDS
• Target 6B: Achieve, by 2010, universal access to treatment for HIV/AIDS for all those who need it
  • Proportion of population with advanced HIV infection with access to antiretroviral drugs
• Target 6C: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases
  • Prevalence and death rates associated with malaria
  • Proportion of children under 5 sleeping under insecticide-treated bednets
  • Proportion of children under 5 with fever who are treated with appropriate anti-malarial drugs
  • Incidence, prevalence and death rates associated with tuberculosis
  • Proportion of tuberculosis cases detected and cured under DOTS (Directly Observed Treatment Short Course)^[18]

 Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability

• Target 7A: Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programs; reverse loss of environmental resources
• Target 7B: Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the rate of loss
  • Proportion of land area covered by forest
  • CO₂ emissions, total, per capita and per $1 GDP (PPP)
  • Consumption of ozone-depleting substances
  • Proportion of fish stocks within safe biological limits
  • Proportion of total water resources used
  • Proportion of terrestrial and marine areas protected
  • Proportion of species threatened with extinction
• Target 7C: Halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation (for more information see the entry on water supply)
  • Proportion of population with sustainable access to an improved water source, urban and rural
  • Proportion of urban population with access to improved sanitation
• Target 7D: By 2020, to have achieved a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum-dwellers
  • Proportion of urban population living in slums^[19]

Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development

• Target 8A: Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and financial system
  • Includes a commitment to good governance, development, and poverty reduction – both nationally and internationally
• Target 8B: Address the Special Needs of the Least Developed Countries (LDC)
  • Includes: tariff and quota free access for LDC exports; enhanced programme of debt relief for HIPC and cancellation of official bilateral debt; and more generous ODA (Overseas Development Assistance) for countries committed to poverty reduction
• Target 8C: Address the special needs of landlocked developing countries and small island developing States
  • Through the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States and the outcome of the twenty-second special session of the General Assembly
• Target 8D: Deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries through national and international measures in order to make debt sustainable in the long term
  • Some of the indicators listed below are monitored separately for the least developed countries (LDCs), Africa, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States.
  • Official development assistance (ODA):
    • Net ODA, total and to LDCs, as percentage of OECD/DAC donors’ GNI
    • Proportion of total sector-allocable ODA of OECD/DAC donors to basic social services (basic education, primary health care, nutrition, safe water and sanitation)
    • Proportion of bilateral ODA of OECD/DAC donors that is untied
    • ODA received in landlocked countries as proportion of their GNIs
    • ODA received in small island developing States as proportion of their GNIs
  • Market access:
    • Proportion of total developed country imports (by value and excluding arms) from developing countries and from LDCs, admitted free of duty
    • Average tariffs imposed by developed countries on agricultural products and textiles and clothing from developing countries
    • Agricultural support estimate for OECD countries as percentage of their GDP
    • Proportion of ODA provided to help build trade capacity
  • Debt sustainability:
    • Total number of countries that have reached their HIPC decision points and number that have reached their HIPC completion points (cumulative)
    • Debt relief committed under HIPC initiative, US$
    • Debt service as a percentage of exports of goods and services
• Target 8E: In co-operation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable, essential drugs in developing countries
  • Proportion of population with access to affordable essential drugs on a sustainable basis
• Target 8F: In co-operation with the private sector, make available the benefits of new technologies, especially information and communications
  • Telephone lines and cellular subscribers per 100 population
  • Personal computers in use per 100 population
  • Internet users per 100 Population^[20]

 Debate surrounding the MDGs

Drawbacks of the MDGs include the lack of analytical power and justification behind the chosen objectives.^[5] The MDGs leave out important ideals, such as the lack of strong objectives and indicators for equality, which is considered by many scholars to be a major flaw of the MDGs due to the disparities of progress towards poverty reduction between groups within nations.^[4][5] The MDGs also lack a focus on local participation and empowerment (excluding women’s empowerment) [Deneulin & Shahani 2009]. The MDGs also lack an emphasis on sustainability, making their future after 2015 questionable.^[5] Thus, while the MDGs are a tool for tracking progress toward basic poverty reduction and provide a very basic policy road map to achieving these goals, they do not capture all elements needed to achieve the ideals set out in the Millennium Declaration.^[4]
Another criticism of the MDGs is the difficulty or lack of measurements for some of the goals. Amir Attaran, an Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Law, Population Health, and Global Development Policy at University of Ottawa, argues that goals related to maternal mortality, malaria, and tuberculosis are in practice impossible to measure and that current UN estimates do not have scientific validity or are missing.^[21] Household surveys are often used by the UN organisations to estimate data for the health MDGs.^[21] These surveys have been argued to be poor measurements of the data they are trying to collect, and many different organisations have redundant surveys, which waste limited resources.^[21] Furthermore, countries with the highest levels of maternal mortality, malaria, and tuberculosis often have the least amount of reliable data collection.^[21] Attaran argues that without accurate measures of past and current data for the health related MDGs, it is impossible to determine if progress has been made toward the goals, leaving the MDGs as little more than a rhetorical call to arms.^[21]
Proponents for the MDGs argue that while some goals are difficult to measure, that there is still validity in setting goals as they provide a political and operational framework to achieving the goals.^[22] They also assert that non-health related MDGs are often well measured, and it is wrong to assume that all MDGs are doomed to fail due to lack of data.^[22] It is further argued that for difficult to measure goals, best practices have be identified and their implication is measurable as well as their positive effects on progress. With an increase in the quantity and quality of healthcare systems in developing countries, more data will be collected, as well as more progress made.^[22] Lastly the MDGs bring attention to measurements of wellbeing beyond income, and this attention alone helps bring funding to achieving these goals.^[5]
The MDGs are also argued to help the human development by providing a measurement of human development that is not based solely on income, prioritizing interventions, establishing obtainable objectives with operationalized measurements of progress (though the data needed to measure progress is difficult to obtain), and increasing the developed world’s involvement in worldwide poverty reduction.^[5][23] The measurement of human development in the MDGs goes beyond income, and even just basic health and education, to include gender and reproductive rights, environmental sustainability and spread of technology.^[5] Prioritizing interventions helps developing countries with limited resources make decisions about where to allocate their resources through which public policies.^[5] The MDGs also strengthen the commitment of developed countries to helping developing countries, and encourage the flow of aid and information sharing.^[5] The joint responsibility of developing and developed nations for achieving the MDGs increases the likelihood of their success, which is reinforced by their 189-country support (the MDGs are the most broadly supported poverty reduction targets ever set by the world).^[7]

Kenya Vision 2030

Kenya Vision 2030 is the country’s development blueprint covering the period 2008 to 2030. Its objective is to help transform Kenya into a “middle-income country providing a high quality life to all its citizens by the year 2030”. Developed through an all-inclusive and participatory stakeholder consultative process, the Vision is based on three “pillars”: the economic, the social and the political. This Vision's adoption comes after the successful implementation of the Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment Creation (ERS), responsible for the country’s GDP growth from a low of 0.6% and gradual rise to 6.1% in 2006.

Foundations

• Macro-economic stability for long-term development
• Continuity in Governance reforms
• Enhanced Equity and wealth creation opportunities for the poor
• Infrastructure
• Energy
• Science, Technology and Innovation (STI)
• Land Reform
• Human Resources Development
• Security

 Economic Pillar

This aims to improve the prosperity of all Kenyans through an economic development programme, covering all the regions of Kenya. It aims to achieve an average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of 10% per annum beginning in 2012. To achieve this target, Kenya is continuing with the tradition of macro-economic stability that has been established since 2002. It is also addressing other key constraints, notably, a low savings to GDP ratio, which can be alleviated by drawing in more remittances from Kenyans abroad, as well as increased foreign investment and overseas development assistance (ODA).
Delivering the country’s ambitious growth aspirations required a rise of national savings from 17% in 2006 to about 30% in 2012. It was also found necessary to deal with a significant informal economy employing 75% of the country’s workers. The informal sector is being supported in ways that will raise productivity and distribution and increase jobs, owner’s incomes and public revenues. The country is continuing with the governance and institutional reforms necessary to accelerate economic growth. Others critical problems being addressed include poor infrastructure and high energy costs. The six key sectors described below are being given priority as the key growth drivers for achievement of the economic vision:

• Tourism
• Increasing value in Agriculture
• A better and more inclusive wholesale and retail trade sector
• Manufacturing for the regional market
• BPO
• Financial Services

 Social Pillar

Through this strategy, Kenya aims to build a just and cohesive society with social equity in a clean and secure environment. This strategy makes special provisions for Kenyans with various disabilities (PWDs) and previously marginalized communities. These policies (and those in the economic pillar) are equally anchored on an all-round adoption of science, technology and innovation (STI) as an implementation tool.
Key sectors:

• Education & Training
• The Health System
• Water and Sanitation
• The Environment
• Housing and Urbanisation
• Gender, Youth and Vulnerable Groups
• Equity and Poverty Elimination

Political Pillar

This aims to realise a democratic political system founded on issue-based politics that respects the rule of law, and protects the rights and freedoms of every individual in Kenyan society. It hopes to transform Kenya into a state in which equality is entrenched, irrespective of one’s race, ethnicity, religion, gender or socio-economic status; a nation that respects and harnesses the diversity of its peoples’ values, traditions and aspirations for the benefit of all its citizens.
The political pillar vision for 2030 is “a democratic political system that is issue-based, people-centered, result-oriented and accountable to the public”. An issue-based system is one in which political differences are about means to meet the widest public interest. “People-centered” goals refer to the system’s responsiveness to the needs and rights of citizens, whose participation in all public policies and resource allocation processes is both fully appreciated and facilitated. A result-oriented system is stable, predictable and whose performance is based on measurable outcomes. An accountable system is one that is open and transparent and one that permits free flow of information. This vision is expected to guarantee Kenya’s attainment of the specific goals outlined under Vision 2030’s economic and social pillars
To meet objectives outlined in the economic and social pillars, Kenya’s national governance system is being transformed and reformed to acquire high-level executive capability consistent with a rapidly industrializing country. The country is adopting a democratic decentralization process with substantial devolution in policy-making, public resource management and revenue sharing through devolved funds. This has been achieved through a delivery of a new constitutional dispensation which came in effect in August 2010.
Transformation within Kenya’s political governance system under Vision 2030 is expected to take place across six strategic initiatives, whose overarching visions, goals and specific strategies for 2012 are as follows:

• Rule of Law
• Electoral & Political Processes
• Democracy and Public Service Delivery
• Transparency and Accountability
• Security, Peace building and conflict management

Guiding Principles

To ensure that economic, social and political governance gains made under the Vision are neither reversed nor lost as a result of change in ruling parties, the following eight governance principles will be adhered to:

1. Constitutional supremacy: Supremacy of the constitution shall be respected at all times. This will guarantee individual rights as stated in the Bill of Rights and the property rights of Kenyan and international investors.
2. Sovereignty of the people: This calls for the acknowledgment of the fact that in a constitutional democracy like Kenya, the government derives all its just powers from the people it governs.
3. Equality of citizens: Kenya shall be a nation that treats its women and men equally. It will not discriminate any citizen on the basis of gender, race, tribe, religion or ancestral origin.
4. National values, goals and ideology: In the pursuit of economic, social and political aspirations, Kenyans shall formulate and adopt a core set of national values, goals and a political ideology supportive of Vision 2030, these will include acknowledgement of the significance of God to the Kenyan people and an affirmation of the religious, cultural and ethnic diversity of Kenyans. It will also affirm the indivisibility of Kenya as a nation and her commitment to democracy and the rule of law.
5. A viable political party system: Kenya aims at a strong and viable political party system that will be guided by policy and ideological differences rather than region of ethnicity. Under Vision 2030, founding of political parties on religious, linguistic, racial, ethnic, gender, corporate or regional basis will be prohibited. This is in line with the just enacted Political Parties Bill. All political parties will be obliged to subscribe to a legally-binding Code of Conduct. There will be a clear definition of circumstances under which a party may be de-registered or reinstated. The delegation of state functions to (or the use of state resources by) political parties will not be permitted. Political parties will be required to publish their manifestos before participating in elections.
6. Public participation in governance: Kenyans shall appreciate the values of tolerance and respect for differences in opinion in a competitive society.
7. Separation of powers: The implementation of Vision 2030 depends on the enhancement of the capacity of the three arms of government (Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary). These institutions are independently functioning in a manner that enhances the implementation of Vision 2030.
8. Decentralisation: Vision 2030 uses devolved funds to strengthen decentralization of development projects at the community level. Improved planning and coordination of such projects at the local level will be accorded priority in realizing this goal.

 Implementation

A Semi Autonomous Government Agency (SAGA) with the requisite capacity has been established to oversee the implementation of all the Vision 2030 projects. The agency works closely in collaboration with government ministries and departments as well as the private sector, civil society and other relevant stakeholder groups. The strategies to deliver the 10% annual growth by 2012 is being executed through concrete flagship projects across the priority sectors in all the three pillars of the Vision. The projects are original large-scale initiatives that look beyond their immediate locality and are capable of having an impact on the entire nation. Flagship projects form part of the national development with complementary projects being undertaken in line with the Medium-Term Plans, the Budget Outlook Paper, and the Medium- Term Expenditure Framework.
During the life of the Vision, strategies and action plans are expected to be systematically reviewed and adjusted every 5 years in order to effectively respond to the changing global, regional and local environment. The Vision 2030 is being delivered over many different horizons and flagship projects, each with defined goals. Following the expiry of the ERS in December 2007, the first part of Vision 2030 is now being implemented under the 2008-2012 plan.