The Guardian: The Guardian view on global development goals: heed the good news, but more needs to be done
Editorial Board

“…[S]ome of the overarching lessons that can be drawn from the [recent U.N. report on development goals] … point to the merit of mobilizing governments and public opinion in making sure that progress not only continues but also benefits the largest possible number of people. … Fighting inequality worldwide will require more focus, not less. The world’s top one percent is set to hold more than half of global wealth by 2016. When U.N. member states meet to set those Sustainable Development Goals for the next decades, politics and ideology will undoubtedly weigh heavily: it is easy to find consensus on the notion of eliminating poverty — who could possibly disagree? — but it is much harder to jointly define inequality and how to reduce it. … [M]ore must be achieved. That will only come if minds meet in the U.N. and if, crucially, any agreement is backed by money. Grand statements are all well and good. But they must be followed by action” (7/19).

The Guardian: Addis delegates failed to put money where mouth was on gender equality
Ana Ines Abelenda, economic justice coordinator, and Nerea Craviotto, resourcing women’s rights lead advocacy coordinator, both for the Association for Women’s Rights in Development

“…The Addis agenda may pay lip service to women’s rights and gender equality, but in reality it seeks to make the contribution of women to the global economy predominantly about growth and productivity. … As we mark the 20th anniversary of the Beijing platform, with critical areas still lagging, it is unacceptable that developed countries are not committing to scale up their share of overseas development assistance for achieving gender equality. … We welcome the commitment in the Addis accord to track and report resource allocation for gender equality and women’s empowerment, but the funds are still insufficient. … Whether the Addis agenda represents another missed opportunity for building a better global framework for development finance — one that works towards the achievement of women’s rights and gender equality — will become clear only with time…” (7/17).