At the United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000 in New York, the United Nations Millennium Declaration was adopted. All the participating UN member states pledged to achieve by 2015 the following goals: eradication of extreme poverty and hunger; universal primary education; gender equality and the empowerment of women; reduction of child mortality; improved maternal health; control of HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; environmental sustainability; and a global partnership for development.

"China is doing well", said Leitner, who will soon finish her five-year term as the top UNDP official in China, and will work as a senior official at the World Health Organization, also a UN agency.

She said that in the past five years, the Chinese people overall had attained a higher standard of living. Leitner demonstrated some maps of China human development, mortality rate, maternal mortality rate and rural safe drinking water to emphasize what she said was a surprising achievement.

To achieve these goals would need the participation of the government, business circles, the private sector and individuals, she said.

She said SARS had also brought opportunities to China. For example, more people tended to drink boiled water, reducing the spread of infectious water-borne diseases.

Public awareness of the benefits of hygiene and physical activity had also been raised, and people knew that they must be fit to protect themselves from disease, she said.

Leitner said her happiest moment at the post was China's ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 2001. The resulting projects to relieve poverty in the countryside had brought practical benefits to the poor.

She said China had undergone rapid changes and become economically successful, but the benefits of development were uneven: some people paid attention to the economy and trade aspects, but forgot about social and cultural life; some wanted to become rich and ignore happiness and social security, among others.

China needed to focus on these issues as it integrated with the international community, Leitner said.

(Xinhua News Agency July 8, 2003)