Millennium Development Goals

Although infrastructure is only specifically identified in the Millennium Development Goals in terms of water and sanitation, telephones, personal computers and internet users, there is no doubt that attainment of almost all the goals depends in significant part, and in some cases critically, on improvements in infrastructure services.

Infrastructure impacts on poverty reduction both directly and indirectly. It helps reduce poverty by directly improving access of people to health and educational services, by providing them with cleaner energy, and by protecting them against natural disasters - contributing to non-income aspects of deprivations.

Productivity and incomes also benefit from infrastructure's contribution to the health and education objectives. Reduced sickness, due to improved water and sanitation, for example, can have significant effects even in the short term.

But it also contributes to poverty reduction indirectly by enhancing agricultural productivity, reducing transportation costs, generating more jobs and income - that is, by enhancing economic growth.

Strengthening of poor people's human resources will have much greater effects in the medium and longer term. Infrastructure's contributions to the health and education objectives are partly direct (e.g., better water supply, ICT applications) and partly facilitating and improving access to health and education services.