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End world poverty by the year 2015. That was the promise the leaders of 189 countries around the world made at the United Nations Millennium Summit in 2000.

To ensure that this promise would not be in vain, they signed the Millennium Declaration outlining eight key global development goals: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger; achieve universal primary education; promote gender equality and empower women; reduce child mortality; improve maternal health; combat HIV/Aids, malaria and other diseases; ensure environmental sustainability; and develop a global partnership for development.

The UN Millennium Campaign was initiated in 2002 by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to support and inspire people worldwide to participate and take action in order to achieve these Millennium Development Goals.

The Indonesian version, Bangkit Beraksi (Stand Up, Take Action), was launched on Friday and will host a variety of events to raise awareness this month.

Speaking during a press conference at the Plaza Indonesia mall, Minar Pimple, the deputy director of the UN Millennium Campaign in Asia, said that because there were only six years left until 2015, people around the world needed to remind their leaders of their promise.

“This campaign is the chance for Indonesian citizens to remind their president, who will be inaugurated on Oct. 20, that he has been elected to fulfill the Millennium Development Goals,” Minar said.

Four local celebrities, film director Nia Dinata, TV presenter Indy Barens, TV presenter and actor Pandji Pragiwaksono and radio personality Iwet Ramadhan, were also present at the press conference to show their support as the official ambassadors of the Indonesian campaign and to encourage the wider community to participate.

Wilson T P Siahaan, a policy specialist from the UN Millennium Campaign in Indonesia, said that all of the ambassadors had a history of supporting social causes.

“We hope they will have an influence, especially on the younger generation,” he said.

Since this year’s campaign will begin on Oct. 16, which also marks World Food Day, there is a thematic focus on food security and on hunger. However, given that many of the Millennium Development Goals focusing on women have seen limited progress, campaigners are encouraged to give this year’s Stand Up campaign a clear focus on holding governments accountable for strengthening the status of women and protecting their rights.

“I think that the progress of a country in its fight against poverty can be seen best from the development of the women,” Nia Dinata said. “If we look at the developed countries in Europe, we can see that the women there are very well-educated. There is also very little child and maternal mortality.”

She said she had always been concerned with women’s rights and tried to highlight these issues in her work, be it in her films or through the Kalyana Shira Foundation she established in 2006 to promote various social justice issues through film.

“But to improve the situation for women in Indonesia, which is a key concern in the fight against poverty, we still have a lot of work to do,” Nia said.

The main activities of the campaign will take place from Oct. 16 to 18. The key event will be a day of workshops, discussions, free health check ups and entertainment, such as concerts and cultural performances at Merdeka Square in Central Jakarta on Oct. 18.

Other events to be held at Plaza Indonesia today and tomorrow include a photo exhibition, several film screenings, and musical performances by local bands such as Tika & the Dissidents.