GUINNESS WORLD RECORD SHATTERED BY CITIZENS ACROSS GLOBE DEMANDING THAT THEIR LEADERS END POVERTY

More than 173 Million People Gather at “Stand Up, Take Action, End Poverty Now!” events,

setting new world record for largest mobilization in history

A Guinness World Record shattered this weekend when 173,045,325 citizens gathered at over 3,000 events in more than 120 countries, demanding that their governments eradicate extreme poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). “Stand Up, Take Action, End Poverty Now!”, in its fourth year, has been certified by Guinness World Records as the largest mobilization of human beings in recorded history, an increase of about 57 million people over last year.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who led over 1,500 schoolchildren in Standing Up on Friday at the UN International School in New York, said, “We know that if we take a stand -- if we act -- we can end poverty in our lifetimes. That's what the Stand Up campaign is about. That's why we will convene a Summit next year at the United Nations to keep the focus on the goal of meeting the Millennium Development Goals.”

“The more than 173 million people who mobilized this weekend sent a clear message to world leaders that there is massive, universal, global demand for eradicating poverty and achieving the Millennium Development Goals,” said Salil Shetty, Director of the United Nations Millennium Campaign. “In particular, we have seen citizens determined to show their governments that they will hold them accountable for keeping their promises to end hunger, improve maternal health and abolish trade-distorting agricultural subsidies. They will not accept excuses for breaking promises to the world's poorest and most vulnerable people, who have already been hardest hit by the global food, economic and climate crises they had no role in causing.”

In Asia more than 100 million people participated (101,106,845); in Africa more than 37 million people participated (37,848,412); in the Arab region more than 31 million people participated (31,394,459); in Europe more than 2 million people participated (2,102,121); in Latin America more than 200,000 people participated (229,371); in North America nearly 200,000 people participated (191,535); and in Oceania more than 170,000 people participated (172,582).

"Stand Up is proven to be a growing global mobilization, as well as an ongoing grassroots movement from remote areas and cities in so many countries, both rich and poor,” said Sylvia Borren, Co-chair of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP), who attended several “Stand Up” events across The Netherlands last weekend. “These are the voices of young people, women and men demanding the eradication of poverty, and new answers to the food, economic and climate crises. We will carry this overwhelming message forward in the weeks and months ahead to influence both the Copenhagen climate discussions and next year's MDG review.”

Currently 1 billion people around the world are hungry and 500,000 women continue to die annually as the result of pregnancy and childbirth. The vast majority of these deaths are preventable.

The mobilization was coordinated globally by the United Nations Millennium Campaign, in partnership with a range of organizations including the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP) and the UN Department of Public Information and its global network of UN Information Centres.

The 3,000 events across every inhabited continent this weekend included:

From Cape Town to Cairo and from Accra to Kampala, millions of Africans stood up in churches, mosques, schools, markets, streets and work places to call on their leaders to end poverty and inequality.

In Ghana, a total of 5.5 million people took part in the 2009 Stand Up events organized between 16 – 18 October. This showed an increase of 4,274,480 people over last year's figure of 1,225,520 or approximately 349 per cent. The 2009 “Stand Up and Take Action for MDGs” campaign was organized as part of the Flag-raising ceremony to climax the 2009 World Food Day, on Friday, 16 October 2009. The event took place at the Independence Square. The organizers were the UN system in Ghana, the Christian Council of Ghana and the Global Call to Action against Poverty which is a civil society alliance of social movements, international NGOs, trade unions, community groups, women's organisations, faith and youth groups working in more than 100 countries.

Also in Accra, the UN system led by the United Nations Information Centre held a Stand Up event with school children from six basic schools at the Flag Staff House Basic School compound.

Again in Ghana, the Christian Council on Sunday, 18 October 2009, through its member churches and NGOs organized Stand Up events throughout the country. At all these events participants signed the signature banner in support of the stand up campaign. Both the print and the electronic media gave these activities very good coverage.

In South Africa, housemates on the hit television show “Big Brother” made passionate appeals to world leaders to end poverty and led the continent in reading the ”Stand Up” pledge, collected food for disadvantaged children and wrote a song on poverty. They called on African leaders to stop maternal death, end hunger and address climate change.

Despite the typhoons that hit the Philippines just before “Stand Up,” 35.5 million people in the country Stood Up and the “I Vote for MDGs” campaign, a survey on the issues voters believe should be prioritized by the 2010 Presidential candidates, was launched.

In Nigeria, legendary African artist Femi Kuti led over 60,000 people attending the annual event commemorating the life of his late father Fela Kuti, in pledging their commitment to campaigning fervently against poverty and injustice. Femi urged participants at the festival to be bold when holding their governments accountable, noting that Africa has enough resources to end poverty. Accusing African leaders of mismanaging public resources through corruption and poor governance, he called on them to focus more attention on programmes leading to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

Citizens of Papua New Guinea Stood Up for the first time this year, in churches and government buildings, with support from the government Department of Community Development.

“Stand Up” was also supported by the entire United Nations system, with events organized by United Nations Information Centres (UNICs) across the globe.

About the Campaigns:
The UN Millennium Campaign was established by the UN Secretary General in 2002. The Campaign supports citizens' efforts to hold their governments to account for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. The Millennium Development Goals were adopted by 189 world leaders from rich and poor countries, as part of the Millennium Declaration which was signed in 2000. These leaders agreed to achieve the Goals by 2015. Our premise is simple: we are the first generation that can end poverty and we refuse to miss this opportunity. For more information, visit www.endpoverty2015.org.

Development / Ghana / Africa / Modernghana.com