CRI听力：Ban Ki-moon Calls for Unified Approach to Tackle International Crises

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is calling for a unified approach to tackle what he called the "three simultaneous crises" faced by the world.

"As we stand before you today, the world faces three simultaneous crises - a food crisis, a climate crisis and a development crisis. The three crises are deeply interconnected and need to be addressed as such."

Ban said that many countries were "off track" in fulfilling the Millennium Development Goals that they promised in 2000.

"At the midpoint in our efforts to achieve the goals by 2015, progress in many countries is off track - particularly in Africa."

The Millennium Development Goals are a set of eight objectives for poverty reduction, education, health, gender equality and the environment that United Nations member states agreed to try to achieve by 2015.

As the changing climate pattern keeps deteriorating the food problem in Africa, the Secretary-General also urged the G-8 industrialized countries to stick to their Africa aid pledge, which is to raise annual aid levels by 50 billion dollars by 2010, half of which was for Africa. (Www.hxen.net)

World Bank President Robert Zoellick also expressed his concerns while attending the press conference,

"What we need now is resources, action and results in real time. I believe this summit can make an important start, here and now, to focus on the needs of the most vulnerable, as we boost production of food and fuel over the medium and long term. And I urge the G-8 leaders to seize this opportunity."