The report shows that some hard-won gains are being eroded by the climate, food and economic crises. But even though the economic crisis took a heavy toll on jobs and in-comes around the world, the world is still on track to achieve the MDG target of cutting the rate of extreme poverty in half by 2015, the report notes.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have provided an important motivational force and yardstick for this progress. In their design, the goals were deliberately ambitious, their achievement requiring unparalleled progress in most countries. The fact that many countries will achieve a significant number of the goals and transform the quality of life of hundreds of millions of people should be a sign of hope and a spur to action for others. The challenge for their remaining five years and beyond is to learn from and build on this progress. This report presents data on how countries are closing in on the MDG targets. It unpacks the targets and indicators to map out how the development process is playing out across countries and continents. It goes beyond standard global and country-level assessments to provide insights into how these gains are being shared across income, rural-urban and gender groups. It identifies the 'star' performers that have made the greatest gains, shines a light on unexpected outcomes from the pursuit of the MDG targets and sounds out warnings where progress has stalled or is heading in the wrong direction.