World leaders urged to act on poverty

The world's aid and charity organisations have resolved to again urge governments to pump billions of dollars into the global fight against poverty.

Any suggestion that they lacked the resources to do so was a "nonsense", the final day of the United Nations DPI/NGO (Department of Public Information/Non-Governmental Organisation) Conference was told on Wednesday.

A fraction of the world's military spending would fund the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), said Professor Phil Batterham, convenor of the three-day conference in Melbourne.

Around 1600 delegates represented more than 350 Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) at the conference.

US President Barack Obama also made a contribution as delegates discussed the world's stalled progress towards the MDGs - the 15-year plan agreed to in 2000 to cut global poverty and improve health.

"During this morning's roundtable I received a twitter message on my phone - it was from Barack Obama," Prof Batterham, from the University of Melbourne, said during the conference's closing press briefing on Wednesday.

"It said `... tonight the American combat mission in Iraq has ended`.

"If the global military budget was reduced then all of the MDGs could be achieved - it would cost one tenth of the annual military budget of the world.

"(So) when we talk about not being able to achieve the MDGs that is a nonsense - the resources are in our hands."

A declaration drafted at the conference, and supported overwhelmingly by delegates, calls for a redirection of military spending towards health and education while free trade agreements should not favoured over "fair trade ... that maximises health and well-being before profits".

The document also warns that one billion people globally lacked access to adequate food, 2.6 billion lacked access to improved sanitation, almost nine million children die before the age of five and at least 340,000 women die every year from pregnancy-related causes.

Millions of people also die prematurely from non-communicable diseases, as well as tuberculosis, malaria and AIDS.

"In conclusion, it is unacceptable that so many children and adults in low income countries continue to suffer preventable illness, disability and premature deaths each year," it said.

"The world knows how to prevent and treat most of the causes and that well focused efforts can significantly reduce levels of suffering."

Delegates also supported calling on world leaders to introduce a two-year debt moratorium for disaster-hit Pakistan.

UN Under Secretary-General Kiyo Akasaka received the declaration and said it would inform the debate as world leaders meet to discuss progress towards the MDGs at a summit in New York, September 20-22.

Governments from UN donor countries will meet again in October where they will be called on to replenish the $US20 billion fund used to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

"The NGO group has enormous influence, and impact, on what the governments do," Mr Akasaka said.

"... I hope they would seriously consider and heed those recommendations."

A handful of delegates voted against the declaration, including Melbourne-based John Ryan, chief executive of drug harm minimisation group ANEX.

Mr Ryan said the document made no reference to injecting drug users, who account for around one third of all new HIV infections occurring outside of sub-Saharan Africa.

"No country is proud they have injecting drug users and they would rather brush them under the carpet," Mr Ryan told AAP.

"If we (the NGO community) ignore it we are undoubtedly going to fail to control HIV's spread ... there's no point having serious MDGs if you don't face up to these issues."