Nelson Motta
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Brasília - It is expected that today (20), in the Planalto Palace, Jaques Wagner, minister of the Secretariat of Institutional Relations, will receive the Manifesto to the Nation, signed by thirty-nine members of the Economic and Social Development Council (CDES). The document will be handed to the minister by the president of the National Federation of Automobile Distributors (Fenabrave), Waldemar Verdi.

The Secretariat's press office informed that, in the document, the councillors call for renewed development with social inclusion, dedication to political reform, and engagement in the war on corruption and the punishment of those responsible. According to the press office, the manifesto was presented at the last meeting of the Council and should be delivered to president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

At 2 PM today, the CDES will hold a meeting of the Social Policies Follow-up Group, According to the press office, the group will discuss Brazil's compliance with the Goals of the Millenium. The eight Development Goals of the Millenium - the elimination of hunger and extreme poverty; quality basic education for all; gender equality and protection of women's rights; reduction of infant mortality; improved health care for pregnant women; actions to combat AIDS, malaria, and other diseases; environmental sustainability; and a global partnership for development - were endorsed by 191 countries in September, 2000. They are meant to be achieved by 2015.

Translation: David Silberstein