Africa: German Cabinet Announces Africa to Be Focus of 2007 G8 Summit
ActionAid (London)
PRESS RELEASE
October 18, 2006
Posted to the web October 18, 2006
ActionAid welcomes Angela Merkel's decision to prioritise Africa on the G8
agenda next year but calls on the German Chancellor to set her sights higher
than focusing on a handful of African countries.
In an announcement tomorrow on its plans for the 2007 G8 summit, the German
cabinet is expected to propose that each G8 member would sign a partnership
agreement with one African country. Germany's G8 proposal is reported to give
preference to those countries that have political reforms underway,
democracies in place and are investor-friendly.
"Across the 43 countries of Africa there are 200 million people who are
chronically malnourished, 24 million people affected by HIV/AIDS and 22 million
girls who have never been to primary school," said Anne Jellema, Director of
Policy for ActionAid.
"Partnerships with a few countries will barely make a dent on these
problems. Across the board, rich countries need to drop the subsidies and tariffs
that keep African farmers from making a living, cancel the debt burden that
continues to eat up government budgets, and keep their promise to increase aid to
0.7 per cent of Gross National Income," said Jellema.
"The language of 'reform' has too often been used to impose policies that
the African people didn't choose and don't want, such as privatising services
and opening up markets for the benefit of G8 investors."
"If the G8 really cares about democracy in Africa, it will support genuine
country-led processes rather than pushing reforms designed in Washington or
Bonn," Jellema added.
Tomorrow's announcement follows an unprecedented campaign by the Global Call
to Action against Poverty (GCAP) this weekend. Around the globe, 23 million
people 'stood up' to call for an end to unjust global trade rules, the huge
burden of debt, insufficient and ineffective aid and self-interested economic
policies imposed by rich countries that to create and sustain poverty in
developing countries.
The announcement from Germany will reportedly emphasize that industrialized
countries must consider the social dimension of globalisation, stressing that
investment in human capital and resources will pay off in the long term,
representing a critical pre-condition for sustainable development.
African leaders will be invited for a special economic summit ahead of the
G8 in Heiligendamm in Germany next year. Germany is due to take over the
presidency of the G8 in 2007, which is currently held by Russia.
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