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AAM - AWA Family Picnic: Saturday, July 15 @ Elver Park

AFRICA FEST 2006: Saturday, August 26 @ Warner Park

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Perhaps African countries would benefit from an "Edward Deming."

----- Original Message -----
From: Sam Jimba <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 1:10 pm
Subject: Why Africa Is Under-developed, By Clinton
To: [log in to unmask]

> *****************************************************************
> 
> AAM - AWA Family Picnic: Saturday, July 15 @ Elver Park
> 
> AFRICA FEST 2006: Saturday, August 26 @ Warner Park
> 
> Join African Association of Madison, Inc. for $25 per year
> 
> Mail check to; AAM, PO Box 1016, Madison, WI 53701,
> 608-258-0261,     [log in to unmask],
> www.AfricanAssociation.org
> 
> *****************************************************************
> 
> Why Africa Is Under-developed, By Clinton
> THISDAY online, By Constance Ikokwu and Funmi Peter-Omale in Abuja, 
> 07.18.2006 
> Former President of the United States of America, Mr. Bill Clinton, 
> yesterday in Abuja, dispelled the common notion that lack of growth 
> in developing nations was caused by corruption, saying “too little 
> capacity” is responsible for problems in the third world.
> Clinton, who spoke at the opening luncheon of the Leon H. Sullivan 
> Summit VII at the Presidential Villa, Aso Rock Abuja, said 
> developing nations were thus faced with the challenge of building a 
> system that would give people the opportunity to excel and also 
> reward hard work. 
> He said inequality in the world only rests in the distribution of 
> opportunities, the reason why African countries should strive to 
> build a system that solves that problem.
> “All this time, we say there is too much corruption in the 
> developing world, what is there too little capacity. This creates a 
> vacuum where all sorts of bad things happen. People need an 
> organised way to pursue their objectives,” he said.
> Clinton, who received a thunderous applause after making the 
> statement, went further to point out that intelligence, ability and 
> effort is evenly distributed in all parts of the world but that 
> investments and an organised system is only achieved through a 
> thoughtful planning by the government. 
> He stated that the whole idea about the Sullivan principles is the 
> maximisation of talents and to help people achieve their dreams.
> “I am convinced that the number one challenge today in Africa is 
> building the systematic capacity that would enable people who live 
> here to make their own future. One thing I have learnt in all the 
> places that I have been all over the world is that intelligence, 
> ability and effort are evenly distributed. But investment, 
> opportunity, effective system are not”, he said.
> He said the “miracle economies of Asia” did not come about only as 
> a result of intelligence and hard work but also because of a system 
> that will reward people’s efforts and intelligence. 
> The former US President who has been to Nigeria three times since 
> leaving the White House praised President Olusegun Obasanjo and 
> former Minister of Finance, now Foreign Affairs Minister, Dr. Ngozi 
> Okonjo-Iweala  for the great work he says they have done for the 
> country.Meanwhile, Nigeria has signed a deal with the Clinton 
> Foundation to facilitate the supply of affordable and high-quality 
> drugs to fight the deadly HIV/AIDS epidemic in the country.
> Though accurate health statistics are elusive, experts estimate 
> that between 3.5 million and five million people here have 
> contracted the HIV virus which leads to AIDS and that the number is 
> increasing rapidly.
> The signing of a memorandum of understanding in Abuja yesterday was 
> witnessed by President Olusegun Obasanjo and Clinton and Minister 
> of Health, Prof. Eyitayo Lambo signed for Nigeria, Ira Magaziner 
> signed for the Foundation.
> Under the deal, Nigeria will be included in the Foundation's 
> procurement consortium and benefit from its negotiated supplier 
> agreements to reduce the prices of HIV/AIDS drugs.
> Under the deal, the Clinton Foundation will also assist Nigeria in 
> expanding access to pediatric HIV/AIDS care and treatment by 
> facilitating access to pediatric anti-retrovirial drugs and 
> providing technical assistance.
> The Foundation will help the country mobilise financial resources 
> from donor governments, other foundations, multilateral 
> organisations, private corporations and individuals and fund 
> HIV/AIDS interventions.
> Clinton at the event also called for concerted efforts to fight 
> AIDS saying "We cannot stop the spread of AIDS without building the 
> capacity of governments, without NGOs working with governments. My 
> contribution is basically to give the least expensive high-quality 
> AIDS medicine in the world to children and adults.”
> But Nigeria and other African countries are most unlikely to meet 
> the 2015 target for attaining the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
> Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala stated this 
> yesterday in Abuja while presenting a paper on "Financing and 
> Investing in Africa's Private Sector" at the on-going Sullivan 
> Summit VII.
> The Minister noted that over the years, there had been an 
> improvement in the macroeconomic environment, business climate and 
> good governance, but lamented that human development indicators in 
> most African countries have shown little improvement.
> She said, "Infact, with less than a decade to 2015, it appears most 
> African countries are unlikely to meet any of their MDG targets. 
> The missing link here is that we have not been able to translate 
> our improved economic and political environment into measurable 
> developments of the real sectors of our economies so that jobs can 
> be created for our youths and poverty cut in half."
> The Foreign Minister said compared with other regions, Africa's 
> share of global FDI at about 6-7 percent is still very low. 
> "In 2005, when sub-saharan Africa received $17.6 billion in FDI, 
> other regions performed much better, with East Asia attracting 
> about $65.3 billion, Latin America and the Caribbean receiving 
> about $61.4 billion", she said.
> Okonjo-Iweala stressed that "developing the real sectors of the 
> economy is needed to create employment, and also to improve the 
> incomes and livelihoods of our citizens. The lack of adequate 
> investments in Africa, is also surprising given the high rates of 
> return obtained by foreign investors. Research by UNCTAD examined 
> foreign direct investments in the 1990s, and concluded that the 
> African region provided some of the highest rates of return of 
> about 29 percent. Infact for Nigeria, the average rate of return on 
> private investment in the economy is 35 percent."
> 
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