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Activists disappointed by 'warmed-over money'
G8's 'distant promises' not good enough
By STEPHANIE NOLEN
Friday, June 28, 2002 ? Page A4
From rock star Bono to Stephen Lewis to Bishop Akolgo, a man who runs a small organization aiding slum dwellers in Ghana, the reaction to the G8's announcement on Africa was the same: shock and stunned disappointment.
In the lead-up to this week's Group of Eight summit, Bono, Mr. Lewis and a dozen African leaders had declared the gathering in Kananaskis, Alta., to be Africa's "last best hope." They wanted serious commitments of new aid funding, and changes in trade laws, to benefit the world's poorest continent.
There weren't any.
"I actually thought that there would be more concrete material, I thought there would really be a commitment," Mr. Lewis, the UN's top adviser on AIDS, said in an interview after yesterday's announcement. "But the money, it's just warmed-over money."
Instead of the $64-billion (U.S.) in new aid and investment African leaders were seeking, the G8 promised only $6-billion in additional aid by 2006. And that was money already pledged at a conference in Monterrey, Mexico, in the spring.
"The G8 know that this year they've failed to respond to Africa's needs with sufficient vision," said Bono, the lead singer of Irish band U2 who has turned crusader for Africa. In recent weeks, after touring four African countries with U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, Bono said he was sure this summit would bring "a major new initiative." But it didn't.
"Incremental steps and distant promises are still their trademark," Bono said after the G8's announcement yesterday. "The commitments made in Kananaskis must be swallowed into something much more ambitious to make a historic new partnership with Africa real."
Mr. Lewis was particularly troubled by the lack of commitment to fund the fight against HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa.
"There was nothing for the Global Fund -- [United Nations Secretary-General Kofi] Annan asked them to meet those commitments. I thought they would say, 'Okay Kofi, not $7- to $10-billion but maybe $2-billion, and then we'll get the private sector to make up the rest.' "
At the two-day meeting, the G8 leaders endorsed the New Partnership for Africa's Development, a plan presented in person by South African President Thabo Mbeki and other influential African leaders.
The G8 responded with an Africa Action Plan, which contains a pledge to develop guidelines on illegal arms transfers and acknowledges the role of businesses in developed countries in fuelling wars in Africa, both of which won praise. The G8 also promised to increase funding for basic education to meet the goal of primary education for all children. But again, specific financial commitments were missing, as were other key steps.
"On trade, it's quite disappointing," said Mark Fried, spokesman for Oxfam International. "They say they're not going to do anything, they're going to throw it all to [World Trade Organization talks in] Doha -- and what negotiating power do poor countries have in Doha?"
Activists disappointed by 'warmed-over money'
G8's 'distant promises' not good enough
By STEPHANIE NOLEN
Friday, June 28, 2002 ? Page A4
From rock star Bono to Stephen Lewis to Bishop Akolgo, a man who runs a small organization aiding slum dwellers in Ghana, the reaction to the G8's announcement on Africa was the same: shock and stunned disappointment.
In the lead-up to this week's Group of Eight summit, Bono, Mr. Lewis and a dozen African leaders had declared the gathering in Kananaskis, Alta., to be Africa's "last best hope." They wanted serious commitments of new aid funding, and changes in trade laws, to benefit the world's poorest continent.
There weren't any.
"I actually thought that there would be more concrete material, I thought there would really be a commitment," Mr. Lewis, the UN's top adviser on AIDS, said in an interview after yesterday's announcement. "But the money, it's just warmed-over money."
Instead of the $64-billion (U.S.) in new aid and investment African leaders were seeking, the G8 promised only $6-billion in additional aid by 2006. And that was money already pledged at a conference in Monterrey, Mexico, in the spring.
"The G8 know that this year they've failed to respond to Africa's needs with sufficient vision," said Bono, the lead singer of Irish band U2 who has turned crusader for Africa. In recent weeks, after touring four African countries with U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, Bono said he was sure this summit would bring "a major new initiative." But it didn't.
"Incremental steps and distant promises are still their trademark," Bono said after the G8's announcement yesterday. "The commitments made in Kananaskis must be swallowed into something much more ambitious to make a historic new partnership with Africa real."
Mr. Lewis was particularly troubled by the lack of commitment to fund the fight against HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa.
"There was nothing for the Global Fund -- [United Nations Secretary-General Kofi] Annan asked them to meet those commitments. I thought they would say, 'Okay Kofi, not $7- to $10-billion but maybe $2-billion, and then we'll get the private sector to make up the rest.' "
At the two-day meeting, the G8 leaders endorsed the New Partnership for Africa's Development, a plan presented in person by South African President Thabo Mbeki and other influential African leaders.
The G8 responded with an Africa Action Plan, which contains a pledge to develop guidelines on illegal arms transfers and acknowledges the role of businesses in developed countries in fuelling wars in Africa, both of which won praise. The G8 also promised to increase funding for basic education to meet the goal of primary education for all children. But again, specific financial commitments were missing, as were other key steps.
"On trade, it's quite disappointing," said Mark Fried, spokesman for Oxfam International. "They say they're not going to do anything, they're going to throw it all to [World Trade Organization talks in] Doha -- and what negotiating power do poor countries have in Doha?"
