Oxfam Makes Poverty Plea

from Sky News

Oxfam has urged Tony Blair to make the fight against poverty in Africa a priority in the time he has left in office.

The charity says donations from rich nations have fallen since the Prime Minister's Commission for Africa report two years ago sought more aid.

Oxfam said Mr Blair's "vision" on aid risked being deeply undermined.

The campaigner Bob Geldof issued his own impassioned appeal to the world's wealthiest nations to honour their commitments to the poor of Africa.

Mr Geldof criticised European leaders for losing interest in Africa since the Gleneagles agreement at the G8 summit two years ago.

He said if wealthy countries broke their promises over Africa it would "kill the poor" on the continent.

He criticised European leaders for losing interest in the continent since signing an agreement on aid and trade.

"When they put their name, they sign the pride, the honour, and the dignity of their respective countries. You do not break that," he said.

"You particularly don't break it because the promise of the rich to the poor broken, kills the poor."

As the European Union prepared to celebrate its 50th anniversary, he accused it of ignoring the continued plight of Africa.

"On our 50th birthday anniversary we are silent about our closest neighbour and where potentially two million people will be killed in one region alone - Darfur," he said.

"What have Europe got to say on our 50th birthday about this? Nothing, absolutely nothing."

On the eve of the second anniversary of Tony Blair's Commission for Africa report - which formed the basis of the Gleneagles agreement - he warned that the failure to commit promised aid had left an opening which China was now seeking to exploit.

"Into the vacuum of our lack of fulfilment have stepped the Chinese, who do not care about the values of democracy, transparency and accountability, and said 'We'll give you the money so long as we have influence over your resources and your politics'," he told the BBC.