World leaders to take stock of Africa's development

from AFP via Google

UNITED NATIONS — World leaders meet here Monday to assess Africa's development at a time when the resource-rich continent, reeling from high energy and food prices, lags behind the rest of the world in meeting poverty-reduction goals.

Representatives of more than 160 countries, among them French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, and UN chief Ban Ki-moon are to attend the high-level gathering.

The meeting, which kicks off at 9:00 am (1300 GMT), comes a day before the 192-member UN General Assembly is to open its annual general debate.

Last week, Cheick Sidi Diarra, Ban Ki-moon's special adviser on Africa, said Monday's meeting would serve to help streamline actions and upgrade priorities toward implementing the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).

NEPAD, launched in 2001 with international backing, is an ambitious blueprint for good governance that aims to help boost Africa's economic performance.

Diarra, however, warned that Africa's economic development still faced huge hurdles, including festering conflicts, internal public mismanagement and in some cases a lack of international support.

He stressed the need for "resolution and leadership ... to turn existing African and international commitments into results" and urged the world community to show greater support.

In a report unveiled September 11, Ban warned that poverty reduction goals agreed by world leaders eight years ago might not be met by the 2015 target date, particularly in Africa.

His Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Report 2008 was released ahead of another high-level meeting specifically on the MDGs, scheduled for Thursday, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session.

It noted improved data from the World Bank confirming that between 1990 and 2005, the number of people living in extreme poverty dropped from 1.8 to 1.4 billion and that the 1990 global poverty rate was likely to be halved by 2015.

But it highlighted the fact that many countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, were lagging in the race to achieve their development goals.

Ban also lamented a shortfall of 10 billion dollars (seven billion euros) in donors' commitments.

Total net aid from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries came to only 0.28 percent of their combined Gross National Income, as opposed to the UN target of 0.7 percent, he noted.

But the recent meltdown of the global financial industry that led to a proposed 700-billion-dollar US government bailout is likely to make donors even less willing to offer more help.

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