SECRETARY-GENERAL BRINGS 'MESSAGE OF HOPE' IN ADDRESS TO TOKYO CONFERENCE ON AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT

Press Release
SG/SM/6761
AFR/107

SECRETARY-GENERAL BRINGS 'MESSAGE OF HOPE' IN ADDRESS TO TOKYO CONFERENCE ON AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT

Following is the text of Secretary-General Kofi Annan's address to the Second Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD II), delivered in Tokyo, on 21 October:

It is an honour and a pleasure to join you for this event. I would like to thank the Government of Japan for convening this Second Tokyo International Conference on African Development. At this critical moment in world affairs -- a moment of both promise and peril -- Africa's needs are in jeopardy of being overshadowed. But, we have here in Tokyo a unique opportunity to mobilize energy and resources behind the cause of African development. It is perhaps the greatest development challenge facing the world today.

Since taking office, I have placed peace and development in Africa high among my priorities. I have tried, without minimizing the many challenges faced by Africa, to draw the world's attention to the good news: the bold efforts by many African countries to break with destructive patterns of the past; the significant economic reforms that are creating a more hopeful climate for growth and investment; the political transitions that are enabling more and more Africans to participate in the decisions that affect their lives.

I have sought to enlist the resources and expertise of the private sector to support these positive changes, which have entailed considerable hardship and sacrifice on the part of the average African man and woman. And I have tried to deepen the already close relationship between Africa and the United Nations. Indeed, the "quiet revolution" of reform and transformation at the United Nations should be judged in no small part on how well it enables the Organization to respond to the needs of the poorest in Africa and elsewhere.

Six months ago, I submitted a report to the Security Council on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa. The report stresses the need for an approach linking

peace, security, development, democratic governance, environmental protection and respect for human rights and the rule of law -- an approach representing, in short, a broad view of human security. It was my hope that it would contribute to progress in Africa by candidly analysing the causes of conflict and by putting forward a set of realistic and achievable recommendations for the future.

Since then, the Security Council has been working actively on the implementation of my recommendations. Earlier this month, I submitted the same report to the General Assembly and there, too, I have been greatly encouraged by the positive response. Many countries have not only expressed their solidarity with Africa, they have also indicated how they intend to translate it into action.

Now we have reached TICAD II, another major step along the road to African recovery and well-being. TICAD I, held five years ago, was instrumental in reaffirming a commitment to African development at a time when attention to sub-Saharan Africa was declining. TICAD II will build on that commitment. World leaders and organizations from around the world have come to Tokyo to exchange experiences, enhance partnerships and renew their resolve to meet the remaining challenges of African development. So where do we go from here?

The peace and security situation on the continent remains ambivalent. Despite the gains that have been made in some regions, in other regions progress continues to be blocked or impeded. I have been particularly troubled to see conflicts and violence based on regional or ethnic identities and a lack of respect for humanitarian and human rights norms, particularly regarding the rights of women.

We see the proliferation of small arms and persistently high military spending, at the expense of basic needs. States are interfering in political, military and security problems beyond their borders. There is also the spillover effect, with conflict in one country jeopardizing or undermining progress achieved in neighbouring, peaceful States.

On the positive side, there is a growing determination by Africans, working through the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and subregional organizations, to take responsibility for finding solutions to Africa's problems. They recognize that only an Africa free of conflict can hope to find stability and peace and, I repeat, that chronically insecure neighbourhoods are not the ones that attract investment.

Africa's development performance is similarly mixed. A number of countries have achieved high growth rates that would be remarkable for any

- 3 - Press Release SG/SM/6761 AFR/107 21 October 1998

region. But, such gains are often fragile. Key factors such as commodity prices are subject to considerable fluctuations and outside influence, as we have seen in recent months of economic and financial turmoil and contagion. And perennial social problems such as malnutrition, hunger, disease and lack of shelter are still widespread.

The overarching challenge remains: poverty reduction and the integration of Africa into the global economy. Indeed, that is the main theme of this Conference. This is an enormous task, encompassing a full slate of urgent issues, for which we must summon all our capacities and all our will. But, we should not be daunted and we must start somewhere. On the economic front, I have recommended immediate action in five main areas.

First, is official development assistance. ODA has declined significantly, because of budget constraints in donor countries, but also in the mistaken belief that private capital flows have rendered ODA obsolete. In fact, ODA remains a crucial factor in support of Africa's own efforts to build the social and institutional tools it requires to see to its peoples' needs and to compete in the global economy. The quality of ODA is just as important as the amount. We must restructure aid so that it targets high-impact areas, such as water, education and health.

Second is Africa's massive and unsustainable external debt. At some $323 billion in 1996, it represented more than 200 per cent of exports and its servicing absorbed more than 16 per cent of export earnings. This is a major obstacle to growth, enough to deter investment, threaten the sustainability of reforms, disrupt the smooth functioning of the State and call into question the very credibility of African economies. I have urged that all remaining official bilateral debt owned by the poorest African countries be converted to grants.

Third, I have also recommended that financial institutions significantly increase access to the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative for a larger number of African countries. So far, only a handful of African countries have benefited.

Fourth, conditions of access for African exports to developed-country markets should be eased. While multilateral trade negotiations have resulted in more open markets, African exports still face high tariffs in many sectors.

The fifth priority is greater investment. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has just reported that some African countries are attracting impressive levels of foreign direct investment (FDI) and that the sources of FDI are becoming more diversified.

- 4 - Press Release SG/SM/6761 AFR/107 21 October 1998

Even more encouraging, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has also reported that FDI in Africa is very profitable. In 1991, the average rate of return for United States investments in Africa was 31 per cent, compared with 12 per cent in Latin America, 13 per cent in the Asia- Pacific region and 17 per cent in the Middle East.

This Conference is designed to build on these trends and these possibilities. The Agenda for Action to be adopted addresses all the main issues, including those raised in my report. African countries recognize their primary and fundamental responsibility to create the necessary environment in which their people can lead peaceful, stable lives free from fear or want.

The international community, for its part, recognizes its obligations and is paying increased attention to Africa's prospects. In the past year alone, we have seen two ministerial meetings of the Security Council devoted solely to Africa and intensified efforts by the United Nations system to implement the New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s through the System-wide Special Initiative on Africa.

So this is an opportune time for Africa and its main development partners, including the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and Asian countries, as well as international and regional financial institutions, the United Nations system and non-governmental organizations, to exchange views on how to move forward.

It is being said that talk of an African renaissance is unrealistic or premature. Some point to new and resurgent conflicts as evidence. I say there is nothing inevitable about conflict, wherever it erupts. Rather, conflicts are made -- and can be unmade -- by the force of human will.

Others suggest that poverty in Africa has shown itself to be impervious to lengthy, costly aid programmes. I say we can certainly improve on past performance. But, let us not forget the dramatic gains that have already been achieved, in life-expectancy, literacy, the fight against disease and other indicators of well-being.

Negative or cautious views are not without merit, but they are far from the full story. Today, I bring to you a message of hope; hope that we can put to rest inaccurate portrayals and perceptions of Africa, hope that we can consolidate the gains achieved so far, hope that Africa will at long last realize its great potential. Here, in Tokyo, among the people in this room, we have the makings of a new and powerful alliance for Africa. Let us make it work.

* *** *