Fifty-eighth General Assembly

Plenary

32^nd & 33^rd Meetings (AM & PM)

INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT CRUCIAL FOR AFRICAN-LED DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE TO SUCCEED,

SPEAKERS TELL GENERAL ASSEMBLY

As the General Assembly today began its initial review of progress in implementing a new plan to spur development in Africa, delegations reaffirmed the continent's determination to emerge from poverty and despair, but stressed that international support was required for the homegrown initiative to succeed.

One year ago, the Assembly adopted a Declaration unanimously supporting the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) –- an African-owned initiative established in 2001 by the then Organization of African Unity, now known as the African Union, as the primary framework for addressing the aspirations of the continent, linking the issue of peace and security with governance and development.  The Plan succeeded the decade-old New Agenda for the Development of Africa (UN-NADAF), which was phased out last year. 

Today, Leonardo Santos Simão, Mozambique’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, and Chairman of the Executive Council of the African Union, told the Assembly that the African peoples, firmly engaged in making theirs a continent of hope, were striving to achieve peace, democracy, stability and socio-economic development.  Towards that end, the Union had established three institutions -- the Peace and Security Council, the Pan-African Parliament and the Economic, Social and Cultural Council.

Efforts to implement NEPAD had met with an overall balance of success in the area of conflict resolution, he continued.  Yet, despite ongoing African-led initiatives for conflict prevention, management and resolution, the continued support of the international community and the United Nations was critical.  He urged Africa’s development partners to live up to their commitments and assist NEPAD in action.

Saidu Balarabe Samaila, Nigeria’s Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, said that conflict had intensified, rather than diminished, on the African continent in the past year.  His country, along with other members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had responded robustly to crises in its subregion.  In doing so, they had proved in word and deed the determination of African countries to confront the issue of conflict head-on.  While the newly established Peace and Security Council should, hopefully, enable African governments to mediate and resolve conflicts, it should not become an excuse for the international community to shrink from playing an active role in the search for peace in Africa.

He added that, while good governance, respect for human rights, rule of law, and accountability were fundamental in nurturing a culture of peace and development, poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and the ready availability of small arms had provided fuel for conflicts in Africa.  The international community’s inaction and unfulfilled commitments also bore directly on those conflicts.

Addressing the Assembly on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, Morocco’s representative was among the many speakers to emphasize that by framing its aims around the Millennium Development Goals, NEPAD challenged Africa’s development partners to deepen their commitment to global poverty reduction.  It also envisaged a new partnership between Africa and the international community.  

International support remained essential to the success of the Plan, he said, calling on developed countries to help Africa by respecting the commitments undertaken at various international summits and conferences, as well as by fulfilling their obligations to ensure official development assistance, resolve the foreign debt crisis, promote investment in Africa and assist the continent in achieving the Millennium Goals.

The representative of the United Kingdom picked up that thread, describing Africa’s current situation as dramatic.  If things did not improve, 23 African countries would fail to achieve the Millennium Goals.  Democracy was gradually taking hold, but the number of poor people continued to increase, as were maternal and child mortality, and 75 per cent of the world’s HIV/AIDS sufferers lived in sub-Saharan Africa.  In January 2000, more than half of African countries were affected by conflict, while poor governance, deteriorating trade schemes and low investment were widespread.

But the news was not all bad, he continued, declaring NEPAD “the most promising African-led development initiative in a generation”.  But while African countries knew that the primary responsibility rested with them, he called on developed countries to increase their development assistance for Africa’s development. 

Over the course of the debate, delegations also hailed the establishment in July of the African Peer Review Mechanism, which was fundamental to the implementation of the NEPAD priorities of political, economic and corporate governance. They also welcomed the establishment of the Office of the Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser for Africa, and looked forward to working with Ibrahim Gambari, of Nigeria. 

Statements were also made today by the representatives of Italy (on behalf of the European Union and associated States), Norway, Egypt, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Russian Federation, France, United States, South Africa, Japan, Iran, Guyana, Angola, Cuba, India, Ukraine, Brazil, Republic of Korea, Myanmar, Israel, Lesotho, Botswana, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, Libya, Tunisia, Jamaica and Gabon.

The Assembly will meet again tomorrow, 16 October, at 10 a.m. to conclude its consideration of progress towards implementing NEPAD, as well as conclude its debate on matters related to Security Council reform.  It is also expected to take up matters related to scale of assessments for the apportionment of expenses of the United Nations, as well as the report of the Economic and Social Council.

Background

The General Assembly met today to discuss progress in implementation of and international support for the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), as well as causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa.

Before the Assembly is the Secretary-General’s report on NEPAD (document A/58/254), which highlights the actions taken by African countries in the implementation of the Partnership, as well as support by the international community, including the United Nations system and the response of the private sector and the civil society.  Africa’s ownership and leadership of the Partnership represent an important and welcome reassertion of the principle of responsibility for its development.

The report notes that the international community’s support is an important expression of international solidarity and partnership.  Together, the principles of responsibility, solidarity and partnership are a formula for success.  Even so, African countries and the international community must persevere and work together to build on the incipient momentum for NEPAD and to deliver on its promise.

Much remains to be done, concludes the report, to move forward with the implementation of the New Partnership.  Bold actions are required by all stakeholders to address the various challenges and constraints that have been identified, which include poor policy environments in African countries and limited use of public-private partnerships for addressing NEPAD priorities.

Among other things, the report suggests that African countries will need to take the necessary measures to integrate NEPAD priorities into their development progress.  The action required includes ensuring adequate funding for NEPAD policy priorities, developing sound programmes around designated priorities and creating effective political and public support for them.  In addition, it is essential that Africa’s development partners strive to achieve coherence and complementarity in their trade and aid policies.  Steps should also be taken to disburse already pledged resources.

Further, the report continues, the private sector and civil society should be encouraged to adopt a proactive orientation towards NEPAD.  At the same time, governments are urged to facilitate the involvement and active participation of the private sector and civil society entities in the implementation of the New Partnership.

Also before the Assembly is a note by the Secretary-General on proposed revisions to the medium-term plan for the period 2002-2005 (document A/58/83).  The Assembly, in November 2002, decided to bring the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s to a close and endorsed the recommendation of the Secretary-General that the New Partnership for Africa’s Development should be the framework within which the international community, including the United Nations system, should concentrate its efforts for Africa’s development.

In doing so, the Assembly underscored the need for a structure in the Secretariat in New York, at an appropriate level, that would review and report on support provided by the United Nations system and the international community for the New Partnership and on the coordinated implementation of outcomes of summit meetings and conferences relating to Africa, as well as coordinate global advocacy in support of the New Partnership.  In that context, the Assembly requested the Secretary-General to make proposals on the organization of such a structure within the framework of his proposals for the programme budget for the biennium 2004-2005.

Pursuant to those requests, the revisions to programme 8 of the medium-term plan are set out in the annex to the present document.  The revised programme, entitled “United Nations support for the New Partnership for Africa’s Development”, constitutes the framework for an integrated and coordinated response by the United Nations in support of the New Partnership. 

The revised programme will continue to include the following subprogrammes:  Coordination of global advocacy of and support for NEPAD, under the responsibility of the new Office of the Special Adviser on Africa; Regional coordination of and support for the New Partnership, under the responsibility of a special coordinating unit in the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA); and Public information and awareness activities in support of NEPAD, under the responsibility of the Africa Section in the Department of Public Information.

The Assembly also had before it the report of the Committee for Programme and Coordination (document A/58/16), in which the Committee welcomed the Secretary-General’s proposals regarding NEPAD, and recommended that the Assembly approve the revisions proposed to programme 8, with certain modifications, that are laid out in the report.

Lastly, the Assembly had for its consideration the report of the Secretary-General on the Implementation of the recommendations contained in the report of the Secretary-General on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa, (document A/58/352), which addresses specific follow-up actions and initiatives taken in the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Secretary-General’s 1998 report (document A/52/871).

The report also identifies the problems and obstacles in the effective implementation of the recommendations and makes proposals on the future format of the follow-up of the implementation of the recommendation in the Secretary-General’s 1998 report.  While progress was made in some areas, the report states that it was slow and uneven.  Therefore, concerted action by African countries and their development partners was needed to speed up the implementation of the recommendations.

Regarding arms proliferation, African countries are encouraged to be more transparent in providing information on arms and ammunition and to participate in the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms.  It is also proposed that the international community recognize the efforts of the African countries that are stopping or controlling the proliferation of illegal weapons and provide them with additional support.

In the area of social development, the report states that increased and sustained aid to African countries well above the existing levels, accompanied by appropriate policies conducive to growth, including the necessity for enhancing institutional capacities, would be needed to enable African countries to accelerate their current efforts at poverty reduction to achieve the Millennium Development Goal of halving poverty by 2015.  The report also identifies the need to invest in human resources and stresses that African countries need to make substantial investment in their education, health and related social services to address these challenges, including achieving and eliminating gender disparity in primary and secondary education by 2015.  Thus, the international community is encouraged to step up its support to boost African efforts.

In addition, donor countries are urged to increase their efforts to meet the United Nations official development assistance (ODA) target of 0.7 per cent of gross national product (GNP) to developing countries and to support African efforts in the consolidation of peace and sustainable development.  Additionally, in light of the slow speed of implementation of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, a simplification of the procedures and a further review of the content of conditionality need to be considered.

The report stresses the urgent need for African countries to be successfully integrated into the global trade arrangements, as trade can be an engine for economic growth and crucial for addressing the challenge of poverty reduction.  The industrialized countries need to take more vigorous measures to lower their trade barriers against exports from developing countries.  However, progress in reducing trade barriers and opening the markets of developed countries needs to be accompanied by improved domestic policies and enhanced capacity that help countries to take advantage of their trade opportunities.  African countries will also need to strengthen their trade negotiating capacity, improve infrastructure, diversify their export-base and make export-oriented industries more productive to tap into global markets.

Statements

LEONARDO SANTOS SIMÃO, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Mozambique, and Chairman of the Executive Council of the African Union, said that both NEPAD and the implementation of the recommendations of the Secretary-General’s report on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace in Africa remained at the top of the African and international agendas.  The African peoples, firmly engaged in making theirs a continent of hope, were striving to achieve peace, stability and socio-economic development, and to build strong foundations for democracy, good governance and better living conditions.

The New Partnership, the African-led initiative and comprehensive development strategy, was the key to the operationalization of the vision for a better Africa, he added.  Its two-fold strategy aimed to ensure that conflict in Africa became a thing of the past, and to embark the continent on the course of sustainable development.  The successful implementation of NEPAD would allow Africa to cease to be a burden and a permanent source of concern for the international community.  Furthermore, as one of NEPAD’s main pillars was the achievement and maintenance of peace, stability and security, three fundamental institutions had been established by the African Union, including the Peace and Security Council, the Pan-African Parliament and the Economic, Social and Cultural Council.

The Short-Term Action Plan, focused on priority projects in areas such as energy, transport, water and sanitation, information and technology and health and education, represented an important step forward, he continued.  Progress was also being made on the Medium- to Long-term Infrastructure Action Plan, and a comprehensive African Agricultural Development Plan was being developed in conjunction with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Since the signing of the Constitutive Act of the African Union two years ago, he said the focus had been the creation of an institutional framework to oversee NEPAD’s implementation at the regional level, to integrate its priorities into national development programmes and to bring coherence on NEPAD matters within individual governments.  The Peer Review Mechanism had begun to take shape; its operational structure had been established.  Soon, the evaluation of the first two countries that had volunteered for review would be available.

Efforts to implement NEPAD had met with an overall balance of success in the area of conflict resolution, he concluded.  Yet, despite the ownership and leadership of NEPAD and ongoing African initiatives for conflict prevention, management and resolution, the role of the international community would be critical.  The United Nations should continue to concentrate its efforts in support of NEPAD, and the continent’s development partners should live up to their commitments and assist NEPAD in action.

MARCELLO SPATAFORA (Italy), speaking on behalf of the European Union and associated States, said the Union had supported the NEPAD initiative from the beginning, sharing its basic vision of a partnership between the more developed countries and the African countries, with the latter taking primary responsibility in establishing the conditions for sustainable economic and social development and attracting private investment.  The NEPAD also rightly enhanced the private sector’s role in Africa as a means to help fully integrate the continent into the process of economic globalization.  Applauding the progress already made in implementing NEPAD, particularly with regard to the establishment of the African Peer Review Mechanism, he encouraged further efforts to integrate NEPAD goals and priorities into national, subregional and continental development plans, to foster cooperation with regional economic communities and to generate popular support for NEPAD.

African resolve, he added, must be matched by the commitment of more developed countries to support the continent.  The European Union had already committed to bring official development assistance (ODA) to 0.39 per cent of gross national index (GNI) by 2006, as a first significant step toward the United Nations goal of 0.7 per cent, among other contributions.  Recognizing the importance of cotton for the development of a number of African countries and the need for urgent action to address trade distortion in that area, the Union had proposed a constructive solution to address the trade aspects linked to depressed cotton prices in the world market.  It also remained convinced that growing liberalization of world trade, together with development cooperation activities, could play a crucial role in attaining the Millennium Development Goals.  In that regard, negotiations within the framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO) should be resumed as soon as possible.

Moreover, as today’s meeting was also devoted to the promotion of lasting peace in Africa, which also constituted the first goal of NEPAD, he reaffirmed that the Union’s contribution to conflict prevention and management would be made through strengthening African capacities.  There had been several important developments in that regard.  Among them, the protocol for an African Peace and Security Mechanism had been endorsed by the African Union at its Durban Summit in 2002.  That provided for an African stand-by force, whose creation would deter conflicts on the continent and supplement strong and effective cooperation between the United Nations, the European Union and the African Union.  The European Union had much to offer Africa in terms of capacity building for conflict prevention, management and resolution.

JOHAN LOVALD (Norway) said that fighting poverty and promoting development was the soundest investment that could be made in Africa.  The New Partnership was a significant step towards economic and social development and political stability for the continent.  Norway had joined the rest of the international community in a commitment to the Millennium Development Goals, a roadmap for halving poverty by 2015.  To reach the Goals, the international community must improve the international framework for trade, investment and debt; poor countries must focus on good governance and accountability; ODA must be increased; and the private sector and civil society must become active partners in poverty alleviation.

Without peace and stability, the fight against poverty would fail, he stated.  The Secretary-General had rightly put emphasis on the responsibility of African countries themselves for development in Africa.  Regional and subregional organizations and civil society needed to be involved in all stages of conflict resolution and in enhancing African capacity with regard to peacekeeping operations.  The primary role of the international community should be to strengthen and support efforts and initiatives within the African countries themselves.

Norway, together with Italy, the United States and the United Kingdom had supported and participated in the Sudan peace talks, he said.  On 25 September, the parties signed an agreement on the principles for resolving the sensitive issue of security arrangements for a peace agreement, hopefully paving the way for the signing of a full peace agreement this autumn.  But Sudanese society would need to see the concrete results of a peace agreement, which would underline the fact that “peace pays”.  Norway, as co-chair of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development Partner Forum, would host a donor conference as soon as there was a peace agreement.

AHMED ABOUL GHEIT (Egypt) underscored the need to unify and coordinate the work of United Nations agencies and other international organizations toward full implementation of NEPAD and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.  The New Partnership was a framework for development, responsibility and support for Africa and an expression of the joint resolve of all African nations to eradicate the causes of conflict and economic marginalization.  It would also lay the foundation for respect for the decisions taken by the people of the continent to ensure their own development.

Efforts to coordinate the work of the wider international community with African nations was also necessary to help identify relevant priorities for action, such as curbing trafficking in small arms, enhancing cooperation with peacekeeping operations, and establishing strategies to assist refugees and displaced persons.  He stressed that conflicts in Africa should not be tackled solely from the standpoint of achieving a ceasefire.  The real challenge was managing post-conflict situations.  That required agreement on and elaboration of a host of initiatives covering political, social, economic and administrative development. 

He went on to suggest that it was also necessary to strengthen coordination with the United Nations and international financial institutions to help define the role of all parties at each stage of post-conflict management.  That would avoid overlapping initiatives and allow those considered least effective to be cancelled out.  All should work to develop channels of coordination and interaction on a daily basis with intergovernmental and national institutions so as to ensure dovetailing activities.

ABDALLAH BAALI (Algeria) recalled that, without peace, there could be no real development.  Despite the progress in conflict resolution in Africa of recent years, the persistence of conflicts continued to affect a number of countries and regions.  Thus, among other initiatives, the Economic and Social Council’s creation of Ad Hoc Working Groups for Guinea-Bissau and Burundi was lauded, especially with regard to their roles in coordinating the support of the international community and United Nations system to ensure the transition from post-conflict to reconstruction.  The political will and determination to achieve the durable settlement of the multitude of conflicts ravaging the continent depended, however, on two factors.  First, resources must not be diverted from development efforts.  Secondly, in its support and encouragement for African activities, the international community should not abandon its own efforts for conflict resolution on the continent.

One year ago, he recalled, the Assembly had adopted two important resolutions on Africa.  The first had welcomed NEPAD, and the second had terminated UN-NADAF.  Now, on the first occasion for assessing progress in the implementation of NEPAD, it was encouraging to see that African countries were resolutely committed to attaining the goals set, and to see they had made some progress.  Although Africa had made progress in areas related to governance, peace and security, national coordination, agriculture, health, education, the environment and tourism, infrastructure and industrialization, the continent would need to expend additional efforts to reinforce its resolve for implementation.  The partnership between NEPAD and the Group of Eight was welcomed, as were bilateral and multilateral initiatives in support of Africa.  The United Nations system was also called on to play a significant role in supporting African efforts, including with respect to operational activities.

JEAN-BAPTISTE NATAMA (Burkina Faso) said that even though NEPAD, only a few months ago, seemed to be at a crossroads due to the war in Iraq and uncertainties over good governance issues on the continent as a whole, recent declarations in Maputo by African heads of State had marked an important milestone in ushering in a new start for Africa.  The spontaneous and voluntary adherence in Maputo of 15 nations to the African Union’s Peer Review Mechanism had highlighted that.  The positive reviews the Mechanism had received, due to its impact on institutional capacity building, was proof of its significance. 

Without a doubt, he said, Africa needed to put an end to the wars ravaging the continent, and NEPAD was a vital instrument in that regard.  He commended the Economic and Social Council’s work in Guinea Bissau and Burundi, and urged that its engagement in the two countries continue to ensure lasting peace and development there.  He expected similar progress soon in Liberia and Côte d’Ivoire.  In the spirit of the New Partnership, he noted that Africans establishing their own sources of finance would be welcomed by both them and their partners.  He called for the mobilization of Africa’s partners, and the consistent cooperation of the international community to develop the markets of the North without ideological considerations and the application of subsidies, in keeping with World Trade Organization rules.  He also called for debate in every African State to ensure that the New Partnership for Africa’s Development was understood by all.

YURIY N. ISAKOV (Russian Federation) said Africa’s development had been slowed by the illegal activities of armed groups, mercenary activities, the use of child soldiers, human rights violations and other activities undermining the foundations of sovereign States.  Only by joint efforts could those illegal forces be countered.  He supported United Nations efforts to strengthen peacekeeping capacities throughout the continent.  The progress achieved by United Nations operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Liberia and other areas of crises demonstrated the interrelationship between peace and stability and meaningful social and economic reconstruction of countries in conflict.  Recent developments in the Central African Republic and Guinea-Bissau had shown the seriousness of the problems confronted by African countries.

Development in Africa rested on the strengthening of statehood, and the development of democracy and good economic governance, among other things, he stated.  However, responsibility for its future lay with the Africans themselves.  He commended the recent adoption of the “Principles of good neighbourliness and cooperation” by a number of Southern African States, and convinced that such an example of multilateral cooperation could be replicated in other parts of the continent.  The NEPAD was critical to helping Africa get back on the track to sustainable development.  Russia’s assistance to Africa included alleviating the debt burden and providing preferential trade arrangements.  In addition, his country provided assistance in the areas of public health and personnel training, as well as humanitarian disaster relief assistance.

JEAN-MARC DE LA SABLIERE (France) said his country would work together with the European Union and African nations towards ensuring peace and security, fighting disease and poverty, and providing access to education.  The priorities for Africa’s development identified in NEPAD closely mirrored those mapped out in the Millennium Declaration and the outcomes of other international meetings and summits.  He welcomed the support given to NEPAD at the recent Maputo African Union Summit, particularly the focus on agriculture, health and the environment.  All were aware that much remained to be done, and now was the time for implementation.  Subregional organizations could play an important role in that regard.  He added that it was necessary for the international community to mobilize efforts to bring an end to conflict on the continent because peace and stability were crucial to ensuring sustainable development.

He went on to highlight the efforts of France, the European Union and the Group of Eight industrialized countries to help Africa meet defined priorities in areas such as fighting disease, providing access to water and sanitation, and combating hunger.  Food security was a matter of global concern, which required the development of long-term solutions, he added.  The European Union and others were also working to enhance the trading positions of African countries, and were committed to the rehabilitation of infrastructure.

On trade, he said that when the WTO resumes negotiations following the collapse of the Cancun round last month, they should pay heightened attention to the specific needs of African countries.  France and the European Union, meanwhile, would continue to press for market access and stable commodity prices for African countries.  He added that France was preparing to host the “New Forum for Partnership with Africa” to monitor support on all NEPAD issues.  The United Nations should also play a key role in helping African countries achieve the NEPAD objectives.  

JOHN D. NEGROPONTE (United States) said his country had strongly supported the objectives of NEPAD since its inception.  The Partnership was a dramatic commitment by African leaders to end conflict and hasten progress, by taking concrete actions to promote peace and stability, to consolidate democracy and to provide sound economic management and people-centred development.  He reaffirmed his country’s deep and continuing commitment to initiatives such as those taken in Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, Burundi and elsewhere in pursuit of peace and security, which were essential for the continent’s strong and sustainable economic growth and development.  The United States was training peacekeepers, performing military education seminars at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, and working with African mediators and subregional organizations to enhance their conflict resolution capabilities.

The United States was also working to expand trade, opportunity and enterprise for the African people, he added.  Already the world’s largest investor in Africa’s economies, his country realized that enormous opportunities remained open.  New trade and investment linkages would benefit not only Africa’s trade with the United States, but also economic ties within Africa itself and between Africa and the rest of the world.  The continent had suffered from its relative isolation from the global economy for too long.  Ways to overcome the failure of the Cancun Trade Round must be found in order to forge a consensus on how to further open the world’s markets and take advantage of the promise of market-led, poverty-reducing growth.

Complementing United States trade policies, he continued, the President’s Millennium Challenge Account would make substantially increased resources available to help developing countries that demonstrated a strong commitment to liberty and prosperity for their people.  That drew on an essential lesson of development:  “Countries prosper when their governments function justly, effectively and transparently”.  His country’s commitment to Africa also included the $15 billion Emergency Plan for AIDS relief, a total of $600 million over five years for the African Education Initiative, and $850 million in emergency assistance to help Africa address its food crises.

DUMISANI KUMALO (South Africa) said that the New Partnership had completed many continent-wide programmes and strategies.  Among them were the comprehensive plans for African agricultural development, health programmes and a multisectoral AIDS strategy, a NEPAD educational programme, a tourism strategy, and programmes for industrialization and infrastructure development.  More importantly, Africa had moved beyond the completion of the strategies and programmes to implementation.  At the subregional level, a number of projects had been started, including the electricity link between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia, the oil pipeline that ran through a number of West African countries, the New Rice for Africa initiative, the printing of school textbooks and school feeding programmes.

He said the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), which was supposed to help promote good governance on the continent, had now been established.  While it was quite a novel and courageous process to be undertaken by any group of countries, Africa was convinced of the mechanism’s contribution to promoting good governance on the continent.  It was encouraging that more than 16 countries had already signed up to it.  However, contrary to the Secretary-General’s report, the mechanism was not meant to be a “means of attracting support from developing partners”.  Rather it was Africa’s own effort of seeking good governance for itself, and not a means to appeal to the international community.  He was appreciative of the growing efforts of the United Nations system to mainstream NEPAD into their priorities and programmes.  He described as “most heartening” the close cooperation between the NEPAD secretariat, African regional and subregional organizations, individual governments and the United Nations system.

EMYR JONES PARRY (United Kingdom) described Africa’s current situation as dramatic, saying that if the continent’s situation did not improve, 23 countries would fail to achieve the Millennium Goals.  Democracy was gradually taking hold on the continent, but the number of poor people continued to increase, maternal and child mortality were increasing and 75 per cent of the world’s HIV/AIDS sufferers lived in sub-Saharan Africa.  The problems were complex and interconnected.  He stressed the damage wrought on the people of the continent by continuing conflict –- in January 2000, more than half of African countries were affected, poor governance, deteriorating trade schemes and low investment, as well as the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

But the news was not all bad, he said, declaring NEPAD “the most promising African-led development initiative in a generation”.  That Plan aimed to tackle HIV/AIDS, reduce poverty and sustain long-term economic growth.  It was backed by a commitment to improve governance, build peacekeeping capacity and create the right environment for development.  The Peer Review Mechanism, to begin this year in Ghana, was an important tool to ensure the Plan was broadly implemented.

African countries knew that the primary responsibility rested with them, he added, stressing that the international response to the continent’s challenges must be implemented in partnership with African governments.  While the Group of Eight had responded two years ago by agreeing to a series of commitments under its “Africa Action Plan,” there was much more the international community could do.  There needed to be more and better development assistance, he said, calling on all States to increase the finances available for Africa’s development.  Also, with Africa’s share of world trade at a mere 1 per cent, it was clear that trade rules must be improved to benefit the least developed countries (LDCs).  Developed countries must also support Africa’s efforts to resolve armed conflicts and to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS. 

MASASHI MIZUKAMI (Japan) said his country had been promoting the principles of Africa’s ownership and international partnership for African development through the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) process since 1993.  Two weeks ago, Japan renewed its commitment to supporting NEPAD by hosting TICAD III.  At that conference, Prime Minister Koizumi had announced the three pillars that comprised Japan’s initiative for assistance for NEPAD’s implementation.  Regarding the first pillar, “human-centred development”, the Prime Minister announced that, over the next five years, Japan aimed to extend grant assistance to Africa totalling $1 billion in areas such as health, education, food and HIV/AIDS.

The second pillar, he continued, was “poverty reduction through economic growth”.  Without economic growth, poverty could not be reduced in a sustainable manner.  Japan had placed particular emphasis on cooperation to improve agricultural productivity since agriculture was the backbone of African economies.  The third pillar was “consolidation of peace”.  While the progress made in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone, for example, was encouraging, the prevalence of unresolved conflicts in Africa was of grave concern.  Emergency measures alone taken in light of such conflicts would not make for lasting peace in Africa unless accompanied by post-conflict peace-building, domestic security and humanitarian and reconstruction assistance.  Therefore, the international community must encourage and support the efforts of African countries in those areas.

NASROLLAH KAZEMI-KAMYAB (Iran) said the realities faced by many Africans had called for comprehensive policy and action.  Reiterating his nation’s full solidarity with African countries, he said Iran had been able to contribute to a large number of projects and reconstruction efforts there.  Cooperation between Iran and African countries, both in the bilateral field and the international scene, was on the rise.  However, possibly due to time-consuming bottlenecks and a lack of necessary infrastructure, economic ties had not been progressing on equal footing with political relations.

Iran had allocated a $200 million line of credit for Africa, he stated, adding that the credit ceiling would be decided on the basis of a mutual banking agreement and proportionate to the level of trade and commercial ties between the related country and Iran.  The African “renaissance” could only be initiated in all earnestness by Africans themselves.  He called on the United Nations to integrate its various plans, programmes and initiatives into one policy framework, comprising of political, economic and social components. 

GEORGE TALBOT (Guyana) said NEPAD not only constituted a positive agenda for action by and among African countries themselves, but one to be embraced by the entire international community.  He was heartened by the demonstrated commitment to integrate the Partnership’s priorities into national policies and development planning frameworks.  African ownership and leadership of NEPAD was indispensable to the achievement of its objectives.  The establishment of the African Peer Review Mechanism was thus welcomed, as were the African Union’s efforts to consolidate democracy and strengthen regional mechanisms for conflict prevention, resolution and management on the continent.  He also looked forward to the entry into force of the protocols establishing the Pan-African Parliament and the Peace and Security Council of the African Union.  Efforts to reorient the activities of regional communities to reflect the priorities of NEPAD would continue to contribute to the meaningful operationalization of those priorities continent-wide.

Such positive developments had, however, been accompanied by a number of challenges Africa needed to face, with the support of the international community, he noted.  Those challenges pertained to areas such as agriculture and food security and health and education.  Moreover, the implementation of NEPAD had been constrained by shortcomings in the machinery of implementation itself, by weak institutional capacity at the national and regional levels, by insufficient popularization of the Partnership at the country level and by inadequacies in funding.  Overcoming those challenges would require renewed efforts by the international community to honour its commitments, to take concrete action with respect to the provision of ODA, debt relief, market access for African exports and assistance in attracting foreign direct investment.  South-South cooperation should also form an integral part of the international response.  Within the Caribbean Community, a number of cooperation initiatives had been undertaken with the countries and institutions of Africa.

ISMAEL ABRAÃO GASPAR MARTINS (Angola) recognized and commended the relentless work undertaken by the United Nations to assist Africa with NEPAD’s implementation.  He welcomed the establishment of the Office of the Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser for Africa, and hoped the office would be provided adequate financial and human resources.  He also commended United Nations agencies, particularly the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), for its collaboration and support.

Turning to challenges and constraints in implementing NEPAD, he stressed that Africa would face many difficulties as its nations struggled to meet the Millennium Goals.  The Secretary-General’s report noted, among other things, that total ODA to Africa was modest in comparison with the huge agricultural subsidies paid to farmers in the developed countries.  While Africa was known as a continent of vast beauty and deep history, it nevertheless continued to struggle with famine, poverty, debt, and the spread of HIV/AIDS.  In addition, ongoing armed conflicts had claimed the lives of millions.  Angola was doing its part to participate in regional and subregional programmes that would enhance the capacity of African countries to better respond to the challenges of NEPAD.

BRUNO RODRÍGUEZ PARRILLA (Cuba) said that current international economic relations, marked by the inequalities imposed by the neoliberal globalization process, had left Africa totally disadvantaged.  He wondered how it could be argued that the globalization process was inclusive and offered opportunities and benefits for all when Africa, with 18.5 per cent of the world’s population and holding the greatest global natural resource reserves, accounted for only

1 per cent of global GDP and 2 per cent of global trade.  Additionally, out of the 42 million infected with HIV/AIDS, 70 per cent lived in sub-Saharan Africa and had no access to medicine or the treatments needed to fight the virus.  What Africa needed was not more advice, but resources to solve its problems.

In that light, he said that African countries urgently needed special and differential treatment regarding trade, access to markets, stability in commodity prices, foreign debt cancellation, access to technology, and substantive increases in ODA without conditions.  Stating that Africa could no longer wait, he said international cooperation was unavoidable because Africans needed the support of the international community.  The resources African nations had were insufficient and had to be devoted to servicing their external debt rather than on education and health.  The small increase in ODA provided with many conditions, the debt relief or cancellation initiatives, promises of foreign investment, and the announcements of agricultural subsidy reductions, which boosted agricultural production and exports, were still insufficient when compared to the continent’s needs.  He highlighted Cuba’s assistance to African countries, even with its limited resources as a result of the severe economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on it for more than four decades.

MOHAMED BENNOUNA (Morocco), speaking on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, said NEPAD was a basic integrated platform for the development of the African continent.  Its implementation depended primarily on the political will of every African country to reflect its principles in their policies and national development strategies.  Success would depend on the ability of African governments to mobilize all national capacities and stakeholders toward the realization of the Plan’s goals and objectives.  The establishment of the Peer Review Mechanism to monitor implementation efforts was a significant step, which African countries had taken to help assess political and economic performance.  The Mechanism’s creation also reflected African countries’ determination to ensure their own development.  Four countries would kick off the Mechanism by year’s end.

Africa had intensified its efforts to consolidate democracy and strengthen regional mechanisms for conflict prevention, resolution and management, he said.  Similar efforts had been made for the establishment of a Pan-African Parliament and national focal points for NEPAD, as well as initiatives at the subregional level in various fields, including infrastructure, agriculture, health and education, among others.  Yet, the lack of financial resources was the main challenge to Africa’s effort to ensure broad implementation.  Indeed, the mobilization of national resources was insufficient to ensure adequate financing of economic and social development programmes.  International support remained essential to the success of the Plan.  Developed countries should help Africa by respecting the commitments undertaken at various international summits and conferences, as well as by fulfilling their obligations to ensure ODA, resolve the foreign debt crisis, promote investment in Africa and assist the continent in achieving the Millennium Goals.

He said that although ODA for Africa had increased slightly over the past two years, there had been little movement on the debt relief issue.  There had also been little progress on the international trade front.  Only reinforced, reliable and broad access to international markets would provide African countries with the resources to help finance their own development.  Developed countries, however, seemed to be far from meeting the commitments made to that end at the Monterrey International Conference on Financing for Development, the Millennium Summit and the 2001 World Trade Organization (WTO) development round.  Indeed, the failure of the Cancun trade round and the cotton scandal had revealed the inconsistency of developed countries’ positions on the essence of the multilateral trade system.

A.C. JOSE (India) believed that Africa understood its own problems, and the solutions to them, better than anyone else.  Therefore, its ownership and leadership of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development would be the main success factor.  Still, it was too early to assess what progress had been made in its implementation.  The NEPAD was based on the principles of responsibility, solidarity and partnership.  “Solidarity, this time, needs to be real.”  Another failure to show solidarity would be harmful for the credibility of the international community and injurious to the notion of partnership.  Cancun, which had been the first opportunity to show that solidarity, had, been a disappointment.

Official development assistance for Africa had shown some signs of progress, with an increase from $16.4 billion in 2000 to $18.6 billion in 2002, he stated.  That trend needed to be built upon.  India’s relationship with Africa was built on strong historical and political foundations, and his country had been exploring ways to provide support to NEPAD in the spirit of South-South cooperation.  As such, India’s Ministry of Commerce had launched a “Focus Africa” programme, to build on achievements in trade with sub-Saharan Africa, and had also cancelled all bilateral debt with HIPC countries.  Africa was the principal focus of India’s technical and economic cooperation programme with developing countries.

VALERIY KUCHYNSKY (Ukraine) said that, while it was the primary responsibility of the Africans themselves to translate their aspirations for revival into reality, the international community as a whole also shouldered considerable responsibility to assist Africa in that endeavour.  The fact that NEPAD’s agenda had been given high priority in the work of the United Nations, the Group of Eight and other similar important international forums testified to the determination of Africa’s partners to shoulder that responsibility.  The United Nations had the important role of coordinating global advocacy in support of the New Partnership, and that challenging mission necessitated strengthening collaboration, coordination and coherence among the various components of the Organization.  In that context, he viewed positively the establishment of the Office of the Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Africa, which served as the focal point for NEPAD in the United Nations system.

The success of NEPAD, he continued, depended to a large extent on the right propagation and mass education of Africans on its objectives.  That was why one priority of the United Nations should be NEPAD’s popularization, increasing its awareness at the local level and giving it “visibility”.  As a country with a long history of friendship and partnership with Africa, Ukraine pledged continued support for achieving sustainable development in the continent, and would closely follow the process of NEPAD’s implementation.  He reaffirmed Ukraine’s genuine interest in participating in bilateral and multilateral cooperation programmes for its specific sectoral priorities in such spheres as education, agriculture and transport.  He cautioned, however, that neither NEPAD’s objectives nor the Millennium Goals would be realized in the absence of a settlement of the continent’s unresolved conflicts. 

RONALDO MOTA SARDENBERG (Brazil) recalled that the international community had identified Africa as its main target for cooperation more than one decade ago, due to the magnitude of problems that affected it.  Conflict, poverty, hunger, illiteracy, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined had made the prospects for development in Africa even bleaker than in other regions of the world.  However, efforts undertaken during the 1990s had not led to the expected results.  An unfavourable international environment, in which protectionism had prevailed and commodity prices had fallen, had exacerbated Africa’s problems, as had the slackened flow of ODA and investment toward the continent.

The NEPAD, he continued, represented Africa’s collective determination to take up the challenge of designing its own development strategy.  The Secretary-General’s report showed that African countries had been doing their part.  Action had been taken in areas such as health, education, food security and infrastructure, while further measures such as the African Peer Review Mechanism had been developed.  The report also showed that international support had fallen far short, despite recent increases in ODA and progress on the HIPC Debt Initiative.  Coherent trade and aid policies, the disbursement of pledged resources and increased foreign investment in Africa were all needed.

The United Nations family had a very important role to play in supporting the New Partnership, he concluded.  But for its actions to have greater impact, increased collaboration and coordination among the Organization’s different institutions was desirable.  Despite its own limited resources, Brazil had also contributed to development efforts in Africa, including through debt cancellation and alleviation, technical cooperation and capacity building.  South-South cooperation was valuable, as similar realities and problems could benefit from similar solutions.

KIM SAM-HOON (Republic of Korea) said that international solidarity and partnership, while necessary and important, could be effective only to the extent that African countries took charge of their own development.  In that regard, he encouraged African countries to continue to mobilize domestic support and resources for NEPAD’s implementation.  Conflict and civil strife continued to be the foremost roadblock against African development.  Therefore, it was critical that security be elevated to the highest priority in African affairs, and that NEPAD’s economic programmes be bolstered by strong institutions for the prevention of conflict.  Good governance was another key to the successful implementation of NEPAD, and the establishment of the Peer Review Mechanism was a good way to put mutual accountability to work for good economic and political governance.  He encouraged more countries to join in that important initiative.  He also encouraged the international community to fulfil its commitment to NEPAD through continued and strengthened financial support and assistance in capacity building.  Throughout the past 15 years, his nation had contributed approximately $2 billion in ODA to developing countries under the framework of South-South cooperation.

Equally important was the need to develop human resources, and the international community should continue to share its experiences and expertise with African nations, he stated.  Cooperation was particularly important in the field of information and communications technologies (ICT), which had become vital to harnessing the benefits of globalization.  Since 1992, the Republic of Korea had invited some 1,200 foreign trainees in the field of ICT to participate in human resources development programmes.  In addition, 500 Korean ICT experts and volunteers had been sent to implement programmes overseas.  He called on the international community to make efforts to expand market access to African products.  His government had adopted a preferential scheme under which duty-free, quote-free market access was granted to a substantial number of African products.  Another crucial issue for NEPAD’s success was debt, which sapped energy from many developing nations.  It was important that significant efforts were made to solve the debt problems of the HIPC countries.

U AYE (Myanmar) said he was heartened by the Maputo Declaration, which reaffirmed African leaders’ political will and resolve to implement NEPAD.  He was also pleased with the progress made in the implementation of the African Peer Review Mechanism, aimed at increasing the transparency and accountability of African governments.  However, such commitments by the African leaders, commendable as they were, would not be sufficient to overcome the many difficulties facing the continent.  The majority of Africa’s population lived on inadequate incomes.  In addition, more than 24 million were suffering from the effects of HIV/AIDS and could ill-afford the expensive but essential drugs necessary to treat them.  The mortality rate among children stayed high, and primary school enrolment was below 60 per cent.  The economic climate in Africa was not very encouraging, as 2002 was characterized by a slowdown in economic growth.

In light of those developments, it was imperative that African countries redoubled their efforts and demonstrated that the continent remained a viable development partner in the world.  At the same time, the international community needed to respond appropriately by coming to Africa’s assistance.  In that context, it was significant that Japan had pledged $1 billion in new aid at the recent Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD).  It was also a positive development to see a rebound in ODA to Africa, increasing from

$17.7 billion in 2001 to $18.6 billion last year.  Also, the Group of Eight had provided three quarters of its ODA to the continent, and committed themselves to participate in the Africa Action Plan to provide $6 billion annually to African countries to spur growth and contribute to poverty alleviation.

Those developments, however encouraging, were still far from addressing the many and varied needs of Africa, he observed.  He called on developed countries to make additional resources available towards realizing the target of 0.7 per cent of their GDP as ODA to developing countries.  Further, he believed that South-South cooperation remained a key instrument to assist African development.

SAIDU BALARABE SAMAILA, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs of Nigeria, said that conflict had intensified, rather than diminished, on the African continent in the past year.  Yet, his country, in conjunction with other members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had responded robustly to crises in its subregion.  They had proved in word and deed the determination of African countries to confront the issue of conflict on the continent head-on.  The establishment of a Peace and Security Council by the African Union should, hopefully, enable African governments to mediate and resolve conflicts.  However, it should not become an excuse for the international community to shrink from playing an active role in the search for peace in Africa.

His country looked forward to the creation of the African Union’s stand-by force, he added, as it was much cheaper to contain conflict in its incipient stage than to reconstruct and rehabilitate its destructive consequences.  Peacemaking and peace-building measures must have an in-built early warning and response mechanism.  Yet, while good governance, respect for human rights, rule of law, accountability, transparency and the freedom to make choices were fundamental in nurturing a culture of peace and sustainable development, he noted that poverty, ignorance, illiteracy, unemployment and the ready availability of small arms and light weapons had provided fuel for conflicts in Africa.  The international community’s inaction and unfulfilled commitments also bore directly on those conflicts.

The objective of NEPAD was to lift Africa to a higher plane, he stated, although, by most accounts, the prospects for Africa’s economic recovery looked bleak.  Yet, despite daunting odds, there had been progress in implementing NEPAD.  For example, the empanelment of the Eminent Personalities to oversee the African Peer Review Mechanism was a step in the right direction.  It was hoped that the results of the peer review would allay any lingering doubts on the irreversibility of the African commitment to the New Partnership.

Welcoming the practical steps taken by the Group of Eight and the United Nations to support the implementation of the Partnership, he regretted the lack of resources that had left many projects on the drawing board.  To make the necessary resources available, developed countries must urgently address protracted questions of trade, market access, agricultural subsidies, ODA, foreign direct investment, external debt and capital flight.  In the resumed World Trade Organization talks of December 2003, the international community should respond more positively to Africa’s cry for a fair, equitable and rule-based international trading and financial system. 

MOSHE SERMONETA (Israel) noted with satisfaction the fact that this year the Assembly had considered the issues of NEPAD and the causes of conflict in Africa during a joint debate, thus reflecting a close link between peace and development.  He reiterated Israel’s strong support for the initiative adopted by the African Union to achieve its development goals.  The New Partnership was an outstanding example of how ownership and regional cooperation could be harnessed to pursue development and address challenges.  Balancing responsibility, solidarity and partnership, NEPAD could potentially improve the chances for progress and prosperity in the continent.  He commended the accession of 16 African countries to the African Peer Review Mechanism, which reflected a genuine desire to make good on the promises of NEPAD, and encouraged other nations to quickly join in the Mechanism as well.

He noted with appreciation the creation of national focal points for NEPAD in several African countries, the completion of the health programme and the recent endorsement of the environmental programme.  It was, however, important to see a speedy implementation of NEPAD’s education programme.  Israel had always considered its relations with Africa to be of the highest priority, and had, from the late 1950s, sought to build development partnerships with the newly independent States of sub-Saharan Africa.  It would continue to aid Africa by sharing its expertise in areas such as food security, the empowerment of women, education and health.  In addition to bilateral aid and training programmes, Israel had also supported international initiatives such as the World Bank’s International Development Association programmes and the HIPC Debt Initiative by forgiving the debt of a number of African nations.

LIMAKATSO MOTJOPE (Lesotho) said NEPAD was viewed as an expression of Africa’s determination to assume strong leadership for poverty eradication and sustainable development.  The priorities of NEPAD were strongly linked with those of the Millennium Development Goals.  The New Partnership deserved the full support of the international community, including the United Nations system, as it was an important element in achieving the Goals in Africa.  The report on NEPAD had recognized the good will of African countries through different measures they had taken in ensuring that NEPAD became the framework for international cooperation between Africa and the international community.  While she was pleased that the office of the Special Adviser on Africa had been established, she called for adequate funding so that the office could fulfil its mandate.

Efforts to achieve sustainable development in Africa continued to be undermined due to a variety of factors including conflicts, humanitarian crises, natural disasters and diseases including HIV/AIDS, she said.  For the international community to successfully address those factors, serious attention must be paid to the fulfilment of the commitments made at major United Nations conferences and summits.  Economic growth and political development in Africa was threatened by the prevalence of conflicts.  Without peace and security, long-term development and poverty eradication were utopic.  While NEPAD recognized that the primary responsibility for Africa’s future and development rested with Africans themselves, Africa needed support from its development partners.  Although African leaders had shown their firm commitment to assume responsibility for peace and security on the continent, a rapid response to the conflict situation in a number of regions had been lacking.

While Lesotho remained committed to the implementation of NEPAD, the country still faced the challenge of ensuring that peace and stability were entrenched, and democracy was deepened throughout the society as a way of life.  As a result, the Government was working to establish institutional structures that would ensure good governance, accountability in the public and private sectors, and transparency throughout the central and local governments.  The country was also investing heavily to stamp out corruption within the public sector.

ALFRED M. DUBE (Botswana) said that while the Secretary-General’s report on NEPAD had indicated a number of positive steps taken by African nations, it had provided few concrete examples of programmes now being implemented in specific countries.  Africa could not survive on ideals and platitudes alone.  Much remained to be done by African governments in implementing the Partnership at national and regional levels.  The positive response of Africa’s development partners, reflected in the report, was likely due to the strong interest and excitement generated by an initiative formulated and developed by Africans themselves.

The goals and priorities of NEPAD did not differ greatly from the Millennium Goals, he noted.  Yet, Africa’s performance appeared so bleak on some fronts

-– growth, trade, foreign direct investment and poverty –- that pessimists had begun to wonder whether it was realistic to expect the continent to meet the Goals and other ambitious targets.  The continent was filled with dynamism and potential, he argued.  What was needed was to concentrate on the twin challenges of development and poverty eradication, which could only be achieved through a concerted global effort.  There must be a greater push to make NEPAD the overarching framework for public policy and to ensure its priorities were understood by civil society.  Ownership must relate to the needs of the African people, not just to governments.

One must bear in mind the clearly established link between poverty and political instability faced by Africa today, he concluded.  Like any other people condemned to the margins of society, the majority of Africans felt they had nothing to gain by participating in democratic governance, and nothing to lose in expressing their grievances violently.  The full implementation of NEPAD would go a long way in addressing the causes of conflicts and the promotion of durable peace on the African continent.

FRANCIS K. BUTAGIRA (Uganda) said that NEPAD placed Africa’s economic and social development programmes at the heart of the international agenda.  In addition to economic development, African nations had also emphasized good governance, the rule of law and democracy and a peer review mechanism.  It was not encouraging that only 16 countries had acceded to the Peer Review Mechanism.  The African Union, the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa must impress upon other nations the need to accede to it.

In addition to increasing financial resources, he said, more coordination and consultation was necessary to mainstream NEPAD into various programmes within international organizations and bodies.  To that end, the office of the Special Adviser on Africa needed strengthening through increased financial and human resources.  Skilled personnel and resources were also needed at the secretariats of the ECA, NEPAD and at subregional and country levels. 

Institutional mechanisms were needed to ensure the success of NEPAD, he said.  In Uganda, efforts were under way to establish a NEPAD focal point.  A Steering Committee had been instituted, and it was decided that the national NEPAD secretariat would be hosted in the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development.  The National Task Force on NEPAD had been studying coordination models in other African countries, from which best practices could be implemented in Uganda.  Education was a key goal, although some countries had not made much progress in that area.  In Uganda, however, the goal of universal primary education had been achieved, and the number of universities had risen from one in 1986 to 16 today.  Health and provisions for safe drinking water and sanitation were also vital, and preventive measures like immunization and hygiene needed to be stepped up.

AUGUSTINE MAHIGA (United Republic of Tanzania) said that he fully supported the objectives and principles of NEPAD, which were also in line with his government’s Economic Vision 2025, as well as its poverty reduction strategy policy.  The NEPAD had been well received at the national level, and efforts were now underway to educate the general public to understand, cooperate and participate in its implementation.  The private sector was recognized as critical in the implementation of NEPAD, and, towards that end, his country had successfully completed a number of reforms that were conducive to fostering private sector development.  Such reforms had included opening up financial sector participation, proactive encouragement of foreign investment through appropriate incentive packages, and rationalization of the tax policy. 

His country subscribed to the Peer Review Mechanism, which contributed to confidence building among States and permitted predictability with regard to policies and strategies in a given country or region.  He was pleased to see that NEPAD had received international acceptance as a framework for engagement with Africa on development, and that significant interactions had been undertaken with the Group of Eight, the European Union, various agencies of the United Nations, the Bretton Woods Institutions and others.  He urged for more coordination and harmonization of interventions with the continent’s partners.  Although Africa was all set on the right course, the momentum of NEPAD’s implementation needed to be sustained with adequate resources. 

JUMA AMER (Libya) said that African heads of State had committed themselves to combating hunger, poverty, ignorance and marginalization, as well as to allowing their countries to follow the path to development by participating in the global economy.  The NEPAD aimed to restore peace and security on the African continent.  There had been increased opportunities for investment, and joint projects between countries had been begun.  There had also been an increase in economic and technical cooperation between African companies and those in Asia and Latin America.  In addition, the United Nations had undertaken missions aimed at encouraging dialogue and bringing reconciliation to countries in conflict.  All those measures were on the right path, yet major work remained to be done. 

The gap in development, which had grown wider in the last decade, must be bridged, he affirmed.  Furthermore, the resources necessary to implement the New Partnership’s programmes must be provided.  Although Africa had benefited from recent increases in ODA, that had been insufficient.  Africa’s development partners must expand their efforts.  On the financial front, he said that the fall in agricultural output had threatened millions of lives.  And while developed countries had taken some measures to reduce Africa’s debt burden, more money would be required to pay off the interest.  That had a grave impact upon health, education and other government sectors.

In addition to implementing the recommendations contained in the Secretary-General’s report, he concluded, the international community must focus on the following points in their efforts to stabilize Africa.  It was necessary to respect African societies, their histories and cultures.  One should also understand that the more assistance provided, the greater the service rendered.  The transfer of technology must also be facilitated.  Moreover, the past suffering of African peoples must not be forgotten, nor the pillaging of their natural resources. 

ALI HACHANI (Tunisia) attached great importance to today’s discussion, which reflected a commitment to supporting African efforts for development.  It was reassuring that NEPAD had enjoyed the support of the international community.  He was pleased with the progress of TICAD III in Tokyo.  Progress had indeed been seen in especially important areas such as agriculture, food security, health, education, the environment and tourism, among others.  For their part, African countries had taken steps to set up a national coordination body.

The United Nations needed to mobilize support and implement NEPAD more effectively, he stated, stressing the importance of involvements by the private sector, civil society and non-governmental organizations.  The Office of the Special Adviser on Africa needed the enhanced support of the Secretariat, and efforts could only be successful with consistent international support.  The magnitude of the problems in Africa required that the international community become more resolute, and devote more resources to guarantee economic growth and sustainable development, which would lead to achieving the Millennium Development Goals.  Africa had worked to promote human rights, the rule of law and economic reforms.

However, the actions currently carried out by some nations were not up to the magnitude of the challenges that Africa faced, especially with regard to investment and indebtedness.  It was critical that the international community set up institutional capacity to support efforts to promote trade, access to markets and the elimination of non-tariff barriers of African products.  He called on countries, banks and multilateral institutions to help Africa emerge from its state of indebtedness by widening the HIPC Initiative, and also encouraged generous support to countries emerging from conflict.

STAFFORD NEIL (Jamaica) said that, while the Secretary-General’s report had shown that NEPAD was beginning to register progress in some important areas, it had also drawn attention to the major challenges and constraints.  While there were severe problems, they could be overcome.  Developing and sustaining momentum for NEPAD required a collective effort in Africa towards internal stabilization and a commitment for delivery of resources from the donor community.  In reviewing the progress made so far, there was reason for some optimism.  Although he noted an increasing level of ODA, the level still remained substantially below that of 1990, despite the overall growth in the world economy. 

While he was encouraged that there was some movement under the HIPC Initiative, he was still worried by the complexities of the process.  Also, the trade and investment pattern showed a mixed picture.  Africa needed help, but that assistance should be tailored to African needs and the African cultural environment.  He was greatly encouraged by the determination manifested in the African Union to make their own arrangements in relation to monitoring governance issues, and to be engaged in the resolution of conflict and the promotion of peace

and stability.  Of special importance was the evolution of African regional mechanisms under the aegis of the Union to manage that process.  He added that the international community should be careful to avoid the imposition on Africa of economic models and development policies which bore no relationship to the continent’s social, political and economic realities. 

DENIS DANGUE REWAKA (Gabon) said the report of the Secretary-General on NEPAD’s implementation constituted a reference tool, on the basis of which future cooperation must be defined, with solidarity and complementarity.  In Africa, NEPAD had become an integral part of national development strategies due to the creation in most countries of focal points.  However, the disparate character of those focal points diluted the dynamic of collectivity that the Partnership had brought to the continent.  For that reason, he wondered whether the United Nations could help to elaborate a standard focal point, which would make it possible for all to speak the same language in implementing NEPAD.

He also cited a problem with the multisectoral dimension of the New Partnership.  Instead of dispersing efforts across all sectors, it would be wiser to focus on two or three sectors of global impact.  In that regard, hunger, malnutrition and the pandemic of HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis must constitute the leitmotif of the continent’s activities.  It was more essential than ever for the industrialization of Africa to be directed towards fighting HIV/AIDS and toward the strengthening of the food and sanitation systems in African countries.  Finally, all initiatives taken to mobilize new resources for the New Partnership were welcomed.

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