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From Africa Recovery, New Releases, November 2003

General Assembly debates New Partnership, peace efforts

Nearly a year after the UN General Assembly first endorsed the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), the body convened again on 15-16 October to review the plan's progress. Delegate after delegate, from poor and rich countries alike, noted the many difficulties facing Africa, but also found signs of improvement, notably a modest rise in donor assistance and progress towards peace in some of the continent's most deadly armed conflicts.

Photo : ©United Nations

NEPAD, noted Kenyan Attorney General Amos Wako, represents an assertion of Africa's commitment to take charge of its own affairs. It is "an African initiative that sends a signal that Africa has come of age . . . and takes primary responsibility for her development and destiny."

UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Africa Ibrahim Gambari said on the eve of the debate, "The Africans are saying for a change: 'We want to take ownership of our problems. We are defining our priorities and we are taking steps to implement those programmes.'"

'In its infancy'

Practically every participant in the debate cited the creation of the African Peer Review Mechanism as one of NEPAD's most significant, tangible achievements so far. Under the mechanism, participating African countries agree to review and learn from each other's experiences in promoting good governance, sound economic management and respect for human rights. "We applaud the progress" made by Africa in establishing the mechanism, said Ambassador Marcello Spatafora of Italy, speaking on behalf of the European Union.

Overall, however, NEPAD is "still in its infancy," noted Foreign Minister Leonardo Santos Simão of Mozambique, speaking for the African Union. Nevertheless, he added, a number of regional NEPAD projects are already being promoted, including construction of a gas pipeline from Nigeria to other West African countries and links between the electricity grids of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.

Photo : ©United Nations

Development in Africa will not be possible without peace, nor peace without development, the delegates noted. Some pointed to recent progress towards resolving conflicts in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Sudan and elsewhere as evidence that Africa may be on the way to a more peaceful future.

But noting that far too many countries remain mired in war, Nigerian Foreign Minister Saidu Balarabe Samaila stressed the importance of strengthening Africa's own capacities to prevent and resolve conflicts. He added, however, that such efforts "should not be used as an excuse for the international community to shrink from playing an active role in the search for peace in Africa." Ambassador Marc Nteturuye of Burundi, pointing to the difficulties of building up the troop strength of an Africa Union peacekeeping force in his country, asked: "Why are the rich countries hesitating to give financial and logistical support to those African countries trying to dispatch troops?"

International support

Many speakers were encouraged by the news, in a report by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, that donor assistance to Africa rose from $16.4 bn to $18.6 bn between 2000 and 2002, although it is still well below the $26.6 bn received in 1990.

Ambassador Dumisani Kumalo of South Africa said that his country appreciates this increase in aid to Africa. But since overall levels remain low, the aid that is provided must be used more effectively. Donors have been emphasizing this point, Mr. Kumalo noted, although their stance "contrasts sharply with the reluctance by some donor countries to untie certain types of aid." By continuing to link aid disbursements to the purchase of goods and services from the donor country, he said, there is a risk that "the concept of aid efficiency would become a mere slogan which is applied selectively."

Delegates also cited the need for greater debt relief. The debt "is still an unbearable burden," said Ambassador Martin Belinga Eboutou of Cameroon, even for countries that have benefited from debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative. Many African representatives supported a proposal that an international conference on African debt be held next year.

Photo : ©United Nations

Whatever financial benefits Africa may get from aid or debt relief, many ambassadors pointed out, these have been virtually wiped out by the losses the continent has suffered in the realm of trade. In particular, they criticized developed countries' limited market access to African products and the high domestic subsidies they pay to their own farmers, which depress international prices for cotton and other key African agricultural exports.

Senegalese Ambassador Papa Louis Fall expressed his country's "massive disappointment" at the breakdown of the World Trade Organization's talks a month earlier. Ambassador Mohamed Bennouna of Morocco, speaking on behalf of the developing countries' Group of 77 and China, noted the "devastating impact" on Africa of Northern agricultural subsidies. France, the UK and several other developed countries responded by pledging to work towards a resumption of trade talks to help improve Africa's export prospects.

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