G8 to kick off with talks on Africa, poverty, development
Mon, Jul 07, 2008
AFP
TOYAKO. JAPAN - LEADERS of the world's industrialised nations were on Monday poised to launch three days of talks dominated by skyrocketing oil and food prices and boosting aid to impoverished Africa.
Leaders including US President George W. Bush, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrived in the Japanese spa resort of Toyako for the tough round of talks.
Protesters were being kept at bay in a specially designated camping area away from the plush summit hotel where the world's most powerful leaders will huddle overlooking the sapphire-blue Lake Toya.
The first day's agenda was topped by discussions about Africa - where the plight of the poorest has been worsened by record oil and food prices - and by calls for the G8 to live up to their earlier aid promises.
'Today there is too much suffering on the continent of Africa and now's the time for the comfortable nations to step up and do something about it,' Mr Bush said on Sunday, calling for further aid and medical assistance to Africa.
The G8 leaders will be joined for the so-called outreach session on Africa by the leaders of Algeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania and the head of the African Union.
The G8 club of rich countries - made up of Britain, Canada, France Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States - in 2005 promised to boost aid to Africa by a further US$25 billion (S$34 billion) by 2010.
But UN and African Union figures indicate that only less than a quarter of that amount has been forthcoming and AU leaders last week ratcheted up the pressure on the G8 leaders to live up to their pledge.
'African leaders are looking to the G8 to turn their existing promises into action - the credibility of international commitments is at stake,' African Union Commission Chief Jean Ping said last week.
The G8's primary focus will however be the food and oil crisis that could imperil global economic growth by stocking rampant inflation.
But non-governmental groups were in Toyako in force, urging the G8 leaders not to forget Africa as the dual food and oil crisis sends shudders across the global economy 'Rapidly rising costs of oil and food might cause pain in rich countries but it is shattering people's lives and entire economies in developing countries,' said Mr Takumo Yamada of Oxfam. -- AFP
