General Assembly Session 57 meeting 10

The President

The General Assembly will begin, pursuant to General Assembly resolutions 56/218 of 21 December 2001 and 56/511 of 15 August 2002, its high-level plenary meeting to consider how to support the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).

I am pleased to be able to take this opportunity to make a statement at this high-level plenary meeting.

This year, we will be conducting the final review and appraisal of the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF). The New Agenda for the Development of Africa has played a very positive role in focusing the attention of the international community on various aspects of development in Africa. During the past decade, much has been accomplished and many difficult issues have been addressed, including those relating to poverty eradication, sustainable development and fighting the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Many lessons have been learned from 10 years of implementation of UN-NADAF. It has been reconfirmed that, first, conflict and development are mortal enemies; secondly, that accelerated development cooperation with Africa requires a new orientation, especially in conducting multilateral and bilateral programmes; thirdly, that commitments made by the parties involved need to be honoured; fourthly, that there is a need for sustained advocacy for African development; and lastly, and perhaps most important, that the results of the interim evaluations carried out during the implementation of UN-NADAF highlighted the need for coordination and collaboration among United Nations agencies in their development activities in Africa.

Although a number of corrective measures and steps were undertaken during the implementation of the New Agenda, not all the issues on its agenda were resolved. Africa remains a continent suffering from widespread problems, such as extensive poverty, HIV/AIDS, inadequate access to education, deficiencies in water distribution and insufficient sanitation. In addition to those pre-existing problems, new challenges posed by globalization continue to emerge.

With the NEPAD initiative, a new approach has been set in motion. For the first time, development needs and objectives have been identified and defined by African countries themselves. The NEPAD initiative, incorporating a complex matrix of key social, economic and political priorities, is a collective pledge by the leaders of Africa. It is based on a common vision and a firm and shared belief that they have a duty to address the development challenges facing their individual countries and the continent as a whole.

The discussion, concurrently, of UN-NADAF and NEPAD during the fifty-seventh session of the General Assembly gives us a unique opportunity to learn from the lessons of UN-NADAF and to outline the conditions required for the success of the new initiative.

Today, during this high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly on the New Partnership for Africa's Development, we will hear from representatives of Member States, who will express their views on how the international community, including the United Nations, can participate in the New Partnership for Africa's Development.

During informal panel discussions in the afternoon, panellists from the countries that initiated NEPAD will relate their first-hand experiences and set out their views on the potential for cooperation between the African countries and the United Nations.

I hope that members have a fruitful discussion, and I wish them success in their deliberations.

I now give the floor to the Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Kofi Annan.

The Secretary-General

I am delighted to join the Assembly for this important meeting dedicated to exploring ways in which the international community can support the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), so as to bring the maximum benefit to the people of Africa.

This partnership is first and foremost a partnership between African leaders and their peoples, and among States within Africa. In addition, NEPAD envisages a new partnership between Africa and the international community -- especially the highly industrialized countries -- based on mutual respect and interdependence as well as on transparency and accountability, including peer review and performance monitoring among both African countries and international partners.

NEPAD has adopted the millennium development goals as the centrepiece of Africa's development agenda. I warmly welcome that decision, because I believe there is a symbiotic relationship between NEPAD and the millennium development goals. NEPAD will not be a success if Africa fails to achieve the millennium development goals -- and the world as a whole cannot achieve the millennium development goals unless they are achieved in Africa.

Two separate, but related, priorities -- combating HIV/AIDS and promoting girls' education -- are particularly central to achieving the millennium development goals and to realizing the promise that NEPAD holds for all of Africa. The HIV/AIDS pandemic has now become the greatest threat to Africa's development. It is a threat not just to people's health, but also, in many African countries, to the national security and very survival of those countries. HIV/AIDS has reversed the major gains in child survival and socio-economic progress achieved during the past two to three decades. It has exacerbated the problems of poverty, discrimination, malnutrition and sexual exploitation of girls and women. It is devastating the education system, as teachers are dying or becoming disabled more quickly than they can be replaced.

Conversely, the social benefits of girls' education include increased family incomes, delayed marriage, reduced fertility, lower infant and maternal mortality, better-nourished and healthier children, greater opportunities and life chances for women, and greater participation by women in political, social and economic decision-making.

Besides being key millennium development goals in their own right, the promotion of girls' education and the control of HIV/AIDS would be the most powerful enablers for the achievement of all the other millennium development goals in Africa.

By framing its aims around the millennium development goals, NEPAD challenges Africa's development partners to deepen their commitment to global poverty reduction. NEPAD's stated objective is to achieve the overall 7-per-cent annual growth necessary for Africa to meet one of the millennium development goals: halving poverty by 2015. Meeting that target requires more than doubling Africa's recent growth rates.

What now remains is for the principles of NEPAD to be converted into action, so that NEPAD makes a real difference for ordinary people in Africa. The implementation of NEPAD can benefit from two of the lessons learned by the United Nations and others involved in Africa's development over the past decade.

First, peace and security are vital to development. Economic programmes and projects devised by the New Partnership must be combined with real progress towards ending conflicts and deepening the roots of peace.

Secondly, development cooperation requires a new orientation. Through NEPAD, African leaders have shown that they consider political and economic reforms to be essential if lasting development is to be achieved. They have stressed human rights, fundamental freedoms and democracy. They have reaffirmed the importance of government with the consent and the authority of the governed. Increasingly, African leadership has itself spoken out against corruption and bad governance, and there is a growing emphasis on ensuring accountability and transparency. The international community must strengthen its support for this effort. That is what the partnership should mean.

Africa's future will be determined by Africans. To build this future, to end conflicts, to cure the diseases and to alleviate the multiple hardships that have held it back, Africa will need all the wisdom, political will and creativity it can muster.

It will also need the support of the developed world in an effort that is grounded in a sober and realistic assessment of what needs to be done. In this age of globalization, even the richest and the most powerful countries ignore the challenges and crises of other parts of the world at their own peril. At the same time, opportunities for growth and innovation exist everywhere -- and all of us can benefit from one another's success. Let us make NEPAD a shining example of this global truth.

The President

Before giving the floor to the first speaker in the debate, I should like to remind members that, in accordance with resolution 56/511, there will be two plenary meetings today: this morning's plenary meeting, until 1 p.m., and a plenary meeting that will start at 3 p.m. and last until 7 p.m., as well as a separate informal panel, to be held from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

As decided by the General Assembly, the theme of the informal panel is "The international community's partnership with the New Partnership for Africa's Development". The President of Nigeria will orally present to the General Assembly a summary of the discussions in the informal panel at the end of the debate in plenary meeting.

I should like to inform members that, in a letter dated 14 September 2002 and addressed to me, the President of the Economic and Social Council requests to participate in the debate on the New Partnership for Africa's Development.

In the absence of any objection, may I take it that the General Assembly agrees to hear a statement by the President of the Economic and Social Council in the debate?

The President

The President of the Economic and Social Council will be given the floor after all Member States wishing to speak in the debate on NEPAD have done so.

The Assembly will now hear an address by His Excellency Mr. Olusegun Obasanjo, President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

President Obasanjo (Nigeria)

This high-level meeting is taking place at a time when we, as African leaders, are seriously addressing the issues of poverty and underdevelopment in our continent. Essentially, we have launched the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), an all-embracing programme of African development.

NEPAD is a holistic and integrated development initiative for the sustainable development of Africa launched by the Organization of African Unity, now the African Union, at its summit in Lusaka in July 2001. Since then, NEPAD has received widespread international support, including from the G8, the European Union and other developed partners. The initiative has the following goals: the restoration of peace and security in Africa, as well as the management and prevention of conflict; good governance; the eradication of widespread poverty and acute income disparity between the rich and the poor; the promotion of accelerated growth and sustainable development; and putting a halt to the marginalization of Africa.

We are aware that ownership begets responsibility. In this regard, we, as peoples and Governments in Africa, have resolved to take our destiny in our own hands by drawing critical lessons from our past development efforts and putting such lessons to effect in the NEPAD initiative. We are determined to succeed in our desire to make the twenty-first century the century of Africa.

The NEPAD partnership operates at different levels; at the global level, between Africa and the international community, including multilateral institutions, donor agencies and development partners. In this connection, we acknowledge the support of the G8 at its most recent Summit in Kananaskis, Canada. At that Summit, the members approved a total of 112 specific actions that will go some way towards addressing the issues that face Africa. They also pledged to assess progress in Africa at their next Summit in France in 2003.

At the regional level, NEPAD is involved in framework cooperation between African States and regional institutions in joint ventures that will accelerate the process of integration. At the subregional level, NEPAD is utilizing the regional economic communities as building blocks for growth and economic development, all with the objective of fostering continental integration. And, at the national level, there is a growing partnership between the public and the non-governmental sector, such as the private sector, the informal sector and civil society, particularly the non-governmental organizations, aimed at revitalizing public/private sector partnership, as well as a meaningful and dynamic relationship with civil society organizations. We also call on African civil society to fully embrace NEPAD and to establish structures to promote its objectives.

In order to achieve the laudable objectives of NEPAD, a plan of action was recently adopted at the inaugural Summit of the African Union in Durban, South Africa. The first phase of the action plan focuses on specific actions and programmes based on a three-pronged strategy. First, it seeks to establish conditions for sustainable development so as to enhance and strengthen effective States and regional cooperation in order to enhance Africa's competitiveness. Secondly, it identifies and itemizes actions on priority sectors that could speed up the integration of Africa. Thirdly, it identifies the means of mobilizing resources from within and outside the continent for the effective implementation of policies, programmes and projects.

I would like to emphasize here that the development of an African Peer Review Mechanism under NEPAD marks a revolutionary innovation in Africa. It is essentially a system of self-assessment based on standard and internationally accepted codes and best practices, which aims at increased accountability and transparency in our Governments. It is our decision as African leaders to be accountable to our peoples. We are not afraid to set very high standards for ourselves, as our people expect this of us.

I wish to acknowledge the noble efforts of the Secretary-General, who has worked tirelessly to mobilize support for NEPAD within the United Nations and the international community.

In our collective effort to reduce by half the population of Africans who are living below the poverty line by the year 2015, Africa needs about $64 billion annually to prosecute NEPAD programmes and projects. Africa cannot bridge this resource gap alone. It requires concerted action on the part of all of us gathered here today. One solution is to tackle the issue of external debt squarely. Africa is severely crippled by its external debt burden. Therefore, the issue of debt cancellation should be considered as part of the priority action which the continent rightly deserves. I urge members to join hands with us and use the NEPAD initiative to tackle the critical issues affecting Africa.

Nigeria welcomes the recommendation, contained in the report of the Panel of Eminent Personalities on the review and final appraisal of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, that the United Nations adopt NEPAD as the successor policy framework for Africa's development. This will complement the efforts of African leaders at the national and subregional levels. In addition, we expect an office under the Secretary-General to coordinate the actions of the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Children's Fund, the United Nations Population Fund, the World Food Programme and the United Nations Environment Programme for NEPAD, while a United Nations system-wide concerted effort should allocate senior officials from each to NEPAD. We sincerely believe that Africa deserves this support and trust that the United Nations and the international community will urgently adopt measures that will add value to these efforts.

The President

The Assembly will now hear an address by His Excellency Mr. Thabo Mbeki, President of the Republic of South Africa.

President Mbeki (South Africa)

I am pleased to join the President of the General Assembly, the Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the Heads of State Implementation Committee of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), President Olusegun Obasanjo, in commending the New Partnership to the General Assembly.

At its inaugural meeting two months ago, the African Union confirmed the decision of the 2001 meeting of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) that the New Partnership for Africa's Development constitutes its programme for the socio-economic regeneration of Africa.

Accordingly, the African Union hopes that the United Nations will support the peoples of Africa as we engage in a historic struggle for the eradication of poverty and underdevelopment on our continent. In that context, I would like to express Africa's appreciation of the adoption by the General Assembly, a decade ago, of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF).

The New Partnership is designed radically to change the paradigm that has driven international programmes for African development. To indicate that change, we reaffirm that we, the Africans, are the architects of the NEPAD renewal plan. As Africans, we now own Africa's development agenda.

Secondly, we are determined to move forward on the basis of a partnership among the peoples of Africa, for the victory of the African renaissance. We are resolved to act together as Governments, as the masses we represent and as civil society.

Thirdly, we seek to ensure that we move away from the donor-recipient relationship with the developed world to a new partnership based on mutual respect, as well as shared responsibility and accountability.

Fourthly, we are committed to translate our words into a practical programme that actually changes the lives of the African masses, away from despair to a common future of hope and human dignity for all Africans.

The success that we must and will achieve in Africa will be a victory for all humanity, because the poverty of any people in any part of the globe is the poverty of all humanity.

In that context, all of us need to admit openly that what failed the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s was the absence of resources to translate its words into deeds. This is the challenge to which this Assembly and this Organization must respond, to affirm the commitment made in the Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development less than two weeks ago that the representatives of the peoples of the world gathered here are not merely sounding brass and tinkling cymbals.

The objectives and action plans enunciated in NEPAD are consistent with a part of the targets contained in the millennium development goals, as well as those spelled out in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, adopted at the World Summit on Sustainable Development. It is, therefore, important that the current process of review, re-prioritization and realignment of UN-NADAF should take on board the objectives and programmes of NEPAD.

The United Nations and its agencies have a critical role to play in the implementation of the required programme of action. However, for the United Nations to fulfil this responsibility, it will need to give itself the institutional capacity to ensure that it responds to Africa's challenges in an effective, efficient and coordinated way. The United Nations will have to agree on an appropriate mechanism that will enable close monitoring of the implementation of its collective agreements in favour of African development.

Today, as Africans, we stand in front of the peoples of the world to make the pledge that we will honour the commitment we have made to ourselves and to the world that we will act firmly to extricate Africa from its long night of misery.

We value the readiness of the international community to enter into partnership with us, confident that together we will end the marginalization of our continent, ensuring that the sun truly shines over the peoples of Africa.

Let this be the message that issues from this high-level meeting of the General Assembly on NEPAD. From here, together, we must make the solemn statement that Africa's time has come.

The President

The Assembly will now hear an address by His Excellency Mr. Abdelaziz Bouteflika, President of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria.

President Bouteflika (Algeria)

Let me first congratulate you, Sir, on your election as President of this session of the General Assembly.

The present meeting, devoted to the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), bears witness to the willingness of the international community and the United Nations system to be actively associated with Africa's development process. As members know, NEPAD is the project around which Africa has gathered so as to take an active part in the current changes, to integrate itself successfully into globalization and to secure the command of its own future.

This project is the result of a long process of maturation. It was conceived in the light of the experience of the decades following our independence, and it thus reflects Africa's determination to embark on a new development path, the goals and course of which will be set forth by the Africans themselves.

Africa was increasingly marginalized within the global economy because of the proliferation of conflicts, the spread and aggravation of poverty, and the HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis pandemics. Therefore, it became necessary to move off the beaten track and identify a new approach, with new premises, bases, objectives and new steps of implementation. Through this approach, African peoples are the masters of their development process. Peace, security, democracy, good governance and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms are laid down as essential requirements for liberating peoples' creative powers and ensuring the full integration of women and young people.

Africa has chosen to reform its socio-political systems, through qualitative change in State structures, the redistribution of responsibilities, dedication to political and civil-society pluralism and the promotion of partnership between public powers and all the components of the society, because it has become clear to all that addressing the political dimension is a prerequisite to any viable development process.

The concept of economic development has also been reconsidered. It is regarded now as a multisectoral undertaking, bringing together the economic, social and ecological aspects. The private sector stands as the driving force of economic activity and is an essential vehicle for growth. Moreover, the development approach is part of a vision of regional and continental integration.

Africa is launching the necessary reforms in these fields in order to ensure interaction between sector-related policies at the domestic level and to reorganize the regional and continental economic space.

In addition, a new international partnership is required, based on the principles of mutual commitment and shared responsibility among all State and private bodies interested in such an undertaking. This partnership aims to achieve Africa's integration into the globalization process, which would help to improve the pace and stability of global economic growth.

Hence, what is at stake is to establish mutually beneficial common interests and to build new complementarities by broadening and diversifying economic relations and cooperation between Africa and its partners.

Moved by a global strategy, NEPAD has defined interdependent axes for action in priority areas for reviving African development.

The African Union has launched a process to rationalize its mechanisms for action aimed at restoring peace and security on the continent. It has decided to create a Council of Peace and Security and an African Academy for Peace.

That peace endeavour, in which several African heads of State have been personally involved, will have a positive impact on the continent's stability. It implies a political, financial, technical and logistical commitment from the international community and the United Nations system, in order to support and complete the efforts of Africans in that field.

Political and economic good governance is also at the core of the programme. Africa has achieved within the last few years undeniable progress towards that aim. An African mechanism for peer review has already been set up. A declaration on democracy, political, economic and enterprise good governance has been drawn up on the basis of universally established norms. The declaration will serve as a frame of reference for assessment of the state of governance in Africa.

Human development, being the key of political, economic and social revival, is accorded priority attention in the NEPAD programme. Measures have been recommended to address Africa's tremendous education and health challenges, where considerable efforts are made to increase the resources allotted to human development and to reform the educational and health-care system.

In order to achieve the Millennium Declaration goals in terms of human development, further efforts are needed from Africa's partners, particularly with regard to combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.

Agricultural and rural development, economic diversification and environmental protection are the other basic elements of NEPAD, for which African efforts need to be backed by international cooperation.

Financial mobilization and investment are essential to the success of NEPAD goals in terms of growth and poverty reduction. To that end, it will be necessary to improve the investment environment and to perfect the processes of banking, customs and fiscal restructuring and of creating and developing financial markets.

Africa's partners should contribute to the fulfilment of an integrated approach embracing trade, official development assistance and investment. Hence, lifting barriers in terms of access to world markets would definitely have a motivating effect on investors.

Improving official development assistance and its modalities is also necessary as a lever to boost investment.

Finally, creative financing mechanisms and appropriate guarantee schemes are vital for encouraging investments aimed at reducing Africa's deficits in infrastructure.

The dialogue begun a year ago with several official partners, as well as the private sector, the United Nations and civil society, has reaffirmed NEPAD's solid foundation. It has already come up with ideas, guidelines and initiatives to support its implementation. In that regard, the G-8 Action Plan for Africa constitutes a highly significant progress.

While NEPAD is in its implementation phase, I do not doubt that today's meeting will take advantage of this opportunity to open prospects for a genuine partnership between Africa and the world.

Mr. Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations, has assured us of his full support since the inception of NEPAD. His commitment has helped mobilize the entire United Nations system and is part of his untiring action for international peace and security. I wish to express to him all our gratitude and respect.

It is now acknowledged that Africa's development is a global necessity. Africa, in cooperation with the international community, can change the course of its evolution. Other regions of the world that used to face similar problems have been able to adapt to the conditions of a world marked by the market economy and formidable progress in science and technology. Therefore, there is no reason why Africa cannot emerge from its isolation and underdevelopment.

The essence of NEPAD is to place Africa in a position to meet those challenges. The ambition of NEPAD is to ensure that democracy, economic revitalization and social progress take root in all African countries. The international community cannot overlook such a commitment because it is its duty to encourage and support it.

The President

I wish to thank the President of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, who is also a former President of the General Assembly.

The Assembly will now have an address by His Excellency Mr. Abdoulaye Wade, President of the Republic of Senegal.

Mr. Wade (Senegal)

The world has its eyes fixed on America one year after the terrorist attacks against New York. On behalf of the Senegalese people and on my own behalf, I would like to express strong solidarity with the American people.

Mr. Wade (Senegal)

Today we again hear the clanking of weapons and the rumbling of aircraft, with the threat of confrontation between Baghdad, on the one hand, and the United States and its allies, on the other hand, and we would like to express our viewpoint. I support all efforts for the United Nations to become involved, including France's proposal to give President Saddam Hussein a deadline to agree to receive and collaborate in good faith with United Nations inspectors.

I am pleased to take this opportunity to congratulate you, Sir, on your successful election to the presidency of the fifty-seventh regular session of the General Assembly at one of the most crucial times in the history of mankind, and a singular moment for achieving the development objectives in the African continent. I am quite convinced that, with your tact and sense of moderation you will be able to put your outstanding qualities and qualifications to the service of the noble ideals of our world institution.

Naturally, I pay the same tribute to the Secretary-General for his exemplary and unfailing dedication to the lofty causes of our Organization. While repeating our heartfelt congratulations to Mr. Kofi Annan, I would like to tell him how greatly we appreciate his excellent initiative of convoking the representatives of the international community to urge them to support the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). In response to the alarming situation in Africa, the international community has generously responded to our urgent appeal.

Everyone has clearly understood that NEPAD is not just another plan but a new African vision for the future of our continent, a vision conceived by Africans themselves. The New Partnership for Africa's Development is a fusion of the Omega Plan, which I proposed, and the Millennium African Plan of President Mbeki of South Africa, President Obasanjo of Nigeria and President Bouteflika of Algeria; it has been generously supported by the G-8.

The base of NEPAD is three fundamental choices which constitute the parameters of long-term infrastructure: good governance, large-scale recourse to the private sector and the conception of the region as the operating space, rather than the States, which are too narrow to be optimal. The new plan is centred around eight sectors, or top priorities. They are the variables whose interplay should generate development: infrastructure, education, health, agriculture, energy, new information and communication technologies, the environment and access to developed country markets combined with diversification.

From the G-8 summit held in Genoa, Italy, in 2000 to the Kananaskis summit held in Canada last June, NEPAD's path has been marked with summit meetings between G-8 and African leaders and between experts on both sides. Thanks to both sides' understanding and frankness in the discussions, the international community is now convinced that something unusual is happening in Africa. It spares no praise for the African vision, the clarity of its design and the quality of its choices.

It is perhaps unnecessary to add that NEPAD is not a compendium of requests for aid but a long-term partnership in which the real winner will be the global economy, which will gain a partner able to participate fully in the dynamism of international trade, of whose total Africa currently represents only 1.78 per cent, and in the growth of the global economy, through the influx of massive investment instead of the 1 per cent it currently receives.

The unique purpose of this high-level meeting is to invite the international community to support NEPAD. With the world summits in Monterrey, Mexico, in March 2001, in Dakar, Senegal, with the private sector in April 2001, and in Johannesburg in July 2002, on sustainable development and its links to the environment, the cycle is completed; only action remains. In all sectors, regional projects have been duly identified. It only remains to decide by whom and how they will be financed -- through the participation of Africans, public resources from our partners and the private sector.

A broad consensus has been reached on this point; it favours the private sector as the only sector capable of providing the immense resources that Africa requires. We will then be able to minimize the number of political meetings and preparatory events in favour of working meetings for the selection of priorities and their financing.

I would therefore like to include in my statement a message comprised of several points. First, I am convinced that the G-8 leaders and the private sector have deeply committed themselves to Africa, to help the continent enter the phase of sustainable development, above all through good governance, and also through heavy infrastructure investment and investment in the production of goods and services in all sectors for domestic consumption and international trade, which -- I would recall -- is the motor of growth.

On the other hand, we must recognize that efforts towards good public and private governance are proliferating in Africa through the fight against corruption and illicit funds. In my region of West Africa, the outcome of legislative and presidential elections in Côte d'Ivoire, Mali and the Gambia have not been disputed by opposition parties, which have generally accepted the results. That would have unthinkable a short time ago.

The peer review system has not yet been applied in its strict sense, but the heads of State of West Africa will review the situation of children in the subregion, with the assistance of eminent persons of the United Nations system. The expected high-level and important involvement demonstrates that adults attach as much importance to meetings on children as they do to summits among great leaders. We hope that the Secretary-General, despite his vast responsibilities at this crucial moment in history, will grace the event with his important presence, although his absence would be well understood.

Given the positive steps taken by our development partners, I hope that the pace of the use of credits will be accelerated; this is unfortunately often impeded by the lack of expert staff in our administrations, and by the variety of eligibility and disbursement procedures. The lack of experts, which in part explains the problems with use of credits in Senegal -- and probably elsewhere, as well -- could be compensated for either through the return of expatriate Africans, who constitute an important source of expertise in the developed countries, or by making consultants temporarily available to our States.

To my African compatriots, I will recall what has become obvious: humankind is at the heart of sustainable development in all its phases and throughout its duration. That is to say once more that the speed at which our continent will be developed is directly related to education and training. That means that raising education budgets in the area of 60 to 65 per cent -- a figure still lower than those of the Asian tigers -- would not be excessive. South-East Asia has shown that belt-tightening is worth the effort in order to create the authentic actors and promoters of development. On our web sites, expatriate African professionals will find all the information on NEPAD and can obtain answers to their questions.

The various social groups and civil society must not wait for the initiators of NEPAD to tell them their place in the widely-shared African vision of NEPAD. Individually and collectively, they must interpret NEPAD at their own level and apply it in the daily behaviour and activities.

I would tell the private sector that all the conditions are being met for it to invest in Africa, just as it has invested in Europe, the United States, Japan and now in the emerging countries of Asia and Latin America.

I will end where I began. Africa has, with a few exceptions, embarked upon the path of good governance. Without doubt, it is still taking its first steps, but it is important to accelerate the pace and not to go backwards. The general pace must reflect moderation. There will, no doubt, still be difficulties, but we must persevere with resolve and determination. We must above all implement the peer review mechanism courageously and without any complacency as it is the starting point of the New Partnership for Africa's Development.

The President

The Assembly will now hear an address by His Excellency Mr. John Agyekum Kufuor, President of the Republic of Ghana.

President Kufuor (Ghana)

We have come here as a new generation of African leadership committed to the welfare of our people, and to seeing Africa restored to its place of dignity among the comity of nations. We have changed the nature of the debate on Africa's development in our own countries and in the international arena. No longer must our policies be simply responses to conditionalities imposed from the outside or to uncontrollable pressures generated internally. We are committed to good governance, to zero tolerance of corruption, to democratic freedoms and political tolerance, to inclusive policies and conflict prevention. The sound management of our economies and respect and support for the private sector are critical. That is because the private sector works best for creating wealth and attracting more sustained foreign direct investment. We seek to develop our continent in partnership with the rest of the world, in a spirit of dialogue and cooperation. This opportunity to reflect on the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) in the United Nations, the embodiment of global cooperation for peace and development, is therefore timely. We recall that the Group of Eight industrialized countries (G-8) have already signalled, at their last summit, support for NEPAD. Prior to this, the international community, including the international financial institutions, had also expressed support for it.

We believe that this convergence of views on the importance of NEPAD to Africa's development augurs well for the people of Africa. Such an important shift of policy approach must, however, not remain a mere statement of support. It must be evidenced in practical, timely and concrete terms.

We, the African leaders, should commit ourselves to ensure that the Peer Review Mechanism works, and that no leader is allowed to hide under the umbrella of solidarity, or any other excuse when he or she fails to measure up to the principles underlying NEPAD. Our people deserve good leaders if they are to realize the dream of progress that inspired our struggle for independence.

The need to ensure balance in the enforcement of the principles of NEPAD is, perhaps, as important as ensuring good governance. We must take account of the fact that some African countries may have to go through a period of transition before they will be able to fully implement the principles of NEPAD. During this period of transition, care should be taken not to impose sanctions that might gravely destabilize entire communities, regions and neighbouring countries. To attain this balance, Africa and its partners need to collaborate better under the auspices of the United Nations.

It is also important that we focus at the global level, on a number of issues that are critical in creating the conditions for Africa's development.

Making Africa's local entrepreneurs a vital bedrock for expanded investments and thriving markets on the continent, requires not just the policy and regulatory environment that we as African Governments must provide, but it also requires access to substantial volumes of long-term concessionary credit and venture capital.

There is also the need to assure Africa levels of support that will enable the continent to provide social safety nets to sustain the minimum acceptable standards of health, education and nutrition for all, irrespective of social standing.

Thirdly, there are many other bottlenecks in the implementation of NEPAD. These include the crippling debt burden, declining levels of official development assistance, limited market access and the lack of trade and investment insurance. These bottlenecks must be addressed urgently.

The eyes of the people of Africa are on us today. For so long they have heard pledges and promises from their leaders and their development partners, and they have seen those promises broken.

We appeal to this Organization, and through it to the world, to seize this opportunity to work together with Africa to implement NEPAD, which is our framework for achieving the vision of the Millennium Declaration.

The President

The Assembly will now hear an address by His Excellency El Hadj Omar Bongo, the President of the Gabonese Republic.

President Bongo (Gabon)

In the contemporary world nothing that happens in one place goes without having an effect elsewhere. At a time of globalization, we must set sharing, partnership and solidarity as the watchwords for relations among the peoples of the world. They must organize the exchanges within the international community in all areas of human activity.

I am gratified by the welcome given to the African initiative of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) by the international community, and particularly by the countries of the Group of 8. This welcome reflects heightened interest and new respect for Africa, which is the very essence of our initiative. We also owe it to the tremendous work accomplished by the Presidents of Algeria, Nigeria, Senegal, and South Africa, who have spoken so eloquently.

A new initiative and the fruit of collective awareness, NEPAD brings the full responsibility of leaders and the peoples of Africa to bear. This demonstrates even more that NEPAD transcends traditional concepts of aid to move towards the concept of active and dynamic partnership.

With NEPAD, Africa is giving the international community that wishes truly to participate in development, the ways and means to do so in a mutually beneficial partnership.

Time is of the essence. We must work together to achieve sustainable development. There are meetings that must not be missed and opportunities that must be seized at all costs. Personally, I am still going to wait and see. I am looking forward to seeing the international community and external financial stakeholders work together with us, inshallah, to set up NEPAD projects, particularly since these collective concrete projects will bring progress and well-being to the peoples of Africa.

The President

The Assembly will now hear an address by His Excellency the Right Honourable Jean Chrétien, the Prime Minister of Canada.

Mr. Chrétien (Canada)

Thank you for your initiative in bringing the New Partnership for Africa's Development before this Assembly. NEPAD has been brought before the General Assembly because it has the potential to mark a global turning point, a turning point in the relationship among African States and in that of developed nations with Africa.

Mr. Chrétien (Canada)

Above all, NEPAD has the potential to mark a turning point of hope for the people of Africa, one that could bring an end to generations of social and economic decline. The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) was created by Africans for Africans. It sets out unique African responses to deep-rooted and continent-wide challenges. But all Member States have a role to play in ensuring that the NEPAD vision becomes a reality.

Indeed, all Member States can draw inspiration from that vision: from its recognition that peace, security, democracy, good governance, human rights, and sound economic management are conditions for sustainable development; from its identification of the promotion of the role of women as one of two principal long-term objectives; from its frank acknowledgement that the spread of diseases, such as HIV/AIDS, stands to undermine the gains being made in human development; and, from the personal and specific commitment of progressive African leaders to hold each other accountable for delivering on the NEPAD vision of hope.

Canada looks upon this debate as instrumental to making NEPAD a centrepiece of the United Nations agenda and we are committed to doing our part.

Mr. Chrétien (Canada)

Last June it was my great privilege to chair the Group of 8 (G-8) Summit, where Africa and NEPAD were the centrepiece of our agenda. Indeed, we were joined by several of the visionary African leaders who created NEPAD and who are with us here today. The G-8 leaders adopted an ambitious Africa Action Plan in support of NEPAD. We identified resources to deliver under the Action Plan. We put in place a follow-up process to ensure the effectiveness of the measures planned. And I know full well that my successor as G-8 Chair, President Chirac, shares my commitment to Africa.

Taken together, NEPAD and the G-8 Africa Action Plan stand to transform the relationship between G-8 Governments and those in Africa that are seeking to implement NEPAD. The time has come to go from talking to action, now that we have an action plan for a new partnership.

For African nations, this means giving life to NEPAD. African countries that will implement NEPAD in all of its aspects, including good governance, will enjoy enhanced assistance from the industrialized world. For G-8 partners, this means giving effect to the specific commitments contained in the Africa Action Plan. We must also ensure that all of our policies and actions reinforce those commitments, including the positions we will take in the Doha trade negotiations.

Mr. Chrétien (Canada)

For the developed world as a whole, implementing NEPAD means making development assistance more effective and doing more to ensure that we are open to business with Africa. For business worldwide, this means re-evaluating commercial opportunities in Africa as the new economic conditions that NEPAD seeks to create take hold, and reconsidering the stereotype, all too deeply rooted, that investing money in Africa does not pay.

For Canada, the process of implementing the G-8 Africa Action Plan began on the very day in June that it was adopted. We announced that, within our fiscal framework, Canada was committing $6 billion in new and existing resources over five years to support African development. We intend to double our development assistance from current levels by 2010. At least half of that increase will be earmarked for Africa. We have reaffirmed our commitment to untie Canadian aid. We announced that, as of 1 January 2003, Canada will eliminate tariffs and quotas on almost all products from the least developed countries.

Agricultural subsidies in rich nations remain a fundamental obstacle to African development. The annual level of all official development assistance from developed countries amounts to $50 billion. Subsidies by these same countries for their domestic agriculture exceed $350 billion annually. These huge supports put a strain on treasuries, depress prices and effectively shut out producers from developing countries. Canada calls on developed nations to make the elimination of such subsidies a top priority.

NEPAD is about coming to terms with the fact that the continued marginalization of Africa from the globalization process and the social exclusion of the vast majority of its peoples are profoundly contrary to the global interest. Helping Africa get on its feet is in our interest from the perspective of our common humanity and from the perspective of creating a more prosperous world with new markets. It is profoundly in our self-interest from the point of view of our own security. We have seen right here in New York the tragic consequences that can result from failed States in faraway places. Simply put, we cannot afford not to address these issues. This is the time to act. NEPAD is the blueprint. The rest is simply a matter of political will.

The Acting President

The Assembly will now hear an address by the Right Honourable Mr. Pakalitha B. Mosisili, Prime Minister and Minister for Defence of Public Service of the Kingdom of Lesotho.

Mr. Mosisili (Lesotho)

Abject poverty, backwardness and ignorance that afflict the majority of our African populations have triggered new thinking on the part of African leaders, who have resolved to develop a deliberate and strategic approach to ensure Africa's socio-economic and political advancement. Thus, NEPAD has been a product of this common vision and shared conviction by us Africans.

NEPAD encourages good governance, respect for the rule of law and human rights, and this can only be realized where democracy is the order of the day, which is also a sine qua non for economic growth and sustainable development. The basis for these noble ideals is the notion of the African Peer Review Mechanism, to which African leaders are to voluntarily submit themselves within the NEPAD framework. NEPAD calls for African countries individually and collectively to embark on development strategies that will eradicate poverty and ensure sustainable growth and development in Africa.

As I said, the underlying notion for NEPAD is genuine partnership between African countries and the international community, based on shared responsibility and mutual interest. In the long run, NEPAD seeks to reverse the marginalization of Africa owing to the globalization process, as well as the social exclusion of its 340 million people, who are currently living on less than $1 per day.

NEPAD recognizes the role of the private sector in the development processes of Africa. The mobilization of the requisite domestic resources for reinvestment into key sectors such as infrastructure, information and technology, human resource development, agriculture and market access is dependent on a healthy and economically functioning private sector.

We are, however, cognizant of the gap that exists between the least developed countries and the industrialized countries in terms of resource distribution and technological know-how. We therefore call upon the latter countries to complement our efforts in order to achieve the objectives of NEPAD.

I must hasten to dispel the misunderstanding that exists about the relationship between the African Union and NEPAD. To my delegation, NEPAD is an African Union programme. The African Union serves as the apex of the institutional framework for African socio-economic and political development so that Africa can ultimately extricate itself from the bondage of marginalization and exclusion in the globalizing world. To that end, we call upon the United Nations system to coordinate and synchronize activities related to the NEPAD plan of action, while the international community plays its supportive role in ensuring the success of NEPAD and providing renewed impetus for the development of Africa.

Africa has learned a painful but useful lesson from the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF). My delegation recalls that the evaluation of UN-NADAF's performance revealed, among other things, that the envisaged growth rate of 6 per cent for Africa was never achieved and that, instead, official development assistance declined by 33 per cent. To my delegation, the NEPAD targets are not very different from those under UN-NADAF, except in terms of ownership of the programme. It is therefore our strong conviction that the conclusions in the report of the Secretary-General on the evaluation of UN-NADAF are correct. My delegation therefore welcomes that report and requests the Secretary-General to ensure its implementation, particularly with regard to section three, which provides an incisive analysis of how the United Nations intends to support the implementation of NEPAD.

In conclusion, my delegation welcomes the recently adopted G-8 Africa Action Plan. As much as the Action Plan is undoubtedly a valuable and living framework for a new partnership between Africa and the G-8, we appeal to the G-8 to observe the spirit of NEPAD, which emphasizes partnership between African countries and the international community. Members of the international community should be more supportive and explicit in outlining, in concrete terms, the details of their commitment to NEPAD.

The Acting President

The Assembly will now hear an address by His Excellency Mr. Levy Patrick Mwanawasa, President of the Republic of Zambia.

President Mwanawasa (Zambia)

On behalf of my delegation, allow me to thank you, Mr. President, for organizing a special session specifically to discuss Africa's new economic initiative, the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). This initiative emerged from the realization of the increasing poverty levels of the peoples on the continent and their marginalization at the global level. As all of us are aware, high levels of poverty lead to political instability, which in turn leads to more poverty and under-development, thereby perpetuating a vicious circle of impoverishment and social alienation. NEPAD is therefore a plan for the socio-economic development of the African continent.

In the year 2000, the leaders of the world adopted and committed themselves to the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals. For the continent of Africa, efforts were made in the past to break the vicious circle Africa finds itself in. A number of initiatives were put in place, both at the regional and international levels. At regional level, we have the Cairo Plan of Action, the Abuja Treaty and the Lagos Plan of Action, just to name a few. At the international level, we had the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF), the Lomé Cotonou Agreement, the African Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA), the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), the Group of 8 Okinawa Declaration of 2001 and the G-8 Africa Action Plan, recently adopted at Kananaskis, Canada, in July 2002.

The critics of the NEPAD initiative question the difference it will make, given that even with the initiatives previously put in place in Africa, the continent's poverty is increasing. The answer is self-explanatory. NEPAD is different from its predecessors because it is a holistic, comprehensive and integrated strategic framework for the social and economic development of Africa. The NEPAD document provides a vision for Africa, a statement of the problems facing the continent and a programme of action to resolve clearly identified problems in order to realize the vision for a bright future by the peoples of Africa.

It is also different from its predecessors in that it is a plan conceived and developed by African leaders. The primary objective of NEPAD is to eradicate poverty in Africa; to place African peoples, both individually and collectively, on a path of sustainable growth and development; and to halt the marginalization of Africa in the global process. Zambia is confident that, with the political will of the African leaders, the continent can break the shackles of poverty through the implementation of the NEPAD programme of action. The implementation of priority sectoral plans such as those aimed at bridging the infrastructure gap and developing human resources, and those relating to agriculture, manufacturing and science and technology, are the goals Africa has set for itself under NEPAD.

While it is recognized that this new initiative is put forward by the Africans and is for the Africans themselves to implement, we cannot ignore the importance of assistance from the international community through increased official development assistance and by the United Nations system. Africa will still need debt relief, foreign direct investment and official development assistance in addition to domestic resource mobilization by the African countries themselves. I therefore wish to welcome the positive bilateral and multilateral support already shown for NEPAD.

We should also not lose sight of the importance of South-South cooperation, which extends to other developing countries outside Africa. I would like to take this opportunity to appeal to other developing countries to extend their support to NEPAD as they have done with other initiatives on Africa. We are looking forward to practical support as we move ahead with the implementation of the initiative.

In conclusion, I would like to appeal to my fellow African leaders to commit ourselves to the goals and objectives we have set for ourselves for the good and the betterment of our peoples. The ball is in our court, and we should maintain the political will we have shown so far on NEPAD. If we show commitment to our initiative, the international community will support our efforts. In unity, we shall succeed.

The President

The Assembly will now hear an address by His Excellency Mr. Festus G. Mogae, MP, President of the Republic of Botswana.

President Mogae (Botswana)

I am delighted to take part in the deliberations of this special session devoted to the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).

It is comforting that this high-level plenary meeting is taking place in the final stages of the review and appraisal of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa (UN- NADAF). NEPAD and the United Nations Development Agenda for Africa must be mutually reinforcing processes.

NEPAD represents a strategy for addressing the issues of peace and security, democratic and accountable governance, poverty eradication and observance of the rule of law, all of which are included in the Millennium Declaration. The achievement of NEPAD's goals would contribute meaningfully to a more just and more secure global environment.

NEPAD is an embodiment of the African leaders' determination to deal decisively with Africa's economic and political problems. It is an undertaking by leaders to ensure a climate conducive to sustainable development. The NEPAD framework recognizes the cardinal role that development stakeholders such as Governments, political leaders, labour, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, civil society and the international community have to play in the development process.

NEPAD is a multifaceted partnership in which key players have to deliver on their obligations. NEPAD does not place the onus for the raising of the living standards of the African people on official development assistance, although it recognizes its catalytic role in the early phases of the turnaround.

NEPAD is being criticized, even from within Africa. This is yet another manifestation of the democratic tide sweeping through the continent. Some of the criticisms will contribute to sharpening NEPAD's programmes. To the dogmatic opponents of NEPAD, who see red when they think Africa is relating too closely with the international community -- which they blame for all of Africa's present maladies -- I can only say that they should come up with viable alternatives. Even then, isolationism is not an option in today's increasingly interdependent world, and no one should provide solace to Afro-pessimists.

NEPAD should not be judged by isolated episodes but by the general advancement of the majority of the inhabitants of the African continent. It is obviously unrealistic to expect all countries to attain the same goals overnight. It is equally unfair to hold the entire NEPAD programme to ransom on account of developments in a few countries.

Without the support of the international community, NEPAD cannot successfully resolve some of Africa's intractable problems, such as intra-State and cross-border conflicts, the debilitating external debt, declining levels of official development assistance, the widening digital divide, and, above all, the restricted access of African products to developed-country markets.

I would like to pay tribute to the Group of Eight leaders for their G-8 Africa Action Plan and continuous constructive engagement in the NEPAD Agenda. I implore the rest of the international community to follow their example and to make concrete commitments to support the revitalization of the African continent.

In this regard, this special session should lead to more determined efforts by the United Nations system to play its part not only directly, but also by acting as a catalyst for a global compact on Africa's development. Over the years, developing nations have counted on the goodwill and unwavering support of the United Nations to advance the cause of the poor and the voiceless, and Africa is no exception. We shall continue to count on the solidarity of the United Nations system.

I wish to appeal to the international community to rally behind NEPAD and the African Union in the war against poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, unemployment and underdevelopment.

We Africans reaffirm our commitment to upholding high standards of political, economic and corporate governance and of democratic and accountable rule, and, above all, to respecting the human rights of those we govern. Raising the living standards of the African people is an urgent matter. The continued underdevelopment of Africa denies many of our peoples the basic necessities of life, as well as human rights and dignity, all of which are at the core of the United Nations mandate. This is not the time for ideological pronouncements, but for action -- and action speaks louder than words.

The Acting President

The Assembly will now hear a statement by His Excellency Mr. José Maria Pereira Neves, Prime Minister of the Republic of Cape Verde.

Mr. Neves (Cape Verde)

I would like to start by praising the decision of the United Nations to dedicate a special session of the General Assembly to the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), thus providing an interactive dialogue at the highest level on the combination of efforts aimed at assuring the success of this venture.

Likewise, I would like to congratulate the African heads of State present here today, who in the framework of the African Union undertook this initiative as well as the responsibility of shaping a realistic vision for Africa's development. It is a vision that reflects the will and determination to break away from the practices and dependencies that have held back Africa's development and the realization of the continent's great potentials for the benefit of its citizens. NEPAD translates the deep beliefs of a continent, which, supported by a strong decision to act, takes on the hope of reversing the fatalism of its destiny by relaunching itself on the path of development, thereby assuming its rightful position in the community of nations.

The broad and favourable support received by the project at the international level, namely the backing of the United Nations, the European Union, the Group of 8, the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) and many other international bodies, contributes to strengthening the expectations that a genuine partnership can be created between developed nations and Africa. This partnership should be based on mutual interests and benefits, shared commitments and reliable agreements in which the private sector is assured a crucial role. We are well aware that much has to be done in order to fulfil these noble objectives. Past experiences should guide us with prudence to choose realistic paths and solutions that both respond to the interests of all parties -- namely, those of the peoples of our countries -- and respect the environment.

We are also aware of existing concerns from different quarters that need to be addressed if we do not want to run the risk of losing the consensus that is indispensable for the success of this vital project. For this reason, it is essential to engage civil society in a permanent dialogue to refine the principles and objectives of NEPAD in order to ensure the ownership of the Partnership by the people themselves, and not only by the elites. Moreover, while NEPAD is a development initiative based primarily on a partnership between Africa and the developed world, it is important to engage major players from the South, to tap the enormous potentials and wealth of their experiences and to promote South-South cooperation in support of NEPAD.

The recent Summit in Johannesburg clearly demonstrated that the world is becoming increasingly conscious of the peculiar conditions of small island States and the challenges they are confronted with. They have to cope with their vulnerabilities and face accrued responsibility in preserving environmental balances and, because of their strategic situation, in combating organized crime and terrorism. Similarly, at the level of the multilateral trade system, there is an increasing awareness that the imbalances and inequalities affecting developing island nations should be corrected and that effective support is necessary so that they can actively integrate themselves into the global economy.

The extreme vulnerability of insular economies, which magnifies at the local level the disturbances experienced in international markets, is an element that cannot be overlooked. Cape Verde is an island nation whose small area, dispersion among numerous islands and geographic remoteness are aggravated by its exposure to climatic factors that permanently place its ecosystem at risk. The country's development is strongly conditioned by the high costs of insularity and the impossibility of taking advantage of economies of scale.

Cape Verde thus advocates that NEPAD's strategy should contemplate the particularities of island countries, which entail inherent features and fragilities that hamper them and sometimes make participation in major regional infrastructure projects unfeasible. In addition, NEPAD should support international initiatives favouring small island developing States, namely, the Barbados Programme of Action, and work in close cooperation with their Governments to reduce the negative effects of insularity. My Government would like to express its full readiness to actively participate in discussions leading to the preparation of a strategy for the synchronized integration of island States in the great continental NEPAD project. In that regard, Cape Verde hopes next year to host an international meeting dedicated specifically to defining the outlines of participation by island States in the NEPAD project.

With the launching of NEPAD, we are faced with a unique opportunity to reverse the destiny of, and build a prosperous future for, millions of women and men throughout the continent. It is up to us, as leaders, to build trust among our citizens and to assure them that we will work tirelessly so that they become the main beneficiaries of the enormous potentials existing in our continent.