A/63/PV.27 General Assembly

As this is the first time that I address you, Sir, in your capacity as President of the General Assembly, allow me to join preceding speakers in congratulating you on your election to your new position. Let me also express my delegation’s confidence in you and assure you of our unreserved support in successfully conducting the work of this session. My delegation aligns itself fully with the statements made by the Ambassadors of Antigua and Barbuda and the Republic of Kenya, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and the African Group, respectively. My delegation would like nonetheless to highlight a couple of issues of national interest. Before doing so, however, I would like to thank the Secretary- General for his comprehensive reports (A/63/206 and A/63/212) on the progress in the implementation of and international support for the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and on the recommendations of the 1998 report of the Secretary- General on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa. A decade ago, the then Secretary-General submitted his report on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa (A/52/871). It is good to note that, despite the challenges identified in the report, there has been significant improvement in the areas of security and governance in Africa. In that regard, the continent is exploring ways and means to restore and consolidate peace and stability as a prerequisite for the achievement of internationally agreed development goals and Africa’s integration into the global economy. Fortunately, many volatile regions have attained sustainable levels of stability, and others have witnessed a reduction in the level of conflict. That has been due to, among other things, the United Nations multidimensional approach to peacekeeping and the renewed commitment of the international community to confront the scourge of conflict; the transformations in the African Union and its peace and security architecture; the establishment of the African Union Panel of the Wise; the deepening of cooperation between the African Union and the United Nations and subregional organizations; and the establishment of the Peacebuilding Commission to provide support to countries emerging from conflict. The continent is aware of the need to strengthen democratic governance and to pursue legitimate interests and respect for human rights and the rule of law. To that end, the African Peer Review Mechanism is providing innovative safeguards to improve governance and promote accountability. Recent developments in the West African subregion have given us cause for hope. The highly acclaimed democratic transition in post-conflict settings such as in Sierra Leone, among other places, is evidence of the improvements that have been made. We are further encouraged by the developments in the Great Lakes region and the recent post-election mediation efforts in Kenya and Zimbabwe, which were encouraging signs for the nurturing of durable peace and a stable environment for socio-economic recovery in Africa. Barely three weeks ago, heads of State or Government, who came together here, highlighted the special needs of Africa and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) as high points of the sixty-third session. That was largely due to the many unmet commitments and pledges to the continent over the past decade. The current global economic meltdown and the skyrocketing costs of food and energy are seriously compromising the strides that conflict and post-conflict societies are making in the areas of peace and sustainable development. Notwithstanding those difficulties and obstacles, my delegation remains highly hopeful that the declarations, pledges and renewed commitments emanating from those high-level discussions will be translated into concrete action by those leaders. My delegation has consistently reminded this House of the need to support and step up actions and strategies that promote the prevention of conflict rather than engaging in expensive peacekeeping operations, which are often undertaken after massive destruction of lives and property in the countries concerned. In that regard, we welcome the Secretary-General’s appeal to the international community to support the development of additional strategies, including mediation, early warning systems and other normative mechanisms for the prevention of conflict. I wish to further appeal for the strengthening of the continent’s peacekeeping capability through the implementation of the African Union-United Nations Ten-Year Capacity Building Programme, which aims at ensuring effective planning and implementation with regard to the complex and multidimensional peacekeeping operations involved. This leads me to the issue of the illicit trade in, and transfer of, small arms and light weapons, which remains crucial to those endeavours. We urge the international community to intensify efforts to restrict arms sales and arms transfers to conflict zones by providing support for the Economic Community of West African States Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons. We also appeal for adherence to, and implementation of, the Nairobi Protocol for the Prevention, Control and Reduction of Small Arms and Light Weapons, as well as stepped up support for the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa. Experience has shown that peace and stability constitute vital components for development, and vice versa. Members may also agree with me that confronting the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons is a prerequisite for effective conflict prevention. In that regard, the United Nations and the international community should work together to strengthen the human and institutional capacities of Africa in order to complement the continent’s efforts to resolve those problems. In particular, the continent should be assisted in addressing its unsustainable external debt burden to enable it to generate and better reinvest its own resources to help itself. While recognizing the need for good governance to create conditions conducive to lasting peace, my delegation would also like to reiterate the need to provide predictable and innovative sources of financing and to ensure market access through the framework of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. In conclusion, on behalf of the Government and the people of Sierra Leone, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Peacebuilding Commission, the Peacebuilding Fund and the wider United Nations for their continued engagement on Sierra Leone. I encourage them to deepen their collaboration with my country, especially in implementing the Sierra Leone Peacebuilding Cooperation Framework.

My delegation is pleased to participate in the discussion of this important item on the General Assembly’s agenda, The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). The importance that the international community attaches to the issue of Africa’s development was embodied in the high-level meeting held on 22 September 2008, with the participation of heads of State or Government, to discuss Africa’s development needs and ways to overcome challenges and difficulties hampering the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by the year 2015. We support the content of the Political Declaration issued at the meeting (resolution 63/1), particularly the renewed commitment by the heads of State and Government to strengthen their support for the implementation of NEPAD and their emphasis on the importance of quickly developing sustained economic growth on a large scale. That is in addition to their realization, among other things, of the need to respond to Africa’s special needs in order to set the pace for the timely achievement of the MDGs. Seven years have elapsed since African leaders adopted NEPAD, an initiative that aims to achieve balanced large-scale growth so that Africa can reduce its level of poverty and blend better into the world economy. We are hopeful that the numerous international conferences and resolutions aiming to achieve sustainable development will help lay the foundation of partnerships between developed and developing nations. We also hope that those conferences will contribute to the growth and stability of economic relations, as well as provide a just and equitable basis for international trade, in which each side bears their respective responsibilities in fulfilment of Africa’s special needs. NEPAD has firmly established a principle that Kuwait has always believed in, namely, that there is a close connection between political stability and successful development. In this regard, we wish to commend the efforts of African States to incorporate the priorities of NEPAD into their national policies and development planning as well as their efforts to create a coherent institutional mechanism. We also commend their efforts to apply the concepts of good governance, rule of law, combating corruption and establishing transparency with a view to consolidating democracy, since those concepts reflect directly on a country’s ability to achieve security, stability and sustainable development. During the past months, the world has witnessed the emergence of new international challenges and threats that hinder efforts to achieve sustainable development in numerous countries. Most significant among them have been the increase in the price of food and basic commodities, energy prices, disarray in financial markets and the negative effects of climate change. The danger of these challenges lies in their global impact, which transcends national borders. These recent developments will put the international community behind in achieving the MDGs. We have, indeed, started to note the negative effects of these challenges on the African continent, which has not achieved significant progress in the eradication of poverty, hunger or in combating dangerous infectious diseases, such as HIV/AIDS or malaria. These recent challenges have exacerbated the suffering of the majority of African States. In order to face these challenges, the State of Kuwait has not spared any effort in continuing to provide development assistance to developing countries, especially to countries in Africa, through its official and non-official institutions. This assistance has been a steady part of Kuwait’s foreign policy, emanating from our conviction that advancing the economic situations of developing countries and helping them achieve their development goals will be beneficial to all and will expand the horizons of partnership and cooperation, further strengthening international trade and economic systems. Since its establishment in 1961, the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development has been providing grants and loans to finance infrastructure projects in many developing countries. The gross total amount of easy loans and grants has exceeded $12 billion and has benefited more than a hundred countries, 40 per cent of which are African countries. Two years ago, Kuwait contributed $300 million to the Islamic Development Bank for combating poverty in Africa. The Fund has also contributed to numerous rehabilitation programmes and is given credit for its participation in making the first phase of the programme to combat river blindness a success, with a total contribution of $100 million. This is in addition to Kuwait’s contributions to many development funds in Africa, such as the African Development Fund, the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and the African Development Bank. In response to the suffering in many developing countries resulting from difficult economic conditions in particular increases in food and energy prices, the State of Kuwait established the Decent Life Fund with a capital of $100 million to develop and improve agricultural production in developing countries. Kuwait also announced the donation of $150 million to the fund that was established at the most recent Summit Conference of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in Riyadh, dedicated to conducting research and studies in the fields of energy, environment and climate change. In this regard, we stress what was mentioned in the Secretary General’s report (A/63/206), that while the recent increase in food prices is threatening the progress that has been made in fighting poverty, it nonetheless offers an opportunity for African countries to increase their spending on agricultural and rural development to 10 per cent of public expenditure in line with the Maputo Declaration and to launch an African green revolution within the framework of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme. It can also provide an opportunity for further regional integration. Before concluding, I would like to make the following observations. First, it is of vital importance that African countries make more efforts to promote this initiative on a global scale and not merely focus their efforts on a number of donor States on a specific continent. Secondly, we should endeavour to create worldwide awareness in order to assist these African countries, as well as to incorporate NEPAD in the structures of the African Union, provide more support for the private sector and increase awareness activities targeting civil society. This partnership is not a temporary operation, but rather a lasting endeavour that requires patience and constant evaluation. We welcome the leadership role of the United Nations in mobilizing global support for this initiative. African countries have exerted noticeable efforts to achieve stability, so as to encourage the donor countries and the private sector to provide them with the needed economic and technical support. It is time for the international community to achieve greater progress in fulfilling its commitments and for the African countries to take the necessary steps that will lead to the effective implementation of the numerous projects and programmes included in NEPAD in order to create the peaceful atmosphere needed for development to thrive.

The United Nations high-level meeting on Africa’s development needs held on 22 September evaluated the needs and challenges of African development. The Political Declaration (resolution 63/1) adopted at the meeting reflected the common will of all countries to enhance cooperation and help Africa achieve development at an early date. The United Nations high- level event on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) held on 25 September also devoted special attention to Africa’s achievement of the MDGs. Today, we are gathered once again to review the agenda item on African development. This review will give us a more comprehensive understanding of the issue and put the Political Declaration on the fast track towards implementation. In order to implement the political declaration, the key is to remain focused and to do that, we must listen to African voices, respect African views, accommodate African concerns and support Africa’s efforts to implement its own programmes. The New Partnership for Africa’s Development shows African countries’ determination to gain strength through unity. The support of the international community should go hand in hand with the efforts of African countries. There are myriad ways to provide international support, but the following considerations are of great importance: first, it is essential to deliver on the commitments of assistance to Africa. The international community, the developed countries in particular, should fully honour all assistance commitments to Africa and increase their official development assistance to 0.7 per cent of their gross national income. The developing countries should continuously deepen South-South cooperation and strengthen mutual assistance with Africa. Secondly, it is essential to effectively address new challenges. In recent years, climate change, the food crisis, financial turbulences and rising energy prices have not only increased uncertainties in global economic growth, but have also eroded the achievements of African countries and made it harder for them to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. As the international community explores ways to respond to various crises and new challenges, it is important to better appreciate African countries’ concerns and desires and to take more substantive action. Thirdly, it is essential to help African countries build their capacity. African countries have made tremendous efforts to take development into their own hands by improving their governing capabilities and increasing their capacity and potential for independent development. The international community should offer African countries favourable conditions in debt relief, market access and technology transfer to help them overcome development obstacles. In the fields of global economy and finance and trade, it is important to provide African countries with an enabling external environment for their development. Fourthly, the United Nations should continue to give priority attention to Africa. The United Nations has played an important role in urging the international community to assist Africa. It should continue its input in terms of political mobilization, resource allocation and progress monitoring to ensure that the relevant international consensus is truly implemented. Peace is the foundation of development, and without development, peace will be fragile. The reduction and even the elimination of conflict in Africa are indispensable to the security and happiness of the African people. Over the past decade, with the support of subregional, regional, and international organizations, African countries have made tremendous efforts to promote peace and stability. The United Nations should continue to play an active part in promoting dispute settlement through consultation and negotiations between the parties concerned and in safeguarding and maintaining peace and stability in Africa. The international community should bear in mind its overall interest in Africa’s stability and prosperity and continue to help African countries develop their economies, eradicate poverty, improve the environment, promote social progress and remove the root causes of conflicts and instability in Africa. Mr. Cujba (Republic of Moldova), Vice-President, took the Chair. China is a friend and partner of Africa. It is our strong resolve to enhance friendly cooperation with African countries and to take concrete measures to support Africa in achieving peace and development. At the high-level meeting on Africa’s development needs, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi outlined how China had strengthened its cooperation with Africa and provided various forms of assistance to African countries under the framework of South-South cooperation. He also expressed China’s readiness to take continued and effective measures to support African development and promote a new type of strategic partnership between China and Africa. We will continue to provide assistance and support to African countries in areas such as agriculture, education, health care, medical care and clean energy. We will also continue to support African countries in conflict prevention and settlement and peacebuilding. African people are industrious and talented. Africa is a promising continent with huge potential. China is ready to work with the rest of the world for lasting peace, prosperity and development in Africa.

The Philippines expresses its solidarity with the statements delivered by the representatives of Antigua and Barbuda and of Thailand on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, respectively. Nonetheless, the Philippines wishes to dwell on some points. The 22 September 2008 high-level meeting on Africa’s development needs and the 25 September 2008 high-level meeting on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) provided United Nations Member States with a rare opportunity to review and revitalize their commitments to Africa. Many statements of support and commitment were made at that time. His Excellency Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Alberto G. Romulo delivered the Philippine statement at the meeting on Africa’s development needs and Her Excellency President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo delivered the Philippine statement during the round table on poverty and hunger at the high-level meeting on the MDGs. Those two meetings were held amidst the devastating global impact of climate change and the food and energy crises. The spectre of another crisis — the financial crisis — was not yet globally felt at that point. Thereafter, with a speed beyond imagining, the financial crisis hit the international financial markets. Despite bailout strategies, its catastrophic effects have yet to be played out. What we are seeing right now are basically effects on the stock markets and the banking and financial sectors of our economies. We are not quite sure of the exact follow-on effects the financial crisis will have on other sectors of our economies, but the broad outlines reveal extremely difficult times ahead. That means that Africa will again bear the brunt of negative consequences. For the Philippines, the report of the Secretary- General issued in relation to Africa’s development needs (A/63/130) provides an excellent springboard for future action. The Philippines has added some observations regarding the recommendations contained in that document: we believe that with the uncertainty of the future of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Doha Round, Africa stands to suffer disproportionately as most vulnerable to global imbalances. We must achieve a breakthrough in the Doha Round, especially in the reform of trade-distorting agricultural subsidies in the developed nations. In the meantime, the prescriptions on South- South cooperation can help fill the gap and should be augmented with triangular cooperation. The outcome of the recent twelfth session of the Intergovernmental Follow-up and Coordination Committee of the Group of 77 on Economic Cooperation among Developing Countries, held recently in Côte d’Ivoire, called in particular for the adoption of a global platform for the South, which should be seen in the context of next year’s United Nations High-level Conference on South- South Cooperation. However, such South-South initiatives should not be considered as substitutes for aid commitments. The recommendation on expanding the current debt sustainability framework to include middle- income countries is a key element that the Philippines has consistently advocated in the United Nations. In this regard, the Philippines has proposed a debt-for- equity in MDG projects initiative, as a means not only of reducing onerous debt burdens but also of attaining the MDGs. Perhaps the most recent pronouncement regarding these unsettling events and how they relate to developing nations, and with special reference to Africa, takes shape in the Group of 24 (G-24) ministerial communiqué of 10 October, which called for “fundamental reform of the regulatory and supervisory framework as well as clearer accounting rules and transparency”. The communiqué covers many aspects of reform and calls for immediate action, which are echoed in the halls of the United Nations by developing countries, to wit: food and fuel prices, the Doha Development Round, official development assistance commitments, reform of the Bretton Woods Institutions, climate change and next month’s Financing for Development conference. With specific reference to Africa’s special needs, the G-24 ministers “welcomed and strongly endorsed an additional chair for Sub-Saharan Africa at the World Bank Group’s Board by adding a 25th Executive Director position, that would substantially reduce the number of countries represented by each elected Executive Director from the region, and hence reduce their burden.” What this means is that within the World Bank, the new position would allow more attention to be given to sub-Saharan Africa’s needs. Furthermore, in the context of financing for development, G-24 Ministers stated: “It is imperative … that the donor community meets its commitment to double aid resources to Africa and raise overall aid disbursements to $130 billion by 2010”. The development needs of Africa are in great danger of being sidelined or even forgotten because of the current conspiracy — not just confluence — of crises facing us all. No one can deny or cover up the fact that the new landscape of the global socio- economic, financial and natural environment is being buffeted by tempestuous forces. As a result of this conspiracy, it is difficult to grasp a clear and rational approach from the perspective of a single nation-State. We must use the resources of multilateralism to provide a clear, rational and equitable way forward. The Philippines pledges to do whatever it can to help alleviate the pain and suffering and to share the burdens that developing countries, and especially in Africa, must bear in the present and in the near future. Together, as Members of the United Nations, inspired by its goals and aspirations, strengthened by hope and faith and moved by love, we cannot afford to fail. We must prevail.

At the outset, my delegation wishes to align itself with the statement made by the representative of Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. For several consecutive years now the Assembly has been jointly considering the progress in the implementation of and international support for the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the implementation of 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. We welcome this practice; it is part of the United Nations effort to spearhead the global movement to highlight Africa’s security and development needs and to give them the prominence that they deserve on the global development agenda. The international community’s resolve to renew its attention and refocus it on addressing Africa’s development needs was recently manifested in the Assembly’s high-level meeting on 22 September. Several key messages came out of the high-level meeting. First, the way forward for meeting Africa’s development needs requires more intense, coordinated, balanced and integrated actions to effectively implement the development commitments made by the international community to comprehensively address all challenges to Africa’s development. Secondly, the commitment to address the special needs of Africa and to strengthen support for the implementation of NEPAD was reaffirmed. Thirdly, it was recognized that Africa is particularly challenged on account of the dangers posed by new and old threats, including the multiple crises of food, fuel and finance. Fourthly, in addition to urgently fulfilling all official development assistance commitments, particularly for Africa, new and additional financial resources are needed to address adaptation needs arising from the effects of climate change. Fifthly, sustained and more intensive efforts are also needed to achieve long-term debt sustainability. The two complementary reports of the Secretary- General (A/63/206 and A/63/212) and the recommendations of the Millennium Development Goals Africa Steering Group present a comprehensive picture of the progress made in promoting sustainable development and peace and security in Africa over the past year. The reports also list the formidable challenges that must be surmounted to consolidate the gains and positive trends and to make the progress irreversible. The Secretary-General has also rightly called attention to the challenges and constraints in the implementation of NEPAD. In this regard, we particularly welcome the actions focused on supporting African regional and subregional organizations. The Secretary-General has also noted that the progress of the past few years could be offset by new threats and the deepening of existing crises. There is also concern that the financial and human resources required to solve Africa’s multidimensional, interlinked problems will fall far short of what is needed. Clearly, the international community has to scale up its efforts in order to meet all commitments to generate the resources required for achieving the MDGs. Pakistan strongly feels that further bolstering investment, expanding trade by allowing greater market access to exports from Africa, and building capacity and human resources are the most important tools for putting Africa on a fast development track. These, we believe, should be the three main pillars of a strategic partnership between Africa and the rest of the world. Pakistan has consistently supported the political and economic aspirations of Africa. We support the effective and early implementation of NEPAD. We have also actively supported and contributed to efforts to promote durable peace and sustainable development in Africa. Pakistan is committed to supporting United Nations peace efforts in Africa. Our contribution to United Nations peacekeeping in Africa has taken the form of a contingent of nearly 10,000 troops, which continues to be one of the largest two contingents deployed in Africa during the past decade. Pakistan also has an Africa Plan for Trade Development, with bilateral trade today reaching nearly $1.8 billion annually. Furthermore, we also provide bilateral assistance in economic, social and technical spheres to a number of African countries in the context of South-South cooperation. In particular, Pakistan has been successfully running a special technical assistance programme for Africa since 1986. Hundreds of young African professionals from both the public and private sectors have received training under this programme in different fields, including public administration, management, banking, customs, accounting and diplomacy. We are in the process of further expanding the scope and scale of our assistance and cooperation programmes for Africa. Our Prime Minister has conveyed his desire to help Africa replicate our programmes that focus on the eradication of hepatitis C, provision of safe drinking water and low-cost housing schemes, which are being carried out as his special initiatives in Pakistan. I wish to conclude by saying that the challenges faced by Africa are colossal. But the opportunities, means and resources to address those challenges are also immense. NEPAD presents a realistic framework for action. The African Union is emerging as a dynamic factor promoting African ownership in tackling Africa's problems. The subregional organizations in Africa are also playing an important role. We are hopeful that with commensurate political will on the part of the international community, in particular in the developed world, to faithfully implement the commitments made, Africa can hope to realize its full economic and political potential.

My delegation is honoured to extend its thanks to the President of the General Assembly and to the Secretary-General for holding this meeting on sub-items (a) and (b) of agenda item 57 and item 43, dealing with cooperation in the field of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). My delegation also supports the general statement made by the representative of Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. Development is one of the most important goals that the Kingdom is trying to achieve on the international level. The Secretary-General’s invitation to achieve development in Africa comes as the world is facing difficult times, including the economic crisis that is directly affecting the economies of African States and development in that continent. Africa has suffered for many decades from socio-economic problems, poverty, unemployment and bad health conditions, which require that we support development efforts to bring an end to the suffering of those States. In the framework of the efforts of the Government of Saudi Arabia to help poor countries alleviate poverty in them, the Kingdom participated in the Ministerial Conference on Middle-Income countries hosted by Spain on 1 and 2 March 2007 in coordination with DEASA. The Saudi Fund for Development allocated part of its assistance — 49 per cent of the accumulative financial commitments over the course of the period 1975 to 2006, amounting to $7.1 billion — to combat poverty in 28 developing countries. We also contributed funds through the Islamic Development Bank Fund to address the problems of poverty and its effects. The Kingdom donated $1 billion to that fund. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has made annual contributions of $25 million to development programmes, including the African Development Bank, to be disbursed over five years. The Kingdom is a member of the African Development Bank and supports the African Development Fund as well as the Arab Development Bank. The Kingdom has pledged $18 million to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria for the period of 2008 through 2010 at the rate of $6 million per year. We had already transferred $10 million to that Fund. Despite the fact that it is a developing country, my country continues its assistance to the least developed countries (LDCs). The Kingdom forgave more than $6 billion of debts owed to it by LDCs. It donated $500 million to the World Food Programme so that they can grapple with the spiralling prices of basic foodstuffs. The Kingdom contributes one billion dollars to the Fund to combat poverty in the Islamic world, in addition to contributing to the capital funds of 18 international financial institutions. The contributions and non-refundable assistance as well as concessional loans submitted by Saudi Arabia in the last three decades exceeded more than $90 billion, benefiting 86 developing States. That amount represents 4 per cent of our gross national product, which is higher than the rate required of us by the United Nations. In conclusion, Saudi Arabia is keenly conscious of the need to bolster NEPAD and to buttress the implementation of international obligations to Africa in a manner conducive to achieving lasting peace and sustainable development therein.

It gives me great pleasure to participate in the debate on the New Partnership for Africa's Development: progress in implementation and international support. We associate ourselves with the statements delivered earlier at this meeting by Antigua and Barbuda, and by Kenya at the 26th meeting, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and the African Group, respectively. The General Assembly is invited to take stock of the progress made in the implementation of the African development agenda through the joint mechanism of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). We are, on the one hand, called to take stock of what Africa and Africans have done through their own institutions at the national, regional and continental level to advance the African development agenda. This is of crucial importance because the development of Africa is in the first instance a responsibility of Africans themselves. African countries and their institutions made progress in areas such as infrastructure development, agriculture, health, education, environment, information and communications technology, science and technology, gender mainstreaming and civil society involvement. Notwithstanding that progress, there is still widespread poverty and the continent is not on course to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The international community has recognized that Africa has special needs that should be addressed jointly with development partners. In that regard, we should also take stock of the international community’s support for Africa’s development. The report of the Secretary-General indicates that of the €60 million pledged for the Africa Water Facility only €19 million has been disbursed thus far. On the other hand, official development assistance (ODA) to Africa provided by the Development Assistance Committee declined in real terms in 2006, and continued its downward trend in 2007. The situation is even worse when it comes to individual African countries, and more so with regard to those classified as being of middle income. Furthermore, members of the G-8 are off-track in achieving their Gleneagles commitment of doubling ODA to Africa by 2010 and the $60 billion pledge at the 2007 Heiligendamm Summit to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases in Africa also remains unfulfilled. Overall, the support of the international community for Africa’s development is not encouraging. Namibia believes that foreign direct investment can become a significant source of resource flow to the African development process. To that end, like other African countries, Namibia has put in place an investment friendly environment characterized by good governance and generous incentives. That notwithstanding, the flow of foreign direct investment has not been encouraging. In 2006 Africa accounted only for 2.7 per cent of global flows of foreign direct investment. The flows of foreign direct investment in recent years were engendered by high commodity prices. They were concentrated on the extraction of raw materials for the markets of industrialized countries. It has not served to transform the basis of our economy through added value and industrialization. Its contribution to employment has been limited, as operations are capital-intensive. More deliberate measures have to be taken to ensure the transfer of technology, which can lead to the transformation of the economic structure and industrialization. Sustainable development is unthinkable without such developments. In that regard, well- packaged official development assistance, leveraged by domestic and foreign private capital, could make a significant contribution to the African development agenda. Trade and greater market access have the potential to attract investments that could lead to economic diversification and industrialization. The lack of progress in trade negotiations, especially in an area of such critical importance to Africa as agriculture, perpetuates underdevelopment and is counterproductive to our efforts to fight poverty. We are faced with many challenges emanating from global crises, such as the current financial turmoil and the food and energy crises, which threaten to reverse the progress we have made to date. We cannot continue with an attitude of business as usual. We need to take bold measures to ensure that the burden of the financial turmoil is not transferred to Africa and the developing world at large. We need a crisis mitigation and development finance package. Such a package should finance all critical sectors that can drive development. Those include infrastructure, agriculture and food security, education and training, manufacturing, health, information and communication technologies and entrepreneurship development. Indeed, it was the political will and resolve demonstrated through the Marshall Plan that helped Europe to recover after the Second World War. We are currently witnessing similar resolve in the United States and Europe to deal with the financial crisis through bail-outs and other measures. We would like to see similar commitment and passion among Africa’s development partners to overcome that continent’s development challenges.

At the outset, my delegation would like to associate itself with the statement made by the representative of Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. Less than one month ago in this House, a high- level meeting on Africa’s needs took place just prior to the opening of the general debate of the current session of the General Assembly. A few weeks ago, we also participated in the high-level meeting on the Almaty Programme of Action, where we debated the benefits of trade in the promotion of the economic growth of landlocked developing countries, half of which are in Africa. The importance attached by Member States to the development of Africa is unquestionable. We all agree on the removal of the impediments that stand in the way of the realization of the economic potential of African countries, and that that should be the subject of serious commitments by all of us. In addition to maintaining the momentum of those two other events, today’s meeting provides us an opportunity to take stock of our commitments and of the international partnership undertaken with African countries through the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). In our view, NEPAD stands out vis-à-vis other initiatives in that it emphasizes the leadership and ownership of African countries in their respective development processes. That gives exceptional strength to NEPAD. If well managed and delivered, it can become a resounding success and an example of international cooperation. We also view it as an exceptional contribution to the maintenance of peace on the African continent. For Brazil, NEPAD equals partnership. We have understood the message and set about to establish close partnerships with many African countries while using NEPAD’s economic and political objectives for guidance. Brazil views its reinforced cooperation with African countries not simply as a partnership for Africa, but a partnership with Africa. Brazilian cooperation with African countries is multifaceted and reflects the diversity of national situations and capabilities. Nevertheless, my delegation wishes to draw attention to four specific areas which can have a considerable impact on the continent’s prospects, namely, those of health, agriculture, energy and capacity-building. Brazil has been assisting many countries through HIV/AIDS projects, either by directly donating life- saving drugs or by helping to establish local infrastructure to prevent and deal with the effects of the disease. Moreover, we have started to integrate and coordinate an international technical cooperation network to promote the transfer of technology for the production of antiretroviral drugs in Africa. I have the pleasure to inform the General Assembly that tomorrow, during President Lula’s visit to Mozambique, Mozambican authorities will inaugurate the first phase of a plant built with the support of Brazil to produce antiretroviral drugs, which we hope will benefit not only that country but also all of southern Africa. With regard to agriculture and the food crisis situation, my delegation is very pleased to recall last year’s establishment in Ghana of the first overseas office of Brazil’s agricultural and livestock research agency EMBRAPA, which has played a critical role in fostering the green revolution that has taken place in Brazil over the past 30 years. Our cooperation is demand-driven and includes projects to produce tropical fruits, cotton, rice, cashew nuts and manioc, which are plants of great relevance to many countries in the region. We are also envisaging trilateral cooperation in Western and Central Africa between EMBRAPA and the International Fund for Agricultural Development, with the involvement of other development partners. In the field of energy, Brazil is also working with Africa on projects for the production of clean energy and renewable sources of energy, namely, sugar cane- based ethanol and biodiesel. The soil and climate in many parts of Africa are suitable to producing crops to be used for such energy products. We believe that the potential economic and social impacts of such cooperation can be far-reaching and very positive. With regard to capacity-building, Brazil has been working with many countries in that very critical area for development. In response to requests by the countries concerned, Brazil is planning to provide assistance to build professional training centres, first in Portuguese-speaking African countries and later in other countries of the continent. Finally, my delegation would like to refer to the fact that Brazil is coordinating the work of the Guinea- Bissau configuration of the Peacebuilding Commission. We have taken on that coordination as part of our solidarity with a sister country and as a contribution by Brazil to achieving NEPAD’s objective of consolidating peace on the African continent.

My delegation wishes to congratulate the President on the able manner in which he is presiding over this session. My delegation fully associates itself with the statements delivered by the representative of Antigua and Barbuda, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, and the representative of Kenya, on behalf of the African Group. We wish to thank the Secretary-General for his reports (A/63/206 and A/63/212) submitted under sub-items (a) and (b) of agenda item 57, entitled “New Partnership for Africa's Development: progress in implementation and international support” and “Causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa”, as well as for the detailed note contained in document A/63/219, submitted under agenda item 43, “2001-2010: Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa”. As we all know, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) is an initiative of the African Union that provides a strategic framework for Africa’s development by promoting socio-economic development and encouraging policy measures and reforms in the areas of infrastructure, agriculture, health, education and training, information and communication technology, and the African Peer Review Mechanism, among others. In the widest context, NEPAD is at the heart of putting Africa on the global agenda and catalysing the involvement of African institutions in the implementation of its various objectives and programmes. Zambia fully subscribes to the aims and objectives of NEPAD. Earlier this year, Zambia signed the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme, which is an initiative of NEPAD and the African Union at the highest policy-level framework for the development of agriculture in Africa. The Zambian Government, with the participation of key stakeholders in the agricultural sector, has agreed on that priority Programme, which will bring about the required higher growth in Zambia’s agricultural sector. With a view to finding sustainable solutions, participants under the Programme have agreed to pay particular attention to the escalating costs of farm inputs, especially seeds, fertilizers and fuel; the ensuing reduced access to food for vulnerable populations brought about by rising fuel and food prices; the increased use of food crops for biofuels; and the effects of climate change. Within the framework of NEPAD, Zambia has been working on the Zambia-Tanzania-Kenya Interconnector Power Project, which will facilitate the interregional power trade and interconnect the Southern African Power Pool to the East African Power Pool, thereby facilitating greater regional cooperation and integration. It is expected that, when the first phase of the project is completed, in 2012, it will facilitate the transfer of some 200 megawatts of electric power between eastern and southern Africa, with a further 200 megawatts coming on line later on, thereby bringing the total to 400 megawatts by 2014. Estimated to cost just under $800 million, Zambia is seeking financing for the project, which will benefit from the generation capacity currently being developed. At this point I would like to focus on malaria, which continues to be the number one killer disease in several regions of the world, particularly in many parts of Africa, including my own country of Zambia. Since the inception of the Roll Back Malaria Partnership, the world has seen the advent of the Global Fund and many other funds and efforts to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. The world has also seen growing political will and increased financial commitments directed at controlling malaria. The 2006 malaria control survey estimated that an annual 247 million episodes of malaria worldwide resulted in 881,000 fatalities, with women and children being the most vulnerable. Many developing countries where malaria is endemic, including Zambia, support all the efforts made by the international community in combating malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases. Since 2000, the Zambian Government has identified malaria control and prevention as an urgent health priority. The Government has consequently implemented the Roll Back Malaria Strategy at the country level since 2001. The Strategy sets the target of achieving 60 per cent coverage for access to insecticide-treated bed nets and preventive medicines by 2008. As stated in the report of the Secretary- General, other targets achieved by my country include relatively high ownership and use of insecticide-treated bed nets. In addition, indoor spraying and the provision of preventive and life-saving medicines have made Zambia a world leader in the fight against malaria. The effective implementation of those positive intervention programmes has resulted in saving many lives. That has been possible through the support of partnerships at the global, regional, subregional, country and community levels. It is encouraging to note that our partners have continued to support our national malaria strategy plan in order to accelerate the achievement of the Abuja targets, and indeed the Millennium Development Goals. That has contributed to donor confidence in the implementation of the national malaria programme. As a result of those interventions, Zambia has made significant advances in preventing and controlling the disease, as evidenced in the malaria indicator survey of 2008, including the following. The prevalence of the malaria parasite in children was reduced by 50 per cent between the two national malaria surveys. Moderate to severe anaemia was reduced by more than 60 per cent between the two national malaria surveys. Between 2002 and 2007, the percentage of Zambian households with at least one insecticide-treated mosquito net increased from 14 per cent to 60 per cent. The use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets has risen steadily, from 6.5 per cent to 38 per cent for children under 5 and from 5 per cent to 40 per cent for pregnant women. More than 80 per cent of pregnant women have received at least one dose of preventive medicine, with more than 65 per cent of them having received two or more doses. Those results have been achieved thanks to the partnerships that the Ministry of Health has established. In conclusion, the achievements to which I have referred must be maintained. Zambia must press for greater successes. We need to redouble our efforts so that the country’s vision of a malaria-free nation by 2015 is attained. The realization of that vision will not be possible without the commitment of additional resources in order to respond to the challenges. In that regard, we urge the international community to fulfil its commitments to enable us to meet the goals and targets that have been set.

First of all, my delegation would like to associate itself with the statement delivered by the representative of Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. Prior to the triumph of the revolution in 1959, Cuba’s neocolonial society, which was subordinate to the interests of foreign capital, barely recognized its mixed identity or the African heritage that is deeply rooted in the material and spiritual life of the nation. The cry for freedom from the Spanish metropolis that arose on 10 October 1868 was accompanied by a highly symbolic gesture. On the very day that Cubans took to the battlefield to fight for the independence of the island, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes granted freedom to his slaves. The historical monuments placed at the Triunvirato in Matanzas and at the El Cobre mines in Santiago de Cuba perpetuate the memory of the rebel spirit of the Lucumis, Carabalis, Congos, Gangas, Mandingas, Minas, Bibis and Yorubas who, having been torn from their homelands, refused to accept the destiny determined for them by the colonizers of the time. It was only thanks to the zeal of the Cuban revolution to build a new society that concrete expression was given to what our national poet Nicolás Guillén called color Cubano. That phrase embodies both what we are and what we aspire to be. Africa is an inseparable part of our existence and of our island ethos. No one should therefore be surprised that Cuba has come to the Hall today to reiterate its commitment of unqualified support to the sister nations of Africa. The most profound internationalist convictions of the Cuban revolution have allowed our country to stand consistently by Africa — from our unconditional support for anti-colonialist struggles to our cooperation projects in numerous areas of the continent’s economic and social development. The privilege of having been able to make our humble contribution to the progress of African peoples in very different areas has been a source of honour and pride for us. Today, in the framework of continental integration, Cuba strongly supports the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, the African Union — which is continuing to make progress in establishing its institutions — and other initiatives conceived by and for Africa. My country has also pursued cooperation with the continent in its capacity as an observer member of the African Union practically from the very establishment of that important organization. To that end, we recently signed a comprehensive memorandum of understanding between our Government and the Commission of the African Union. We hope that it will soon bear fruit as regards exchanges and cooperation in a great number of varied fields. At the recent high-level meeting on Africa’s development needs, world leaders reiterated their assistance commitments to the continent. Without exception, every leader recognized the enormous obstacles that the region faces in meeting the Millennium Development Goals and the importance of honouring the promises made, especially in the area of financing for development. If our small country, which faces heightened challenges to its own development from the unjust and criminal blockade imposed against us for almost five decades, has amply demonstrated that political will is the only thing needed to support the efforts of the continent, what could be achieved if, instead of empty promises, concrete actions were undertaken to benefit the region? As in the past, Cuba will continue to contribute its human capital and experience to work with many African countries and regions. More than 1,900 Cuban doctors and health technicians are working in 35 African countries today. In 2007 alone, they provided nearly 7 million medical consultations, presided over some 100,000 deliveries and performed almost 200,000 operations. Moreover, our country is pursuing its cooperation with African countries in the training of human capital. At present, 2,253 young people from 45 African countries are studying in our universities and polytechnic institutes. To date, more than 32,000 young Africans have graduated in various specialties. Allow me to reiterate what was said by the First Vice-President of the Council of State and Ministers of the Republic of Cuba, who headed the Cuban delegation to the high-level meeting on Africa to which I have referred: “It is time to put an end to rhetoric. Africa’s plight will not be resolved by condolences, lamentations and limited charitable aid while fortunes are squandered in the North on luxuries and extravagance. There is a need for new relations of solidarity and full cooperation with our African brothers.” The peoples of Africa understand and share the ideals of justice and equity that must prevail in the world. To that end, it is essential to establish a new international order, for the current one has plunged 80 per cent of the world’s population into poverty and hunger. Our commitment to working tirelessly to achieve that is the message that we must convey to Africa and to the world.

In taking the floor for the first time before the plenary at the sixty-third session of the General Assembly, I would like to reiterate the congratulations of the Senegalese delegation to the President and to all members of the Bureau as well as our wishes to him for great success in discharging his duties. As affirmed from this rostrum by the President of the Republic, Mr. Abdoulaye Wade, he can count on the full support of the representatives of Senegal. The joint debate that brings us here today on agenda items 57 (a) and 43, dealing respectively with progress in implementation and international support of and for the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and with the Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa, is occurring at a very special time. In fact, the debate at this sixty-third session has been replete with events that have allowed us exhaustively to review Africa’s needs in terms of development and to assess the performance of the continent with regard to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). That has allowed us, among other things, to identify the major obstacles, including malaria, that are hindering Africa’s progress as we approach 2015. While the two agenda items under discussion have already been thoroughly debated by our heads of State and Government, that, of course, in no way diminishes our interest in considering the two reports that have been submitted by the Secretary-General in documents A/63/206 and A/63/219. The report on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development concludes with an observation largely shared by my delegation, namely, that significant progress has been made in the implementation of NEPAD. The measures taken by Africa in the African Peer Review Mechanism to build the “great green wall” and to establish a high-speed fibre-optic connection among African States confirm that progress. Regarding the African Peer Review Mechanism, to date, 29 African countries have joined it, 14 of which are quite advanced in the relevant review process. Our satisfaction is all the greater since, with the launching of the Mechanism, Africa has passed a critical stage in its efforts to strengthen the credibility of its institutions both internally and in the eyes of the international community. We will thus be able to commit our core resources and the imagination of our children to the rectification of our economic situation, and no longer to war or social and political upheaval. The great green wall, as explained by the President of the Republic of Senegal in this very Hall a few weeks ago, constitutes a barrier that the continent has committed to erecting to stop the desert’s advance along 7,000 kilometres, from Dakar to Djibouti. The innovative aspect of that NEPAD project is that each of the countries through which the wall passes shall assume responsibility for building it on its territory by engaging or seeking the necessary resources. Senegal has already begun to implement its part in the project. The high-speed fibre-optic network that the CyberAfrica Committee of NEPAD is working to establish in order to reduce Africa’s digital divide is another good example of the sound path of NEPAD, particularly in synergizing small African telecommunications operators and large African and international investors. Those three examples do testify to progress, but let us acknowledge that there have been many difficulties that may ultimately jeopardize NEPAD’s chances of success. African countries note on the one hand, NEPAD’s tendency to copy the programmes of other continental bodies instead of focusing on the eight priority sectors that have been selected; and, on the other, the inoperative nature of the management structure of the implementation committee. Africa has been well aware of such dangers and has responded in kind by convening, on 15 April, summit in Dakar on reorienting NEPAD objectives. Thanks to the African Union summit held last July in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, which adopted the conclusions of the Dakar meeting, we can now say that NEPAD is once again back on track. With respect to development partners, there has also been no lack of difficulties. The Secretary- General’s report tells us that, for many NEPAD sectors, the support of backers is still being assessed in terms of pledges to invest and that, in cases where such commitments have materialized, the effective contributions have still been largely below what was promised. With the current food, fuel and financial crises, the risk is great that the situation will deteriorate, but we hope that decisions to be taken at the donors conference next month in Accra and at the Doha Follow-up International Conference on Financing for Development will manage to avert the threat. However, whatever efforts are deployed both by Africa and in terms of international support, only an Africa free of pandemics, such as malaria, will be in a position to derive full benefit from the opportunities offered by NEPAD. How could it be otherwise since, as the World Health Organization (WHO) report submitted by the Secretary-General tells us, 91 per cent of 881,000 malaria-related deaths in 2006 occurred in Africa? Along with its heavy toll in human lives, malaria, which mainly affects children less than five years old and pregnant women, also places a major burden on fragile African economies, particularly in terms of reducing productivity. In such a context, the WHO report issues an unappealable verdict in affirming that in Africa there is no evidence that cases of malaria and malaria-related deaths have declined since 2006. The WHO conclusion, which Senegal endorses, is that in the final year that separates us from the end of the decade, we will need to redouble our commitments if we wish to achieve the objective of ridding Africa of the burden of malaria by 2010. On the basis of its own experience, Senegal is of the view that the expansion of the Millennium Villages project throughout the continent could provide a critical contribution. Before concluding, I would like to commend the Secretary-General for the quality of his reports on the items on our agenda for today.

First of all, I would like to join previous speakers in thanking the Secretary- General for his reports covering important agenda items intertwined with the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) brought before us for our deliberation today. My delegation aligns itself with the statements made by the representatives of Kenya on behalf of the African Group and of Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. My delegation wishes to make its statement on the two major issues being considered within this cluster: progress in implementation and international support of NEPAD and the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa, and the Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa. Allow me to present our perspectives on both issues. To begin with, my delegation appreciates the Secretary-General’s report under agenda item 60 (b), “New Partnership for Africa’s Development: progress in implementation and international support: causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa”, as contained in document A/63/212. My delegation also notes with appreciation the efforts deployed by the Secretary-General, the Security Council, the concerned United Nations departments and the international community at large to address the root causes of conflicts in Africa. My delegation wishes in particular to express its satisfaction and appreciation for the support provided by the Peacebuilding Commission to African countries for building peace and rehabilitating economic and social services in post-conflict situations. As clearly indicated in NEPAD, addressing the root causes of conflict, in particular social and economic problems, is a matter of priority. In that regard, the African Union, under its peace and security architecture, has been carrying out multifaceted activities related to peace with a view to helping African countries prevent and resolve conflicts. My delegation, in that connection, wishes to note with satisfaction the encouraging support which the African Union’s peacekeeping forces are getting from the United Nations. African peacekeeping capacity needs to be further strengthened with continued all- round support from the United Nations system. The African Union has been playing a major role in the prevention and mediation of various conflicts in Africa with a view to ensuring peace and security, as well as creating an atmosphere conducive to the achievement of sustainable development throughout the continent. The role of the African Union in that area must be further coordinated with the relevant organs of the United Nations, particularly the Security Council. Ethiopia believes that such coordination and cooperation between the African Union and the United Nations are indeed a matter of crucial importance. In that regard, the United Nations needs to enhance its support for the African Union’s conflict prevention and mediation activities through technical and resource assistance. Ethiopia wishes to draw the attention of this Assembly to the statement contained in the Secretary- General’s report in paragraph 15 under the title “Ethiopia-Eritrea”, which needs some factual correction. The paragraph does not fully and correctly reflect the real context of the existing situation. Security Council resolution 1827 (2008), adopted on 30 July and cited by the Secretary-General in this report, does not include the phrase: “failure to accept the rulings of the independent boundary commission”. Rather, the resolution actually states: “... regretting that Eritrea’s obstructions towards the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) reached a level so as to undermine the basis of the Mission’s mandate and compelled UNMEE to temporarily relocate from Eritrea … and recalling the Security Council’s previous condemnation of Eritrea’s lack of cooperation”. (Security Council resolution 1827 (2008), fifth preambular paragraph) My delegation would therefore like to request the Secretary-General to take that into proper account and correct the paragraph in accordance with the resolution of the Security Council. I now turn to the other equally important agenda item, as reported by the Secretary-General in his note in document A/63/219. Some current scientific statistics inform us that over 2,000 people die per day worldwide from malaria. More worryingly, however, is that, even as we speak, malaria is reported to kill one African child every 30 seconds. In fact, malaria is already labelled one of the three top killer diseases in the world today. It is true that the majority of the world’s poor live in places where malaria and related socio-economic instabilities prevail. As a result, the issue has kept on attracting worldwide attention, particularly among developing and least developed countries that remain the most affected by that killer disease. Most of the malaria-affected African countries, which are said to number approximately 42 and where malaria has reached a severe chronic stage, are believed to have virtually no access to and low capacity to make effective use of the various medicines available to combat and roll back the disease. Ethiopia, like other malaria-endemic countries in Africa, bears the heaviest burden of the scourge. Fifty- two million of our people live in malaria-risk areas and are exposed to its widespread infection. About 75 per cent of Ethiopian territory is prone to malaria. Although the prevalence of malaria is largely seasonal, it sometimes affects new places in the form of an epidemic. Cognizant of the severe negative socio-economic impact of malaria, the Government of Ethiopia has adopted a national strategy to contain the huge socio-economic challenge posed by the disease. Malaria prevention and control in Ethiopia are guided by a five-year strategic plan developed within the context of the 20-year Health Sector Development Programme and are based on the 2010 and 2015 targets of the Roll Back Malaria movement. Malaria prevention and control is also an integral part of the Plan for Accelerated and Sustainable Development to End Poverty, which draws on and feeds into the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals at the national level. In order to effectively counter, steadily control and irreversibly put an end to the enormous challenge and burden of malaria, the Government of Ethiopia has adopted responsive programmes and initiatives like the Malaria Control Support Team which, as an example par excellence, is led by the Federal Ministry of Health and is composed of relevant governmental and non-governmental organizations, as well as concerned bilateral and multilateral partner agencies and societies. Moreover, over the past decade, the Government has carried out a national effort in two phases. The first five-year strategic plan, which covered the period 2001-2005, was successfully completed. Over the past five years, the task of malaria control has been the central focus of the country’s comprehensive health strategy. The second five-year plan, which covers the period 2005-2010, is aimed at further decreasing the malaria burden by at least 50 per cent. Thanks to those proactive measures taken by the Government, which also include increased malaria diagnosis and treatment, the proportion of infection and mortality rates resulting from malaria has been significantly reduced. In the past five years, the number of deaths caused by malaria has also been reduced, as have the prevalence and coverage of the disease. The number of patients seeking malaria treatment has decreased by 67 per cent. Likewise, the number of patients admitted to hospitals due to malaria has decreased by 54 per cent. Taken together, those data have made Ethiopia one of the most successful countries in combating the omnipotent challenges of malaria, as indicated by Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University at the high-level event on the Millennium Development Goals only a couple of weeks ago here at the United Nations as part of this sixty-third session of the General Assembly. Against the background of such encouraging developments, however, one thing has to be re-emphasized before this Assembly — the need to further strengthen international solidarity and collaboration in the broad endeavour to stop and effectively control the alarming advance of malaria as a global threat to development. Even though the tireless efforts of Governments at their respective national levels are vital to the achievement of the desired success in that field, the continued assistance of the United Nations and our development partners, as well as other concerned stakeholders, remains of crucial importance. In conclusion, on behalf of my delegation I would like to call upon all stakeholders, particularly the developed countries and the various pertinent international organizations, including the United Nations, to increase and redouble the financial and technical assistance necessary to help further intensify the ongoing fight against malaria and to do more in the area of capacity-building programmes with a view to uplifting developing and least-developed countries, particularly those on the worst affected continent, Africa, in the shared spirit of this Decade to Roll Back Malaria.

First of all, please allow me to congratulate the Secretary-General on the reports that he has submitted to the General Assembly under items 57 (a) and 57 (b) of the agenda on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) (A/63/206) and on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa (A/63/212). Within those congratulations, I wish to include all the United Nations staff who work night and day for the well-being of Africa. Cameroon supports the statements made by the representatives of Kenya and of Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the Group of African States and the Group of 77 and China, respectively. The debate on the aforementioned items is taking place only a few weeks after the high-level meeting on Africa’s development needs held on 22 September 2008. I need hardly mention that the organization of that special meeting on Africa was in itself proof of the mixed results of the declarations of good intentions that are constantly renewed but rarely ever made specific. Indeed, all recent research on the situation in Africa agrees that the continent is far from achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and above all the development goals agreed upon at the international level. Therefore, I am pleased to congratulate Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for setting up the MDG Africa Steering Group, the recommendations of which have the benefit of highlighting our responsibilities. The Group advocates mobilizing $72 billion per year internationally so that Africa can hope to achieve the Millennium Development Goals in 2015. Fulfilling that recommendation will doubtless mean pursuing and boosting courageous action in the field of development financing. Indeed, the report of the Secretary-General on NEPAD reminds us that official development assistance towards Africa has actually fallen 20.5 per cent between 2006 and 2007. I believe it important to stress results-oriented management and the principles of predictability, harmonization and the delinking and alignment of assistance with the priority of African countries, as defined in NEPAD. It is also highly desirable that we adopt an innovative sectoral division of resources in order to strike the right balance between the social sector, which is currently prioritized by donors, and the productive sector, which guarantees sustainable growth, job creation and the improvement of purchasing power. It is true that the financial crisis affecting the world today makes the possibility of any immediate increase in resources allocated to Africa doubtful. However, we have been somewhat reassured by the statements of Africa’s development partners at the current debate and at the high-level meeting of 22 September 2008. Furthermore, international support for NEPAD should not be limited to the volume and quality of aid. It also implies the creation of a multilateral trade system that is fairer and thus a change in the architecture of international trade. An increase in the share of African countries in world exports could generate substantial resources for the continent’s development. There is also a need to improve conditions that would favour the flow of private capital towards Africa. We know that an increase in foreign direct investment is conditioned by the need for peace and security. In that regard, we welcome the ever- increasing assumption of responsibility by the African Union, subregional organizations and countries in peacekeeping and in the prevention and resolution of conflict. We also note the support of the United Nations for such organizations and welcome the adoption of Security Council resolution 1809 (2008), in which the Security Council welcomes the Secretary-General’s proposal to set up an African Union-United Nations panel of distinguished persons to consider in-depth the modalities of how to support peacekeeping operations in Africa. We believe that particular emphasis should be placed on conflict prevention that is less costly both for States themselves, as well as for international and regional organizations. It is in that sense that Cameroon supports the rationalization and strengthening of the Department of Political Affairs, aimed, inter alia, at providing a stronger presence on the ground and intensifying preventive diplomacy to manage brewing conflicts through a network of regional bureaux in line with the desires expressed by countries. Cameroon, like other countries in the subregion of Central Africa affected by a variety of conflicts, believes that the proposed subregional bureau is more necessary than ever in that part of the world. In that context, we believe that today’s debate illustrates the need to take urgent action and once again gives us the opportunity to reaffirm that the primary responsibility for the well-being of African populations lies with Africans themselves. That requires the adoption of realistic policies and programmes, good governance, fighting corruption and entrenching democratic values in our Governments’ list of priorities. African countries have made that commitment within the framework of the African Union and NEPAD. It is true that progress still needs to be made, but the results obtained to date are substantial, as confirmed by the reports under consideration. Cameroon has made NEPAD’s aims its own, as reflected in the drafting and implementation of our National Poverty Reduction Strategy. Many actions have been undertaken, but I will just cite two examples in the fields of education and agriculture. In the field of education, our country has set up two national and regional virtual universities in the framework of South-South cooperation. We have also opened a regional agricultural college and set up a free university area within the framework of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa. In the field of agriculture, Cameroon has set border markets and an agricultural bank that will facilitate farmers’ access to credit with a view to increasing production and storage capacity for agricultural products towards the creation of subregional food security stockpiles. With our subregional partners and in the framework of NEPAD, we have embarked on a sizeable infrastructure plan to link up the countries of the subregion. On the other questions raised in the documents before us, Cameroon would like to see the next reports clearly underscore the efforts made by funds, programmes and specialized agencies to follow up on the directives of paragraph 28 of resolution 57/7 of 2002, whereby the General Assembly requested them to strengthen further their existing coordination and programming mechanisms as a means of enhancing support to African countries in the implementation of the New Partnership. It is also important to emphasize the specific actions undertaken by different institutions to bolster programmes, administrative structures and budgetary priorities for Africa. What our continent truly needs is the cooperation of all its partners in building its capacities to manage, promote and support sustainable development for the well-being of Africans.

My delegation welcomes this debate on the progress in implementation and international support of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD); the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa; and on the 2001-2010 Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa. My delegation associates itself with the statements made by the representatives of Kenya and Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the African Group and the Group of 77 and China, respectively. We have taken note of the Secretary-General’s reports on the items under consideration. They are particularly instructive with respect to the many actions undertaken by Africa with the support of the international community to promote the establishment of vital infrastructure for its social and economic development, ensure conflict prevention and reinforce measures taken at various levels to build peace and accelerate recovery in post-conflict countries. We are pleased to note that genuine synergy has been established among the various regional, national and international actors in the pursuit, through coherent strategies, of objectives defined in various coordinating meetings held during the reporting period. We agree with the Secretary-General that such coordination should be strengthened, especially between the NEPAD secretariat, the African Union and regional economic communities in order to accelerate the achievement of infrastructure objectives called for under NEPAD. The Secretary-General’s exhaustive report on NEPAD notes ongoing initiatives in all areas under consideration. We are pleased with the resources mobilized, which should be freed up and appropriately utilized to stimulate momentum for progress. Such momentum alone will allow Africa to meet the many challenges it faces in the various areas covered by NEPAD. We are pleased to note that, in all those areas, significant action is being taken to meet the objectives. We note that even Africa’s external debt has seen a steady decline relative to export earnings and the gross national product over the past 10 years. The Secretary-General is right to stress worrisome situations that merit special attention with respect to the difficulties encountered by countries in achieving their objectives due to the upheavals related to the external shocks they have experienced. The international community should consider taking special measures to help those countries to maintain a sustainable long-term debt burden. It is regrettable that Africa’s share of direct foreign investments has remained insignificant despite the slight increase we have seen, which has benefited only a few countries and sectors. Even that slow evolution is now in danger of being derailed by the current international financial crisis, even though Africa has made considerable efforts to implement the reforms necessary to improve the investment environment. We hope that voluntary political measures are taken by Africa’s development partners to consolidate the anticipated gains. Promoting the participation of Africa in international trade is, from that standpoint, a necessity. We welcome measures being contemplated for the least developed countries under the Enhanced Integrated Framework for Trade-Related Technical Assistance through substantial contributions to the special Trust Fund for that instrument. Beyond such measures, we must ensure equity in the economic partnership agreements currently being negotiated between the different regional groups in Africa, which will allow us to ensure the viability of their economies. Emerging countries that are established in Africa’s trade with the outside world must help to create a new model on the basis of reciprocal advantage and of promoting economic rationality compatible with the challenges that remain before Africa. We are pleased with commitments undertaken within such strategic meetings as the recent Fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, the India-Africa Summit, the Africa- America economic summit and the recent Africa- Turkey summit. Similarly, my delegation supports the recommendations made by the Secretary-General in his report on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development to promote South-South cooperation, in particular with respect to oil-producing countries, which are called on to invest more of their sovereign funds in continental infrastructure. The Secretary- General welcomes the growing number of countries that are joining the African Peer Review Mechanism. Here, Benin is pleased to belong to that group of countries. We are even preparing to host, in Cotonou from 23 to 27 October 2008, the First Extraordinary Summit of the African Peer Review Mechanism Forum in order to consider the dossier of two member countries. The Government of Benin would like to thank in advance the United Nations Development Programme, a strategic partner of the African Peer Review Mechanism Forum, for its significant assistance in organizing that important meeting. It is obvious that the considerable efforts being made by Africa to honour its commitments in the development partnership cannot have the sought-after effects unless donors commit the promised resources. In that regard, we are concerned about the evolving statistics for official development assistance (ODA). At the Group of Eight summit in Japan in July, industrialized countries confirmed the commitments they undertook in Gleneagles in 2005 to make sustained efforts to double ODA for Africa by 2010 by providing an additional $25 billion, in order to bring the figure to 0.7 per cent of their gross national income (GNI) by 2015. However, assistance fell from $104.4 billion, 0.31 per cent of their GNI in 2006, to $103.6 billion in 2007, 0.28 per cent of their GNI, which is almost $1 billion less. In fact, we have encountered a considerable decline in the volume of assistance. Even the President of the World Bank is concerned and emphasizes that the current financial crisis has already had nefarious effects on the financial commitments of rich countries. To find the enormous resources required to rescue floundering banks, we will need to pool savings from the rest of the world. That will mean less money for development financing, as was rightly noted by the President of the Republic of Benin, Mr. Boni Yayi, when he participated in the high-level meeting on Africa’s development needs held on 22 September 2008, on the sidelines of the general debate of the General Assembly at its sixty-third session. Africa needs investment to sustain growth and reforms. Without resources there can be no development. Reforms already offer an appropriate framework and environment for ensuring exponential growth of resources allocated to Africa. The crisis cannot be used to justify the decline in assistance. The decline could, however, be exacerbated by the crisis, which is what we fear. Africa should not have to bear the burden of the financial crisis. We therefore call on the rich countries to do their utmost to meet their commitments to Africa in a sustained fashion, applying the measures recommended to promote the effectiveness of ODA in spite of the financial crisis. In that way, we will maintain the momentum towards overcoming the challenges encountered by Africa, as demonstrated by the difficulties cited in the Secretary-General’s note on the Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa (A/63/219). Those difficulties are due to a lack of resources to accelerate the protection of populations from the pandemic. The Secretary-General’s note refers to the net reduction of the disease in low-income countries that have been able to distribute a large number of insecticide-treated mosquito nets and offer anti-malaria treatments. Those countries were thus able to reduce malaria-related morbidity by 50 per cent between 2000 and 2007. Benin is making considerable efforts in that field. In 2007, we launched a campaign to distribute insecticide-treated mosquito nets and to institute a national day on 10 October. The campaign was recently launched again this year on the same date. The free distribution of anti-malaria mosquito nets and medication primarily targets children under five and pregnant women. Once again, we need significant resources to continue that thrust. Africa’s mobilization for development must go hand in hand with a proactive conflict prevention policy. My delegation welcomes the specific measures taken at various levels to assist United Nations action in that area. Over the past few years, the United Nations has established new structures to offer systematic peacebuilding and mediation support to countries. The General Assembly recently considered the exhaustive report of the Secretary-General on the Peacebuilding Commission. Benin reiterates here its deep appreciation for the important work of the Peacebuilding Commission and the Peacebuilding Fund, the major beneficiaries of which are African countries emerging from a conflict or a deep crisis. From that perspective, we must pursue United Nations reform and we hope that the measures being contemplated to strengthen the operational and analytic capacity of the Secretariat’s Department of Political Affairs will soon come into effect. The Mediation Support Unit and the on-call mediation team already established are, in and of themselves, an encouraging outline of the reform, which an African country like mine can only welcome. My delegation will do its utmost to ensure its successful conclusion. The Secretary-General’s report also emphasizes measures taken by the United Nations specifically to meet the needs for peace and security in Africa. We welcome actions to strengthen the capacities of the African Union and to improve coordination and cooperation with subregional organizations. The new peace and security architecture in Africa, established in strict conformity with the provisions of Chapter VIII of the Charter, must be strengthened and take its rightful place within the collective security system headed by the Security Council. In addition to institutional support, Benin welcomes the ongoing improvement of the strategic framework for conflict prevention and resolution, which emphasizes the promotion of youth employment by preparing operational country programmes, strengthening education and training, and combating the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in order to put an end to the climate of violence afflicting a number of African countries. We need significant investment for development and not for weapons for young bandits. Prioritizing the promotion of a culture of peace alongside UNESCO is a fundamental aspect of ongoing efforts. In conclusion, Benin pleads for a dedicated follow-up of measures that would allow Africa to create conditions for sustainable peace and development.

Nigeria highly appreciates the Secretary-General’s complete and succinct reports on agenda items 57 (a) and (b) and 43, now under consideration, and aligns itself with the statements made on those subjects by the representatives of Antigua and Barbuda and Kenya on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and the African Group, respectively. The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) no doubt remains the continent’s home- grown model and symbol of self-help and of a sustainable development flagship. It is heartening to note that, as per the Secretary-General’s report (A/63/206) on item 57 (a), Africa, through the Programme, has made some degree of progress in sectors including infrastructure, agriculture, health, education, environment, science and technology, information and communication technology and gender mainstreaming and civil society. In 2007 and 2008, three additional countries acceded to the African Peer Review Mechanism, bringing the total number of member States that have signed up to 29. As of today, eight more countries, including Nigeria, have been peer-reviewed — a sure sign that a culture of accountability, transparency, sincere self-examination and other tenets of good governance are taking root in the continent. It is also heartening to note that the continent has, over the past year, continued to enjoy multilateral and bilateral debt relief to the extent that, by June 2008, 19 African countries had reached the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Debt Initiative completion point and also benefited from the debt relief package of the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative. Also, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, foreign direct investment flows to the continent rose to a record level of $53 billion. Furthermore, 13 African countries have launched Millennium Villages, a step in the right direction towards the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It is apparent that those modest achievements could not have been possible without the support of the international community, the United Nations system and other development partners. Nigeria thanks Japan, the European Union, South America and South-South countries, such as China, India and Turkey, that have hosted summits to facilitate joint development initiatives as well as to boost the continent’s overall development efforts. Nigeria further thanks the United Nations system for its unyielding commitment to strengthening the Regional Consultation Mechanism in Support of the African Union and its NEPAD Programme, including the United Nations Ten-Year Capacity-building Programme for the African Union (AU). Also, the 2007 launching of the MDG Africa Steering Group by the Secretary-General readily comes to mind. With regard to item 57 (b) on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa, it is indeed heart- warming that the peacekeeping efforts of the United Nations, in collaboration with the AU or its subregional outfits, have helped to restore peace and order to most of the continent’s hot spots. Preventive and mediatory efforts, such as those of the Mediation Support Unit of the Department of Political Affairs working with similar bodies such as the African Union Panel of Eminent Persons, have in recent times helped to prevent conflicts from festering into open and tragic sores across the continent. Also most gratifying is the Peacebuilding Commission, which, for the period under review, provided invaluable financial and other critical support for countries just transiting from peacekeeping towards peace, development and progress. Nigeria further welcomes the capacity- building assistance extended to the AU by other United Nations agencies. The year 2007 witnessed a decline in overseas development assistance to Africa, largely due to the phasing out of external debt relief. The pledges made in 2005 by the international community to double aid to the continent by 2010 with an additional $25 billion were scarcely redeemed. While the Doha trade negotiations have largely collapsed, the advanced economies continue to indulge in unfair trade practices, such as distorting agricultural subsidies, to the detriment of poor African farmers. It is sad that, in spite of the Joint European Union-Africa Strategy and Action Plan adopted at the European Union-Africa summit in Lisbon in 2007, the economic partnership agreements between the two groups have made little progress. Also, in spite of the various inputs made to contain crises in the continent, the basic requirements for durable peace and sustainable development are yet to be consolidated across the continent. The Security Council therefore continues to invest over 60 per cent of its time in Africa. As the Assembly is already aware, the aforementioned problems and challenges, coupled with the current worldwide food, energy and financial crises, have the potential to reverse or completely wipe out the moderate development gains made so far by Africa through NEPAD. That must not be allowed to happen. It is on that score that Nigeria, in addition to fully endorsing the recommendations and conclusions in the Secretary-General’s reports in documents A/63/206 and A/63/212, once again urges the developed countries and other development partners to resist the temptation to see debt relief as a substitute for official development assistance. Nigeria stresses the imperative need to develop and sustain the political will to revive and ensure the successful conclusion of the Doha Round of negotiations. Unfair trade practices — including distorting agricultural subsidies, high tariffs and the possible recourse to protectionism in the face of the current rise in commodity prices and the financial crisis — must be robustly resisted. Also, the ongoing negotiations on the draft outcome document of the forthcoming Follow-up International Conference on Financing for Development to Review the Implementation of the Monterrey Consensus must be guided by commitment, understanding and flexibility to meet development challenges, especially in Africa. Malaria remains a major killer disease in Africa. Its impact on Africa’s human resource capacity is a major hindrance to the attainment of the MDGs, and indeed to the development of Africa. Nigeria is encouraged by the international response, under the leadership of the United Nations system, to find a durable solution. We are firmly committed to the goals of the Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa. We also acknowledge the work of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and the progress achieved so far, especially with regard to the provision of insecticide-treated mosquito nets and artemisinin-based therapy. My delegation believes that the efficacy of those strategies could be boosted by giving equal attention to the prevention approach in order to shore up the hope of achieving a malaria-free Africa. In conclusion, my delegation wishes to call for the cooperation of all stakeholders. In that regard, it is imperative that all hands should be on deck to show practical care for the needy and downtrodden citizens of the world. That is the only way that the political declaration on Africa’s development needs adopted on 22 September 2008 at the level of heads of State or Government can be meaningful and achieved. NEPAD is glowing testimony of Africa’s determination to take its destiny in its own hands and to shed the yoke of underdevelopment and of being a haven for crises so as to take its rightful place in the comity of nations. It therefore behoves the United Nations to put in place measures, including an elaborate monitoring mechanism, to review the full and timely implementation of all commitments related to the continent’s development.

Permit me at the outset to express my delegation’s appreciation of the due attention that the President has given to Africa since he assumed office. We are equally grateful to the Secretary-General for putting Africa high on the agenda of the United Nations. We welcome the recommendations of the Secretary-General’s Millennium Development Goals Africa Steering Group, the political declaration on Africa’s development needs, the Accra Agenda for Action on aid effectiveness and the outcome of the twelfth United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. My delegation associates itself with the statements made by the representative of Antigua and Barbuda, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, and by the representative of Kenya, on behalf of the African Group. The recent developments in the area of peace and security in Africa are encouraging. As noted in the report (A/63/212) of the Secretary-General, Africa has made significant achievements in the reduction of armed conflicts and civil wars in the past decade. It is notable that Africa has yet to consolidate basic conditions for sustainable peace and development. Likewise, it is evident that, despite the progress highlighted in the report, Africa is lagging behind on several fronts, including in the socio-economic area, as highlighted at the recently held high-level event on Africa’s development needs and the Millennium Development Goals. The series of current global crises further point to a gloomy and challenging future. The rise in the price of food and oil, the global instability of financial markets and the negative impacts of climate change are causes for growing concern as regards both development and political stability. More traumatic still is the possibility that there will be a resumption of conflicts as the result of the failure of the State to deliver peace dividends in countries emerging from conflicts and the diminishing prospects for sustainable development and stability in countries that have recorded positive growth indicators relative to prosperity and peace. Peace is an essential prerequisite for development to take off and become sustainable. The more sustainable development becomes, the higher the prospects for stability and prosperity. It is therefore logical that poverty, social deprivation and the lack of development are among the root causes of conflict and instability. Other causes may include gross violations of human rights, socio-economic inequality and the political marginalization of some groups in society. My delegation remains convinced that peace and stability in Africa will be nurtured and sustained if the conditions for development and growth are in place. Once that is achieved, the two processes become mutually supporting and reinforcing. Under the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), investment in human development and infrastructure to augment trade as an engine for growth is critical to the achievement of development and prosperity in Africa. That is where peace, prosperity and stability are anchored. African Governments have therefore taken bold steps in creating the conditions necessary for growth. In line with NEPAD, our Governments have committed to work towards improving governance, harnessing democracy and maintaining partnerships between domestic resources and external development inputs, such as official development assistance, debt cancellation and foreign direct investment. Conscious of the need for ownership of the process and of taking primary responsibility, the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) was developed as a tool to address governance deficits. Governance issues have been continuously addressed through the APRM, and the results thus far are evident. To date, 29 countries have acceded to the Mechanism and seven countries have already been reviewed. Tanzania is in the advanced stages of preparation for its review. That is an example of what Africa has been doing at the national and continental levels to promote conditions conducive to political pluralism, good governance and the rule of law as the foundation for public-private partnership in development. As noted in the reports, African Governments have struggled to sustain partnerships with multilateral donors and the private sector to secure the necessary resources for investment in infrastructure development and in the social sector, such as in the areas of health and education. There is also room for civil society, non-governmental organizations and philanthropic organizations to complement development initiatives by Governments and their bilateral and multilateral development partners. It is undisputed that the role of donors and multilateral institutions in facilitating and financing development projects has been important in the strides that we have made. Debt relief, for instance, has resulted in providing African Governments with substantive resources to invest in health and education. However, investments in the critical sector of infrastructure that would create conditions for peacebuilding and sustainable development are yet to be fully explored and realized, as is the potential for partnership in that critical area. The report of the Secretary-General stresses the need for African Governments to embark on appropriate institutional and policy reforms to attract private capital and to develop private-public partnerships for financing infrastructure projects. As much as we welcome the suggestion, we are also of the view that aid-for-trade is essential to enhancing the trade capacity of developing countries. The reform of the international trade regime under the Doha Development Round is an overarching necessity in increasing the stake of developing countries in international trade. As highlighted in the Secretary-General’s report, the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa demands that we deal with the systematic causes of conflicts. In view of that premise, my delegation would like to commend the steps that have been taken by the Secretary-General in the areas of prevention and mediation, including the establishment of the Mediation Support Unit. Likewise, we would like to underscore the institutional support in terms of capacity-building provided to the African Union and the regional security architecture in Africa. In line with the need to increase the role of good offices in mediation and to strengthen early warning mechanisms such as the APRM, it is important that due attention be given to peacebuilding and post-conflict reconstruction to help countries avoid slipping back into conflict a few years after the end of hostilities. In that respect, my delegation wishes to commend the good work of the Peacebuilding Commission, as reflected in its annual report (A/63/92), which was recently presented and debated in the General Assembly. We in the Great Lakes region of Africa are about to enter a period of post-conflict reconstruction following the entry into force of the Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region on 21 June 2008. In that respect, my delegation welcomes the involvement of the working group of the United Nations Inter-Agency Task Force for the Great Lakes Region in assisting the secretariat of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region with technical aspects related to the implementation of the programme of action enshrined in the Pact. We would therefore like to take this opportunity to call for the continued support of the United Nations system and interested partners in financing reconstruction projects through the recently established special fund for reconstruction and development, which is to be launched in near future. In conclusion, my delegation wishes to assure the General Assembly of its continuous support and cooperation in conflict mediation and resolution in Africa in search of durable peace and sustainable development on the continent.

Bangladesh applauds the Secretary-General for the comprehensive reports (A/63/206, A/63/212 and A/63/219) before us today. We align ourselves with the statement delivered by the representative of Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. The challenges that Africa faces today in the areas of poverty, hunger, malnutrition, deadly diseases, the environment, peace and security are daunting. The current global food crisis, climate change, soaring energy prices and volatility in the international financial markets are making the lives of Africans even more difficult. All those have put at high risk the sustainability of the hard-won progress achieved in fighting hunger and malnutrition in the continent. In recent years, African countries have made some significant progress in the economic and social fields, as well as in promoting democratic processes and good governance. By adopting the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), African countries have put the internationally agreed development goals at the centre of their development agenda. The African Peer Review Mechanism is a concrete sign of the commitment of African countries to good governance. There has also been progress in the area of conflict resolution and in bringing about stabilization in a number of countries in Africa. A 2007 report of the Secretary-General states that “Africa today is afflicted by far fewer armed conflicts than it was a decade ago” (A/62/204, para. 5). As Africa marches ahead to address its own challenges, the international community has a moral responsibility to extend a firm hand of cooperation. Trade is critically important for Africa. The international community should correct the trade distortion and expand trade opportunities for African countries. We call upon major economies to conclude the Doha negotiations immediately, with full implementation of its development agenda and bearing in mind the special concerns of African and least developed countries (LDCs). We are also hopeful that the New Partnership for Development Act being considered by the Congress of the United States will pave the way for duty-free market access to the United States market for all products from all LDCs. Bangladesh would like to work closely with African LDCs to ensure that that initiative is truly non-discriminatory and pro- development. We are deeply concerned that, since 2005, the ratio of official development assistance (ODA) to gross national income of developed countries has declined to 0.28 per cent. That falls far short of the pledge made by the Group of Eight (G8) at Gleneagles to double aid to Africa by 2010. Conditionality, unpredictability and the earmarking of ODA are further key impediments to ensuring aid effectiveness. ODA for infrastructure and productive sectors is important to stimulate growth, generate employment and reduce poverty in Africa. The countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development will need to substantially increase their ODA to deliver on the commitment made at the G8 summit at Gleneagles. The external debt situation remains a source of serious concern for sub-Saharan Africa and LDCs. The current debt relief initiative has been slow and inadequate, in particular for countries not part of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Debt Initiative. There is an urgent need to ensure that all creditors, and especially private creditors, deliver on their burden- sharing obligations. Malaria is a complex and deadly disease. Approximately 40 per cent of the world’s population, living mostly in LDCs, is at risk of malaria. Sub-Saharan Africa remains the hardest hit region, although malaria is endemic in many regions of the world. In countries where the disease is particularly acute, it consumes as much as 40 per cent of Government health budgets. That has a crippling effect on economic growth, welfare and development. We congratulate the Secretary-General on his initiative to ensure universal coverage for malaria treatment by the end of 2010. That is no doubt a significant undertaking. Successful research and development for long-term control and eradication efforts will remain critically important. The international community must also increase investment in developing new and improved technologies to control malaria, especially effective drugs, insecticides and vaccines. We also urge developed countries to ensure access to essential malaria medicines through the transfer of technology. Bangladesh has been an active and ardent proponent of peace and development in Africa. There has hardly been a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Africa in the past two and half decades in which Bangladesh has not participated. Currently, around 10,000 Bangladeshis are working in 12 United Nations peacekeeping missions. We send our peacekeepers even to the highest risk areas. We do so in line with our deep commitment to the Charter of the United Nations and in a spirit of solidarity with our African brethren. Our blue-helmeted soldiers have been working shoulder to shoulder with our brothers in Africa to restore peace in that region. As a member of the Peacebuilding Commission, Bangladesh supports the Commission’s development efforts in Burundi, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau and the Central African Republic. I would like to reiterate the firm commitment of the Government of Bangladesh to further strengthening our support and cooperation for the development of Africa by stabilizing peace and creating prosperity. Within the framework South-South cooperation, countries like Bangladesh can meaningfully contribute to Africa’s sustainable development. Over the years, Bangladesh has successfully adopted a number of innovative ideas for development, such as microcredit, non-formal education and women’s empowerment. Microcredit has now been replicated in around 100 countries across the world, including many in Africa. The Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee and Grameen, which are two of our largest non-governmental organizations, already have a presence in Africa. We remain ready to share our experiences with African nations. Despite our many and varied problems, Bangladesh has succeeded in outpacing our huge population growth, generally with agricultural productivity. Bangladesh is willing to share its Green Revolution experiences with fellow LDCs, especially those in Africa. Africa’s development cannot be achieved without the social and economic emancipation of the majority of its long-neglected nations. We are speaking here today to address that challenge. We must not falter in our commitment to promoting the peace, development and prosperity of Africa. The meeting rose at 6.05 p.m.