Fuente : World Bank
http://www.worldbank.org

Britain's Finance Minister Off To Africa To Pitch New 'Marshall Plan'

/noticias.info/ Britain's finance minister Gordon Brown began a week-long mission to Africa on Wednesday to pitch his ambitious proposal for a "new Marshall Plan" to help lift the continent out of chronic poverty, reports Agence France Presse.

Brown left Britain late Tuesday and was due to arrive in Nairobi early Wednesday, a Treasury spokesman said. After an overnight stopover in Nairobi, Kenya, Brown is scheduled to fly on to Tanzania, where he will stay until Friday when he heads to Mozambique. On Sunday he will fly to Cape Town, South Africa, for a meeting the next day of the Commission for Africa, Blair's personal organization to spur development on the continent, before heading home. The chancellor is expected to use the tour both as a fact-finding exercise and an attempt to promote Britain's ambitious plans to help Africa through a combination of debt relief, trade reform and aid. Last Thursday, Brown outlined his personal blueprint for Africa, saying London would use its G8 presidency to push for a scheme delivering full debt cancellation, trade benefits and financial assistance for the world's poorest countries.

The Associated Press and Agence France Presse further note that funding for education -- to the tune of $10 billion over the next 10 years -- is a key element in Brown and British Prime Minister Tony Blair's ambitious plans to use Britain's 2005 presidency of the G8 group of industrialized nations to help Africa.

The Independent (UK) also reports the Brown will visit some of the continent’s poorest areas. His itinerary includes visits to schools and projects dealing with HIV and AIDS. Oxfam said the visit would increase pressure on industrialized countries to cancel Third World debt. Max Lawson, senior policy adviser at the charity, said: "Every week, the same number of people killed by the tsunami die from poverty in Africa. Rich countries must build on the generous response to the tsunami disaster and cancel debt, increase aid and reform trade for the poorest countries." Brown has made increasing Third World aid a personal mission, with proposals for an international bond scheme designed to double aid to Africa and other developing countries to $50 billion. Before Christmas, the Chancellor stepped up his campaign for world leaders to back the International Finance Facility, a scheme designed to raise funds on the international markets against future aid donations from major economic powers.

The Guardian adds that one of Brown’s big tasks will be to show the rich countries that Africa has the capacity to absorb as much as $55 billion in extra aid. On the eve of his visit charities including Oxfam, Cafod and Action Aid applauded Brown's visit but called on him to use his influence to prevent the EU from forcing damaging trade agreements on Africa before a wider trade agreement due to be signed at the WTO later this year. He was also urged to untie aid from conditions including the need to privatize basic services.

Writing in Wednesday’s editorial, The Independent argues that it is crucial that Africa is seen by the developed world as an economic partner, not just a recipient of aid. The world’s developed economies must allow African producers full access to their markets. Aid and debt relief are important, but only when the continent is allowed to trade on equal terms with the rest of the world will it break free from poverty. The Chancellor has already done much to ensure that Africa looms large in the public consciousness. His task this year is to turn his fine words into reality, the daily concludes.

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