As the G8 summit in Germany approaches, a new report’s been released saying G8 countries have failed to fulfill the promises they made two years ago.
The group ActionAid says many commitments were made to poor countries at the Gleneagles summit in Scotland. The new report is entitled “Merkel’s Moment,” which is named after the host of this year’s summit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Collins Magalasi is head of ActionAid’s South Africa country program. From Lilongwe, Malawi, he spoke to VOA English to Africa Service reporter Joe De Capua.
“The 2007 report is very specific about the relationship between what is happening on the ground and what the G8 had promised and what they have managed to contribute to that. Because this is a time when the G8 credibility on Africa is on the line because according to their agenda, Africa is their main topic of discussion. And so far they have to show that they’re serious…particularly in the relation to HIV and AIDS, where 8,000 people die every day while the G8 are going to be meeting,” he says.
What’s more, he says, “The other reason we have produced that report is we’re building on the publicity that was built around the G8 Gleneagles declaration. In 2005, they had promised to increase by $50 billion in the aid that they contribute to developing countries. In 2006, a year later, in fact what they had released was even less than what they had promised to do a year before that. And here we are in 2007, we are saying the G8 must come back on track because there are still funding gaps.”
He singles out Germany, France and Italy as the top three in not meeting their aid promises. Magalasi says Chancellor Merkel has the opportunity to readdress the promises that were made in 2005.