The prime minister, Tony Blair, today challenged the world to help to end the poverty, conflict and disease plaguing Africa. He called for huge increases in aid, debt relief and anti-corruption measures but admitted he still had to convince wealthy nations to pay their share.”There can be no excuse, no defence, no justification for the plight of millions of our fellow beings in Africa today. There should be nothing that stands in our way of changing it. That is the simple message from the report published today,” said Mr Blair, unveiling the findings of his Africa Commission at the British Museum in central London.
The 400-page report, Our Common Interest, calls on the international community to immediately double foreign aid to Africa, to $50bn (£26bn), and make fighting Aids a priority. It sets 100% debt cancellation as a goal and urges rich nations to drop trade barriers that hurt poor countries. The report calls for a partnership with African leaders, who it says must move faster toward democracy, tackle corruption and end the conflicts that block aid from producing results.
