Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
New York (Agenzia Fides) – “For the last 60 years Africa, with its historical and geographic particularities, has challenged the capacity of the United Nations to carry out the high ideals enshrined in its Charter of peace and prosperity for all,” said His Excellency Archbishop Celestino Migliore, the UN’s Permanent Observer from the Holy See, in his speech given during the high-level plenary meeting on the theme “Africa’s development needs: state of implementation of various commitments, challenges and the way forward,” during the 63rd session of the United Nations General Assembly, which took place in the UN Headquarters Building in New York.
The representative from the Holy See highlighted the progresses that have been made in the last ten years by African nations in working together to bring peace and development to the continent. “Recent history has also witnessed the capacity of African governments to harmonize their wide array of interests and local needs, their great cultural diversity and the special geographic and climatic challenges with the need to coordinate a common response to the serious problems that affect without distinction the entire continent.”
“The successes achieved in the consolidation of independence, the overcoming of the ideological conflicts of the twentieth century, the abolition of apartheid, and more recently the strengthening of the African Union and many other regional structures of cooperation, are a sign of hope for the potential of Africa,” Archbishop Migliore explained. “It is now high time to allow and encourage an African sense of ownership in leading a sustained and sustainable developmental process that frees all the peoples of Africa from the scourge of extreme poverty.”
“My delegation expresses its appreciation for the Report of the Secretary-General. The Holy See echoes the Report’s call for concrete action,” he said.
In his speech, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon affirmed that the economic aid to Africa, promised three years ago by the most industrialized nations, should be at least doubled. He was referring to the 25 billion dollars (later reduced to 21.8) pledged by the G8 countries in the summit meeting held in Gleneagles, Scotland in 2005.
Archbishop Migliore added that “the development of Africa is a great opportunity for the whole world given its human resources and unique climatic and cultural diversity. Africa is the “youngest” of continents with sixty percent of its population under 25. In a number of African countries growth has kept pace with and even surpassed that of developed nations.”
He added, however, that in spite of this, “the recent economic growth has not been sufficient to free from extreme poverty large segments of the population of Africa, and the average life expectancy remains one of the lowest in the world. Clearly there is still a long way to go in improving the health of the people of Africa.”
The Holy See hopes that international aid may help create an environment that is favorable to the progress of the African youth and the development of a family farming system capable of freeing Africa from famine. (LM) (Agenzia Fides 23/9/2008)
