Bob Geldof spoke at the start of the Wilton Park Conference organised in association with the Commission for Africa.

Left - UNIFEM speakers, Nomcebo Manzini and Letty Chiwara
Right - Myles Wickstead, Head of Commission for African Secretariat with participants.

The Commission aims to take a fresh look at Africa and the international community's role in helping its development. In spite of the fact that Africa is falling behind other world regions, there have been recent improvements in governance, peace and security and more serious commitment to poverty reduction. This means that the time is ripe for the international community to support Africa's efforts. Economic growth has exceeded 5% per annum in a number of African countries in recent years, suggesting that the goal of doubling the size of Africa's economy in the next 10 years (requiring 7% growth per annum) is attainable.

Mr Geldof, the founder of Band Aid and Live Aid in 1984, underlined that 2005 was a unique opportunity to make a significant breakthrough. The Prime Minister and Chancellor are fully committed; Britain is chairing the European Union and G8; African institutions including the African Union and NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa's Development) have "got serious" and the heads of state of UN countries will meet in September to review progress towards the Millennium Development Goals.
Geldof, who has campaigned on Africa for over 20 years, shared his "recurring dismay at worsening conditions in Africa". He attacked the failure of the world's richest nations to resolve the issues of debt, fair terms of trade and aid levels, despite 35 years of promises to achieve a minimum of 0.7% of GDP for aid. Only a comprehensive solution would help Africa, which currently has barely a 2% share of world trade.

Quoting the conclusions of the Commission, he affirmed their words that conditions in Africa, a rich continent with huge potential, are currently an "intolerable and an affront to humanity". Redressing the imbalance was not only a moral imperative, but an economic necessity. It was essential to seize what could be the "last chance for my generation to address these issues". Geldof also stressed that it was vital to approach the G8 with determination to achieve results, not "with an approach characterized by cynicism". He concluded: "It is a clear duty to do everything we can - not to try would be a cynical failure. I, for one, can never accept an Orwellian vision of a twenty-first century of huge numbers of people dying of want in a world of surplus. I refuse!"

Above - Bob Geldof speaking at the conference dinner

In 1984 Bob Geldof initiated the Band Aid project, a charity for the victims of famine in Africa. In 1985 he organised the Live Aid concert and Sports Aid in 1986, and established the Band Aid Trust to administer the $150,000,000 raised. Band Aid continues to operate in eight African countries. In 1986, he was awarded a Knighthood for this work, and has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize three times.

The Commission's recommendations include:
- Improving governance in Africa, through the African Peer Review Mechanism;
- Prioritising prevention of conflict;
- Strengthening education and health systems, particularly through interventions on HIV and AIDS;
- Increasing growth in African economies to 7% per annum by 2010 (to achieve doubling of the size of the economies every 10 years);
- Improving Africa's capacity to trade;
- Increasing aid by $25billion over 3-5 years; and
- Substantially increased debt relief.

The speakers at the conference, which ran from 16th to 20th May, include:
Letty Chiwara
Acting Chief of Africa, UNIFEM, New York;
Richard Feachem
Executive Director, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis andMalaria, Geneva;
John Githongo
Former adviser on anti-corruption to the Kenyan President;
Dapo Oyewole
Executive Director, Centre for African Policy and Peace Strategy (CAPPS); London
Michael Walton
Harvard University and Co-Director of the World Development Report 2006 on "Equity and Development", The World Bank, Washington DC;
Myles Wickstead (Head of Secretariat) and Sir Nicholas Stern (formerly Chief Economist of the World Bank) outlined the detailed proposals of the Commission Report.

For a copy of the conference programme please click here []
For the conference report as soon as it is published please click here []

Back to Timeline