Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-10-12-Speech-3-137"
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"en.20051012.15.3-137"2
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".
Mr President, we are clearly talking about economic and social development here and not about cultural or spiritual development: Africa has no need whatsoever of us for that; it could even teach us a thing or two.
We have therefore set Millennium Development Goals. I should like to draw your attention to the fact that these goals must not be seen as sacrosanct, because if, by any chance, we do not achieve them, there will be a sense of desperation and failure and we will be back to square one, which will be an extremely harmful outcome.
The formula for development is fairly well-known. Let us be humble, however, and point out firstly that, while public aid is undoubtedly a lever for development, the effect it has is miniscule in comparison to what private sector funds could do to develop Africa and, secondly, that we must be wary of tackling Africa, complex as it is, with simple ideas. That being said, it is not a useless exercise to point out some fundamental factors. Infrastructure is one of these factors. There is no doubt that we require road, port and airport infrastructure, communication infrastructure and health care infrastructure. Then comes security, and by that I mean the security of goods and persons, legal certainty, judicial security and banking security. Finally, a State is required: a State that undertakes its sovereign duties, pays its government officials and stands shoulder to shoulder with a civil society. We must therefore be the guardians of these fundamental factors.
I am keen to emphasise the quality of your communication, Commissioner, which exploits all of the EU’s resources. What it amounts to is an excellent diagnosis and a very good prescription, which says that the patient must continue with his treatment but that care must be taken that, having been cured, he does not then die. Money is not enough to prevent this from happening. It is not enough to mobilise funds. Africa must help itself. For our part, we must firstly have confidence in the institutions with which Africa is providing itself. Secondly, our policies must be coherent and coordinated. Thirdly, Africa must apply its own prescriptions, and by that I am referring, in particular, to the diagnosis provided by NEPAD. Finally, my fourth point is that the money is there, so let us stop casting blame.
The shift from 0.31% to 0.5% equates to EUR 20 billion: half of this amount will be devoted to Africa, which is a sum of EUR 10 billion. EUR 10 billion equates to one annual EDF funding allocation – the EDF receives EUR 13 billion for five years. We will thus be able to provide EUR 10 billion in funding each year for Africa. With the existing procedures and channels as they stand, it is impossible to invest and to spend these funds. This is demonstrated by the sum remaining of the EDF. Therefore, we must review our budgetary instruments for aid. Furthermore, I believe that we must not view budgetary support as a cure-all, without introducing an extremely strict control and monitoring procedure."@en1
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