St Petersburg G8 Summit: Africa background briefing

14 July 2006

Related pages: 2005 - Year of Africa | G8 Gleneagles one year on | G8 milestones | G8 2006 - Russian Presidency | St Petersburg Summit agreements

One year ago, on 8 July 2005, G8 leaders at the Gleneagles Summit signed the most detailed and ambitious plan for Africa ever agreed by the G8.

Gleneagles agreed more than 50 of the detailed recommendations of the Commission for Africa report, Our Common Interest.

Good progress has been made in the last year to implement the Gleneagles commitments. Official aid increased by $25bn in 2005, including debt relief. Half of all the “HIPC” heavily indebted poor countries have received full multilateral debt relief from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Infrastructure Consortium and Investment Climate Facility have both been established, to increase investment and promote growth in Africa. The UN Anti Corruption Treaty has come into force. And the UN has agreed a plan to achieve universal access to AIDS treatment by 2010.

For more details on progress which has been made, read the Prime Minister’s King’s College speech on June 26, and the Government’s booklet, G8 Gleneagles: One Year On (1.4 Mb).

This is making a real difference. Zambia has used debt relief to make healthcare free in rural areas, which are the poorest areas. The Infrastructure Consortium has helped to lever $2.5bn for infrastructure projects in Africa. Economic growth in Africa has been higher than the global average for five years running and is projected to be its highest ever in 2006 – nearly 6%. In 1999 in Tanzania, four out of 10 children did not go to school. Now nine out of 10 do. Polio will be eradicated this year in all of Africa, except Nigeria. 8 times as many people are getting AIDS treatment compared to 3 years ago.
For more examples of real progress on the ground, read DFID’s publication Development Works, 52 weeks a year(2.8 Mb).

The St Petersburg Summit will specifically discuss Africa and progress made in the last year, at Britain’s request. Leaders will agree a progress report, recommit to achieve remaining commitments between now and 2010 and set out key priorities for the year before the G8 Summit in Germany in 2007.

The progress report will be issued by the Russian Presidency on Sunday 16 or Monday 17 July.

Key milestones for the next 12 months include:

• 10 African countries produce new 10-Year plans for education by May 2007.

• Fully funding Round 6 programmes of the Global Fund on AIDS, TB & Malaria.

• $30m Infrastructure Consortium project preparation facility in place by July 2007. This will lead to a pipeline of at least $600m worth of bankable infrastructure projects.

• At least 5 more Heavily Indebted Poor Countries qualify for bilateral and multilateral debt relief.

• Increases in aid in line with commitments to increase by $50bn by 2010.

See all the milestones

Tony Blair has launched the Africa Progress Panel to ensure these commitments are met. It will be chaired by Kofi Annan, and include President Obasanjo, Graca Machel, Peter Eigen and Bob Geldof. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will contribute to funding the Panel’s work.

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