News Release
For immediate release: February 2, 2005
G7 Finance Ministers can help Make Poverty History
NGOs call for More and Better Aid and for Debt Cancellation
As G7 Finance Ministers are set to meet in London this weekend, development organizations worldwide are calling on them to make poverty history. Aid and debt, two issues critical to ending poverty, must be at the forefront of their discussions.
In anticipation of the G7 meeting, Finance Minster Ralph Goodale, announced today a debt relief proposal. Although Goodale's announcement is welcomed, it does not go far enough. The debt relief proposal applies only temporary relief in paying servicing of the debt (and does not cancel any debt). The relief is scheduled to end in 2015. After this reprieve, an estimated 70% of debt owed by these countries today will remain and a billion people would still be in absolute poverty.
What is needed is the immediate and unconditional cancellation of 100% of debt owed by the poorest countries. "We must cancel all debts of the poorest countries," says Gerry Barr, President and CEO of the Canadian Council for International Co-operation. "When poor governments no longer need to repay debt, they can spend more on what really matters: food, clean water, housing, healthcare and building their economies."
More and better aid is needed to help end extreme poverty and hunger, to enable every child to attend elementary school, to reduce child mortality rates and to create decent jobs.
Canada can take action by reaching the United Nations target o 0.7% of Gross National Income by 2015. What is needed in the upcoming Federal Budget is a commitment to increase aid by 12% in each of the next 3 years and 15 % thereafter.
On February 3, a day ahead of the February 4 start of the Finance Ministers' meeting, ads will be placed on billboards and newspapers in Canada, Japan, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States calling on the Ministers to "Make Poverty History".
For more information contact:
Katia Gianneschi
Media Relations
Canadian Council for International Co-operation
Tel: (613) 241-7007 ext. 311
E-mail: katiag@ccic.ca
Make Poverty History web site: www.makepovertyhistory.ca
Make Poverty History is part of a global call to action against poverty. Natioal campaigns are currently active in more than 50 countries.