2003 Press Releases

Statement by Ambassador John D. Negroponte, United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations, in his National Capacity, on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, in the General Assembly, October 15, 2003

October 17, 2003

Sierra Leone
Contact: PAO Kevin Green
Tel: 226481.

Mr. President, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to speak to you today in affirmation of what, on the occasion of President Kibaki’s recent state visit, President Bush called “the growing strategic relationship between the United States and the African continent.”

Africa matters to the United States Government because it matters to the American people.  Our ties have taught us unforgettable lessons of human suffering and human potential, and they have given us unshakeable confidence in the human spirit and our common future.

As President Bush said in Abuja, Nigeria last July, “Working together, we can help make this a decade of rising prosperity and expanding peace across Africa.”

This goal is ambitious, but the way forward is clear, well marked on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.  

The United States has strongly supported the objectives of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development since its inception.

NEPAD is a dramatic commitment by African leaders to end conflict and hasten progress by taking concrete actions to promote peace and stability, to consolidate democracy, and to provide sound economic management and people-centered development.

This is as it should be: Africa’s future mapped out by Africans on behalf of Africans.  

We commend African leaders for their vision in launching NEPAD. In particular, we wish to recognize Presidents Mbeki, Wade and Obasanjo for their pivotal role in developing and guiding the implementation of NEPAD.

And we are encouraged by recent progress in the implementation of what we hope will be a rigorous and transparent African Peer Review Mechanism, overseen by the Panel of Eminent Persons.    

These endeavors have been reinforced by the role African leaders and regional organizations such as the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the Economic Community of West African States, the Southern African Development Community, and the African Union Peacekeeping Mission in Burundi are playing in preventing and resolving conflict in Africa.  Africa’s leadership has reversed a coup d’etat in Sao Tome and Principe in July, played a pivotal role in defusing the conflict in Liberia, provided critical peacekeeping functions in Cote d’Ivoire, is making progress in containing the tensions in Burundi, is helping address the complex, troubling situation in Zimbabwe.  It has played a key role in peace negotiations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  And it is guiding African-led mediation efforts in Sudan that are bearing fruit.

The United States has a deep and continuing commitment to these initiatives in pursuit of peace and security, so essential to the continent's hopes for strong and sustainable economic growth and development.  Thus we are training peacekeepers, performing military education seminars at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, and working with African mediators and sub-regional organizations to enhance their conflict resolution capabilities.

At the same time we are supporting the efforts of Africa’s leaders to stop war and terror on the continent, we are working with those same leaders to expand trade, opportunity and enterprise for the African people.

America already is the world’s largest investor in Africa's economies, but enormous opportunities remain open to us both. Under the historic African Growth and Opportunity Act, the United States is opening its dynamic markets to thousands of products from Africa. This reflects a shared U.S.- NEPAD emphasis on the vital role of trade in economic growth and development, bringing millions of dollars in new investments to Africa’s shores along with thousands of new jobs for African workers.

These new trade and investment linkages benefit not only Africa's trade with the United States, but also economic ties within Africa itself and between Africa and the rest of the world. The fact is that African countries have suffered too long from their relative isolation from the global economy.

We must therefore find ways to overcome the failure of the Cancun Ministerial Meeting to forge a consensus on how to further open the world's markets and take advantage of the promise of market-led, poverty-reducing growth. Literally hundreds of billions of dollars per year in increased income-and the lives that would be improved by that income-are at stake. Ambitious global trade liberalization offers as much promise to Africa as to any other region in the world, perhaps more.

Complementing US trade policies, the President’s Millennium Challenge Account, which is now before the Congress, will make substantially increased resources available to help developing countries that demonstrate, not promise, but demonstrate, a strong commitment to liberty and prosperity for all their people.

The Millennium Challenge Account draws on one of the essential lessons of development: countries prosper when their governments function justly, effectively and transparently.  This requires the rule of law, independent judiciaries and respect for the rights of citizens, including the right to choose their own representatives.

Of course, these elements are integral to Africa’s ability to achieve the vision of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. As President Bush stated earlier this year in South Africa, "NEPAD...can help extend democracy and free markets and transparency across the continent...."  

Indeed, to the extent NEPAD achieves the goals of good governance, our own commitments to African peace, security, trade, and economic development will have greater impact.  So the task now is for African governments to translate NEPAD’s aspirations into specific actions at the national level by: investing in their people; implementing responsible economic policies that foster trade and investment; and being open and accountable in their budget, procurement and tax systems.

Needless to say, we do recognize that even as many African nations accept the responsibility of good government, they also confront extreme challenges in the areas of health, education, and humanitarian relief.

The challenge of implementing ambitious reforms while human survival is in doubt can be overwhelming.  As Africa’s true partner and friend, our commitment to Africa therefore includes: the $15 billion Emergency Plan for AIDS relief and continued United States leadership in the global effort to fight HIV/AIDS; the African Education Initiative, contributing over $200 million in new money combined with existing programs to total $600 million over the next five years for basic education in Africa; and $850 million in emergency assistance to help Africa address its food crises.

Taken all together, we believe that the elements of the United States Government’s policy towards Africa reinforce NEPAD’s affirmation of an African destiny shaped by the wise stewardship of democratically elected African governments.  

Our overarching goal, then, is to fulfill the President’s vision of a “growing strategic relationship” between the continent of Africa and the United States of America.

The shared history, friendship and common values that bind us together demand nothing less.

Mr. President, thank you very much. ###