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26th summit of 'Group of Eight' concludes |
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July 24, 2000
NAGO (AP) - The Group of Eight industrial nations ended their 26th summit on Sunday by saying the world economy is reaching unprecedented levels of prosperity but that it must be shared with the Third World by relieving some of its debts. "The 20th century has achieved unprecedented economic progress. Yet the financial and economic crises of the past few years have presented enormous challenges for the world economy," the final communique said. "The 21st century must be a century of prosperity for all." The leaders praised the recovery of Asian economies from their financial crisis three years ago, noting that "trade is expanding and indeed some countries have achieve dynamic growth." But it said efforts must focus on maintaining the momentum behind financial and corporate reforms, transparency in the public and private sectors, and strengthening social safety nets. The communique said the G-8 must work harder to provide debt relief for the world's many struggling developing economies. "We must for our part promote more responsible lending and borrowing practices to ensure that (poor countries) will not again be burdened by unsupportable debt," the leaders said in the communique. Relieving the debt of the world's poorest countries was a major topic throughout the three-day summit. Although the G-8 members had agreed earlier on measures to reduce and forgive debt, many critics say the program has been too slow and bogged down in bureaucracy. Another major topic was health. In the final communique the leaders vowed to reduce by the year 2010 the number of HIV-infected young people by 25 percent, tuberculosis deaths by 50 percent, the burden of diseases associated with malaria by 50 percent. The communique also urged the World Trade Organization to hold another round of talks during the course of this year, with an ambitious, balanced and inclusive agenda. It said the WTO, whose meeting was interrupted by protests in Seattle last year, must continue its "vital role in the world economy." Another issue at the G-8 summit involved concerns over genetically modified food by consumers in areas such as Western Europe. The statement said the group is committed to continued efforts to make companies and governments responsive to the growing public awareness of food safety issues. The G-8 also said it would set up a task force to "bridge the international information and knowledge divide" between rich and poor countries by increasing access to the Internet for people in the developing world. The main points of the communique issued Sunday at the G-8 summit of top industrialized countries and Russia:
WORLD ECONOMY Praised the recent growth of the global economy, but pledged to concentrate on tackling the root causes of poverty. Called for reforms to expand investment in developing countries, ensure sustainable growth, prevent instability strengthen competition and make labor markets more flexible. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Expansion of information technology has great potential to spur economic growth, but wealthy countries should try to maximize the benefits and ensure they are open to all. DEBT FORGIVENESS Total debt relief for highly indebted countries should amount to more than dlrs 15 billion. Indebted contries need further reforms to reduce poverty, while richer countries should promote lending and borrowing practices to prevent further debt crises. HEALTH Called on all nations, international groups and industry to reduce the number of HIV/AIDS infected young people by 25 percent by 2010, reduce tuberculosis deaths by 50 percent by 2010 and reduce the burden of disease associated with malaria by 50 percent by 2010. EDUCATION Committed to achieve universal primary education by 2015 and gender equality in schooling by 2005. WTO The World Trade Organization needs to address the concerns of developing country members. Backed a new round of WTO trade negotiations this year with a "balanced and inclusive" agenda to open markets, strengthen WTO rules and support economic growth in developing nations. ENVIRONMENT Urged close cooperation to implement Kyoto Protocol to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases blamed for global warming. Called for creation of a task force to encourage use of renewable energy sources in developing countries. NUCLEAR SAFETY Set goal of developing an international financing plan to handle and dispose of weapons-grade plutonium for the next summit. Also pledged to work to increase international contributions to destruction of Russian chemical weapons. TERRORISM The group expressed concern at the increasing number of terrorist acts, particularly the terrorist threat coming from the Afghan territory under control of the hard-line Taliban regime. |