US embassy cable - 05PRETORIA1228

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRETORIA 001228 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID, ETRD, EFIN, SF 
SUBJECT: Commission for Africa: Secretariat Briefs G8 
and EU Representatives 
 
REF: A) London 2062 B) Pretoria 966 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED; PROTECT ACCORDINGLY.  NOT 
FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION. 
 
1.  (SBU)  Summary.  Head of the Secretariat of the 
Commission for Africa described the Commission's 
recommendations as well received.  Africa is making 
progress, which leads to opportunities to work toward 
the Millennium Development Goals.  The international 
community needs to provide more resources.  The 
Commission's goal is to build an unstoppable 
coalition behind the report and get maximum support 
at the G8 summit.  End Summary. 
 
2.  (SBU)  Myles Wickstead, Head of the Secretariat 
of the Commission for Africa, told Pretoria-based 
representatives of the G8 and the EU March 16 that he 
was pleased with the favorable responses to the 
Commission's Report: it was viewed as a serious 
report.  The Commission would use the time period 
leading to the G8 Summit and the UK EU Presidency to 
gain endorsement from donors and the international 
community for the report's recommendations.  The 
Commission believes the report could help change the 
nature of the relationship between developing and 
developed countries. 
 
3.  (SBU)  Wickstead described the report's 
recommendations are a package.  Africa must do its 
part.  Africa, he said, is making progress: NEPAD and 
the AU are examples.  There are fewer conflicts. 
This progress leads to opportunities to work toward 
the Millennium Development Goals, particularly in 
health, education and agriculture.  African leaders 
see the report as an opportunity. 
 
4.  (SBU)  Wickstead stated that the international 
community needs to provide more resources to Africa 
and donors need to coordinate better to use their 
resources more efficiently.  Tied aid should go. 
Wickstead said the report emphasized infrastructure 
because it is a key constraint on development.  The 
lack of infrastructure restricts trade among African 
countries that is essential for growth.  The private 
sector had failed to provide the funds for 
infrastructure development; therefore, the Commission 
believes that donors and African governments must 
assume this responsibility.  Debt also constrains 
development, and donors must move to eliminate it. 
Africa needs an international arms trade treaty to 
control conflict, and countries should also sign the 
UN Convention Against Corruption.  Wickstead 
emphasized that the Commission's views and 
recommendations are not necessarily those of the 
British government.  In some ways, they differ; e.g., 
the repatriation of assets in UK banks. 
 
5.  (SBU)  The Commission's goal is to build an 
unstoppable coalition behind the report.  It wants to 
get maximum support at G8 summit.  He hopes the 
summit will deliver on all the commission's 
recommendations.  He acknowledged that not all G8 
members will agree to all recommendations, but he 
hoped that between them they could endorse all the 
recommendations.  The Commission, for example, knows 
that the U.S. will not support the International 
Financing Facility but hopes that the U.S. could 
double its funding commitment to the Millennium 
Challenge Account.  Wickstead said PM Blair would 
want maximum buy-in for the Commission's report at 
the G8 Summit. 
 
6.  (SBU)  Wickstead observed that the Commission had 
received positive responses in December from G8 
capitals to its draft report.  He had been pleased 
that consultations with G8 members had focused on 
areas of agreement rather than differences.  He said 
the Commission would have more discussions in 
capitals over the next three months. 
 
7.  (SBU)  During a discussion following Wickstead's 
presentation, the EU representative noted that the 
emphasis on infrastructure harkened back to 
development philosophy of 30 years ago.  Wickstead 
agreed and observed that perhaps the development 
pendulum had swung too far towards social 
development.  Asked how African governments could 
show results, Wickstead said they could, for example, 
show that corruption is not acceptable.  More 
countries need to sign up to the APRM. 
 
8.  (SBU)  On the relationship between the 
Commission's Report and the report of the African 
Personnel Representatives, Wickstead said the Africa 
Partnership Forum could be the mechanism to follow 
through on the report's recommendations.  In response 
to the French representative's observation that 
development and climate should be linked, Wickstead 
said that while the report contained a section on 
climate change, there was no formal link.  He said PM 
Blair made this decision but offered reason why. 
FRAZER