By Njongo Ndungane
CAPE TOWN, Sep 16 2010 (IPS)

In September 2000, the worldÂ’s Heads of State and Government adopted the UN Millennium Declaration. Subsequent to the Declaration numerous international agreements and commitments were made to increase aid and provide debt relief in order to speed up the implementation of the MDGs. African Monitor has been tracking performance on these commitments through the issuance of an annual Development Support Monitor (DSM). The 2010 DSM has just been published.

Delivery on aid commitments have recorded a steady increase from 2004 through 2009, according to the study. While this is a positive trend, it has created a tendency to focus more on aid in terms of the resources needed for the realisation of the MDGs than on other sources. Recent global crises have come as a rude shock to remind us that this was a distortion and huge mistake. While this is worrying, it is also timely and calls attention to the other side of the resource coin.

The DSM implores the continent to focus its eyes beyond aid to the real resources that Africa is richly endowed with.

First of these is its people. By sheer numbers, the continent should be leading global economic recovery and growth. The continent has close to a billion people, the majority of whom are in the young and productive age group. There are hard-working women and energetic youth in their prime. Entrepreneurs from outside the continent view this with glee as “a huge market opportunity” for export of their products. As Africans we need to see this as a huge resource for the realisation of the MDGs -within our own continent we have the human capacity to secure our own dignity.

Unfortunately, investment prioritisation of this incredible resource is not always commensurate with the opportunities it presents. A recent study commissioned by African Monitor for the Southern African Development Community (SADC) noted that while there seems to be support for investment in the productive sector, the share of allocation to sectoral programs directly linked to MDGs such as agriculture, nutrition, health, gender equality and youth employment is low. Take HIV/AIDS as an example. While an estimated 40% of the worldÂ’s people affected by HIV/AIDS live in the SADC, an allocation of only 1.9% of the aid packages go to HIV/AIDS-related programmes.

The UN Secretary General was recently quoted as saying “let us invest in women. This is where we need progress the most…. until women and girls are liberated, poverty and injustice and all that goes with it such as peace, security and sustainable development stand in jeopardy”. Again, investments to these sections of society are not commensurate with need.

Secondly, if we are to become more serious about securing our people’s dignity, the other name for MDGs, we must prioritize the already vibrant and resilient mainstay aspects of the economy –the smallholder farming and informal activities that sustain millions.

Almost without exception more than 70 percent of African people live in rural areas and get their livelihoods from smallholder farming and activities in what is commonly known as the informal sector. The small and medium enterprises, which have significant growth potential to help create a rising middle class, face government-imposed obstacles that make one wonder where the priority of our governments lie. They face red tape and high compliance costs, and lack access to finance and markets, because we prefer to import and consume what we do not produce.

The 2010 DSM and Citizens Consultation on AfricaÂ’s Development Agenda 2010 and Beyond, another African Monitor report chronicling ordinary peoplesÂ’ voices, indicate two things. Firstly, that Africa is not in a hopeless situation. Five major causes of hope and excitement about Africa were identified through CitizenÂ’s Consultations, in stark contrast to the doom, gloom and disaster that is beamed into and out of Africa on a constant basis. Some of these include the creativity, wisdom, and ingenuity among African communities in their fight against poverty. Africa had and still has cultural values and knowledge in science, medicine, technology and agriculture, which can be used for the development of the continent.

Secondly, the two reports cite the enormous contribution that the African Diaspora is making in the transformation of the continent. To date the Diaspora is known for its remittances, which are enormous, having reached US$40billion in 2008, surpassing official development assistance and foreign direct investment. Beyond this, the reports highlight the skill and technological contribution as well as the entrepreneurial and institution building the Diaspora is making. “Just like as it has happened in India and China”, the Citizen Consultation report argues, the “African Diaspora is already beginning to play leading roles in transforming Africa.”

These entrepreneurs are promoting a new culture of private sector innovation that is reinvigorating African economies and entrenching positive social capital conducive to democracy and civility. This has not been the business of guest commercial entities. To realize the twin aspirations of development and good governance, we should create an enabling environment to attract back African entrepreneurs and capital.

Finally, raising funds to bridge the resource gap without closing the leaking tap is like pouring water into a bucket full of holes. Of course some of this outflow is legitimate -business and rich people taking their money out in order to manage risk for example. However, the bulk of the loss is illicit -individuals and large corporations, in particular using illegal invoicing measures to conceal profits or to evade taxes, facilitated and maintained by the presence of tax havens in rich countries where secrecy prevails.

Africa is haemorrhaging, the severity of which may be the primary cause for AfricaÂ’s failure to make sufficient progress in reducing poverty and meeting the MDGs. Other causes, such as broken donor promises, are important but surely they are only secondary.

The volume of these resources is staggering and on the upward trend -I am horrified by the statistics in our 2010 DSM. Attend to this and we are on the trajectory to the full realisation of MDGs. The two reports (see www.africanmonitor.org) present concrete proposals as to how to go about this. (END/COPYRIGHT IPS)

(*) Archbishop Njongo Ndungane is President and Founder of African Monitor. This article is based on two recently published reports on making MDGs attainable and their outcomes sustainable (info@africanmonitor.org).

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