Global Marshall Plan Initiative - Newsletter 02/2005

 

    1. Achieving the Millennium Development Goals
    2. Mandela backs plan for a Marshall Plan for Africa
    3. World Economic Forum
        a) Meet development challenges through PPP
        b) "Taking responsibility for tough choices"
        c) "Is the world failing itself?"
    4. EU seen as vital to MDGs
    5. EU supports global war on poverty
    6. World Social Forum
        a) Manifesto of Porto Alegre
        b) Global Call to action against poverty launched
    7. Events
    8. Press room

1. Achieving the Millennium Development Goals

On January 17th, Jeffrey Sachs, head of the UN Millennium Project, published the report "Investing in Development: A Practical Plan to achive the Milliennium Development Goals". The Millennium Project is an independant advisory body to Kofi Annan on the Millennium Development Goals. In it 265 development experts have worked together to develop strategies on how to reach the MDGs. The report includes 10 key recommendations on how to achieve them.

- overview (97-pages, pdf, 1.2 MB)

press release by RUNIC (Regional United Nations Information Center for Western Europe)
- English (pdf, 270 kB)
- German (pdf, 120 kB)
- French (pdf, 250 kB)
- Italian (pdf, 130 kB)


2. Mandela backs plan for a Marshall Plan for Africa

Nelson Mandela welcomes the idea of a Marshall Plan for Africa as brought up by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown. Despite his retirement, he held a speach in support of the Make Poverty History campaign in London on February 3rd, 2005.
- article in English
- article in German


3. World Economic Forum
       a) Meet development challenges through private public partnership (PPP)

A study conducted by the WEF's (World Economic Forum) Global Corporation Citizenship Initiative shows that 9 out of 10 surveyed CEOs feel that partnership between business, government and civil society must play a role in addressing todays key development challenges.
- WEF press release (pdf, 60 kB)


       b) "Taking Responsibility for Tough Choices"

This is the motto of the World Economic Forum's 2005 Annual Meeting. On the opening day, January 26th, world leaders focused on "tough issuses" facing the world today. They identified peace, poverty, political stability, trade liberalization and climate change as the biggest challenges. The speeches held throughout the meeting reflect that these issuses are on top of the agenda in the areas of politics and business alike.

Jacques Chirac, President of France, pointed out that the participation of the corporate sector was 'crucial' in order to battle poverty. He called for more financial resources to be allocated to common challenges and proposed a voluntary tax for raising them.
- Speech by Jacques Chirac

Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair outlined his commitment to the double challenge of poverty in Africa and climate change as president of the upcoming G8 Summit. While the challenge of Africa is universally acknowledged, he said, the danger of climate change is still being debated.
- Speech by Tony Blair

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder urged rich nations to grant developing countries better market access and to eliminate agricultural subsidies, punitive excise duties and protective clauses. He agreed with a proposal of the United Kindom to increase the funding required to meet the Millennium Developement Goals through the creation of an International Finance Facility, something he said Germany is prepared to support during the United Kingdom's Presidency of the G8 Summit. He, moreover, supported taxation on cross-border speculative finacial transactions, as proposed by French President Jacques Chirac at the Annual Meeting.
- Speech (in German) by Gerhard Schroeder


       c) "Is the World Failing Itself?"

"Five years ago, 189 countries and their leaders made solemn promises to solve global problems such as poverty and hunger, human rights and environmental protection. But the release of the second Annual Report 2005 by the World Economic Forum's Global Governance Initiative makes shockingly clear, that the leaders are breaking their promises. The world remains far off track to achieve its most important goals. Although the responsibility of achieving global goals rests primarily with governments, the report argues that the goals cannot be reached without the active participation of the private sector." (Source: www.weforum.org)

- Annual Report 2005 (pdf, 800 kB)
- Executive Summary (pdf, 70 kB)


4. EU seen as vital to MDGs

"If the European Union says let's get on with achieving the goals, there's a real chance for a reponse from the rest of the world," Jeffrey Sachs, director of the United Nations Millennium Project told IPS (Jan. 18).
Read the whole article.


5. EU supports global war on poverty

"The fight against poverty and the achivement of the Millennium Development Goals are on top of its [the EU's] political agenda for 2005 and the years to come."
Europa Newsletter No. 49 (published by the European Commission)


6. World Social Forum
       a) Manifesto of Porto Alegre

19 high-profile activists, among them two Nobel Price laureats, produced a consensus for the World Social Foum asking other participants to sign it. It is, however, not an official document and is a devination from the forum's horizontal and open-space concept. The signatories' demands include debt cancellation, adoption of a Tobin tax on financial transfers, dismantling of tax havens, the promotion of equitable forms of trade, the implementation of anti-discrimination policies against minorities and females, and democratisation of international organisations.
The first signatories to the Manifesto include Aminata Traoré, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, Eduardo Galeano, José Saramago, François Houtart, Boaventura de Sousa Santos, Armand Mattelart, Roberto Savio, Riccardo Petrella, Ignacio Ramonet, Bernard Cassen, Samir Amin, Atilio Boron, Samuel Ruiz Walden Bello, Immanuel Wallerstein.
- manifesto in French (pdf, 50 kB)
- manifesto in Spanish (pdf, 50 kB)


       b) Global Call to Action Agains Poverty launched

The Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP) was launched on January 27th at the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The worldwide alliance of hundreds of organisations is the biggest ever global mobilization to hold governments accountable for the promises they made to eradicate poverty. At the forum, Brazilian President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, expressed his solidarity and support for the global call.
- more information


7. Events

15.02.2005
14:00, Berlin
"Politik der Vernunft. Der Marshallplan als Denkanstoß für die heutige Zeit"
Podiumsdiskussion im Rahmen der Berlinale
Veranstalter: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung
- Weitere Informationen

19.02.2005
10:00 - 17:00
Was können wir Augsburger Bürger tun, um eine ausgewogene und gerechte Welt zu erreichen?
Open Space Workshop mit Vortrag von Prof. DDr. Franz Josef Radermacher, Club of Rome
Veranstalter: WJ, ASU/BJU, AIESEC, Lokale Agenda 21, Interquality Service AG
- Weitere Informationen (pdf, 230 kB)

10.03.2005
19:30, Innsbruck
Kaiser-Leopold-Saal der Universität, Karl Rahner Platz 1
Global Marshall Plan - Ein Programm für die Zukunft? Vortrag mit anschließender Diskussion.
Veranstalter: Welthaus Innsbruck, Grüne Bildungswerkstatt Tirol, Haus der Begegnung, Südwind Tirol, Theologische Fakultät Innsbruck
- Weitere Informationen (pdf, 25 kB)

11.03.2005
9:00 bis 13:00 Uhr, Innsbruck
Auf dem Weg zur Globalen Gerechtigkeit - Europa als Vorreiter eines Globalen Marshall Plans. Seminar.
Veranstalter:Welthaus Innsbruck, Grüne Bildungswerkstatt Tirol, Haus der Begegnung, Südwind Tirol, Theologische Fakultät Innsbruck
- Weitere Informationen (pdf, 25 kB)


8. Press room

Articles in German

Sonnenseite, 16.01.2005
"Gebt ihnen Fischernetze, keine Fische"
Franz Alt

Welt am Sonntag, 09.01.2005
"Wir erleben die erste globalisierte Hilfsaktion"
Der Bestsellerautor Franz Alt über die Entwicklungspolitik nach der Flut






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