Secretary-General addresses High Level UN Meeting

The Commonwealth and Africa are "joined at the hip", Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma said on 22 September 2008 at a United Nations High Level Meeting on Africa's Development Needs, in New York.

Stressing the significance of the relationship, he reminded participants that 18 of the Commonwealth's 53 member states were from Africa. "Indeed, it is a sign that the first diplomatic act for many African countries after gaining independence, was to join the Commonwealth," he said.

The round table event - attended by heads of state, ministers, diplomats and NGOs - took place during the 63rd General Assembly, which had earlier opened in New York. Its focus was on Africa and progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Mr Sharma said that although many people perceived governance and development as parallel tracks, "they were really two sides of the same coin".

And he noted that the quality of a nation's governance policies and institutions was reflected in the outcome of its development and social agenda. "The three elements of this agenda are the influx of resources, the use of resources and the creation of resources. All three should be balanced," he said.

But the development and social agenda must not neglect the element of young people: "They are the real target group for advancement," he said. “Youth make up 60 per cent of Africa's population and we ignore their needs and aspirations at our peril.”

Mr Sharma called for a focus on technical and vocational training and for microfinance to become available for young entrepreneurs to "nurture young people as job creators, not job seekers".

It is here that trade and industry agencies have a role in mentoring young people, he said. "Of 100 graduates from college, only 20 will get a job. What policy do we have for the 80 who are left behind?"

The Commonwealth Secretary-General also called for practical measures to support the acceleration of efforts towards achieving the MDGs and asked governments to consider incorporating "social protection" into the MDGs.

The lack of a safety net is a major obstacle to escaping absolute poverty, he said: "Countries need to adopt targeted social protection policies, especially for the chronically poor, who are off any radar system."

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• Millennium Development Goals

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