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UN reforms critical to poverty eradication in Africa, says UK agency
THE proposed reform of the United Nations has been described as critical to poverty eradication programme in Africa and other less developed parts of the world.
The country director noted that the proposed UN reforms are apt, given the cardinal objectives of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which offer the developed countries several opportunities to take fundamental decisions that will alter the pervading imbalance, injustice and increasing poverty in the world.
Igbuzor explained that power imbalance was at the centre of development crisis in the world today, and argued that unless serious efforts were made through the UN platform to correct it, the incidence of under development might never be properly addressed.
"Our analysis tells us that power imbalance between nations is at the root of the development challenge of our time. Power imbalance between nations creates powerful and powerless nations.
"All these lead to violation of rights and prevent people from living indignity. The challenge therefore is to change power relations between and within nations. It is within the context of changing power that the UN Reforms are very important," he added.
The AAIN country director lamented that despite the fact that we are living in an era of tremendous wealth and increased production from technical advancement, incidence of poverty and starvation still persist.
"We are living in a time when 30, 000 children die from preventable disease; 100 million children see their right to primary education denied (with seven million of them in Nigeria) and 800 million people go to bed hungry each night."
In a speech at the occasion, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), Mrs. Chinyere Ukpabi-Asika noted that the NEPAD initiative was the Africa's response to the challenge of development which according to her, is indicative of her desire to make, meaningful impact in all spheres of life for her teeming citizens.
She maintained that for Africa to move ahead in its development strides, there should be greater partnership between Africa and other development countries to pursue a common goal for development to all, while urging civil society organisations to build alliances with the government to address the issue of poverty in the continent.
She noted that the reform process of the UN system as a necessary impetus that will enhance the cardinal goals of the United Nations.
In a presentation at the event, the National President, Political Science Association of Nigeria, Dr. Assis Asobie said that UN is a locale of power politics and this ought to make member nations insist on the democratisation of the global body as a way of making it useful to all.
The university don was of the view that African countries should respond to these challenges in global politics by building homegrown models and templates for development in order to achieve second liberation of the continent.
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