DC, EJS and the HLP

David Cameron was in Liberia on Friday on the last leg of his African tour. While in Algeria and Libya his focus was how Britain and the international community deals with extremism, in Liberia it was poverty which I would argue is a greater threat to peace and stability, not just in Africa but across the world. Poor people are hungry people, people without access to education, clean water, health care, people who see their children die of diseases which wouldn't kill them if they lived in the West. Extremists of any persuasion like poor people because they are easy pickings. We have to do something to tackle global poverty. And that is what Cameron was doing in Monrovia.

He is co-chair, along with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Liberian President Ellen Sirleaf Johnson (ESJ) of a high level panel of "eminent persons" (HLP) convened by UN Secretary General to agree the global development priorities to succeed the Millennium Development Goals.  

The theme of the Monrovia meeting was putting in the national building blocks for sustained prosperity. In Liberia and indeed most of the rest of Africa this means short- and medium-term foreign support so that long-term Africa can stand on its own two feet. Because no matter what those opposed to the concept of international development would have you believe, no African country, or in fact any country, wants to be aid-dependent.

This is why it is significant that ESJ is co-chairing the Panel. She is having a direct impact on the development priorities the world sets itself. She can and will ensure that the priorities of Africa and Africans are properly reflected.

ESJ knows well that countries like Liberia need help to get in place the basic infrastructure upon which its future prosperity is dependent. The civil war destroyed the national grid, the road network, the ports. Without these crops don’t get to market, children don’t get to school, the sick don’t get healthcare, goods don’t get traded. The formal economy is stifled, taxable income is suppressed, countries remain poor. Ok, I know it is a bit more complicated than that but not much.   

So Liberia needs help now to help it not need help in the future. It is doing what it can but can’t do it on its own. And why should we give help? Well I could write at length about theories of under-development and the role of the developed world in the impoverishment of Africa but I think it is simpler than that.

• We can: we can afford it no matter what those opposed to it tell you
• It will have a real impact: done effectively it is a short-term investment that will be transformational
• It is better for us: poor people are vulnerable not just to disease but to the allure of extremists and instability Africa is not good for anyone
• We should: it is the right thing to do

I hope that Cameron enjoyed his visit to Liberia. It would be great if he fell in love with it as I have, but at the very least I hope he has returned with a strong commitment to do the right thing and supports EJS, Liberia and Africa. 

Monrovia bound

So, here I am again, I am sitting in Brussels airport en route to Liberia. And once again I have just left another job. I realise the “I am going to do a stint in Liberia” fast risks becoming a euphemism for “unemployed” but rest assured it isn’t.

Anyway it is Easter Sunday, the airport is deserted and I have yet to break my Lenten fast – that is to say I haven’t eaten any chocolate yet. Despite the very early hour, I do want to but it turns out even though I am in the home of chocolate, the only product on offer in the transfer lounge is a giant Toberlone. I just don’t think even after 40 days of abstention I am ready for “triangular chocolate from triangular trees and triangular honey from triangular bees”.

I am very excited to be returning to Monrovia. I fell in love with the place last summer and am looking forward to catching up with all the remarkable people in the administration of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf that I met last time. It is an amazing country which is making rapid strides after years of the most brutal civil war and I am proud to be playing a part, albeit a tiny one, in helping it recover and thrive.

A quick look at the BBC website weather page tells me that it is hot and wet there so the Joseph barnet will be in full ’fro mode. There will be no photos.

Happy Easter

(Once again Brussels airport's promise of free wifi was not fulfilled, so this is coming to you direct from Monrovia where there is wifi and it is hot and sticky - more soon)

Liberia - the adventure begins

So first impressions - hot, sticky, damp. I have arrived in the middle of the heaviest rainy season for years. It is a bit like being in a Somerset Maughan story.

The country is still recovering from years of a brutal civil war. The first President to be elected democratically and fairly, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, came into power in January 2003 and her government is desperately trying to rebuild the country. The challenges are huge to say the least. Roads, power and clean water are still in short supply, especially outside the capital. They need more medical workers, more teachers, more professionals across the board. The process of reconciliation and nation building is necessarily slow. People needs jobs. But based on my first hours in the country, it would appear that they have hope. And that has to be a good foundation.