Press release number: IFAD 17/06

Poverty in Africa is a shame for rich countries, says PM Verhofstadt
President Museveni commends IFAD for its work in rural poverty eradication
IFAD President reiterates rural development key to achieving the MDGs

Rome, 16 February 2005 - Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of Uganda, inaugurated the 28th session of the IFAD’s Governing Council today, commending the organization for its work in Uganda and in other countries around the world.

IFAD helps not only to increase production in rural areas, but it also provides assistance in the processing and marketing of agricultural goods, President Museveni told representatives of IFAD’s 163 member states.

“This is the way to end hunger, famine and poverty,'' he later told reporters at a joint press conference with Guy Verhofstadt, Prime Minister of Belgium, and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD.

Museveni stressed the importance of market access. ''If we produce maize but nobody buys it, in the short run we may be able to feed ourselves. However, without incomes family members may have to shift to towns to look for jobs. Since subsistence farming is based on family labour, it will mean food insecurity instead of food security.''

Museveni praised IFAD for contributing US$ 132.28 million towards rural development in Uganda since 1981. This has supported agricultural reconstruction, cotton and vegetable oil development, agricultural modernization and rural financial services.

In his keynote address, Verhofstadt highlighted the close cooperation between IFAD and Belgium – particularly through the Belgian Survival Fund (BSF), created by the Belgian Government 20 years ago to help finance projects that address the needs of African populations threatened by famine, malnutrition and poverty. BSF has since provided approximately US$ 135 million in grants to 38 IFAD-supported projects in 15 countries throughout Africa. Five of these projects have taken place in Uganda, including the Uganda Women's Effort to Save Orphans (UWESO) project, founded by Janet Museveni, Uganda's First Lady. UWESO is a non-governmental organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for thousands of Ugandan children orphaned by war, AIDS and other calamities.

Verhofstadt regretted that the challenges of poverty still loom as large as ever. The number of children dying every year from starvation has increased from 9 million to 11 million. The number of people suffering from malnutrition has increased from 500 million to 800 million.

Agricultural development is crucial to achieving the Millennium Development Goals, said Verhofstadt. “For instance, real progress in basic education will never be secured with empty stomachs.''

''Poverty in Africa is a shame for rich countries,'' Verhofstadt told reporters at the joint press conference.

Earlier, he told Governing Council delegates that fulfilling official development assistance commitments is critical. Thirty-five years ago, industrialized countries pledged to allocate 0.7 percent of their GDP to development cooperation.

To date, only five countries have achieved this target, he said. The OECD average stood at 0.3 percent in 2003.

''It is my firm intention to put the Millennium Development Goals and in particular, poverty in Africa, among the top priorities of the new strategic agenda of Europe and the United States,'' said Verhofstadt.

In his opening address to the Governing Council session, Lennart Båge, President of IFAD commended the work that many developing countries are doing locally to end poverty and reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Båge cited the growing support for more rapid rural development as particularly promising.

“In the past decade, the development community has not placed a great deal of attention on rural development,” he said. “The time is ripe to redress the balance.”

As the only international organization dedicated to eradicating poverty in rural areas of the developing world, IFAD has a unique ability “to reach the unreached and amplify the voice of the voiceless,” said Båge.

Yet only one-third of 1 per cent of official development assistance is channelled through IFAD.

“In light of the MDG challenge, are these the right priorities?” Båge asked delegates from IFAD’s 163 member states, including ministers of finance, agriculture and rural development.

Båge reported that IFAD’s programme of work had increased by 28 per cent in the last three years – reaching a record level of US$ 500 million.

“I am pleased to be able to say that IFAD is reaching more rural poor people than ever before,” he said.

IFAD works with governments and rural communities to improve equitable access to land, water and other natural resources, increase access to technology, financial services and markets, and strengthen the capacity of rural poor people and their organizations.

Båge highlighted the important role that partnerships play in IFAD’s work. In addition to working with its sister UN agencies in Rome – the Food and Agricultural Organization and the World Food Programme – other UN organizations, the World Bank and other multilateral financial and research institutions, IFAD has a number of strong partnerships within civil society and the private sector.

Båge’s statement followed addresses from the President of Uganda, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, and the Prime Minister of Belgium, Guy Verhofstadt.

The Governing Council is IFAD’s highest decision-making authority. The Council’s annual meeting serves as a forum to decide on a variety of administrative, budget and policy matters concerning IFAD.

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IFAD is a specialized agency of the United Nations dedicated to eradicating rural poverty in developing countries. Seventy-five per cent of the world's poorest people – 900 million women, children and men – live in rural areas and depend on agriculture and related activities for their livelihoods. Through low-interest loans and grants, IFAD works with governments to develop and finance programmes and projects that enable rural poor people to overcome poverty themselves.

There are close to 200 ongoing IFAD-supported rural poverty eradication programmes and projects, totaling US$ 6.5 billion. IFAD has invested about US$ 3 billion in these initiatives. Co-financing has been provided by governments, beneficiaries, multilateral and bilateral donors and other partners. At full development, these programmes will help more than 100 million rural poor women and men to achieve better lives for themselves and their families. Since starting operations in 1978, IFAD has invested US$ 8.5 billion in 676 projects and programmes that have helped more than 250 million poor rural men and women achieve better lives for themselves and their families.