Italy and France are donating only a fraction of $8 billion in aid they pledged to help health, education and development in Africa, a prominent anti-poverty group said Thursday.
The G-8 _ the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Canada and Russia _ laid out ambitious plans at a 2005 meeting in Gleneagles, Scotland to increase aid to sub-Saharan Africa by $25 billion a year by 2010, more than doubling the 2004 level of aid. Each country, except for Russia, set targets to meet by 2010.
But ONE, an advocacy group supported by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and celebrity activist Bob Geldof, said the G-8 has little hope of achieving its goals. Speaking at the report's launch in London, Geldof lashed the Italian government _ the host of next month's G-8 summit in L'Aquila _ for barely making a dent in its share of the aid increase.
"What is the legitimacy of this crowd of shysters to run the G-8?" Geldof said, scowling as he held up a card showing that Italy's current aid spending covered only 3 percent of the extra $3.5 billion it promised.
ONE said France, whose empire once covered swathes of the continent, has only delivered on 7 percent of the additional $5.2 billion it promised to African countries.
"We expected more of France given the historical and cultural links to Africa," said Jamie Drummond, ONE's executive director.
However he noted that the French are active in other fields, such as the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Drummond called Italy's performance "an utter failure."
Italy's Foreign Minister Foreign Minister Franco Frattini told The Associated Press that his country was trying to meet its international aid commitments, although he did not go into detail.
"We will confirm also our financial commitments, I don't know whether at the margins of the G-8 or before the end of 2009, but in any case we will confirm all of them," he said. "They are encouraging and urging Italy to do more. I accept encouragement."
On Wednesday, Italy's Premier Silvio Berlusconi said leaders in certain African countries had funneled aid into their own Swiss bank accounts rather than use it to help their people.
ONE had qualified praise for other members of the G-8, including Canada and Japan, which had already surpassed their relatively modest multimillion dollar targets, as well as the U.S., which had so-far made good on 70 percent of the extra $4.4 billion pledged.
Britain and Germany were also doing well, although ONE said Germany would have to ramp up its aid effort to meet its $6.5 billion goal.
ONE said that the French and Italian shortfall _ which so-far comes to more than $8 billion _ mean the G-8 is at risk of defaulting on the promise it set in Scotland, coming up with only two-thirds of the promised increase.
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On the Net:
http://www.one.org/
