UN General Assembly can galvanize support for African development, President says

Support for the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) can be mobilized during a General Assembly session on the initiative slated for September, the President of the UN body told a summit meeting in Senegal today.

"I believe that this high-level meeting will be an invaluable opportunity for the 189 Member States, both developed and developing, of the United Nations to galvanize their political will in support of NEPAD," said Han Seung-soo of the Republic of Korea in an address to a three-day meeting in Dakar.

The President noted that increasingly, the consequences of the deteriorating situation in the continent were being felt not just by Africans, but also by people and governments throughout the world.

"To promote the economic development of Africa, the political leadership and commitment of the African leaders is of critical importance," Mr. Han stressed, while calling on all countries, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and civil society to combine their efforts to bring hope and development to Africa.

Mr. Han arrived in Senegal after visiting with government officials and UN representatives in Ghana, Sierra Leone and Gambia. In addition to reviewing the UN's social, economic and peacekeeping activities in the region, the President has been focusing on ways to promote development, combat HIV/AIDS and alleviate poverty, his spokesman told a press briefing in New York.

"Coming from the Republic of Korea, a country which in a relatively short period has risen out of poverty, he feels that there may be lessons he can share with African leaders," Jan Fischer said.

While in Sierra Leone, Mr. Han witnessed the work of the UN peacekeeping operation, known as UNAMSIL, and in Gambia, he visited UN project sites. The Assembly President was also expected to meet with Senegalese leaders, UN officials and with President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria before ending his visit to Africa on Thursday evening, the spokesman said.