Developed Countries Morally Obliged to Aid Africa, Russia’s UN Envoy Says
Russia’s Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia speaks during a United Nations (UN) general assembly meeting following the Russian security council veto at UN headquarters in New York City on October 10, 2022
InternationalIndiaAfricaEarlier in March, during a UN General Assembly meeting, Russian Mission Counsellor to the UN Dina Gilmutdinova said that African nations’ voices must be heard, stressing that even though colonial powers lost their status ages ago, they still behave as though they are other countries’ or even regions’ overseers.Developed countries are morally obliged to help African nations, Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN and the Security Council Vassily Nebenzia said during a Security Council session, dedicated to ensuring peace and stability on the African continent.
"We proceed from the fact that providing material and technical assistance to African states is the moral obligation of developed countries, and many of them owe much of their well-being to the resources siphoned off of the continent," Nebenzia stressed.
According to the diplomat, developed countries are still not following through on their obligations to provide African countries with development assistance.
"At the same time, developed countries have still not fulfilled the commitments they made half a century ago to bring official development assistance to 0.7% of GNP [Gross Natural Product]," he stated. "In 2021, this figure was only 0.33%.That is, developing countries may be seeing a shortfall of at least $200 billion in non-repayable aid annually."
AfricaUN Security Council Cannot Remain ‘Frozen in the Past’ as Africa Demands Changes19 November 2022, 16:31 GMTThe United Nations set a target for countries to spend 0.7% of their gross national income (GNI) on official development assistance (ODA), according to a UN resolution dating back to October 24, 1970.The ODA is a category seen as the gold standard for foreign aid, used in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for promoting the economic development and well-being of developing countries.Nebenzia noted that the international community should contribute to the African continent’s development, so that “the benefits of economic progress are shared equitably.”
"Many African countries – whether they have endured conflict or not – need support through the transfer of technology and expertise, the development of industry and the agricultural sector, infrastructure reconstruction, job creation, strengthening health and social protection systems," Nebenzya outlined.
The Russian diplomat stressed that such international support should be provided “exclusively with the consent of the host [African] government, according to its priorities and with respect for its sovereignty.”
"It is unacceptable for donors to make aid conditional on the fulfillment of political requirements or to link it to human rights situations or other arbitrary factors," Nebenzya emphasized. "[…] We believe that it is the political resolution of the conflict and the stabilization of the security situation as well as the transition to sustainable development that lay the foundation for remedying the human rights situation and building democratic institutions in a particular country, and not vice versa," the diplomat insisted.
AfricaUS Using Intrusive Approach to South Sudan, Russia’s UN Security Council Representative Says16 March, 13:31 GMTIn November 2022, the United Nations General Assembly concluded talks on reforming the Security Council, where many concurred on the need for modernization, with African representatives actively calling for making the body more inclusive.Russian Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Vassily Nebenzia has repeatedly stated that the composition of the UN Security Council (UNSC) does not reflect either the number of states in Africa or the continent’s role globally.
