30 November 2008
Doha — Mozambican Prime Minister Luisa Diogo believes that, despite the current international crisis, foreign aid will continue to flow to developing countries.
Speaking to the Mozambican journalists who are accompanying her to the International Conference on Development Finance in Doha, Diogo noted that Mozambique has benefited from increasing volumes of foreign aid.
"In 2007, we received 1.6 billion US dollars, this year we are receiving 1.7 billion, and in 2009 we envisage receiving more than 1.8 billion", she said. These sums, however, did not meet the needs of the country's development programmes, and should therefore be increased.
The annual rise in the aid channeled to Mozambique, in Diogo's view, showed that the industrialised nations are continuing to support those countries that show they are serious in their programmes and are committed to the well-being of their peoples.
"Mozambique has helped itself through its seriousness in implementing reforms, programmes and projects", she said. "That's why we are recording an annual growth rate of seven per cent. We said at the conference that we need more resources so that we can continue presenting better results".
Diogo was confident that that the Doha meeting will result in a consensus favourable to developing countries, and that will touch on the need for the rich counties of the world to continue efforts to provide more development aid.
Speeches on the first day of the Conference were unanimous in declaring that the international financial crisis must not be used as a pretext to interrupt debt relief initiatives or halt direct foreign investment, a theme that was central to the intervention made by Diogo.
"We are optimistic about the results of this conference", she said, "because it's clear from the debates that everything done to develop one country does not benefit only that country, but all other countries as well".
Diogo added that solving the current financial crisis must involve serious macro-economic and financial management in the rich counties themselves. She thought it made no sense for the World Bank and the IMF to make rigorous demands of developing countries, while remaining silent about the unfolding financial disaster in the developing world.
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