RIYADH, 20 February — Saudi Arabia has agreed to assist the multi-billion dollar development and reconstruction plan of the African states called "Millennium Africa Recovery Program". This was announced here yesterday following wide-ranging talks between Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, and the visiting South African President Thabo Mbeki.
Referring to the topics discussed by Prince Abdullah and Mbeki, South African Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad said the crown prince assured assistance for the Africa reconstruction plan. He said the Southern African Development Community (SADC), a regional grouping of 13 African states, had been seeking the support of the Gulf countries to the plan.
Ministerial-level talks held in conjunction with Mbeki's visit focused on a range of bilateral, regional and international issues including the commercial relations, trade and investment, visa restrictions, cooperation in oil, petrochemical and defense sectors, technical and scientific cooperation and Middle East and African conflict resolution.
The two countries have great potential for mutual commercial development. The SADC with a market of 145 million people has one of the world's highest concentrations of mineral deposits -- making it a leading global investment destinations. Riyadh and Pretoria have already initiated 19 joint projects and the two-way trade exceeds $1.8 billion annually.
Referring to the support of the Gulf states for the Millennium Africa Recovery Program, Pahad said South Africa, Nigeria and Algeria have been mandated by the Organization of African Unity to work out the details of the recovery program and to negotiate the funding. He said that Pretoria would try to attract private sector investments from the Gulf countries especially in the framework of the recovery program.
He added that the OAU will hold a meeting in Libya on March 1 to evaluate the staggering cost of the development and reconstruction plan. President Mbeki, he said, would leave Riyadh for Mali today for talks with Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and Algerian President Abdul Aziz Afewerki and to seek the support of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank for the reconstruction of Africa.
The Millennium Africa Recovery Program argues for the developed world and aid-giving countries to reward Africans for democracy and good governance with increased investment and debt relief. The heads of the IMF and the World Bank arrived in Mali yesterday at the start of the week-long tour of African countries. Horst Koehler, IMF managing director, and James Wolfensohn, president of the World Bank, are seeking solutions for Africa's economic malaise.
