Zimbabwe, suspicious of the West which is critical of its human rights record, this week joined other African nations which are mapping out an economic rescue blueprint for the continent that is backed by the West and is anchored on good governance.
But as the Africa Economic Summit kicked off in South Africa’s port city of Durban Wednesday, analysts warned Zimbabwe’s government it either had to wholeheartedly embrace the key tenets of the new economic revival plan or face heightened international censure, even from its African allies.
The analysts said the June 5-7 summit, sponsored by the World Economic Forum, stood ready to approve plans which outlaw bad governance in Africa in return for massive Western aid of US$64 billion annually to pull the world’s poorest continent out of its grinding under-development and poverty.
Dubbed the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the rescue plan is being championed by several African leaders, including South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki, Nigeria’s Olusegun Obasanjo and Senegal’s Abdoulaye Wade.
But as the Africa Economic Summit kicked off in South Africa’s port city of Durban Wednesday, analysts warned Zimbabwe’s government it either had to wholeheartedly embrace the key tenets of the new economic revival plan or face heightened international censure, even from its African allies.
The analysts said the June 5-7 summit, sponsored by the World Economic Forum, stood ready to approve plans which outlaw bad governance in Africa in return for massive Western aid of US$64 billion annually to pull the world’s poorest continent out of its grinding under-development and poverty.
Dubbed the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the rescue plan is being championed by several African leaders, including South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki, Nigeria’s Olusegun Obasanjo and Senegal’s Abdoulaye Wade.