African leaders met in London on Tuesday to discuss how to turn agreements on assistance for the continent into action. In the two-day session, the African Partnership Forum will look at how to monitor the delivery of promises on aid and debt relief made by members of the G-8 group of the world's leading industrialized nations at a summit at Gleneagles, Scotland, in July. International Development Secretary Hilary Benn, who is hosting the meeting, said the G-8 plans, which received the backing of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund last month, would deliver up to US$55 billion dollars (30 million pounds, ¤45 million) of debt relief for the poorest African countries. "What we now need to do is turn the commitments on increased aid and debt relief into resources that Africa can rely upon," Benn told British Broadcasting Corp. radio. "What the Forum meeting is about is making sure we hold each other to account for the commitments each side has entered into." "It's not just about the donors. It's also about the real commitments Africa has made to take responsibility for its own future, to promote good governance, tackle corruption and so on." Benn said Britain is committing US$150 billion dollars (83 million pounds; ¤124 million) to a humanitarian fund to ensure cash was available to deal with emergencies like the recent Niger famine, as well as backing a finance facility for vaccination designed to save five million lives. Benn said Britain is also giving 200 million pounds (US$360 million; ¤300 million) to a new World Bank fund to help African countries progress faster in improving health, education, infrastructure and access to water.
