Christian Aid Urges G8 Leaders to Focus on the Poor

Christian Aid urges Tony Blair and other G8 leaders to ‘stop dividing dwindling fossil fuels among rich countries and focus on providing renewable energy to billions of the world’s poor people’.

|TOP|According to the charity, while world leaders used the G8 summit (from 15 to 17 July) to secure access to Russia’s gas exports, they ignored the needs of a third of the world’s population who have no access to grid electricity.

“This is unacceptable,” said Andrew Pendleton, Christian Aid’s senior climate analyst.

“It’s hard to believe that, just one year ago, these same men were discussing the importance of ending global poverty and tackling climate change. They seem to have developed collective amnesia.

“Today we see G8 leaders acting like bullies in the school playground, fighting for the last of the world’s dwindling oil and gas supplies, while billions of poor people have to scavenge for scraps of wood or dung just to cook a meal each day.

Christian Aid is calling on G8 leaders to phase out all their funding for oil, gas and coal programmes. Between 1997 and 2004, the rich world lent almost $6 billion through the World Bank to fossil fuel projects in the developing world. In the same period they only spent $0.5 billion on renewable energy.

|AD|“G8 leaders must switch their focus away from shoring up supplies of fossil fuels towards providing renewable energy for rich and poor countries alike. This will not only help stop chaotic climate change but will also reduce energy poverty in countries like Tajikistan,” said Mr Pendleton.

In addition, Christian Aid responded to remarks made by Tony Blair at the G8 on Monday, saying trade talks are on life support but there is little chance of reviving them to the benefit of poor countries.

"The G8 may have delayed the day of reckoning for the WTO by a few weeks by committing to further negotiations but as ever this decision was done at a meeting where poor countries were hugely under represented,” said Claire Melamed, Christian Aid's senior trade policy analyst. "These talks must be of benefit to poor people not just a lifeline for the increasingly discredited WTO.”

"In order for the talks to have proper legitimacy it is imperative that poor countries now be allowed to take their place in the detailed negotiations that lie ahead. Without their full and informed consent any agreement reached will be a disaster for poor people, “said Dr Melamed.