Failure to deliver on G8 pledges has left millions to die, says charity report

The huge pledges of aid, debt relief and trade reforms that were promised at last year's G8 conference at Gleneagles have not been delivered, according to a report by Action Aid.

Next week sees the first anniversary of the summit, which coincided with the Make Poverty History campaign and Live8 concerts.

Tony Blair claimed a moral and political victory in the negotiations, which led to the cancelling of debt for the 18 poorest countries in the world, as well as a doubling of the aid budget, better access to HIV drugs and fundamental reform of the US and EU subsidy systems.

Writing in The Independent today, the Prime Minister insists there has been a "great deal of progress in many areas" over the past 12 months, but acknowledges there have been "disappointments", particularly the failure to reach a global trade deal. And in a speech tonight, he will hail the agreement reached at Gleneagles.

But detailed analysis by the charity Action Aid strikes a more pessimistic note, concluding that many of the much-lauded commitments from the world's most powerful leaders have not been met.

Its report, entitled Mission Unaccomplished and seen by The Independent, says millions of lives are still being lost in Africa and the rest of the developing world by the failure of Western countries to live up to the favourable headlines generated by the summit. The charity is calling for the millions of people who supported the Make Poverty History campaign to use the first anniversary to increase pressure on the Government over the failed pledges.

The report says: "At present, a mixture of backsliding, buck-passing and half measures by rich countries risk undoing much of the progress. One year on, the world's richest countries are moving too slowly, or not moving at all, on most of their key commitments to tackle poverty.

"Unless they take urgent action now to meet their pledges on aid, trade and HIV and Aids, the prospect of progress towards ending poverty will be jeopardised."

More than one billion people still live on less than a dollar a day. Seven million children die every year from poverty-related diseases and Africa is not yet on track to meet any of the eight Millennium Development Goals for 2015.

The G8 countries promised to double aid to Africa by 2010 as part of a $50bn (£27.5bn) increase in funding. But, despite increases promised by Gordon Brown, aid from the UK has fallen in the past year once debt relief and funding to Iraq is excluded.

Britain is still not on track to meet the target of giving 0.56 per cent of national income in aid, excluding debt relief. And the countries that need to increase their contributions the most - the US, Germany and Italy - are "dragging their heels".

World leaders agreed to cut subsidies and open their markets to the poorest countries, who cannot compete in world markets. But the report found that the US and the EU are still spending more than $100bn a year on subsidy payments to their own farmers, while continuing to dump cheap exports in developing countries so local producers cannot sell their goods in their own markets.

Forthcoming talks at the World Trade Organisation look set to end in deadlock, with France refusing to accept any outcome that implies reform of the Common Agricultural Policy.

While the world's 18 poorest countries have had their debts cancelled, campaigners say another 40 nations need a similar deal. There are also concerns that, despite promises, conditions are being attached to debt cancellation, such as forcing developing countries to open their markets to richer nations.

A promise of universal access to HIV treatments is also not on track to be met, because donors such as the US have failed to contribute sufficient money. The funding gap is currently more than $10bn a year.

In a speech tonight, Mr Blair will insist more was achieved at Gleneagles than "all but those with the most rose-tinted spectacles thought was possible". He will say: "These issues were not high up the political agenda in the UK, let alone internationally. Now they are."

But he will warn: "Just because these issues are at the top of the agenda now, it doesn't mean they couldn't easily slip down again."

Mr Blair will signal his irritation over the slow pace of reform on climate change. He will say: "We need to begin to agree a framework that the major players - the US, China, India and Europe - buy into and has at its heart a goal to stabilise temperature and greenhouse gas concentrations. And we need to accelerate discussions - we can't take the five years it took to negotiate Kyoto."

Mr Blair will also announce the creation of the Africa Progress Panel, to be chaired by UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, to produce an annual report for the G8, the UN and the Africa Partnership Forum to "maintain the international political profile of Africa".