August 20, 2002
Text of report by South African news agency SAPA
The World Summit on Sustainable Development is being held in Africa, but Africans themselves are finding it difficult to participate in the Civil Society Global People's Forum, which is expected to attract 40,000 delegates.
"The majority of the African countries may not have the resources to be here; I'm talking about civil society," Social Development Minister Dr Zola Skweyiya told reporters in Cape Town on Tuesday. Skweyiya has been assigned by the cabinet to coordinate government interaction with civil society.
"It is the desire of government to ensure that civil society makes a meaningful contribution to the WSSD and development in general." However, many African delegates were not in a position to guarantee their accommodation and other costs, and were therefore unable to travel to Johannesburg, he said.
The European Union had promised three million euros so that African NGOs could attend, but the funds had yet to be made available.
"We appeal to them to accelerate that process so that they (African delegates) should be able to arrive in Johannesburg on time...The majority of the NGOs are very anxious about this issue," Skweyiya said.
More Information on NGOs
More Information on Advocacy Methods for NGOs
FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Global Policy Forum distributes this material without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
