to be entangled in the vicious circle of the poverty trap, with a rise in extreme poverty, high child and maternal mortality rates, and poor access to safe drinking water. The incidence of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases was destroying lives and livelihoods and taking a huge toll on Africa’s citizens. The current state of affairs was depriving the continent of the much needed human capital for sustained growth. The thousands of deaths that were occurring daily in Africa could be easily avoided if only the international community would honour its commitments. Without sustained support, there was little hope that Africa would be able to break out of the poverty trap.

He said that the importance of the relationship between development, trade and integration of developing countries intoespecially in education and health, could not be successfully completed, he said. Noting that new sources of financing were needed to fund long-term strategies driving sustainable development, he said there was a growing international commitment to include such mechanisms within existing instruments to finance development. France, Brazil, Chile and Germany were calling for the rapid implementation of a pilot “solidarity levy based on airline tickets”. The levy level could vary for different classes of travel, or even reflect a country’s wealth, and distinction could be made between domestic and international flights. Subject to the sovereignty of participating countries, the levy funds could be earmarked to finance the most urgent human development programmes, such as vaccination campaigns and the pooled purchase of HIV/AIDS treatments.

He said the airline sector had