Irish rocker activist Geldof hopes Norway will work for fair trade

Sep 26, 2006, 10:37 GMT

Irish musician Bob Geldof (R) talks with the Director of The Hay Festival Peter Florence (R) in Segovia, central Spain, Friday 22 September 2006. The first Hay Festival to be held in Spain will feature four days of literature, ideas, music, and celebration in the city of Segovia. EPA/JUAN MARTIN

Oslo - Irish rocker Bob Geldof, known for championing the cause of fairer trade terms and boosting aid to Africa, Tuesday urged Norway to take the lead in promoting better trade terms for the continent.

In an op-ed piece in the Oslo daily Aftenposten and the daily Stavanger Aftenblad, Geldof said that 'Africa was not hopeless' despite 'hunger, sickness, corruption, grinding poverty and, yet again, the threat of genocide.'

While the world's attention was focused on events in the Middle East this summer, the Doha Round of global trade talks suffered a 'slow, undignified death,' he said.

Geldof said the collapse of the talks was a hard blow against the global economy since 'economic growth is the fastest means to lift a country out of poverty,' citing the case of China.

But even if the Doha round is revived, it would mean little for Africa unless changes were made in the unequal trade terms currently forced on the world's poor, he said.

Norway has a special responsibility, Gelfdof said, adding he believed the Nordic nation could help try to persuade large trading blocs like the United States and the European Union to sign trade deals with Africa.

Such a move could increase Africa's share of global trade from the current lowly 1.5 per cent level. With increased resources, Africa could invest in its own poverty reduction programmes, Geldof said.

The former lead singer in the Boomtown Rats said he had discussed these ideas with the current and former Norwegian governments and Crown Prince Haakon.