Fighting poverty

The roundtable “Fighting poverty” was hosted by the Community of Sant’Egidio and offered participants the opportunity to consider how Italy – a G8 member state – might better fight widespread poverty. Greater commitment is needed if the planet’s poorest regions are to recover, especially in Africa. Most of the aid promised by donors is in fact aimed at Africa, yet the continent remains desperate. Promises must be kept and new strategies must be developed if our objective of halving poverty by 2015 is to be realized. During the meeting, participants analyzed the best forms of aid and the most efficient instruments for alleviating poverty in highly indebted countries, paying particular attention to the role of private donors – especially those multinational businesses and banking institutions that can integrate donations with government aid.