End poverty deal looks to be dashed

HOPES for a historic deal to end poverty in Africa look set to be dashed at this week’s Gleneagles summit, unless the leaders of the rich world are ready to be more generous on aid and debt relief, development charities warned yesterday.

Britain’s Chancellor Gordon Brown said that some of the fundamental pillars of a new deal for Africa - 100% debt relief for the poorest countries and a doubling in aid - were already in place, three days before the G8 summit begins on Wednesday, .

But development charities Oxfam and ActionAid said that the deals currently on the table fall well short of what is really required.