High level meeting to debate Human Development Report 2002

Over 150 high level representatives from 20 African countries will meet in Dar es Salaam on Friday for a two-day debate on deepening democracy in Africa, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said in a statement on Thursday. The UNDP-organised symposium gathers representatives from governments, parliaments, civil society, media, universities and the donor community to discuss the linkage between democracy and human development. “In particular, they will address three specific questions - What should be the priorities for deepening democracy in Africa; How can we better measure democratic governance and; What is the role and responsibility of the media in democracy,” the statement said. During the meeting, Africans will be provided with opportunities to debate a wide range of issues related to democratic governance and then will craft an agenda for action at the regional and sub regional levels, culminating in concrete policy recommendations, it added. UNDP's Human Development Report puts forward the idea that politics are as important to successful development as economics. “Sustained poverty reduction requires equitable growth – but it also requires that poor people have political power," the report's foreword states. "And the best way to achieve that in a manner consistent with human development objectives is by building strong and deep forms of democratic governance at all levels of society.” In this regard, Tanzania has been seen by many as an example for other African countries to learn from. “The reason that Tanzania was chosen as a place to host the event is that it is clear that there are a number of achievements the country has made in terms of moving forward in democratic governance,” John Hendra, UNDP Resident Representative in Tanzania told IRIN. “These include the transition to the multiparty system, a number of government reforms, the liberalisation of the media, efforts being made in the anti-corruption strategy and the homegrown Muafaka accord [on new Zanzibar electoral bill],” he concluded.