10 Billion Dollars Raised for Developing Countries

Among more than 1,200 participants at this year’s Clinton Initiative gathering are South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, Philippine President Gloria Arroyo, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, acting couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, tennis player Andre Agassi, media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and Croatian President Stjepan Mesić.

The third annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) began in New York on Wednesday, a forum that brings together world leaders, scientists, business executives, and representatives of non-governmental organizations to address some of the pressing issues facing developing countries, along with taking concrete commitments to action. At the ceremonial opening of the three-day gathering, which brought together representatives from 72 countries and more than 50 current and former statesmen, presidents of multinational companies, film, music, and sports stars, as well as well-known philanthropists, Croatian President Stjepan Mesić also participated, having previously met with the initiative’s founder, former U.S. President Bill Clinton.

In opening the meeting, Clinton emphasized that since the initiative’s founding in 2005, "more than 600 commitments have been fulfilled, impacting tens of millions of lives in over 100 countries around the world." Highlighting the difference compared to similar gatherings, Clinton stressed that the motto of CGI is "no speeches or short speeches," and immediately moved on to the concrete results achieved from the funds that CGI has raised since 2005, which amount to an impressive 10 billion dollars, of which seven were raised at last year’s gathering.

Among these results are contributions to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by more than 20 million tons, assistance for about 3.2 million people in developing countries to gain access to clean energy, ensuring treatment for 34 million people suffering from tropical diseases, providing first aid for 857,000 children under five years old, financial assistance for three million small entrepreneurs, and more. "I believe we can make a real difference and that together we can tackle problems that governments alone cannot. We need to ramp up our efforts," Clinton said.

The CGI meeting program for 2007 focuses on challenges and opportunities for action in four areas: energy and climate change, education, global health care, and poverty alleviation. These will be discussed in five working sessions and several plenary sessions, where participants, with the help of experts, will commit to the type of concrete action that best suits their interests and resources.

Most conference participants pay a $15,000 membership fee, with humanitarian organizations exempted. Invitees from 2006 who did not fulfill their commitments were not invited to this year’s gathering, and five individuals who paid the membership fee were asked not to attend, and their money was refunded because they did not meet previous commitments. (H)