Special Report: President Hu attends outreach session of G8 Summit, visits Sweden

    HEILIGENDAMM, Germany, June 8 (Xinhua) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday that aid promises made by the Group of Eight (G8) leading industrialized nations will be delivered.

    "We are aware of our responsibilities and our obligations will be fulfilled," Merkel said when meeting with African leaders during the outreach session of the G8 summit in the northern German Baltic resort of Heiligendamm.

    Ghanaian President John Kufuor, one of the African leaders attending the outreach session, said Africa expected the G8 nations to keep their promise.

    Africa for its part, will also fulfill its responsibilities, including efforts to ensure better governance and fight corruption, he said.

    The G8 leaders agreed Friday on an aid package of 60 billion U.S. dollars to fight AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and other killer diseases in Africa.

    About 30 billion U.S. dollars of the aid has been pledged by the United States, and Germany has also announced to offer 4 billion euros (5.5 billion dollars) to fight diseases in Africa, according to the German news agency DPA.

    Meanwhile, the G8 leaders also recognized the need to provide "long-term predictable funding" for the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM).

    A replenishment conference will be held in Berlin in September to address a funding shortage problem. The fund is expected to reach 8 billion U.S. dollars by 2010, according the G8 summit declaration issued Friday.

    However, international activists said they were disappointed over the G8 deal.

    "Even this 60 billion U.S. dollars smokescreen can't cover up the abject failure of the G8 to move forward on their AIDS promises," said Aditi Sharma, HIV/AIDS campaign director of Action Aid.

    "This is devastating news for the 40 million people living with HIV and AIDS," he said.

    Max Lawson, senior policy adviser of Oxfam, said, "The new money announced today ... should be seen as a small step when we need giant leaps."

    Leaders of the G8 nations agreed two years ago at the Gleneagles summit to raise their annual development aid for Africa to 50 billion U.S. dollars by 2010, but critics say those nations are falling short of delivering their promises.

    According to Action Aid, the G8 nations are 8 billion off track this year on meeting their commitments.

    More than 6 million people die from AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria every year, most of them in Africa.

    About 63 percent of HIV patients are in Africa and 72 percent of Africans who need treatment are being left behind, according to the G8 summit declaration.

    Leaders from Algeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal and South Africa attended the G8 outreach session. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak did not come as scheduled because of an upcoming parliament election back home.