What happened at the 2005 G8 summit?

The summit lasted three days, July 6-8, and despite a tragic series of bombings in London, the Group of Eight succeeded in making concrete progress towards empowering the world's poor. For the first time in two decades, the G8 leaders agreed to increase aid to poor countries, showing an understanding that—if the poor are to lift themselves out of poverty—they will need help. Without a doubt, the Gleneagles summit was the most inclusive G8 meeting to date. Nongovernmental organizations were invited to participate for the first time in history, as were delegations from developing countries such as India, Brazil and seven African countries. These greater shifts evidence a G8 that is taking a more democratic and engaged role in tackling global poverty.

The specific results of the summit are more difficult to gauge. Many of the agreements announced on key issues such as debt relief, increased aid and trade, were in fact reached weeks before the summit; and the success of most of the ambitious declarations will hinge on whether or not the eight countries deliver what they have promised. What follows is a list of the major results of the summit and what they mean:

1. Debt forgiveness for 18 heavily indebted poor countries.

In reality, this agreement was announced about a month before the G8 summit, following a meeting between Bush and Blair in Washington. The G8 countries agreed to forgive approximately $40 billion in debt owed by 18 countries to lending institutions like the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF).

What's left to be done in the area of debt?

Over 40 countries are still crippled by colossal debts to lending institutions. Under the standards for good governance and economic stability set by the World Bank and the IMF, many of these countries would not qualify for debt relief and their eligibility not discussed at the summit.   

2. Twice as much development aid for poor countries.

The G8 countries agreed to double the amount of aid they give for development by 2010. If they deliver, it will mean approximately $50 billion a year, half of which will be earmarked for Africa. This announcement piggy-backs on previous accords: at the end of May, EU countries agreed to give 56 cents for every 100 dollars of their incomes to poor countries by 2010, and 70 cents by 2015. These percentages reflect targets set by the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which aim to halve hunger by 2015, among other goals. Last week, President Bush announced plans to double U.S. overseas development aid, but rejected a proposal for G8 countries to meet the aid benchmarks set by the MDGs.

What's left to be done in the area of development aid?

Just because a commitment to increase development has been made does not mean it will be delivered. Time will tell whether G8 leaders deliver on their promise.

3. A date for discussing fair trade.

G8 leaders did not discuss obstacles to fair trade such as tariffs and subsidies, which make it difficult for poor countries to compete with wealthy neighbors in an increasingly interconnected global economy. They did, however, agree to discuss trade policies at an international trade conference scheduled for December in Hong Kong.

Measuring the triumphs and disappointments of the summit, it was Tony Blair, the driving force behind the Gleneagles agenda, who said it best: "It isn't the end of poverty in Africa. But it is the hope that it can be ended. It isn't all everyone wanted, but it is progress, real and achievable progress."