Aid dollars donÕt eliminate poverty – integration into a global economy does. (South Korea and Ghana had approximately the same per capita income when Ghana gained independence in 1957. South KoreaÕs income per capita has increased roughly fifteen times in constant dollar terms, while GhanaÕs has fallen slightly. You may notice that we buy a great deal more from South Korea than we do from Ghana.) If the goal of Live 8 were to help people see the African continent as a place they want to visit, a place they want to open businesses in, a place they want to engage with, as opposed to a place they want to save, IÕd be more likely to share BrianÕs hopes.
But that would be a very different concert. It would be one that celebrated the cultural richness of the continent by putting African artists on stage, rather than inviting them – after Geldof was shamed by Peter Gabriel – to perform at a parallel event a hundred miles away from the main action. It would be one that put African leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators on stage, rather than using a silent young Ethiopian woman as a stage prop for Madonna and Geldof. It would be one that was more focused on changing the global image of Africa than on somehow changing the minds of the eight guys sitting around a table in Scotland.
ItÕs possible that IÕm wrong, and that the concert is changing the mind of the performers, the fans, and the G8. Perhaps traffic will mushroom at AllAfrica.com as thousands of new readers start following news from around the continent. Maybe African hiphop stars will start selling records in the US as Jay-Z and Snoop Dogg start touring with Senegalese and Tanzanian rappers. Perhaps Bush will agree to stop subsidizing sugar and cotton production, Chirac will agree that EU dairy subsidies are unreasonable and Putin will crack down on sales of small arms to conflict-ridden nations. (By the way, if Bush and EU leaders do cut agricultural subsidies, allow me to predict a revival of the 1980Õs ÒFarm AidÓ concerts across the US and EuropeÉ)
