In 2005, we put poverty at the top of the agenda for politicians and secured a series of historic promises that, if fulfilled, would help many millions of people escape extreme poverty.
Now as the leaders of the G8 richest nations meet again in Germany, it's time to remind them of their promises and tell them 'the world can't wait'.
The world can't wait for:
- trade justice
- debt cancellation and more and better aid
- healthcare, education, water and sanitation for all
- firm plans to prevent catastrophic climate change and address its impacts.
You can read about what we are asking for.
Come to London
The day will start at 11am with a variety of workshops, talks, a photo exhibition and other fun campaign-related activities. The day will also include a church service organised by Micah Challenge.
At 2pm, everyone will congregate on the banks of the river to make a huge noise and make sure that Tony Blair goes off to Germany with your message ringing in his ears - so don't forget to bring your alarm clock!
We expect the event to finish around 4pm.
What else to do
You can still take action even if you can't make it on 2 June.
Add your picture to the “your voice against poverty” gallery
Print a speech bubble, fill it in, take a picture of yourself with it and download it to the 'your voice against poverty' website. Your message will be added to an international petition targeted at the G8.
Send an e-mai to Angela Merkel
She is hosting the G8. If you want to do more, you can also send an email to your MP asking them to support our demands in Parliament.
Organise a local event
You could also organise a local event or meeting where you tell people about the issues and what's happening on 2 June. All the materials you need are downloadable here.
If you want to join a local event rather than organise your own, there is a list of local events on the Your Voice Against Poverty website.
Why do we need to remind leaders about the G8 promises?
In 2005, the G8 pledged $50 billion more aid, debt cancellation for up to 42 countries and affordable treatment for people with HIV/AIDS by 2010.
These were historic steps forward, yet still 25,000 people die every day from poverty and more than five million people living with HIV/AIDS still do not have access to medicines .
A report on the progress made towards fulfilling the pledges was presented last month.
The report, issued by the panel convened for this purpose after the G8 summit in 2005, revealed some valuable increases in debt cancellation and funding for global treatment of HIV/AIDS, but condemned backsliding on aid where the UK was one of a handful of countries that had actually increased its aid contribution.
Far more needs to be done: "they need to increase aid by two or three times as much to meet the 2010 promises”, commented a British official.
More seriously, no progress has been made towards reforming international trade. The so-called 'development round' of global trade talks has stalled and Europe is trying to impose new free trade deals (called EPAs) on Africa that will actually increase poverty.
The progress that has been made so far has already changed millions of lives, but most of the promises are at serious risk of being broken. And that's a disgrace. We need your help to ensure the G8 deliver on the pledges made in 2005 and take further action to eradicate world poverty.
