His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I, On
Monday, December 29, 1958, inaugurated the
1st Session of the United Nations Economic
Commission for Africa with the following Speech
"It is with great pleasure that We, on
behalf of
Ourselves and Our beloved people, today extend Our
warmest greetings to the delegations of the Economic
Commission for Africa who have gathered here from all
over this great continent, and, in particular, to the
Honourable Dag Hammerskjoeld, Secretary General of
the United Nations, who is Our honoured guest on this
occasion. We welcome you all to Our capital.
The opening Session of the United Nations
Economic
Commission for Africa is truly a most historic and
significant event for the great African continent. But
a short half-century, ago, only the' most far-sighted
individuals dared predict that within fifty years Africa
would have so far progressed along the path of political
and economic progress that a conference such as this,
where representatives of nine independent African
nations, as well as representatives of several other African
countries have gathered together in solemn conclave
to consider the common problems of Africa and the
African peoples, would be possible. And yet this has
come to pass, and today we are assembled here for
this very' purpose. Our heart overflows in the attainment
of this moment.
Only a few years ago, meetings to consider
African
problems were held outside of Africa. and the fate of its
peoples were decided by non-Africans. Today, the
tradition of Berlin and Algeria has been repudiated,
and it is thanks to the Conference of Accra and now of
Addis Ababa that
the peoples of Africa can, at long last,
deliberate on
their own problems and future.
The political growth of the peoples of Africa, a
development
which has come to fruition within the
life time of
everyone of us here present, is one of the most
striking and extraordinary
evolutions in the recorded
history of man.
The political coming of age of the
African peoples
is ample testimony that we are witnessing
the inauguration
of a new and splendid period in this
continent's
history. The number of African states
which now enjoy
their independence is only nine, but
this number will
grow in the future. In 1960, additional
states will
emerge into the brilliant sun of freedom,
clear evidence
that the political growth, which in a few
short years has
transformed the status of so great a
number of the
African peoples, has not yet finished, and
that it will not
come to its end until the goal toward
which this
movement has steadily and inexorably
progressed has
been totally realized.
Political independence, however, is but one part of
the complex of
problems which face the African peoples
in their
struggles to achieve their rightful place in the
world. It is
paradoxical that while Africa is potentially
the richest of
the continents, large numbers of her people
still lead an
existence that can only be regarded as substandard.
A major cause of
this lag in Africa's economic
development has
been the lack of education of her
peoples. Let us
not be too proud to face these facts and
to recognize
Africa's deficiencies and defects. Let us
face honestly
and frankly the fact that by the standard of
the modern
world, the African peoples today are poor,
Our poverty need
not cover us with shame. Africa,
despite the
predominantly agricultural basis of her
economy produces
only a small percent of the world's
foodstuffs.
Indeed, Africa produces scarcely enough
food to support
her own peoples. The average wage of
the African
worker compares unfavourably with that of
other areas of
the world. The average African may,
if fate has
smiled upon him, receive the minimum amount
of nourishment
necessary for physical survival, but
rarely more.
Among the reasons for the poverty and hard life
of the African
peoples must be numbered the fact that
heretofore most
Africans have not enjoyed the freedom
which they are
now attaining. In addition, the lack of
the capital
essential to the development of their economies
and the shortage
of technically qualified personnel have
severely limited
Africa's capacity for economic growth.
But, just as we
must not be too proud to recognize the
facts of
Africa's economic situation as it exists today, so
we must not be
cast down or discouraged by the magnitude
of the problems
which face us. For Africa is potentially
rich. She has
enormous deposits of raw
materials, and
the total extent of her wealth is by no
means yet known.
Africa produces large quantities
of several of
the world's basic minerals and metals. She
produces large
quantities of various agricultural products
such as palm oil
and cocoa. The fertility of much of
her land is
potentially high in the extreme. A tremendous
potential for
the production of hydroelectric
power and the
irrigation of her land is found in the lakes
and rivers of
this great continent.
The vista that opens before the Economic Commission
for Africa is
fulfilling the weighty responsibilities
laid upon it by
the United Nations General Assembly which
is vast. The
tasks are immense. Much labour and toil
will be
demanded, not only from those who will constitute
the permanent
organization, but also from the
governments of
all countries and territories in fulfilling
the commitments
and discharging the responsibilities
resting upon its
members and associate members.
The economies of
the African states have too long
existed as
separate, self-contained, isolated entities.
African
countries have for too long been forced to nurse
their own
economies and puzzle out their complicated
problems by
themselves or else have them handled
hap-hazardly for
them by others. We are all only
too well
acquainted with the difficulties and barriers
that the African
peoples have had to overcome in coming
together to
deliberate on matters of common interest.
But it is
impossible to believe that individual countries,
working alone
and isolated from their neighbours, can
ever achieve
their objectives, and the African peoples
must therefore
work and cooperate together if the economic
development of
this continent is to be furthered.
The Ethiopian people in particular, long isolated
socially and
geographically, have had to plough a lonely
furrow in many
fields of economic endeavour, lacking
the right and
the facility to draw upon the experience
and knowledge of
others who were attempting to solve
almost identical
problems. Now, however, as almost
every paragraph
in the charter of this Commission
emphasizes; the
goal on which Our eyes have always
been fixed as a
primary goal for Our people - the
raising of their
standard of living - has become the
declared
objective of the Governments of the member
states whose
representatives are gathered here today, to
be sought, in
every way, by concerted action. Concerted
action,
cooperation, coordinated policies - these
honourable
delegates, -are not just words, but great and
noble
conceptions. In them and in what they stand for,
can be found the
key for fulfilment of the longings
and the hopes of
millions of Africans.
Our task, the
task of all gathered here and of those
Other African
countries who are not numbered among
the
representatives at this first session of the Economic
Commission for
Africa, is to improve the economic lot
Of All African
peoples, to raise them to a standard of
living
comparable to that enjoyed in the most highly-
developed
regions of the world today. This is a task and
a challenge
which must be met. And because this
touches all of
us, all must labour and work for success in
this endeavour.
When the commission comes to consider specific
problems in the
course of its deliberations, We ardently
hope that it
will give serious consideration to finding
ways and means
of extending immediate economic
assistance not
only to all African nations which are in
need of such
aid, but as well to those territories which
are on the
threshold of independence. It must constantly
be borne in mind
that the economic problems of some
of the younger
African states and of those areas
which are on the
verge of statehood are most pressing
and serious. The
United Nations Organization and the
older States are
consequently, under a grave moral
obligation to
alleviate the economic difficulties of these
young States and
territories, and to help them found
their economic
structure upon a firm basis that will
maintain and assure
their political independence.
Political and
economic progress should go hand in hand.
There are other grave and important matters to
which We trust
the Commission will not fail to direct
its attention.
Among these are the implications of the
involvement of
African nations in regional preferential
trade agreements
with nations of other continents. The
Commission could
well take concrete steps to explore
the
possibilities of establishing statistical methodology to
be employed in
common by all member states.
A
A
and the United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organi-
sation to study
the possibilities of increasing food produc-
tion in areas
where people are under-nourished, and of
wiping out
cattle disease, problems of great importance
to African
countries whose economies are predominatly
agricultural,
would fulfil a long-felt need.
In view of the great influence of public health
problems upon
the ecconomic development of African
countries, the
exploration and recommendation of
solutions to
such problems by the Commission, in
collaboration
with the World Health Organization,
would aid
immeasurably in accelerating the tempo
of the economic
development of the African continent.
All African
countries depend on their export trade for
the taking of
all necessary measures for the promotion,
stabilisation
and diversification of exports of the ECA
member
countries. The Commission should give serious
consideration to
the prevalent transporation and Communications
problems which
have a considerable influence
upon the
development of all African countries, and seek
resolutely to
find solutions to the difficulties which
perplex us all
in these fields. Solving these problems would
contribute much
towards the economic development
of Africa.
In undertaking such a study due consideration
should be given
to the desirability of establishing
closer
connections between the various national transportation
systems thus
encouraging closer economic
and commercial
relations among member states.
It is appropriate that this gathering today is held
under the
sponsorship of the United Nations. The
United Nations
is a living and tangible testimony to the
value of
cooperative efforts among all men to improve
their way of
life and preserve peace. We believe that
the African
peoples, too, can co-operate effectively for
the common good,
for their own good and for that of all
men. But this
requires single-mindedness and an
unswerving
devotion to the cause of Africa and be
guided by the
principle expressed in the Holy Scriptures
'Love Thy
Neighbour as Thyself'.
Africa is not the first geographical area to be
embraced by a
regional Economic Commission. This
we do not consider
a disadvantage, since the experience
gained and the
lessons learnt by its predecessors in
Europe, Latin
America and Asia and the Far East can
be drawn upon.
But many of the economic and social
problems are
new, and the paths untrodded. In your
task of finding
the answers and the way, honourable
delegates, not
only the eyes of all Africa but of all the
world will be
upon you. We, for Our part, pledge the
highest
endeavours of Our Government and people in
aiding and
speeding your work, not only for this meeting
of the
Commission but for the efforts and objectives of
this
organization in the years that are to come. May
Almighty God
prosper that work, and grant that it may
be pursued in
peace, in peace of mind and of circumstance,
unhindered by
the fact or threat of war.
This land, of which you are the honoured guests
has known and
suffered from the horrors and brutalities
of war. The
threats of armed conflict, the obsession
with war and
armed might are evils yet to be eradicated
from the minds
of men. So long as they survive, progress
towards the high
and noble objectives to which this
organization is
dedicated will be handicapped and
enveloped in
darkness. In the mobilization of economic
resources, in
the search for ways to improve the lot of
man"
whether African or not, the threat to peace stands
as a grim
obstacle. The essential prerequisite for
economic and
social contentment is world peace, and
without such
contentment, the weeds of discontent
luxuriate, and
threats to peace develop.
We pray that peace may be vouchsafed to all men,
that the labours
of this Commission may even be conducted
in an atmosphere
of harmony and cooperation."
Speeches delivered by His
Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie Ist Emperor of Ethiopia on various occasions -
page 99 - & Selected Speeches of His
Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie - page 192 –
 |
| Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld greeting His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Haile Selassie I. At centre back is Mr. Mekki Abbas, Executive Secretary of ECA. 29 December 1958 - Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
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