Vol. 567 No. 7
167 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the degree to which international aid is likely to be able to cope with the situation in Nigeria; the steps required to encourage stability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15139/03]
Ireland fully supports the European Union Common Position on Nigeria which pledges EU support for efforts to develop a democratic culture, build institutional capacity and alleviate poverty in Nigeria. As part of this process, the European Commission provided funding of €6.5 million in support of the recent presidential and parliamentary elections in Nigeria. The funding provided for civic and voter education, capacity building and training for election observers and monitoring and technical assistance to the Independent National Election Commission.
The elections, at the presidential, national, state assembly and gubernatorial levels went ahead in April 2003. This represents a notable achievement and marks the first time that Nigeria has successfully completed two democratic elections back to back since the country gained independence in 1960.
The elections have been criticised by a number of international monitors, including the EU, for various electoral malpractices, and this is a cause of concern. It will be important for the EU to continue to work with the Independent Election Commission to strengthen its capacity for future elections. Nonetheless, the recent elections were generally peaceful and there was a high voter participation rate. The elections thus mark another important chapter in Nigerias development and they are a positive indication of the progress being made towards stability in Africa's most populous country.
Nigeria is a potentially wealthy country by African standards with the seventh largest oil reserves in the world and a GDP in excess of €40 billion. The problem with Nigeria is not one of absolute poverty but rather that long years of corruption have left its infrastructure and educational and health services in a very inadequate condition. International aid is largely geared towards addressing primary health and educational needs and building up civil society. In monetary terms, international aid to Nigeria corresponds to only a small fraction of the country's annual oil income.
The European Union is the largest single donor to Nigeria and is currently implementing a €550 million programme concentrating on water, sanitation and polio eradication. It has also recently embarked on an ambitious plan aimed at promoting good governance.
