Anti-poverty concert attracts 10 000

ost number of people to stand up against poverty.
“We want to be the generation that is known as the one that set the record of eradicating humanity’s longstanding challenge of extreme poverty,” said Gladman Njanji the Communications Officer for the National Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (NANGO). “We refuse to sit back when 800 million people go to bed hungry everyday and 24 000 people die everyday because of hunger, in a world with the sufficient resources and technology to fight this malady.”
NANGO, in conjunction with several Civil Society Organizations, has been at the forefront of promoting the Millennium Development goals – battling against trade injustice, debt repayment and the limited aid from rich countries. This is in spite of the commitments made by world leaders in the Millennium Declaration of 2000 to do more to eradicate poverty by 2015. “We want to break this record of false promises by world leaders,” said Victor Kunonga, one of the musicians supporting the campaign.
Fungisai Zvakavapano – Mashavave, Pastor G, Victor Kunonga, EXQ, Rocqui, Stunner, Cindy Law and several community arts groups also performed at the Mbare Netball Complex Stand Up against Poverty Concert.
The campaign also ties in with ongoing efforts by Government and civil society to raise awareness of the Millennium Development Goals announced at the Millennium Declaration in 2000 of eradicating poverty by 2015. Churches and grassroots organizations also took part.
A total of more than 10 000 people in Zimbabwe stood up against poverty on Sunday 15 October 2006 in various areas including as far as Murambinda. The global pledge which was read at the Stand Up Campaigns highlighted the sad reality that a child born in a poor country today will die 30 years earlier than a child born in wealthy countries and that a cow in developed countries receives more subsidies than a child in developing countries.