[00:03.35]Unit 11 The Media Lesson 1 World News
[00:09.78]Africa on G8 Agenda
[00:12.42]July 5, 2005 Scotland
[00:15.89]The Group of Eight, or G8,
[00:17.50]as formed by eight of the world's wealthiest
[00:19.60]nations in 1998.
[00:22.09]The G8 IS MADE UP OF POLITICAL LEADERS FROM
[00:24.49]France, the United States, Britain,
[00:26.71]Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada and Russia.
[00:30.17]They meet every summer
[00:31.21]to discuss major problems
[00:32.76]that concern the whole world.
[00:34.94]It is going to be remembered
[00:36.28]as a historical meeting this year,
[00:38.34]as the topic of Africa will be discussed
[00:40.21]in detail.
[00:41.95]Widespread poverty in Africa means
[00:43.48]that many people there cannot get the water,
[00:45.91]clothing, housing,
[00:47.56]electricity or education they need.
[00:50.68]AIDS is another problem of great concern
[00:53.04]so sex education and health care administration
[00:56.11]are extremely important.
[00:58.17]Reforms have been demanded by people
[01:00.35]from all over the world.
[01:02.11]They want the leaders to cancel the debt
[01:03.91]of Africa's poorest countries
[01:05.93]so that the problems there can be prevented
[01:07.94]from getting any worse.
[01:09.60]Their belief is that this is the only way
[01:11.73]for many of these nations
[01:13.15]to escape their painful pasts.
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