UNIDO chief urges Africa to learn from China, India, Brazil

Newly-appointed Director-General of the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) Kandeh Yumkella said Friday in Vienna that Africa should learn from China, India and Brazil in economic development.

Like these countries, Africa has to absorb new ideas from around the globe and seek to develop new partnerships with other countries and regions, said Yumkella, who was named the new chief of the Vienna-based agency Friday on the last day of a five-day UNIDO general conference.

Yumkella of Sierra Leone, who intends to put priority on Africa during his term, told reporters that he wants to change the image of Africa as a poor and underdeveloped continent.

African countries also have young and well-educated people inside and outside the continent, and Africa can just follow the examples of Asian countries in reforming its economy and developing industry, he said.

Africa has to take its own responsibilities, he noted.

UNIDO is a specialized UN agency founded in 1966 with the main goal of combating poverty by fostering productivity growth and of preventing underdeveloped states from being marginalized in a globalized world.

Source: Xinhua