2005 is an exciting year. We are seeing an unprecedented interest in Africa by those in the developed world. Symbolically, 2005 marks the 20th anniversary of Live Aid and the 25th anniversary of the publication of the Brandt Commission’s groundbreaking report, “North-South”. But more than this, people are looking forwards through a variety of initiatives aimed at sustainable development for Africa. And they are gathering momentum.

Statistics on Africa are shocking. Sub-Saharan Africa has actually got poorer in the last generation, the only part of the world to do so. By 2002 its share of world trade had plummeted to half that of 1980. It houses about 10% of the global population but 60% of those living with HIV. Half of all Africans live on less than a dollar a day and more than half do not have access to safe drinking water. Each year, over 2 million infants die before their first birthday.

But Africa is also a continent rich in culture, people and natural resources. Several of the current initiatives aim to harness these, offering novel perspectives on opportunities for sustainable development. The New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD), owned and driven by African leaders, has come up with a “new vision” for the region. The Commission for Africa, set up by the UK government but consisting of a mainly African membership, aims to take “a fresh look at Africa’s past and present and the international community’s role in its development path.”  The Commission’s report will play a key role in providing recommendations for African development to the G8 summit in July.

NEPAD, as an example of positive change in Africa, was in part the inspiration for the Commission, which worked very closely with both the Partnership and the African Union in compiling its March 2005 report. Further impetus came from the “the political and symbolic opportunity that 2005 presented”, in terms of the UK’s presidencies of both the G8 and the European Union, as well as the Live Aid and "North-South" anniversaries.  2005 is also the year that the UN will hold a major summit to review progress towards its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Coming full circle, the MDGs in their turn inspired NEPAD, which ensures that all its partnerships are in line with the Goals and other development targets.

It is not only political leaders who are seizing the moment. Alongside all these initiatives, the Make Poverty History (MPH) campaign, part of the Global Campaign Against Poverty, is challenging everyone to get involved and lobby those in power to ensure that change really does take place. One of its core activities will be a mass rally in Edinburgh just before the leaders of the G8 meet in nearby Gleneagles. That same day, 2nd July, LIVE 8 will host simultaneous concerts in London, Paris, Berlin, Rome and Philadelphia, featuring some of the biggest names in music and calling for an end to poverty.

The BBC reflects all this through BBC Africa Lives Season, running from February to October 2005. The highlight will be a week of programming on BBC ONE timed to coincide with the Edinburgh rally and the G8 summit, from 2 to 9 July.

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