Leaders from around the world agreed on a plan to combat poverty, as the United Nations development summit in Mexico drew to a close.
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More than 50 heads of state wrapped up a weeklong UN International Conference on Financing for Development last night, agreeing to do more for the half of the world's population that ekes by on less than $2 a day.
The new agenda, adopted by nearly 60 countries, aims to help millions of people out of poverty by increasing aid, reducing debt and encouraging global trade.
The 16-page "Monterrey Consensus" envisages a partnership between rich and poor countries.
But US President George Bush told the conference that poorer nations must first undertake political, economic and legal reforms in order to qualify for Western aid.
Tunisian President Mr Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali said the world will not live in peace until poverty is eradicated.
"Peace and security cannot prevail worldwide unless all forms of poverty, marginalisation and exclusion are eliminated," he said.
The summit was the first to bring together heads of state, finance ministers, business leaders, aid activists and international lending institutions to address reducing extreme poverty.
AFP