The Group of Eight (G8) economies — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States — met in the mountain town of L’Aquila, Italy, July 8–10 for annual talks on the global economy, development efforts in Africa, climate change and a host of other issues from North Korea and Iran to Middle East peace efforts, terrorism and maritime piracy off the coast of Somalia.

Washington — At a time of global economic turmoil, the leaders of the Group of Eight major industrialized nations say they will help developing nations to cope with the crisis.

“Growth and employment in developing countries are seriously threatened, jeopardizing progress achieved toward internationally agreed development goals,” the G8 leaders said in a joint statement July 8. “The global economic slowdown has significantly reduced export revenues, private capital flows and remittances to developing countries.”

Compounding the crisis is that falling government revenue and a drop in available financing has forced many governments to cut vital investments and spending on social-safety-net programs, the leaders’ statement said.

“We must act now to prevent the economic crisis from turning into a deeper social crisis,” the statement said.

The Group of Eight (G8) economies — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States — are meeting in the mountain town of L’Aquila, Italy, July 8–10 for annual talks on the global economy, development efforts in Africa, climate change and a host of other issues from North Korea and Iran to Middle East peace efforts, terrorism and maritime piracy off the coast of Somalia.

The leaders confirmed commitments already made to increase overseas development assistance, debt relief and low-interest financing as part of a greater approach to economic development. Working with other donors, the G8 will increase aid by $25 billion a year by 2010, the statement said.

The G8 leaders said agriculture and food security should be at the core of the international agenda. “As a consequence of spikes in food prices, the number of people suffering from hunger increased by 100 million up to 1 billion and could significantly worsen as the global economic crisis unfolds,” the statement said. While global commodity and food prices fell in many regions, they continue to remain high compared with historical levels.

“The climate change impact on agriculture and decreasing availability of water could aggravate the already critical situation of food security, requiring broader adaptation and mitigation efforts,” the statement said.

The G8 leaders pledged to launch a strengthened Africa-G8 water and sanitation partnership.

For more information on the summit, see Group of Eight Summit: Taking Stock, Looking Ahead.