UN General Assembly
1961

15. Far from being poor, Africa is a reservoir of raw materials for the whole world. As yet it has only a limited number of commodities, but those commodities play a crucial role in the balance of trade of our States. It is the duty of the nations which are ahead of us in economic development to join us in organizing markets for tropical commodities, in particular by creating the conditions necessary for the stabilization of prices. 16. This question must therefore remain a matter of primary concern to the United Nations. We arc glad to note that it has been placed on the agenda of this session. 17. The third feature of African development is that of the co-ordination of sources of assistance and regional co-operation. 18. The situation of the States members of the African and Malagasy Union is characterized by the fact that, by reason of their geographical position, they belong to a zone of economic solidarity. Consequently, they have access to several sources of mutual assistance: (a) Bilateral aid, mostly from French sources;