Vor dem Super Bowl Auftritt nutzt Bono die Zeit, um sich mit führenden Köpfen aus der Politik und Wirtschaft zu treffen, und über die Bekämpfung von Aids und Armut in Afrika zu debattieren. Heute wird er an einem Meeting (im Rahmen des Weltwirtschaftsforums in New York) mit Bill Gates teilnehmen in dem die Frage diskutiert wird, was die reichen Nationen zur Verminderung der Armut und zur Verbesserung des Gesundheitswesens in der Dritten Welt tun können. Bono: "Part of winning the war on terrorism is winning the war on poverty. We've had the wake-up call. If we stand by and watch this continent go up in flames, the price won't be paid solely in African lives. Let's move on supporting governments who want the best for their people, and cancel more debt, give more aid, and change trade rules to help Africa help itself."

Auszug aus dem Programm (lt. Pressemitteilung PRNewswire über Yahoo): Thurs 31 Jan: Greenbrier, West Virginia -- Meetings with Republican lawmakers at their annual retreat in Greenbrier New York -- Meeting with debt activists as part of the counter-summit in New York City; (Statement to be read out at the World Social Forum in Port Allegre, Brazil) -- Address to Opening Plenary of the World Economic Forum (6.00pm, press accredited to WEF only, Waldorf-Astoria) Saturday 2 Feb: New York -- Panel with Bill Gates of Microsoft to discuss what rich countries can do to help alleviate poverty and improve healthcare in the third world (10.30 - 11.45am, press accredited to WEF only, Waldorf-Astoria) -- Press Conference with Bill Gates (12.20 - 12.50pm, Hotel Intercontinental). Notes: 1. In January, Bono visited Malawi, Uganda and Ghana to see how money from debt relief is being spent, and how foreign aid can be used effectively to improve the lives of the poorest people through access to healthcare, sanitation and education. In Uganda, three times as many children are now attending school because of new resources released through debt cancellation, and the HIV rate has dropped from 30 per cent in 1992 to 6 percent. 2. Key facts: -- 15 million Africans have died so far from AIDS; if urgent action is not taken there will be 40 million AIDS orphans by 2010 -- Africa still spends $40m a day repaying debts -- even though as a result of public pressure, rich governments are writing off two-thirds of the debts of 20 African countries -- Rich countries have committed to give 0.7 percent of GNP each year in aid to poor countries -- but only 0.22 per cent is given on average, despite the fact that in African countries, most people have to survive on less than a dollar a day. The US gives just 0.1% of GNP. -- 12% of the world's population live in Africa, but just one per cent of global exports come from the African continent. -- Currently the richest countries (OECD) spend about $350 billion annually on agricultural subsidies - this is roughly equivalent to the entire GDP of Sub-Saharan Africa -- The World Bank estimates that following Sept 11th, over 10 million people in the poorest countries will become even poorer, resulting in 40,000 more children dying. The UK government supported by the UN and World Bank is calling for a doubling of international aid to $50 billion a year.