DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) – African leaders, Microsoft chief Bill Gates, former US president Bill Clinton and even British Prime Minister Tony Blair stepped up pressure on the United States and other rich countries yesterday to reach deeper into their pockets to save the lives of millions of Africans mired in poverty.

Clinton took aim at US President George W Bush’s US$80-billion request to finance the war in Iraq for a year, telling 2,500 global leaders that “for a pittance” of that sum the US could double its international aid and make a major contribution to saving lives and ending massive poverty in Africa.

“You want to go save four million lives? Give them the medicine. It’s not rocket science, and it’s so cheap compared to everything else all these rich countries do,” Clinton said.

“Anybody who says we shouldn’t do this because there’s corruption and incompetence should be put in a closet. … I mean, this is ridiculous.”

Meeting the UN goal of cutting global poverty in half by 2015 remained a top issue at the World Economic Forum’s annual gathering of top business executives, politicians and social leaders.

But Middle East peace, bioterrorism, oil prices and protesters shared the spotlight yesterday.

The panel attracting the biggest audience featured Clinton, Blair, Gates, the presidents of South Africa and Nigeria, and U2 rock star and social activist Bono.

Blair, who is making Africa a focus of his leadership of the G-8 this year, said the continent’s plight is “a scar on the conscience of the world”. He reiterated his call for an African Commission to analyse what’s wrong and prescribe how “to put it right”.

Gates has been one of the largest contributors to alleviating global poverty and recently pledged US$750 million (euro577 million) to support immunisation programmes in developing countries.