Tony Blair met the British troops who are helping rebuild Sierra Leone in the final leg of his Africa tour yesterday.

The prime minister said that the success of the Jubilee 2000 campaign on debt relief demonstrated the power and compassion of people in the developed world.

Blair believes that a similar mass movement is needed to persuade other world leaders to back Nepad - a package of measures on conflict resolution and prevention, debt relief and aid and the opening up of markets.

Clare Short yesterday accused the EU - and France in particular - for "trying to lock Africa into poverty." During the final stages of her visit to the continent with the PM she said British-backed proposals to open up trade were being blocked by Brussels.