Leaders have described the just-concluded Langkawi International Dialogue 2004 (LID) as "very successful and productive."

They acknowledged that the smart partnership concept in getting people to sit, talk and work together in solving problems, including development and tackling poverty, is the best tool in achieving results, Malaysia National News Agency reported on Saturday.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who is the host of LID 2004, said the dialogue was very successful, judging from the feedback he had received from the delegates.

"This is my first experience chairing the dialogue and it gave us unlimited experiences, learning about how (people from) each country develop their own respective countries," he told a press conference at the end of the dialogue in Langkawi Island, northern Malaysia, on Saturday.

Several heads of state and governments from Africa as well as 700 representatives from 33 countries attended the three-day meeting.

He hoped that the dialogue would continue to be a very important networking mechanism for developing countries.

Zambian Vice President Nevers Sekwila Mumba wrapped-up the dialogue by saying that "smart partnership is the only way to solve developmental problems."

Ugandan Vice President Gilbert Balbaseka Bukenya said the dialogue produced a smart way to solve problem using smart solutions.

South Africa Vice President Jacob G. Zuma said LID was very significant and important because leaders were not just there to express their respective countries' stand on certain issues duringthe conference or summit and then go home.

"Here, we have a very open and interactive discussion," he added.

King Mswati III from Swaziland noted that the dialogue was very fruitful because it promoted "win-win" situations.

"We have benefited a lot from the dialogue as we could learn from each other's experiences," he said.

Mozambican President Joaquim Alberto Chissano gave the thumbs-up to the dialogue as Smart Partnership had provided the best mechanism towards problem solving.

"The Smart Partnership concept could be applied at all levels back home from individual to individual, public to private sector, employer to employee," he said.

The land-locked mountainous kingdom of Lesotho will host the Southern Africa International Dialogue (SAID) in 2005. However, the date of the meeting is yet to be fixed. Swaziland last hosted the SAID in 2003.

The partnership dialogue concept was pioneered by Malaysia whenit hosted the inaugural LID in 1995. It has subsequently spawned similar events in the form of the Southern Africa International Dialogue and the Eastern Africa International Dialogue.

Source: Xinhua