It is time to move beyond broad visions and draft detailed plans for the implementation of the New Partnership for Africa's Development.
This was the message from President Thabo Mbeki to the international community on Wednesday. He was addressing the Africa conference of the World Economic Forum in Durban, where Nepad is the main focus of discussion.
The conference is the first major encounter between the governments that launched Nepad, and the international business leaders and community.
Professor Klaus Schwab, president of the World Economic Forum, urged the international business leaders to give their full support to Nepad.
"The world is cynical but we can't allow ourselves to be cynical about Nepad," Schwab said.
"We have no alternative. We must not only engage with the African leaders on Nepad but we have to be ambassadors of Nepad.
"The success of Nepad depends on perceptions, and so our responsibility is to create the perception of success, which will lead to actual success," he said.
The G8 countries and international business leaders had already expressed support for Nepad's broad principles. But Mbeki yesterday demanded something more - a commitment to detailed and concrete support.
Some G8 countries are first looking for African governments' commitment to good governance. But African governments believe that since Nepad is a partnership, the African and G8 commitments should go hand in hand.
Mbeki said Nepad's architects, for example, had drafted very specific plans to address the continent's energy deficit by developing the Congo River's hydro- electric power potential - and the G8 summit needed to ensure that the plan was realised.