Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries on earth. Security issue or no security issue, there would need to be a focus on it.

I deeply detest social distinction and snobbery, and in that lies my strong aversion to titular honours.

New Zealand and SA should take this dimension into account, the skills South Africans are presently contributing to New Zealand.

Health and education are always issues.

In terms of having views and being prepared to express them, yes, I think New Zealand's had a leadership role in a lot of things.

If you neglect those who are currently poor and stable, you may create more poor and unstable people. There has been a tremendous concentration of donor interest in countries that are seen as particularly fragile - but it becomes harder to mobilise money for sub-Saharan, plain poor countries.

Adopting and promoting sustainable production practices require concerted effort, something which in practice is too often missing or insufficient. Making this shift at the scale required demands forward-looking leadership in the public and private sectors alike.