Bono has repeated his calls for developed countries to fight Aids and poverty in Africa by saying it was cheaper than fighting the war on terror.
The U2 frontman told graduates at the University of Pennsylvania last night that 7,000 people died in Africa every day from preventable diseases.
U2 singer Bono
An effort to stamp out the conditions that lead to those deaths would be cheaper than the US-led war on global terrorism, he said. "It's cheaper than fighting wave after wave of the terrorists' new recruits," the singer said.
"For the first time in history we have the cash and the technological know-how" to solve Africa's problems," he said. "But do we have the will?
"Every era has its defining struggle. The fate of Africa is one of ours. It's the proving ground for the idea of equality," he said.
Bono has led campaigns to fight Aids and had lobbied the US Congress to grant more money to tackle the pandemic. He is also a leading campaigner in the effort to cancel the debts of third world countries.
Bono was presented with an honorary doctorate of laws from the university for his work on African issues.
"Your pockets are full and now you have got to figure out what to spend it on," he told the assembled graduates. "If you are going to live up to your ideals and your education, it's going to cost you."