AfricaEU Strategic Partnership: State of Play and Way Forward

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Africa-EU Strategic Partnership State of Play
and Way Forward

• 2nd Joint Annual Meetings of the AU Conference of
  African Ministers of Economy and Finance and
• ECA Conference of Ministers of Finance, Planning
  and Economic Development
• Cairo, Egypt
• 2-7 June 2009
• Baboucarr Koma
• Department of Economic Affairs
• African Union Commission

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Presentation Outline

• Africa-EU Dialogue Milestones
• The New Strategic Framework
• The Joint Strategy
• The First Action Plan
• Implementation architecture
• The process
• Stakeholders
• Architecture
• Progress to date
• Challenges
• Way ahead

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1. Africa-EU Dialogue Milestones

• Long history of relations (Yaounde, Lome, Cotonou
  Partnership Agreements)
• 2000 First Africa-EU Summit, Cairo, Egypt
• 2002 Transformation of the OAU into the AU
• 2004 Enlargement of the EU
• 2005 Adoption of the EU Strategy for Africa
• 2007 Second Africa-EU Summit (Lisbon Summit) and
  adoption of the Africa-EU Joint Strategy/First
  Action Plan

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2. New Strategic Framework

• Strategy jointly developed by Africa and EU
• Takes account of new and emerging challenges
• Facing Africa
• Facing the EU
• Facing the whole world, e.g. globalization
• Long term approach
• New approach
• Complements existing bilateral relations

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3. The Joint Strategy

• Context
• Common values Respect for human rights, freedom,
  equality, justice, democracy, etc.
• Emerging challenges
• Principles
• Unity of Africa one and undivided Africa
• Interdependence between Africa and EU
• Ownership and joint responsibility
• Equality

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3. The Joint Strategy

• Objectives
• To reinforce and elevate the Africa-EU political
  partnership to address issues of common concern
  e.g. peace and security, migration
• Address challenges facing Africa e.g. sustainable
  economic development, regional integration, MDGs
• Jointly promote a system of effective
  multilateralism and address global challenges and
  common concerns e.g. climate change, terrorism,
  HIV/AIDS
• Facilitate and promote broad-based and
  wide-ranging people-centred partnership by
  empowering non-state actors and creating the
  enabling environment for their effectiveness

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3. The Joint Strategy

• The four clusters
• Peace and security
• Governance and human rights
• Trade and regional integration
• Key development issues

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4. The First Action Plan

• 1. Africa-EU Partnership on Peace and Security
• Enhance dialogue on challenges to peace and
  security
• Full operationalization of the African Peace and
  Security Architecture
• Predictable Funding for African-led Peace Support
  Operations.
• 2. Africa-EU Partnership on Democratic Governance
  and Human Rights
• Enhance dialogue at global level and in
  international fora
• Promote the African Peer Review Mechanism and
  support the African Charter on Democracy,
  Elections and Governance
• Strengthen cooperation in the area of cultural
  goods.
• 3. Africa-EU Partnership on Trade and Regional
  Integration
• Support the African integration agenda
• Strengthen African capacities in the area of
  rules, standards, and quality control
• Implement the EU-Africa Infrastructure
  Partnership.

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4. The First Action Plan

• 4. Africa-EU Partnership on the Millennium
  Developments Goals
• Ensure the finance and policy base for achieving
  the MDGs
• Accelerate the achievement of the Food Security
  Targets of the MDGs
• Accelerate the achievement of the Health Targets
  of the MDGs
• Accelerate the achievement of the Education
  Targets of the MDGs.
• 5. Africa-EU Partnership on Energy
• Implement the Energy Partnership to intensify
  cooperation on energy security and energy access.
• 6. Africa-EU Partnership on Climate Change
• Build a common agenda on climate change policies
  and cooperation
• Cooperate to address land degradation and
  increasing aridity, including the "Green Wall for
  the Sahara Initiative".

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4. The First Action Plan

• 7. Africa-EU Partnership on Migration, Mobility
  and
• Employment
• Implement the Declaration of the Tripoli
  Conference on Migration and Development
• Implement the EU-Africa Plan of Action on
  Trafficking of Human Beings
• Implement and follow up the 2004 Ouagadougou
  Declaration and Action Plan on Employment and
  Poverty Alleviation in Africa.
• 8. Africa-EU Partnership on Science, Information
• Society and Space
• Support the development of an inclusive
  information society in Africa
• Support ST Capacity Building in Africa and
  Implement Africa's Science and Technology
  Consolidated Plan of Action
• Enhance cooperation on space applications and
  technology.

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5. Implementation architecture- The Process

• Following adoption of Joint Strategy/First Action
  Plan, the problem of implementation emerged
• AUC proposed an implementation architecture and
  embarked on consultations
• Member States, RECs, other stakeholders
• Civil society
• Pan-African Parliament
• 10th Ministerial Troika endorsed the
  implementation architecture in September 2008

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5. Implementation architecture- Stakeholders

• The two Commissions
• Member States
• PAP and European Parliament
• Civil society, ECOSOCC, EESC, research institutes
  and think-tanks
• Regional Economic Communities (RECs)
• The private Sector

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5. Implementation architecture- Architecture

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6. Progress to date

• Implementation architecture endorsed
• JEG guidelines adopted
• 8 JEGs have been set up
• Member States actively participating
• 4 of 8 RECs have joined the implementation
  process
• 12th Ministerial Troika paved the way for civil
  society participation in JEG activities
• First round of JEG meetings held prior to 11th
  Ministerial Troika
• Technical discussions (including identification
  of key action areas) held and first progress
  report on implementation prepared and adopted

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6. Progress to date cont.

• Draft implementation roadmaps prepared by JEGs
• Outlining activities, state of play, source of
  financing, next steps and timing, deliverables
  and actors
• Joint website launched www.africa-eu-partnership.
  org
• Workshop on the financing of the Joint
  Strategy/First Action Plan slated for September
  2009

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7. Challenges

• Respecting the principles agreed in the Joint
  Strategy e.g. the one Africa principle
• Full involvement of all stakeholders, including
• civil society,
• PAP
• RECs
• Private sector
• Capacity of the JEGs to deliver
• Adequate financial resources for
• The architecture
• Implementation of the projects/activities
• Rate of implementation
• Ownership

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8. Way ahead

• JEGs to finalise Implementation Roadmaps
• Address the issue of financing
• Ensure adequate participation of all stakeholders
• Bring on board all the RECs
• Strengthen the JEGs
• Effective communication, including consequences
  of failure
• Develop common understanding (between African and
  EU sides) of expectations
• Need for the EU to amend existing instruments to
  fit the new framework

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8. Way ahead cont.

• We request
• Member States
• to own the process
• to Provide high calibre experts to ensure
  effectiveness of JEGs
• to Provide financing for projects/activities and
  the architecture
• to integrate the Joint Strategy in their
  development plans in line with the Minimum
  Integration Programme
• RECs
• to own the process
• to actively participate in the work of the JEGs
• to integrate the Joint Strategy in their
  development plans in line with the Minimum
  Integration Programme

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• Thank you for your kind attention.