Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-10-24-Speech-3-341"
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"en.20071024.40.3-341"2
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Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, rapporteur, Europe, Africa and the world have changed a great deal in the last decade. Europe is now a block of 27 Member States bringing together at times extremely diverse foreign policy priorities and approaches. Although it is not fair to say that the African continent has been neglected, given the volume of public development aid that Europe makes available to this continent, we can, however, talk about a strategic vacuum in the relationship between Europe and Africa. In recent years the negative consequences of this vacuum have become more apparent. The European Union and Member States now recognise the need to bring relations with Africa onto a new level, with the second EU-Africa Summit being the right moment to clearly vocalise this desire.
There are various reasons justifying this new recognition of the importance of relations between the European Union and Africa: the widespread realisation that all the global challenges such as peace and security or international trade require concerted action on the part of the international community, thus justifying the emergence of new forms of cooperation; the search for answers to problems affecting both Europe and Africa, particularly the effects of climate change; the management of energy resources or migration flows; the desire of Africa to collectively tackle common problems, and the need to adapt to specific geopolitical changes in the international context.
This new relationship between the EU and Africa is set out in the documents that we hope will be adopted during the December summit: the Joint EU-Africa Strategy, its First Action Plan and, we hope, the Lisbon Declaration. These documents reflect the specific nature of the relationship between Europe and Africa. They set out an approach which, on the one hand, favours multilateral channels and, on the other, aims to deal with the various aspects of our relationship in a more integrated manner. This approach constitutes the difference that the EU can point to, particularly in comparison with other international actors. Africa’s recognition as a strategic world partner is also reflected in the method used to prepare for both the summit and the documents to be adopted. While the EU-Africa strategy adopted in 2005 is an EU document which is only binding on the Union, the new strategy – for the first time a joint strategy – and the action plan are the result of joint work with our African partners.
From the beginning the summit documents have been prepared by a joint group of experts and we hope that they will be endorsed at the EU-Africa Ministerial Troika Meeting to be held on 31 October, in a process that has also involved non-governmental actors and civil societies, both African and European. The joint strategy and the first action plan are therefore the result of joint work. As a result, their current wording reflects and responds to many of the concerns and suggestions contained in the report of Mrs Martens, a report which is clearly very complete and comprehensive.
The partnerships between the European Union and Africa identified both in the joint strategy and in the draft action plan must cover subjects of common interest. Their fundamental criteria must be to add value to the cooperation and political dialogue that currently exist and, in our view, to ensure a positive impact on the everyday lives of European and African citizens. The partnerships that we want to build will also seek to ensure a balance between the commitments made by both parties, which will alter the unilateral and assistance-based logic of the relationship between the EU and the ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific) countries.
Experience has also shown that political commitments require implementation and monitoring mechanisms so that they translate into something more than just good intentions. Between summits, in parallel with the regular meetings between the two Commissions and the Ministerial Troika, the possibility now exists of complementary sectoral ministerial meetings whenever appropriate. However, a true change in the relationship between the EU and Africa can only come about if the process is also effectively taken on board by various other actors.
In this respect, we want to establish informal joint groups of experts for the implementation of each of the partnerships. These will be open to participation by a large number of stakeholders: European and African parliaments, local authorities, European and African civil society, African sub-regional organisations, research institutes, specialised international organisations and institutes, and the private sector. At the same time, cooperation and dialogue between the Pan-African Parliament and this House will be extended and these institutions will also act as channels for the implementation of the joint strategy and action plan.
Although such profound changes cannot occur instantly, we are at a crossroads for change in the relations between the two continents. The challenge facing us is to take full advantage of this opportunity, by starting to implement this new strategic vision for EU-African dialogue. It is with this goal in mind that we plan to hold, with confidence and an awareness that what we are doing must be done, the next EU-Africa Summit in Lisbon in December."@en1
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