ACP y África

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Desde el primer Convenio de Lomé (1975) hasta el Acuerdo de Cotonú (2000-2021), las asociaciones UE-ACP han regido las relaciones entre la UE y 79 países del Grupo de Estados de África, el Caribe y el Pacífico (ACP), que se convirtió recientemente en la Organización de los Estados de África, el Caribe y el Pacífico (OEACP). 

A lo largo de dicho período, el CESE, junto con la sociedad civil de los países ACP, luchó por el reconocimiento del papel esencial que desempeñan los agentes no estatales en el proceso de desarrollo, hasta que tal objetivo se logró en el Acuerdo de Cotonú, en el que se encomendó al CESE la organización de actividades y consultas con los «medios económicos y sociales ACP-UE» con el fin de recabar los puntos de vista de la sociedad civil organizada y darles voz. El objetivo ha sido fomentar los intercambios y formular recomendaciones sobre cuestiones y políticas pertinentes para las relaciones ACP-UE y, a continuación, remitirlas oficialmente a los dirigentes de la UE y de los países ACP.

En la práctica, las actividades del CESE en lo relativo a las relaciones UE-OEACP se llevan a cabo principalmente bajo la dirección de un Comité de Seguimiento ACP-UE inclusivo, compuesto por miembros del CESE y delegados que representan a los medios económicos y sociales ACP.

El Comité de Seguimiento ACP-UE mantiene contactos periódicos con los representantes de la sociedad civil en los países ACP a diferentes niveles, por medio de:

  • reuniones periódicas del Comité de Seguimiento ACP-UE;
  • seminarios regionales en los países ACP, que constituyen un foro para debatir sobre cuestiones de interés común con representantes de la sociedad civil de las diferentes regiones;
  • reuniones generales trienales de los medios económicos y sociales ACP-UE en Bruselas.

El CESE también mantiene contactos regulares con los representantes de los medios económicos y sociales de la Unión Africana, en el marco de la estrategia conjunta UE-África. En particular, el CESE celebra reuniones anuales con la red de partes interesadas económicas y sociales África-UE. 

Durante muchos años, el CESE ha mantenido contactos periódicos con la Asamblea Parlamentaria Paritaria ACP-UE, presentando un informe de sus actividades en las sesiones de la Asamblea.

Del mismo modo, el CESE mantiene contactos estrechos con organizaciones internacionales de empresarios, trabajadores, agricultores, cooperativas y consumidores. Estas organizaciones nombran a los representantes ACP invitados a las reuniones celebradas por el CESE, incluidas las del Comité de Seguimiento ACP-UE.

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    Meeting of the Follow-up Committee ACP-EU

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    The EESC  organised a regional seminar in Eastern and Southern Africa, which comprises the Indian Ocean islands (Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and Seychelles), countries from the Horn of Africa (Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Sudan) and some countries of Southern Africa (Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe).

    The regional seminar took place in Mauritius, on 21-22 November 2019.

     


     

     

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    The sixth meeting of the EU-Africa Economic and Social Stakeholders' Network took place in Brussels, Belgium, on 3 and 4 July 2019. A political declaration was adopted by the network to be addressed to the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the African Union.

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    Hotel Safari - Windhoek (Namibia), 8-9 November 2018

    On the basis of the Cotonou agreement, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is mandated to organise consultation sessions and meetings of ACP-EU economic and social interest groups in order to voice these actors' views on the ACP-EU partnership and foster cooperation between civil society organisations.

    Within this framework, the EESC organises regional seminars every year in one of the ACP regions.

    This year, the EESC is organising a regional seminar in Windhoek (Namibia) on 8-9 November 2018.

  • The EU-Africa economic and social stakeholders' network will first deal with the up-coming EU-Africa Action Plan for the period 2018-2020. The annual meeting will specifically address migration and economic issues, focusing on the implications for young people. The youth focus is essential as young people clearly represent an increasingly important proportion of African populations. Moreover, youth unemployment in both Africa and Europe is a shared concern of economic and social actors. It is helping to feed migration flows, especially for young Africans who are facing a lack of prospects.

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    The EESC has been entrusted by the Cotonou Agreement with maintaining relations with socio-economic actors and civil society from ACP countries.

    Priorities and activities within the frame of the ACP-EU civil society relations are decided and implemented through an ACP-EU Follow-Up Committee (FuC), which is composed of 12 EESC members and 12 representatives of ACP economic and social interest groups. The FuC is also a primary partner of the political authorities in the Cotonou partnership and the other EU institutions.

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    The Consultative Committee (CC) is one of the 5 institutions foreseen in the EU-CARIFORUM Economic Partnership Agreement. The CC is composed of 40 (25 from the CARIFORM side and 15 from  the EU side)  standing representatives of organisations of the civil society  representing employers' organisations, trade unions, other economic, social and non-governmental organisations, including development and environmental organisations; and the academic community.

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    The Joint Africa-EU Strategy (JAES) has been the main framework for relations between the continents of Europe and Africa since 2007. Its goal is to develop a shared vision of the main global issues whilst simultaneously strengthening cooperation in a broad range of areas such as development, governance, human rights, trade, regional integration, food security and migration. To this end, meetings of EU-African economic and social stakeholders are held on a regular basis.

  • The social economy is prominent in everyday life and in the productive activity of large regions of the world and makes a decisive contribution to improving the living and working conditions of millions of people. However, the social economy is not specifically recognised as a sector in the EU development cooperation programmes.One of the principal aims of the opinion is that the external dimension of the EU’s programmes and initiatives should establish support measures specifically targeted at boosting businesses and organisations in the social economy.

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    The EESC organises regional seminars every year in an ACP region –this year, in Eastern Africa (Nairobi) on 4‑5 July 2016, with three main topics of discussion:

    - Implementation of the SDGs - The Economic Partnership Agreement between the EU and Eastern African States. - The post-Cotonou agenda.

    At the end of the seminar, a final declaration will be issued that will be forwarded to the partners of the Cotonou agreement.

    Around 60 representatives of economic and social actors as well as political authorities and international organisations will attend the seminar.