Comitato economico e sociale europeo
A partire dalla prima Convenzione di Lomé (1975) fino all'accordo di Cotonou (2000-2021), le relazioni tra l'Unione europea e i 79 paesi del Gruppo degli Stati dell'Africa, dei Caraibi e del Pacifico (ACP) – recentemente costituitosi in Organizzazione degli Stati dell'Africa, dei Caraibi e del Pacifico (OACPS) – sono inquadrate nei partenariati ACP-UE.
Per tutti questi decenni il CESE, insieme alla società civile dei paesi ACP, si è battuto affinché venisse riconosciuto il ruolo essenziale degli attori non statali nel processo di sviluppo, fino ad ottenere tale riconoscimento nell'accordo di Cotonou, che dà mandato al CESE di organizzare attività e consultazioni con i "gruppi di interesse socioeconomico ACP-UE" al fine di raccogliere i punti di vista della società civile organizzata e di darle voce. L'obiettivo è quello di favorire gli scambi e formulare raccomandazioni su temi e politiche pertinenti per le relazioni ACP-UE, raccomandazioni da rivolgere poi formalmente ai leader dell'UE e dei paesi ACP.
Concretamente, le attività del CESE riguardanti le relazioni UE-OACPS vengono realizzate principalmente sotto la direzione di un comitato di monitoraggio ACP-UE di carattere inclusivo composto da membri del CESE e delegati che rappresentano i gruppi di interesse socioeconomico dei paesi ACP.
Il comitato di monitoraggio ACP-UE mantiene contatti regolari con i rappresentanti della società civile nei paesi ACP a diversi livelli, attraverso:
Il CESE intrattiene inoltre contatti regolari con rappresentanti di gruppi di interesse socioeconomico dell'Unione africana nel quadro della strategia comune UE-Africa. In particolare, il CESE tiene ogni anno riunioni con la rete degli attori economici e sociali UE-Africa.
Ormai da molti anni il CESE mantiene contatti regolari con l'Assemblea parlamentare paritetica ACP-UE presentando una relazione sulla sua attività alle sessioni dell'Assemblea plenaria.
Allo stesso modo, il CESE è strettamente in contatto con le organizzazioni internazionali dei datori di lavoro, dei lavoratori, degli agricoltori, delle cooperative e dei consumatori. Tali organizzazioni nominano i rappresentanti ACP invitati alle riunioni tenute dal CESE, compreso il comitato di monitoraggio ACP-UE.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Under the auspices of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) organises meetings with ACP and EU economic and social interest groups. This role has been confirmed by the Cotonou Agreement, which mandates the EESC to organise consultation sessions and meetings of ACP and EU economic and social interest groups (Protocol 1).
Within this framework, the EESC organises general meetings in Brussels every three years, with delegates from the 78 ACP countries, together with representatives of the EU institutions, national economic and social councils, the secretariat of the ACP Group of States, EU and ACP states' diplomatic missions, NGOs and other interested parties. These general meetings are in addition to the regional seminars, which take place in the ACP regions once a year.
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.
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.
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.
