1. EUROSTEP ORGANISE DISCUSSION WITH ACP AMBASSADORIAL SPOKESMEN FOR ACP –EU NEGOTIATIONS
Eurostep organised an informal meeting with the ACP ambassadorial spokesmen for the ACP-EU negotiations, to discuss Eurostep and NGO proposals on the future ACP-EU framework agreement on 10 June in Brussels. Also present were representatives from NGO networks - APRODEV and CIDSE, as well as WEED (World Ecology, Economy and Development) - an associate of Eurostep member terre des hommes – Germany.
Mr Simon Stocker, Director of Eurostep, presented a paper outlining Eurostep proposals on a number of issues, i.e. political and institutional issues; civil society participation; social development; poverty eradication and gender; trade; and finance and instruments. On political and institutional issues, Eurostep aim to enhance transparency of the ACP-EU decision making process through calling for: a) the establishment of a joint ACP-EU intergovernmental decision making assembly that it is open to accredited observers including civil society; b) the strengthening of the Joint ACP-EU Parliamentary Assembly’s functions as a monitoring body. On civil society participation, Eurostep call for the principles guiding civil society participation in the next framework agreement to include: a clear definition of civil society’s role in each phase of the programming process; a clear commitment to the invitation of civil society to participate in all phases of programming; the establishment of an effective policy for disclosure to the public by the ACP and EU decision-makers on all proposals made in all phases of programming; and the establishment of mechanisms at national and regional level for enabling civil society involvement at all levels. Resources for these processes should be identified and programmed. On social development Eurostep call for the framework agreement to: a) specifically identify its role in achieving the international commitments that have been made by the EU and ACP governments at the international level; b) explicitly identify strategies within the agreement for advancing social development; and c) seek to involve local communities and organisations of civil society in the design, provision and monitoring of these basic services.
In response, the ACP ambassadors on the whole welcomed the proposals, recognising a common underlying philosophy with many ACP positions. Amongst the specific responses expressed on civil society by the spokesmen were: 1) Care must be taken to prevent civil society competing/duplicating the role of the state; 2) There is a need for co-operation/consultation between EU and ACP NGOs; 3) Mechanisms for engaging with civil society should relate to and not duplicate existing mechanisms for decentralised co-operation and consultations with people at grass-roots level; 4) There is a need to address the question of the representativity of civil society; and 5) There needs to be greater accountability and regulation of civil society.
Views expressed by the ambassadors on finance and instruments included: 1) The ACP want cancellation of all ACP debt accrued from previous EDFs; 2) As the decision on the total envelope of funds to be allocated to the ACP is out of the hands of the ACP, EU NGOs could lobby their governments and public on behalf of the ACP for adequate funds; 3)The EU proposal for the merger of past EDFs could result in a reduction of funds for the ACP; and 4) The proposals to base resource allocation on performance as well as needs could actually slow down the utilisation of the EDF.
Mr Stocker in his response stated that civil society’s role should be to strengthen the state and not to compete against it. Civil society has a less formalised level of accountability than the state and in looking for single representation of civil society you may lose its diversity and risk creating a leadership that is not rooted. Eurostep is proposing the political assembly so as to grant access to the decision-makers for all civil society actors that may so wish.
On trade he said the crucial issue is the question of the timetable for new arrangements. The EU proposal for the establishment of reciprocal free trade arrangements with ACP sub-regions by 2005 is unrealistic. This proposal leaves decisions largely in the hands of the EU, with the ACP forced to either accept or reject free trade arrangements. The crucial issue is how the capacity to negotiate and understand the right proposals can be developed in the ACP. A ten-year waiver for the current arrangements would provide time for this. As all the defined options put on the table are incompatible with the WTO rules it is arguable that a ten-year waiver is the easiest option to attain, because it does not require consensus.
In conclusion the Ambassador of Zimbabwe and Chairman of the ACP Committee of Ambassadors, HE Mr Mumbengegwi, described the meeting as very fruitful and stated that such meetings should be an ongoing process. The PAF will provide further information on any follow up action.
Eurosetp’s proposals presented on all the issues are available in the form of a paper from the Eurostep secretariat. The paper will also be shortly available on Eurostep’s web-site: www.oneworld.org/eurostep In addition a specific paper on gender from which Eurostep’s proposals were drawn should be available by the end of June.
2. EUROSTEP GENERAL ASSEMBLY CALLS FOR EU AND OECD TO MAKE ALL FINANCIAL RESOURCES FOR COSTS OF THE BALKANS WAR ADDITIONAL TO PRESENT ODA
Eurostep members and Secretariat meeting at the Eurostep General Assembly in Berlin, put out a statement on the war in the Balkans and its implications last week. The statement sent out to the incoming President of the European Commission, Mr Prodi, as well as the President in Office of the EU Council and German Chancellor, Gerhard Schröder, expresses hope and caution following the breakthrough in peace negotiations in the Balkans, while pointing out that the conflict has significantly contributed to the displacement of 3 million in the Balkans. The cost of providing the necessary humanitarian assistance and reconstruction has been put at anything between € 50 billion and € 100 billion. The Eurostep General Assembly firmly advocates that financial resources provided by the EU and other OECD countries to meet this cost must be additional to present resources for ODA that have been allocated in their budgets. The Assembly stated that additionality is a necessary investment required for stability and peace in Europe. Resources must not be at the expense of ODA earmarked for Africa, Asia and Latin America. You can contact the Eurostep Secretariat for a copy of the statement.
3. THE FINNISH PRESIDENCY OF THE EU
In a short document on the Finnish Presidency of the EU, the spokesman of the Finnish Permanent Representation to the EU presented the programme of their incoming presidency (July 1 – 31 December 1999). Amongst the pressing challenges of the Presidency identified are: the aftermath of the Kosovo crisis; the presidency’s capacity to deal with external action including the WTO and ACP-EU negotiations; and the internal EU changes including the new Commission and new European Parliament. The Presidency lists its tasks concerning the EU’s global influence as: 1) improving the EU’s ability to take decisions; 2) ensuring the EU speaks with one voice; 3) implementing and preparing common strategies; 4) concluding the ACP-EU negotiations, and 4) preparing the EU for the WTO negotiations. The paper states that the management of the Presidency will revolve around ‘the three Cs’ – Coherence, Consistency and Continuity. According to the spokesman the Presidency would like to be remembered as: effective and pragmatic, an objective broker, and the provider of a fresh start for the EU. You can contact the Secretariat for a copy of the document.
4. RESULT OF THE UN PREP.COM. ON THE SOCIAL SUMMIT
Further to the report provided in PAF 135 on
the UN Preparatory Committee for the Special Session of the UN
General Assembly on the Implementation of the Outcome of the
World Summit for Social Development, we have learnt that no final
agreement was reached on the draft decision on the role of the
United Nations System. This document requests the UN System
to give input into the review of the Social Summit. The
implications of this are that the process will now only continue
through informal negotiations Reportedly the EU would not accept
that reports on the social effects of economic sanctions would be
requested from the UN system. The proposal to invite the IMF and
the World Bank to prepare reports on the impact of structural
adjustment on social development has also been put in
‘brackets’. (See PAF 135)