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1. ACP SECRETARY GENERAL MEETS WITH EU COMMISSIONER FOR EXTERNAL RELATIONS TO DISCUSS REFORM OF THE COMMISSION
The
Secretary-General of the ACP Secretariat, Mr. Jean-Robert
Goulongana, met with the European Commissioner responsible for
External Relations, Chris Patten, on 11 January 2001. The meeting
focussed essentially on the impact of the reform of the European
Commission on ACP-EU co-operation.
The Commission’s Directorate Generals for External Relations
and Trade of the European Commission are increasingly involved in
ACP-EU cooperation as the Directorate General for
Development relinquishes a number of its functions and its staff
(See PAF 211).
The ACP Secretary-General outlined the ACP Group's concerns about the indirect consequences of these reforms. Mr Goulangana noted that the increasing number of interlocutors involved in the management of development cooperation has caused concern within the ACP Group that its privileged links with the Union could be weakened. In this context, he said that while the share of EU external aid allocated to the ACP remained considerable in absolute terms, there was a tendency towards a decrease in relative terms.
The Secretary General also expressed the ACP Group's desire to strengthen the political dialogue between the ACP and the EU. He underlined the fact that at present this dialogue principally takes place separately with the three regional groupings of Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific, rather than with the ACP Group as a whole.
According to Commissioner Patten, the reform process should not disturb ACP-EU cooperation. On political dialogue with the ACP, he said he was prepared to investigate with EU Development Commissioner Nielson, the best way of structuring it.
Mr. Goulongana and Mr Patten agreed to strengthen relations between the ACP Secretariat and the directorates general responsible for external relations of the Commission. Commissioner Patten should meet with the ACP Committee of Ambassadors by January 30 2001.
2. ACP-EU COMMITTEE OF AMBASSADORS AGREE ON FINANCIAL MEASURES ALLOWING ACTIVITIES FINANCED BY EUROPEAN DEVELOPMENT FUND LEFTOVERS
In order to avoid a gap in the financing of the activities not covered by the transitional measures, the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors, have agreed to specific financial measures that will ensure continuity of certain activities financed by leftovers from the 8th European Development Fund (last budget for the previous Lomé Convention) until the Cotonou Agreement takes effect.
The details of the financial measures follow:
Ø Regional co-operation: € 22 million will be taken from resources not allocated to the 8th European Development Fund (EDF), as an advance for the 9th EDF in order to finance the budget of the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) in 2001, and a maximum of € 12 million will go to the budget of the Agricultural Development Centre during the same financial period.
Ø National Indicative Programmes: € 125.6 million will come from non-allocated 8th EDF resources to be added to the initial budgets of the indicative programmes of the 8th EDF of the countries and regions that have satisfactory performances.
Ø Action for aid to refugees: € 100 million will be taken from 8th EDF resources to guarantee that the EU may continue to support vulnerable refugees.
The ACP and EU ambassadors hope that their ministers will soon endorse their decision.
3. SWEDISH DEVELOPMENT MINISTER PRESENTS SWEDISH PRESIDENCY DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIES TO EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
The President in Office of the EU Development Council, Swedish Development Minister - Ms Maj-Britt Klingvall, presented the development priorities of the Swedish Presidency to the European Parliament’s Development Committee this week. Ms Klingvall expressed her appreciation that the Commission will concentrate on fewer areas in its development co-operation and expressed support for democracy, human rights, equality between men and women, and the environmental dimension in particular.
Speaking also about conflict prevention, Ms Klingvall said the Swedish Presidency of the EU (January – June 2001) will be focussing particularly on the current situation in Africa. The Swedish Presidency attaches great importance to forthcoming proposal from the Commission on the relationship between humanitarian assistance, reconstruction and development assistance. A communication on cooperation with the ACP and armed conflict is also on the agenda of the Swedish Presidency.
Regarding trade between the ACP and the EU, the Swedish Minister said that a proposal from the Commission on the guidelines for the forthcoming ACP-EU trade negotiations will be produced during the Swedish presidency.
4. EU AGRICULTURE COMMISSIONER PUTS PRESSURE EU TRADE COMMISIONER ON MARKET ACCESS PROPOSAL FOR LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
According to this week’s European Voice, EU Commissioner for Trade, Pascal Lamy is fighting off demands from EU Agriculture Commissioner, Franz Fischler to allow for more time before Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are a llowed to export sugar, rice and bananas on a duty and quota free basis to the EU. The Commission will be meeting to discuss the so called ‘Everything Buts Arms’ (EBA) proposal next week, which calls for all LDCs to be granted immediate duty free and quota free access to EU markets for all their products, with a derogation of three years for bananas, rice and sugar. Opponents of the proposal claim that it would disrupt EU markets by flooding it with the abovementioned products from LDCs. A study of the proposal on the Commission’s DG Agriculture website http://europa.eu.int/comm/commissioners/fischler/rep_en.htm expresses concern with the implementation of this proposal. Fischler’s aids also claim that the proposal could prolong the provision of EU subsidies to EU rice and sugar sectors. However, several studies have shown that LDC exports are likely to increase only marginally with the implementation of the EBA proposal due to the supply side constraints that LDCs face. According to the European Voice, Fischler’s aids are ready to compromise by accepting a 5-year delay of the granting of free access for bananas, rice and sugar. However, it is not clear whether Lamy will accept prolonging the derogation by 2 extra years. Eurostep, in a letter to top EU officials last year called on the EU to adopt the EBA proposal and develop a strategy to address the supply side constraints that hinder LDC exports to the EU. Oxfam UK, a member of Eurostep has also produced a study on the EBA proposal. For further information you can contact [email protected]
5. IN BRIEF
Finance Ministers of the EU and their Asian counterparts from ASEM (Asia Europe Meeting) will meet on 13-14 January in Japan to discuss the economic situation in Asia and Europe and regional co-operation within the two areas.
The EU has welcomed the recent legislative and presidential elections in Ghana.
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