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Eurostep WeeklyRegular News Update from Eurostep, N° 4444 December 2006 also available as pdf
First steps toward public release of draft CSPs
After several month of tug of war between the Commission and civil society organisations (CSOs) for access to drafts of Country Strategy Paper (CSP) and Regional Strategy Papers things seem to be moving. CSPs and RSPs will, which have been subject to a process of negotiation between the Commission and the government in the country lay out the fundamental development strategy for each country and region for the coming five years. It defines focal and non-focal sectors for each country, which then determine the focus of EU development activity there. CSOs from the North and the South have continuously requested access to the draft CSPs and RSPs from both the Commission and the country’s administration, to be in a position to meaningful participate in the programming exercise. The Cotonou Agreement, article 2, stipulates that civil society should actively participate in the partnership. The Development Cooperation Instrument which is expected to come into force in early 2007 also makes provision for civil society participation in Article 19. However access has been denied to CSO requests on the ground that CSPs were still in the process of negotiation and could therefore not be shared with the broader public. Recently this principal denial of access to draft CSPs has been watered down on several fronts with the National Authorising Officer of Cameroon and Mali posting a draft CSP on their websites and EC delegation to Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan making the draft RSP for Central Asia available on its website. [back to top] Sources: http://www.caonfed.org
http://www.confedmali.gov.ml http://www.delkaz.ec.europa.eu/pr/eng/Programmes_and_Projects/G... EP will have more to say over foreign policy After month of tough discussions between EP, Commission and member states EU member states and MEPs have reached a compromise deal on the next year's EU budget on Wednesday 29 November. In this deal MEPs have managed to increase their say on financial and staff aspects of foreign policy - an area currently primarily governed by the member states. As a result the EP will have to be consulted on future appointments of EU special representatives abroad and on the financial implications of external missions, e.g. an upcoming EU mission in Kosovo. In return, MEPs agreed to lift their blockade on funds for the EU's common foreign policy from €72.6 million as approved at the EP's first reading to almost €160 million. The plenary vote on this deal scheduled for mid-December. [back to top] Sources: http://euobserver.com/9/22980
http://www.europeanvoice.com/current/article.asp?id=26817 5th ACP Summit in Khartoum Heads of State and Government of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP Group) will meet for their 5th Summit in Khartoum, Sudan, on 7 and 8 December around the theme “United for peace, solidarity and sustainable development”. During the meeting, the Heads of State and Government will discuss the situation in the six ACP regions with regard to peace, security and stability. The Summit will examine the mechanisms for strengthening intra-ACP cooperation and will define the relevant guidelines. The leaders will also discuss the progress of the negotiations for the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) due to come into force in 2008. During the Joint Parliamentary Assembly (JPA) which took place in Barbados 20 to 23 November, these Agreements and their very close connection to the Regional Strategy Papers (RSPs) under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF) were criticized from various sides. This emphasised the need for discussion. A business forum will be organized on the side of the Summit taking place on Wednesday 6 December. Companies from developed and developing countries will share their new and innovative ideas and practical solutions, and avail themselves of the occasion to develop new partnerships. The 5th Summit of ACP Heads of State and Government will be preceded by the 84th session of the ACP Council of Ministers on 4 and 5 December 2006, and the joint meeting of the Council of Ministers and Ministers of Foreign Affairs scheduled for 6 December 2006. [back to top] Sources: http://sommetacp.blogspot.com/2006/11/acp... DEVE Committee votes on DCI On Thursday 30 November the European Parliament Development Committee voted in favour of the recommendation for second reading by rapporteur Gay Mitchell. The recommendation points out the great successes Parliament was able to achieve during the negotiation with the Commission and the Council “so that the shape of the final regulation will be unrecognisable to those who framed that initial proposal.” These successes are: specification of the instrument to developing countries only, largely following the definition of the OECD development committee; Art. 179 of the EC Treaty as the sole legal basis; policy making by co-decision; specific benchmarks of 20% to be allocated to basic education and basic health; etc. The rapporteur called on the Parliament to support this legislation, which is in many respects a major breakthrough. [back to top] Sources: Euromed and the ENPI On 27 and 28 November, a ministerial meeting of Euro Mediterranean partners took place in Tampere, Finland. This meeting analyzed the progress on the implementation of the 5 year work program agreed at last year’s Barcelona summit and outlined the priorities for 2007. Before her departure, Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner said “When times are difficult (…) the Euro Mediterranean partnership assumes even greater importance. Regional co-operation through the Barcelona process, in tandem with the European Neighbourhood Policy, gives us our best chance to attain our joint objectives.” Among other subjects, the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI) was considered an important tool which can contribute to the strengthening of the Barcelona process. In order to support partner countries in the implementation of this program, the EC will provide financial and technical assistance through the European neighbourhood and partnership instrument which is practically in the end stage of adoption. It is part of a Commission proposal to reduce external assistance instruments to a more simplified framework. “Peace has to be a strategic priority in the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership involving all the actors of society. Recent experience shows us that there are no military solutions to conflicts in the Mediterranean. So we emphasize the importance of looking for political multilateral solutions to the conflicts…”, said Mr. Mourad Allal, General Coordinator of the Euromed Non-Governmental Platform, while presenting the 2006 Euromed Civil Forum conclusions to the participants of the Euro-Mediterranean Conference of Ministers for Foreign Affairs, in Tampere on Tuesday, 28th November 2006. He further added that the European Neighbourhood Policy and the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument can play a role in the involvement of civil society: “In this respect, the dialogue with the many components of civil society should be institutionalised within the framework of the Euromed agreements. A similar mechanism should be applied at the levels of the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument programming and implementation.” This has been acknowledged in the final declaration of the Euro-Mediterranean ministerial meeting which “recognises the importance of fostering the role of civil society […] and enhance its capability through improved interaction with governments and parliaments.” [back to top] Sources: http://www.euromedplatform.org
http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_Data/docs/... Eurostep, 115 Rue Stévin, 1000 Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32 2 231 16 59 - Fax: +32 2 230 37 80 Web: www.eurostep.org |
The Lisbon Treaty seeks to make the EU more effective on the world stage. The European External Action Service (EEAS) will be the EU's own diplomatic service. Proposals for establishing this service have been published by Baroness Cathy Ashton, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (
