Summaries of the debates on the forum

   Summary 12 (7-13 August)

FOLLOWING IS A MACHINE TRANSLATION OF THE ORIGINAL IN FRENCH. IT HAS BEEN EDITED FOR MISTRANSLATION ONLY. THE ORIGINAL IN FRENCH IS AVAILABLE ON THIS WEB SITE AT: <http://www.ue-acp.org/fr/forum/syntheses/synt12.html>

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KEY WORDS: PROGRESS OF THE DEBATE

* * Title: Summary 12 (7-13 August) * *

by: Anne SIMON <anne.simon@skynet.be>
<http://www.ue-acp.org/fr/forum/presentations/simon.html>

°°° Abstract:
To put actors of cooperation, an emergency as recalled to us a recent drama. But " to start out from the local level" is a reversing of the current strategy of cooperation, and suppose a decentralization of the organization of the European aid system. °°°

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The recent drama of Guinean youths dead in a plane flying toward Europe, of which Michel ANSAY transmitted us the " letter - will " <http://www.ue-acp.org/en/forum/archives/1999-08/msg00010.html>, challenge consciences and stigmatize the North/South unbalances.

By intending to make of the struggle against the poverty its war-horse, the EU-ACP cooperation targets rightly. But this cooperation will find its sense and its efficiency when it will identify and will encourage initiatives of those that have need of it really; when it will put " actors at the heart of cooperation " (one of topics of our forum).

To " start out from the local level" is equivalent to reverse the current cooperation strategy. It supposes to decentralize cooperation in the ACP countries, in particular by making of the phase of identification a phase " of decentralized programming " in which intervene legitimate powers from the local level. It means to also increase the autonomy and the responsibility of Delegations of the European Commission.

1. to put actors at the heart of cooperation, an urgent need,

Djibril Diop recalls us that the drama of the Guinean youths who died in the landing gear of a plane that flew toward Europe can be read as the symbol of the shattered dream of the African youth left on the wayside of "development ". Even more, this drama is a symbol of North/South relations and the world economy that maintains the poor countries in their dependence. It is a " call to Europe, to all those who believe in man " and who cannot accept that Africa is marginalized and sinks into poverty in a selfish world (overall in growth). The next Convention of Lome makes of the struggle against the poverty one of its priorities. Laudable objective which doesn't have possibilities to be effective unless the future cooperation succeeds in putting actors at the heart of the development. Beyond the struggle against the corruption and diversions of funds, it is necessary that cooperation manages to identify the true actors, and encourage their self-promotion.

2. To start out from the local level, to reverse a basic cooperation trend,

For Rene Segbenou to start out from the local level is reversing the too often downward strategy of current cooperation. It would be necessary in the practice, that at this level exists a real power of decision on the action of cooperation, and that one is not satisfied with a too brief identification where participation seems only an alibi. One creates a project from the outside and thereafter, one comes to ask for the actor's participation. On the contrary, the local actor should have the opportunity to analyze his own situation and to undertake his own actions that cooperation would come to complete if need be.

To do so, a decentralized programming of the development is necessary. The " three " legitimate powers at a local level (heads or places of traditional power, the community-organization circle, the state) should find a consensus of objectives and actions to conduct. The phase of identification should encourage such a programming.

The institutional organization of the Delegations pose a number of constraints in an approach of this type. The personnel must take care of expensive projects in priority whereas it would be necessary to have people " that have the time to take care of things that appear small ". For example, a center of health of 50 million CFA F designed, completed and managed with a strong implication of the village community can generate the social transformations that constitute the real object of the development. It would be necessary that the personnel of Delegations has more autonomy and responsibilities so that he can converse with actors and adapt the volumes committed and the payment schedules to processes to which they are committed.

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