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   Summary 19 (27 September-3 October)


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/synt19.html>

KEY WORDS: PROGRESS OF THE DEBATE

* * Title: Summary 19 (27 September-3 October) * *

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

°°° Abstract:

For or against the budgeting of the EDF? The budgetary aid can give back to the states their autonomy in the choice of their priorities of development. So that it can encourage the learning of good governance, it must support learning at the level of administrations and the civil society. In addition of the already proposed elements (See Summary n°17 : training, transparency, dialogue …), the participants remind us of the need for the financial backers to harmonize their approaches, possibly around a common integrated framework (PCI) and to make sure the budgetary process is well executed. National control of the use of allocated funds must be social. Financial backers should be able to exercise ex-post control. A Europe-ACP authority should have the power to sanction in case of diversion of funds.

How to summon the skills of officers to create synergism with actors of cooperation?

Return to the topic of the partnership regarding dissymmetry. It is necessary to go beyond the African specificities to come out of the relation of subordination.

Life of the forum: English-speaking and French-speaking worlds: a wealth of the Convention also leads to difficulties of communication between the two worlds. A bit of effort is needed on the two sides to be understood and to speak. °°°



1. Making of Budgetary Aid a Collective Process of Evolution of Governance (3.10)

And if the entirety of the aid to the ACP countries came from the Community budget and that there was not any more EDF? [European structural funds constituted every 5 years by voluntary contributions of Member States, note by the author of the summary]. Karim Mahari introduces "the budgeting of the aid" in the discussion. It would be in contradiction with the principle of "contractuality" of the present Lomé Convention. If on the other hand, there is no budgeting, the joining of new Member States to the Union could entail, by their contribution, an increase of the volume of the EDF. Which could compensate the determination of certain Member States to decrease theirs otherwise.

2. Backing the Actors and the Processes by Combining the Lome Convention and the European Union's Own Budget (3.11)

The budgetary aid is still recognized as being a good instrument of the aid, simple for donors. (Fatoumata Kane, R., Segbenou). So that it can be efficient:

  • It supposes in the North that:

    • financial backers accept priorities established by the ACP countries
    • the approaches of different financial backers are harmonized and that the alliance of the elements "convinced" of developing the relevance of the EU-ACP budgetary aid integrate the other actors, for example the World Bank.

  • Its implementation must make possible:

    • in parallel, to contribute to the institutional reinforcement of national administration so that the national policies and their application correspond to the reality of needs
    • not to "split" aid into sectors and to make possible a better synergism of all actors involved (Integrated Development Framework), proposed by the World Bank

  • It must be accompanied by:

    • actions of reinforcement of the civil society from the bottom (information, education, training)
    • training and sensitization of the governing authorities to good governance
    • mechanisms of dialogue

  • With regard to the development and the execution of the budget:

    • the development of the budget must be explained, information must circulate during its execution
    • during its execution, some budgetary reallocations must be possible if the situation requires it
    • the different categories of actors must be summoned around its execution
    • the financial backer must be able to exercise ex-post control (Note: for this R. Segbenou informs us of his experience as director of Inades Formation)

  • The question of the sanction must be considered (Mrs. Tjomp). Bertrand Serge Guensu proposes that is created a legal EU-Africa authority that can pursue the guilty of diversions of funds of cooperation of the EU.

3. Sparking off, with Officer Involvement, a Dynamics of Change within the Commission (3.12)

The European Commission is known badly and seem to function in closed circuit. How skills of officers of this institution as those of other international or national administrations could they be better summoned for the definition of policies? If they could intervene more, dialogue more in the execution of development programs in the ACP countries, it could create synergism. It would also be necessary that are defined in this sense criteria of officer selection.

4. Return to the topic of July "Giving Partnership Back Its Meaning" (3.4)

Bertrand Serge Guensu comes back to the dissymmetry of the partnership, actually relation of subordination in which the West doesn't express its needs and expectations of cooperation. It is necessary to go beyond the African specificities considered as sacred and to have the same requirements in terms of democracy, of rights and individual freedoms, of governance as in countries of the North. This is how one will contribute to transform relations of subordination.

5. 5 Life of the forum: News from our English-speaking friends

Marina Urquidi, of the moderation team, led a survey with regard to the subscribed English-speakers to this forum to try to understand reasons of their silence. If they don't speak, they read all most the published messages. As for many other subscribed persons, the lack of time explains the absence of statements.

Marina reports us the words of some among them. One finds the level of considerations too general. For others, more numerous, the dialogue between the English-speaking and French-speaking worlds is important and must be pursued. For example for Jeremy Scott-Joynt "Lomé is vastly under-understood" in Britain and in the English-speaking West.

This forum is a means to report words and experiences of actors of the South in discussions on Lomé. It makes possible a North-South exchange of ideas. Several participants intend to circulate the findings of the forum in their bulletins, newspapers..

In short for the phase of conclusions that takes place in October: You can help us to incite the participation of the English-speaking world.

To all: Try to be more concise, and keep in mind those that read us.



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