The European Commission and the High Representative/ Vice-President have set out the EU's political priorities and concrete proposals for a stronger strategic partnership with Africa. The Joint Communication will now be presented to the Council and the European Parliament.
The European Commission and the High Representative / Vice-President presented a revitalised framework for joint action, to build a stronger strategic partnership between Europe and Africa for more prosperity and stability in the two continents. The Communication presents innovative proposals in a number of key areas – such as peace and security, migration, job creation or energy – based on priorities defined by African countries and stepping up the existing fruitful cooperation between the two continents.
This comes ahead of the Africa-EU Summit 28-29 November 2017 in Abidjan, which will put a specific focus on youth.
"2017 is the year for a new impetus of the partnership between Europe and Africa: every obstacle we may face is a common challenge, and Africa's hope is our hope. A strong Africa matters to Europe; our friendship matters to our people. Only by joining forces and working in partnership can we provide our youth with a more hopeful and peaceful future. Today, we don't simply look at what we can do for Africa but what we can do with Africa, together". Federica Mogherini, High Representative/Vice President
"We propose several ideas and concrete measures on how to translate our priorities for the years to come into action, notably to foster growth and to create more jobs, especially for youth. We have a solid offer on the table and we now want to discuss it further with EU Member States and with African partners so that this offer materializes into something concrete and visible. More than ever citizens on both sides of the Mediterranean need to see that the Africa-Europe strategic partnership is a reality which goes beyond words." Neven Mimica, Commissioner in charge of International Cooperation and Development
To read the full story and download the proposals, visit the PAEPARD Blog.