Political Declaration of the Euro-African Civil Society Forum

Political Declaration of the Euro-African Civil Society Forum

Lisbon, 15th to 17th November 2007

We, African and European Civil Society Organizations, having met at the Lisbon Euro-African Forum, state that partnerships are the cornerstone of development. However, building a new partnership between Europe and Africa takes time. It requires more coherence and taking power unbalances into account. It also requires the effective implementation of the principles on which this relation must be based, such as mutual accountability and trust.

This strategic partnership must respect the time and agenda of each actor involved in the process, allowing for the inequalities to be narrowed and for the maturity of institutions to be advanced enough to allow for a true balance of power between continents.

1º Mutual Accountability: We believe any future partnership must be rooted in mutual learning and respect, on an honest political dialogue and on the recognition that Human Rights are universal. Governance must be a political demand for the democracy-building process in both Continents.

Mutual accountability requires also equilibrium of power between the EU and Africa but, until this happens, bilateral and international negotiations must take into account existing disequilibrium and be adjusted accordingly.

2º Trust: Trust is built upon a common understanding and respect of each other. It is also permanently built and strengthened through the implementation of coherent and solidarity policies and the delivery of concrete outcomes. However, the combination of a lack of policy coherence by the European Union and their double standards for partner countries has led to a degree of scepticism on the part of Civil Society in Europe and Africa. The bilateral free-trade agreements, as they are currently defined, especially the Economic Partnership Agreements, are a clear counter-example of this trust-building process, since they are incoherent with key principles of the New Strategic Partnership, undermining the very processes of sub-regional and continental integration they are supposed to support. Another lack of coherence can also be found in the security-based approach of migration fluxes, only linked to Europe’s interest.

A new strategic partnership requires a true political will and the implementation of new instruments and resources in order to accompany the continental integration process as it has been defined by African partners.

Moreover, a people-centred partnership means that adequate and timely spaces should be created to allow for the diversity of civil society organisations to take part in all strategic and operational aspects of this relationship. A genuine Civil Society participation must be made possible in policy-making at the local, national and regional level, through the existence of concrete frameworks for dialogue based on solid and effective institutions, ensuring that the views of a wide range of stakeholders, and in particular marginalised groups, are integrated into the policy making process. Women must have access to adequate spaces and mechanisms allowing them to increase their political, economic and cultural power.

Finally, in order to respond, jointly, to the fast changing environment in which this Partnership has been established, we insist that this dialogue process include mechanisms and instruments for mutual learning, continuous assessment and review, and guarantee mutual accountability, the respect of mutual rights – including the right to development, and a true equilibrium of power. It is under these conditions that African and European Civil Society Organisations represented at the Euro-African Forum are willing to accept the challenges of being a partner in the construction of this new relationship.