In preparation for the EU-Africa Summit the European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and the President of the European Union Council, José Sócrates, attended the African Union’s Summit in Ghana on 3 July.
European Commission, José Manuel Barroso
In his speech he said:
- “The European Union’s commitment to Africa is deep. Historically, this commitment was expressed through development aid. (….) But there cannot be, there should not be, an EU-Africa relationship which is based on aid alone. We need a partnership. A partnership of respect, and of opportunity.”
He spoke of the new partnership as envisaged in the outline of the Joint Strategy as an opportunity that must be seized at the EU-Africa Summit, and also expressed a wish for the summit to be the start of more regular events to strengthen the relations between the two continents.
The visit follows the communication adopted by the European Commission at the end of last week.
Read the full speech here.
Read more about the commission’s work with Africa here.
Download the communication – pdf
European Union Council, José Sócrates
Sócrates spoke at the closing session of the AU summit. Also he spoke about the Lisbon Summit:
- “It is our wish that the Lisbon Summit will launch a new strategic partnership between Europe and Africa. This partnership involves dialogue on:the objectives of sustainable development; peace and security; reater respect for human rights;the fight against poverty and endemic disease; and a balanced and mutually advantageous management of migratory flows.”
Sócrates also announced the dates of the EU-Africa Heads of States and Governments Summit to be held in Lisbon on 8-9 December. The AU Exceutive Council received on a positive note the preparations of the Africa-EU Summit at the end of the year and stressed that “all African countries and the African Union (AU) would be invited without conditions to participate in the Summit”. This has provoked reactions both from African and Europeans on the possible participation of President Mugabe in the Summit, see two examples:
- ‘Zimbabwe’s Opposition Unhappy About Mugabe’s Invitation’
- ‘Mugabe invited to Lisbon summit despite EU ban’ (European MEPs critical)
Read the full speech by Sócrates here.
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