Brussels, 9 December 2014/ ACP: Representatives of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of countries and the European Union have expressed their intent to work closely together in the coming year, particularly in contributing to the elaboration of the post-2015 global development agenda while working on a revamped partnership framework for the two groups for the future.

At the ACP Ministerial Committee for Development Finance held in Brussels leading up to the 100^th session of the ACP Council of Ministers, officials held discussions with the newly appointed European Commissioner for Development, Mr. Neven Mimica.   

Chairman of the Ministerial Committee, the Minister of Planning and Sustainable Development of Trinidad & Tobago Hon. Bhoendradatta Tewarie, called for a joint initiative in 2015, taking inspiration from the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the ACP-EU relationship since the Lomé Conventions and the designation of 2015 as European Development Year.

“The convergence of this important milestone, this significant European Union decision for 2015, the finalisation next year of the assessment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and its impact on poverty reduction and the anticipated adoption by the international community of the development framework which is to replace the MDGs, together present a unique opportunity for the ACP and the European Union to demonstrate in a concrete fashion that it has and continues to strive for impactful relations in the future,” he stated. 

Commissioner Mimica said the post-2015 development agenda and the post-Cotonou framework – what succeeds the current ACP-EC Partnership Agreement signed in Cotonou, Benin in 2000 – “will shape development policy for the next decade.”

“We can agree on the need for an enhanced approach, building further on our partnership, incorporates overarching principles, such as respect for fundamental values, and takes account of specific realities in countries and regions,” he told the meeting.

EDF Programming and Bridging Facility

The ACP-EU partnership houses the 11^th European Development Fund (EDF), which totals EUR 31.5 billion for development assistance to ACP countries for the period 2014-2020. This supports programmes on the national, regional and intra-ACP levels, in various areas such as sustainable economic development, peace and security, and good governance.

Although the 11^th EDF has not entered into force (pending six more ratifications on the EU side, expected by mid-2015), a “bridging facility” amounting to EUR 1.5 billion sourced from unused funds from previous EDFs, will allow priority actions to continue in the ACP countries in 2014 and 2015.

To date, 53 national indicative programmes (worth up to EUR 10 billion for 2014-2020) have been signed with the remaining ones to be signed by early 2015. On the regional level, there is broad agreement on the content (sectors, financial breakdown) of the regional programmes, which should be signed by the first semester of 2015. The Intra-ACP strategy involving many of all the ACP States will be adopted and signed also during the first semester of 2015. 

(Photos from top: Hon. Tewarie, Chair of the ACP Council of Ministers; European Development Commissioner Mr. Neven Mimica and his team; DFC Minsterial meeting in Brussels.)

For more information, contact ACP Press Officer, Ms. Josephine Latu-Sanft, +32 2 7430617 or [email protected].