Recently, Development Committee (DEVE) of the European Parliament (EP) hosted Matthew Hollingworth, acting UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan who discussed about the issues at stake in Sudan, and how funding for development goes hand in hand with politics.
Yesterday, 20 March, the Development Committee (DEVE) of the European Parliament (EP) held a public hearing regarding the negotiations between the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states and the European Union (EU) for a new comprehensive agreement that will manage their relationship after the Cotonou Agreement expires in 2020. According to the two parties,the post-Cotonou Agreement will have to address the possible gaps of the already existing document and it is expected to renew the relationship between the signatories. However, the exchange showed that the relationship of the two is fragmented, with the EU seeming optimistic and the African Union (AU) feeling left out.
Since 2000, the relations between the European Union (EU) and the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries have been largely governed by the Cotonou Agreement. This agreement aims at reducing and eventually eradicating poverty and, at the same time, contributing to sustainable development and to the gradual integration of ACP countries in the world economy. The Agreement is set to expire in 2020 and the EU institutions have initiated discussions on how to formulate a post-Cotonou Agreement that will address the possible gaps of the already existing document and will renew the relationship between the signatories.