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CONFERENCE Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon December 13-14, 2012

Rationale

The international conference Building the Africa-Europe partnership: what next? is organised by the Institute of International and Strategic Studies, IEEI, a think tank, the Institute Marquês de Valle Flôr, IMVF, a development NGO, the ISCTE-IUL Centre of African Studies, CEA, an academic institution, and the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM), an independent European Foundation. The organisers are members of the Europe-Africa Policy Research Network (EARN), grouping 25 academic institutions, think tanks and civil society organisations, aiming to produce contributions and independent analysis to foster the political dialogue between both continents. The Camões – Institute of Cooperation and Language, the Portugal-Africa Foundation and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation give their support to the conference.

The coming years will see critical decisions taken on development goals and priorities and on the framework of EU-Africa relations, which need to be informed by policy-oriented research and by multidisciplinary debates that capture the increased complexity of the new global dynamics.

Although global security and development challenges have profound implications for developing and developed countries, for civil society and for decision-makers, in Europe and in Africa, they are still poorly understood in terms of their impacts in both continents and on their relationship.

Bearing in mind the 2014 EU-Africa Summit, the conference aims at debating some of the major themes that will continue to impact on the building of the Africa-Europe partnership and on international development cooperation in forthcoming years. The definition of a post-2015 global development agenda, which will necessarily link complex issues such as security, environment, governance and growth, will underpin the discussions on the sessions.

The discussions are organised in 4 sessions and 1 panel:

Session 1

Session 2

International Crisis Impact on Europe & Africa and on their relationship

Demographic Challenges on the sustainability of growth models & aid prospects

Session 3

Session 4

Security Threats North Africa, Sahel and neighbouring countries

Development flows and actors new donors and investors & aid vs. business

Panel Future Prospects: 2014 EU-Africa Summit & Post-2015 Development Agenda

Each session will be opened by invited speakers, followed by debate among them and with the audience. The panels will bring together a number of experts that will discuss the issues and the prospects for Africa-Europe partnership on the coming years.

The conference intends to involve 60 to 80 participants from the Portuguese civil society, practitioners, entrepreneurs, academics, officials and decision-makers, as well as representatives from emerging economies, donor countries and institutions.

THEMES The Crisis The impact of the international crisis in the Europe-Africa Partnership The combined effects of the global financial and the Euro crisis, as well as the debate over austerity vs. growth policies will surely continue to frame the relationship and the prospects for future EUAfrica cooperation. As Europe wrestles with self-doubts about its future and place as global actor, the economic crisis represents not only diminishing funds for international development, but also broader questions about the path followed by the European project so far. Although several African economies are steadily growing, the African continent has also been affected by the international crisis (particularly in 2009-2010) and will surely suffer from the financial, economic and political crisis in Europe and elsewhere.

Questions to address: What are the main impacts of the international crisis in the two continents?

How do they impact on EU-Africa relations?

Demographic Challenges The effects of demographic trends on development priorities and aid prospects Demographic trends bring a handful of complex and diverse questions, such as the sustainability of growth and retirement pensions in aging societies, social cohesion and protection schemes, or the impact of rising urbanisation on unemployment and underemployment, namely of youth. The whole international geography of poverty and wealth is rapidly changing, with most poor population living in middle income countries and inequalities rising in developed countries. These issues are not yet fully acknowledged and debated, having short and long-term impacts on EUAfrica relations, including on sensitive issues as migration and employment.

Questions to address: How are (and will be) these demographic trends reflected in development prospects, in Europe and in Africa?

How can the EU and Africa better respond to the risks that arise from youth unemployment, migrations and other demographic issues that challenge social cohesion and economic sustainability?

Security Radical armed groups in North Africa, the Sahel and neighbouring countries: implications for international security and EU-Africa relations Security and peace, as necessary conditions for development, are well remembered in Europe and Africa, taking into consideration both continents’ recent history. The spread of weapons that resulted from the defeat of the Khadafy regime is fuelling rebels and radical jihadist movements all across neighbouring Sub-Saharan countries, as the case of Mali illustrates. As the security situation on large parts of the Sahel and border regions worsens, a redefinition of major power priorities and strategies is also occurring, bringing Africa again to the strategic international map, and representing new challenges to European external policy and Africa security priorities.

Questions to address: How does political change in North Africa (mainly Libya) affect Sub-Saharan countries?

What are the impacts of the insecurity in Sahel and border regions on international priorities and on the EU-Africa partnership?

Development Flows and Actors Foreign Direct Investment and new aid providers: impact on African development strategies Financing for development is a critical factor for economic growth and international cooperation, in a context in which “traditional aid” and developed countries’ budgets are under increasing pressure. The rising of new donors and investors in Africa is fuelling the debate on aid criteria, private-public partnerships, blended instruments, and policy coherence (e.g. trade and development), as well as raising new options for internal growth strategies on developing countries. Besides the impact of emerging economies in Africa, it is increasingly relevant to assess how business is replacing aid as a major engine for growth in several poor countries and how this impacts over the current poverty reduction programmes.

Questions to address: What are the political implications of the rising of new providers of development cooperation in the traditional aid architecture?

How can African countries make the most of this increased complexity and diversification of partners for their own development strategies?

The Future The 2014 EU-Africa summit and the post-2015 development agenda: what next?

The on-going debate over the post-2015 Global Agenda that will replace the Millennium Development Goals defined in 2000 includes a range of discussions on development effectiveness, policy coherence, financing, the relevance of addressing exclusion and inequalities (more than poverty), the inclusion of global public goods or the security-development-environment links. This final session will focus on how these issues are relevant and linked with the priorities for Africa-EU cooperation in the near future and how they will or should be dealt in the next 2014 Africa-EU summit.

Questions to address: What are (or should be) the main issues discussed on the definition of a post-2015 agenda?

Which challenges and opportunities does this new agenda represent to the Europe-Africa partnership?

What contributions can actors in Europe and Africa give to these debates?

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