No strategy for the fight against poverty can be sustainable "if we are not capable of ensuring, in the best way possible, the integration of the Least Developed Countries into the world economy", declared Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano on Wednesday.
At the opening of the heads of state summit of the ACP (Africa, Caribbean and Pacific) group, Chissano stressed that this integration must happen in a way that defends the interests of the poor countries.
In particular, future trade relations between the ACP and the European Union should be negotiated "in a framework of openness and transparency, taking into consideration not only commercial issues, but other questions concerning development, particularly the transfer of technology and know-how".
He argued that the expansion of the EU should not be a factor that distorts the objectives that have guided ACP-EU cooperation. "Political Dialogue should be undertaken between equal partners and in a spirit of openness, sincerity and frankness, so that our cooperation may indeed be strengthened", said Chissano.
As for the negotiation of new "Economic Partnership Agreements" with the EU, this should be used "to strengthen regional cooperation, and not to dismantle our organisational blocs. Only thus can the outcome of this process have a positive impact on the development of our countries".
Chissano acknowledged that the "regime of non-reciprocal trade preferences" initially established under the Lome Convention was no longer compatible with the rules of international trade demanded by the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
So the principle of reciprocity was "a new element in our relationship with the European Union, and a requirement for making the Economic Partnership Agreements compatible with the multilateral trade rules defended by the WTO".
But Chissano warned that reciprocity "should be analysed and applied with due thought, and taking into account the asymmetries that prevail between our countries".
Chissano stressed the need, not only for a striking a good deal with the EU, but also for improved cooperation among the ACP states themselves. Such cooperation "can give us more strength to better coordinate our negotiations with our partners from the developed countries, and contribute to safeguarding the environment of peace, security and stability that we should create and maintain".
But to date the balance sheet of intra-ACP cooperation showed that it remains "insignificant compared with the scale of the challenges we face".
"Lack of political will, of support mechanisms and of the ability to mobilise the necessary resources are at the root of the poor results obtained in intra-ACP cooperation", Chissano said.
"Commitment to promote, facilitate and strengthen regional integration and intra-ACP cooperation is a fundamental requirement for the pursuit of our goals", he urged. "We must pass from intentions to action".
Chissano added that the ACP group should "define a clear agenda, which not only deepens our unity and solidarity, but also legitimises us as a coherent force on the international stage".
The outgoing ACP chairperson, the Prime Minister of Fiji, Laisenia Qarase, warned of the erosion in recent years "of the multilateral principles that have been the cornerstone of the international system".
He too insisted on closer collaboration between ACP member states. "We must speak and act together", Qarase stressed.
Speaking on behalf of the EU, Irish Trade Minister Michael Ahern claimed that the ACP countries would benefit from the EU's expansion from 15 to 25 members, because of the massive growth in size of the EU market. "The ACP can export to the new countries on the same terms as to the old ones", he said.
Ahern claimed the EU wanted to get the Doha Development Agenda "back on track following the breakdown at Cancun". This was the WTO ministerial meeting in Mexico which collapsed when the developed countries refused to make concessions on such major issues as the huge agricultural subsidies they offer to their farmers.
He also argued that the Economic Partnership Agreements to be negotiated will prove beneficial to development and will lift the level of ACP access to European markets.
Font: AIM
