ACP EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly - Foundation Office Namibia and Angola
Event Reports
From the 8th to 15th of June, the ACP EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly was held in Windhoek, Namibia.
The ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly (JPA) brought together MEPs and MPs from 78 European Union (EU) and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states that have signed the Cotonou Agreement, which is the base for ACP-EU cooperation and development work.
The session was officially opened by its co-presidents, Michèle Rivasi (France) for the European Parliament and Netty Baldeh (Gambia) for the ACP (Africa Caribbean Pacific) countries.
The Assembly also welcomed speakers like Peter Hitjitevi Katjavivi, Speaker of the National Assembly of Namibia, and Nickey Iyambo, Vice-President of the Republic of Namibia.
The main topic discussed was the future of the partnership between the EU and ACP countries after 2020. Members called for a renewed post-Cotonou architecture to adapt the ACP-EU partnership to new global challenges. Furthermore, the future of ACP-EU relations depends on strengthening parliamentary oversight and stepping up civil society participation
Other urgent topics were pre-electoral and security situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo, rape and violence against women and children in armed conflicts, the impact of the drop in the price of oil and other strategic commodities on ACP economy as well as the changing face of conflict and global security threats.
In the context of its parliamentary support programme, the KAS Namibia-Angola supported the Joint Parliamentary Assembly, observed the discussions and provided information on KAS activities in Namibia and Sub-Sahara Africa by an information desk. Mrs. Andrea Ostheimer (Head of Department for Sub-Saharan Africa) and Mr. Willig (Resident Representative KAS Namibia) were amongst the KAS delegation.
