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REPORT OF THE EU PRESIDENCY SEMINAR ON AFRICA – PARLIAMENTARY PARTNERSHIP FOR AFRICA’S

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE FRAMEWORK OF NEPAD AND THE MDGS,

HELSINKI, 23 – 24 NOVEMBER 2006

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Parliamentarians agree uponactions for Africa’s EconomicDevelopmentMPs from Africa and Europe discussed and

adopted Recommendations for Parliamentary

Action to increase Africa’s economic

development P 3

MPs discuss the economicempowerment of womenParliamentarians promoted the necessity of

the participation of women in the economic and

political development of Africa for gender

equality and genuine democracy P 6

CONTENT

President’s welcome 2

Results and background 3

Speeches and debates 5-8

Recommendations for Action 9-10

Participants 11

Colophon 12

EU Presidency Seminaron Africa in Finland

CONFERENCE REPORT

AWEPA organises twice per yearinternational parliamentary seminars

under the auspices of the rotating EUPresidency.During these seminars the focus is on thefollowing key areas: keeping Africanpriorities, in the context of NEPAD andthe MDGs, on the political agenda of theEuropean Union and the EU memberstates, promoting partnerships betweenEuropean and African parliaments tostrengthen strong parliamentarydemocracies, and promoting dialogue andnetworking for parliamentarians fromAfrica with each other and with theircolleagues from Europe stimulating actionto achieve the MDGs.

In conjunction with the Austrian chair ofthe EU during the first half of 2006,AWEPA organised an EU Presidency

The EU Presidency Seminar on Africa,entitled “Parliamentary Partnership for

Africa’s Economic Development in theframework of NEPAD and the MDGs”,was held during the Finnish Presidency ofthe European Union in November 2006.AWEPA was very pleased to welcomerepresentatives of 13 European and 8African parliaments at this seminar inHelsinki.

The overall aim of the EU PresidencySeminar on Africa was “to foster anengaged African-European parliamentarydialogue about economic development

and to identify actions that parliamen-tarians on both continents can undertaketo assist development in Africa”. A numberof sessions took place, covering a broadrange of African-European parliamentaryissues under the framework of the NewPartnership for Africa’s Development(NEPAD) and the MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs). These wereall linked by the theme of economicdevelopment.The African and European MPs took stepsto translate the discussions that tookplace during the seminar into concreteaction by adopting the

2 AWEPA Conference Report

President’s welcomePresident’s welcome

“Recommendations for ParliamentaryAction”, see also page 9.

AWEPA would like to thank the FinnishParliament, the Finnish Ministry forForeign Affairs, for supporting this fruitfulconference in the interest of Africa, in theinterest of human dignity. •

MPs seek ways to improve economicdevelopment in Africa

seminar entitled “Euro-African Pact forAfrica’s Development: The Role ofParliamentarians”, in Cape Town in May2006.

The overall aim of this seminar was topromote dialogue and partnershipbetween MPs from Africa and Europe,especially parliamentarians from the newEU member states. During the seminarboth European and Africanparliamentarians committed themselvesto strengthen their partnerships anddevelop new ones in order to further thegoal of actively monitoring thedevelopment assistance from Europe toAfrica. In addition, Africanparliamentarians committed themselvesto the fulfilment of the MDGs througheffective oversight, legislation andbudgets. The European parliamentarians

committed themselves to fulfil thepromises made to Africa concerning ODA,debt relief and trade reform.In Europe, AWEPA will facilitate themonitoring process, through the ongoingEuropean Development Policy TrackingMechanism.

At the EU Presidency Seminar in Helsinkithe main topic of the Cape Town seminarof strengthening partnerships betweenEuropean and African MPs was continued,but with a special focus on theenhancement of the economicdevelopment of Africa. Furthermore, theHelsinki seminar briefly reported back onthe AWEPA conference on parliamentaryand private sector cooperation which tookplace in Arusha, in September 2006. •

EU Presidency Seminars strengthen Euro-African partnerships

Dr. Jan Nico Scholten, AWEPA Executive President

Dr. Jan Nico Scholten, the Executive President of AWEPA:

“It is the overarching goal of every nation to improve its economic development, as a more prosperous economy under certain conditions can ultimately lead to agreater income per person, raised living standards, better education, improvedhealthcare and environmental protection. African countries strive for economicdevelopment: to meet the Millennium Development Goals African countries need tosustain a real growth rate of 7% by 2010 from current levels of close to 3%. At thisrate of growth African economies would double in a decade”.


Results and background

MPs from Africa and Europe adoptRecommendations for Parliamentary Action for Africa’s Economic Development

The MPs from both continents identifiedactions that parliamentarians can

undertake to further the goal of thesuccessful development of the economiesof African countries. During the seminar, afruitful parliamentary dialogue betweenAfrican and European MPs took place inorder to explore the necessary conditionsfor an improved climate for investmentand (international) trade. The parliamen-tarians fully reaffirmed and supportedNEPAD and the MDGs and adoptedRecommendations for ParliamentaryAction for Africa’s Economic Development. They committed themselves to undertakeaction upon the following key issues:

• The MPs welcomed the DraftGuidelines for Parliamentary Action onCreating a Conducive Environment forBusiness, Entrepreneurship,

Investment and Trade (September2006), highlighting the important roleof the private sector in economicgrowth.

• The parliamentarians called oncountries in Europe to give higherpriority to the establishment of fairtrade relationships in internationaltrade negotiations.

• The access to finance, especiallyaccess of African women to micro-finance needs to be improved in orderto attain MDG number 3 of genderequality and the (economic)empowerment of women.

• Special attention has been given to theimportance of the UNICEF GlobalCampaign “Unite for Children, Uniteagainst AIDS” and the need toparticipate actively in policy dialogueon Orphans and Vulnerable Children

(OVC) in Africa and the North.• The targets set for the Official

Development Assistance (ODA) toAfrica are monitored by the NEPADContact Group of AfricanParliamentarians (NCGAP) in theirjoint project with AWEPA. The MPsrecognised that greater transparencyand mutual accountability by theirgovernments is needed. Besides,African parliamentarians should play abigger role in the OECD/ECA MutualReview of Development Efficiency.

A complete overview of all therecommendations that the participantsagreed upon can be found at the end ofthis report. •

At the Helsinki seminar the importanceof the economic empowerment of

African women was addressed. One of thekey strategies to enhance the economicempowerment of women and in the endreduce poverty is to increase women’saccess to credit. Micro-finance gives poorpeople the opportunity to improve theireconomic welfare and it helps to empowerwomen, since it supports gender equityand improves the well-being ofhouseholds. Experience to date indicatedthat women who benefit from micro-finance services have already contributedsignificantly to the GNP of somecountries in Africa. Nevertheless, a lot ofself-employed still lack access to micro-credit programmes. The unmet demand isvery high.

Besides micro-finance, economicempowerment for women can beenhanced through intensive capacitybuilding in relevant areas, e.g. agricultureand cottage industries. Also the legalframework (e.g. family law, commercial

law and rules of work) to protect women’srights should be strengthened andinstitutionalised. Special attention shouldbe given to equal access to and controlover economic resources and equality inemployment. Furthermore, HIPC (HighlyIndebted Poor Countries) funds must bemade available for micro-credits towomen who have shown that they cangenerate income.

The parliamentarians at the seminaracknowledged their role in these issues.They did this against the background ofthe Protocol to the African Charter onHuman and Peoples’ Rights of Women inAfrica (the African Women’s Protocol), inparticular Article 13 on Economic Rightsand Social Protection. Also therecommendations “The Access of CentralAfrican Women to Micro-Credit”, whichwere drafted by the Network of WomenParliamentarians of Central Africa(RFPAC) at a conference on 7 September2006 in Arusha were welcomed by theparticipants. •

Economic Empowerment of African Women

The Access of African Women to Micro-Credit

Dr. Jennifer Riria, Chief Executive Officer of theKenya Women Finance Trust

In sub-Saharan Africa alone, there aremore than 48 million children who have

lost at least one parent due to HIV-AIDSand other causes.

In 2005, UNICEF and its partnerslaunched a global campaign on Childrenand AIDS with the aim to “makesignificant, practical, measurable andsustainable contributions to local, nationaland international efforts to halt andreverse the spread of HIV/AIDS in childrenand adolescents”. In line with NEPAD andthe MDGs to combat HIV/AIDS, thecampaign is looking to increase resourceflows, scale up action and step upadvocacy and communication work in fivemain areas, known as the Five Ps: • PMTCT Plus: drugs to prevent MTCT

and voluntary testing and counsellingservices are widely available tochildren and mothers. Children andpregnant women that are HIV infectedare prioritised into care, support andtreatment programs.

• Paediatric treatment: paediatric HIVdrug formulations, includingcotrimoxazole to prevent opportunisticinfections.


Results and background

The Global Campaign “Unite for Children, Unite against AIDS”

• Protection, care and support forchildren affected by HIV/AIDS:increase the proportion of childrenorphaned and made vulnerable byHIV/AIDS receiving quality family,community and government support,including education, healthcare,nutrition and psycho-social support.

• Prevention: reduce adolescent risksand vulnerability to HIV/AIDS byincreasing access to and use ofgender-sensitive preventioninformation, skills and services.

• Partnerships: one of the mostimportant elements in the GlobalCampaign on Children and AIDS.

Furthermore, UNICEF will also help thecountries that have ratified the“Convention on the Rights of the Child”,i.a. to take affirmative action and to meettheir responsibility to provide specialprotection for Orphans and VulnerableChildren (OVC).

AWEPA and UNICEF agreed to worktogether to scale up parliamentary effortsin the struggle against HIV/AIDS on OVCin line with the Global Campaign. InAfrica, AWEPA and UNICEF jointly

Mr. Heimo Laakkonen, Representative forKenya, UNICEF Representative for KenyaUNICEF ESARO

Parliamentary Oversight of Development Assistance

organised several activities to further thegoal of protection, care and support ofOVC, among others through stimulatingMPs to draft National Plans of Action onHIV/AIDS and OVC (e.g. draft questions,motions, inquiries and adjusteddevelopment policies). The next step willbe to bring these results to the attentionof the MPs in Europe. AWEPA togetherwith the UNICEF national committeesacross Europe, will organise informationbriefings in the national parliaments inEurope and the European Parliament tostrengthen their awareness, monitorEuropean commitments and pledgesmade and stimulate new commitments. •

At the meeting of the European Council on 24 May 2005, all EU Member

States agreed to increase their OfficialDevelopment Assistance (ODA) extensivelyin order to be able to attain the MillenniumDevelopment Goals by 2015.

There are several mechanisms to assessand monitor the progress in delivering

on commitments and achieving the goals. The African Partnership Forum (APF) is amonitoring mechanism jointly agreed uponby G8 Heads and African Leaders after theEvian G8 Summit in May 2003. The role ofthe APF is to record, monitor and report ondelivery of financing and policycommitments, identify issues anddifficulties and agree the way forward.However, parliamentarians are not involvedin this process yet. In line with the Paris Declaration on AidEffectiveness, which sets out thecommitments of donor and partnercountries to address the challenges of

scaling up effective aid, anothermonitoring mechanism was launched,namely the “Mutual Review ofDevelopment Effectiveness”. Thisconsultation mechanism between Africaand the OECD countries was initiated bythe NEPAD Heads of State andGovernment Implementation Committee(HSGIC) and developed by the EconomicCommission for Africa (ECA) and theOrganisation for Economic Co-operationand Development (OECD). Although it’s avery valuable mechanism, since it requestsfor mutual accountability, it is also lackingthe parliamentary involvement and it hasnot been as open as it should be.

African and European parliamentarianshave a vital oversight role to play inexercising oversight over their nationalgovernments with regard to ODA. At a meeting of MPs from across Africa inNairobi in 2003, a resolution was adopted

to establish the NEPAD Contact Group ofAfrican Parliamentarians. In line with theobjectives of NEPAD, the Contact Groupwill process and analyse the ODA data,looking at the amounts, allocations, targetsetc. In October 2006 AWEPA and the NEPADContact Group started a pilot project withthe aim “to enhance the participation ofparliaments in Africa and Europe indevelopment policy with respect to Africancountries in the context of NEPAD as calledfor in the Paris Declaration”. As a pilotAWEPA collected information on ODA inthree European countries: Ireland, theUnited Kingdom and Sweden concerningthe following African countries: Egypt, Mali,Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania, and SouthAfrica.In addition, AWEPA continues to informparliamentarians through the “EuropeanDevelopment Policy Tracking Mechanism”,which is an ongoing process. •

Opening Session

Speeches and debates

Hon. Paavo Lipponen, Speaker of theParliament of Finland

“Without economic growth it is

not possible to beat poverty”

H.E. Marjatta Rasi, Under-Secretary ofState of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs ofFinland, emphasized the need for acommon framework “to promote theachievement of the MDGs and to cementties between the two continents beyondformal political and economic interaction”.Therefore, as Ms. Rasi said, a necessaryand logical step would be to transform thecurrent EU Strategy into a Joint EU/AfricaStrategy. In line with the APRM shementioned the importance of Africanownership when looking at the broad-based as well as the businessdevelopment. As Ms. Rasi said it is “ouraim to give African economies a possibilityto participate in global economicproduction networks and structures”. •

At the opening session the key note speakers addressed the essential role

of parliamentarians in the improvement ofAfrica’s economic development and theneed to bring this process forward together.In the context of NEPAD and theachievement of the MDGs politicaldialogue and a common approach arerequired to discover new opportunities forAfrica’s recovery and to enhance Africa’sintegration into the global economy. The Speaker of the Finnish Parliament,

Hon. Paavo Lipponen, opened theseminar and paid some special attentionto the 100 year anniversary of theirparliamentary system. Finland becamethe first country in the world where allcitizens of age, irrespective of wealth orgender, were given the right to vote inelections and stand as candidate.Political as well as economic equality is a crucial prerequisite for the eradicationof poverty and to increase economicgrowth and development in Africa. TheEU Member States agreed to increasethe EU aid to Africa. In order toaccelerate progress, parliamentarians

should hold their government toaccount to deliver on commitmentsregarding ODA. Furthermore, theSpeaker emphasized that businesscooperation between companies andorganisations in developing anddeveloped countries, needs to beencouraged and governments indeveloping countries have to keep upwork on reform to create a betterinvestment and business climate. •

H.E. Marjatta Rasi, Under-Secretary of Stateof the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland

Hon. Arja Alho, Member of the Parliament ofFinland, Head of the AWEPA section in Finland

“The globaleconomy offersendlesspossibilities if weplay it fair”

“Finland became the first country tohave more than a third of its MPs women”



Hon. Samuel John Sitta, Speaker ofthe Parliament of Tanzania, raised

the issue of parliamentary oversight.Hon. Sitta emphasized that parliamentsare oversight institutions and they havethe responsibility to ensure that thegovernment lives up to the expectationsof the people. They need to monitor theimplementation of programmes such asNEPAD and the MDGs at the globallevel. Hon. Sitta said that parliaments, inorder to be effective and efficient, musthave access to information from thegovernment and participate in all stagesof projects from planning to evaluation. In short, the empowerment of African parliaments is a prerequisite for theempowerment of the people.

The Speaker was pleased to inform theparticipants that the Parliament ofTanzania and AWEPA signed aMemorandum of Understanding (MoU)on Friday 24 November parallel to theseminar. The Tanzanian Parliament and

AWEPA renewed their cooperation toenhance and strengthen the Parliamentas an institution through theimplementation of a ParliamentaryCooperation Programme in Tanzania. •

Hon. Samuel John Sitta, Speaker of theParliament of Tanzania.

“African parliaments need to be empowered

to play their watchdog role”

goal Mr. Vuori stated that “the attraction ofForeign Direct Investment (FDI) into theAfrica is a condition for fair market access”.Other prerequisites to the economicintegration of African countries would bepolitical stability, transparency, fair andequitable treatment from local governmentsand a well developed private sector.

Ms. Davina Makhan, Programme Officer of the European Centre for DevelopmentPolicy Management (ECDPM), paid special attention to the importance of theEconomic Partnership Agreements (EPAs)and investment. According to Ms. Makhan“EPAs are more than just trade. Regionalmarkets will increase credibility, stimulatereforms and set an institutional frameworknecessary to attract investments”. •



Hon. Kimmo Kiljunen, Member of theParliament of Finland and Vice-Chair ofthe Parliamentary Network of the WorldBank and AWEPA Council Member,stated that “not only more aid, butmore coherent development policiesare required to meet the MDGs”. Hecontinued by stating that aid also hasto be spent more effectively. Theresponsibility of the oversight of thedevelopment assistance lies in thehands of both continents. Fact is that if the global export of developingcountries would increase by 8%, theirincome perspective would be the sameas doubling the global aid. Thereforetrade facilitation, opening the access tothe world markets for products fromdeveloping countries, is crucial inbuilding a strong economy in thosecountries. In this light Hon. Kiljunenalso addressed the importance of goodgovernance and anti-corruption. Theresources should be divided equally,since it would be impossible to makeeconomic progress in a politicallyunstable country. •

“More aid is not enough”

Economic Empowerment of African Women

The speakers of this session promotedthe necessity of participation of women

in the economic and political developmentof Africa for gender equality and genuinedemocracy. Although African governmentscommitted themselves to a range ofinternational, regional and Pan-Africandeclarations on gender equality, includingthe Beijing Declaration, these remainunfulfilled. The practical situation is stillthat African women face systematic barriersand discrimination in the political andeconomic life.

This session was chaired by Hon. ArjaAlho, Member of the Parliament ofFinland, Head of the AWEPA section inFinland, re-emphasized Finland’s long-standing cultural tradition of gender-equality, e.g. women’s right to education,women’s right to work and marriedwomen gained the right to manage theirown income.

Dr. Jennifer Riria, Chief Executive Officer ofthe Kenya Women Finance Trust (KWFT),called on the participants to promotemicro-finance as a vehicle for the

Hon. Winifred Masiko, Chairpersonof the Uganda Women

Parliamentary Association (UWOPA),informed the parliamentarians that theeconomic empowerment of women canbe realized through “the promotion ofequal access to and control overeconomically significant resources andbenefits”. Furthermore, increasingwomen’s access to credit has also beena key strategy for women’s economicempowerment. Hon. Masiko continuedby stating that the legal framework toprotect women’s rights needs to beinstitutionalized. In Uganda, there arevarious national mechanisms forpromoting gender issues. For example,a political initiative developed as afollow up to the Beijing conference is a

National Action Plan on Women which isaimed at the attainment of equalopportunities for women by giving themthe opportunity to participate in andbenefit from socio-economic and politicaldevelopment. •

“Increasing women’s access to credit”

Parliamentary Action for an ImprovedAfrican Investment Climate

At the Millennium Summit the international community set a target to halvepoverty by the year 2015. In order to achieve this the parliamentarians in Africa

and Europe are urged to take priority actions to create a conducive investmentclimate for sustainable economic growth of Africa. During this session the key-notespeakers and participants discussed the prerequisites to provide such anenvironment.

Ms. Delene Mark, Chief Executive Officer ofthe organisation “Health, Opportunity,Partnership, Employment” (HOPE) Africa,stressed the importance of partnerships toadvance the development of Africancountries, economically, politically andculturally. These emerge after a longprocess of consultation and arriving at thesame place with the same vision. In orderto achieve this, Africa’s voices for Africa’sdevelopment should be promoted.

Mr. Timo Vuori, General Secretary of theFinnish Section of the InternationalChamber of Commerce (ICC Finland),spoke in his presentation about thepromotion of global trade and economy,which will ultimately lead to povertyreduction. In order for Africa to achieve this

Hon. Winifred Masiko, Chairperson of the UgandaWomen Parliamentary Association (UWOPA)

empowerment of women in Africa. Shestated that “micro-finance, by providingsmall loans, savings, insurance, is the keystrategy for reducing poverty in all forms”.

Besides, women also need non-financialservices that address other needs such as:access to fuel, water, energy and housing.

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Hon. Kimmo Kiljunen, Member of theParliament of Finland, Vice-Chair of theParliamentary Network of the World Bankand AWEPA Council Member

Update on the Global Campaign “Unite for Children, Unite against AIDS”

In 2005, UNICEF and its partnerslaunched the Global Campaign “Unite for

Children, Unite against AIDS”, focusing on5 main areas of concern, namely: PMTCTPlus, Paediatric treatment, Protection,Prevention and Partnerships. The campaignaims to increase resource flows, scale up(parliamentary) action and calls for moreadvocacy and communication work. Duringthis session a number of these necessaryactions were discussed, in particular theneed to accelerate funds.

Mr. Heimo Laakkonen, UNICEFRepresentative for Kenya UNICEF ESARO

“protecting children is

central to economic and

social welfare”Several countries in sub-Saharan Africathat suffer from the HIV/AIDS pandemichave introduced so-called “socialprotection programmes”, as Mr. Laakkonen noted.

He explained that social protection refersto: social insurance, social assistance,public work programmes, cash transfersand micro-finance, which are all importantmechanisms to address the desperateconditions and deprivations that impactOVC and put the whole development ofAfrica at risk. However, the current socialprotection programmes lack sufficientfunds to reach the poorest and mostvulnerable households and children on alarge scale. Furthermore, Mr. Laakkonenpaid special attention to social cashtransfer programmes, to provide cashgrants to the poor. These includepensions, which are crucial in supportingthe care of grandmothers for OVC.

Patrick McCormick, CommunicationOfficer, UNICEF Regional Office forEurope, started his speech with somepositive news. He informed theparticipants that “we have seen moreprogress in the last few years than in theprevious 20”. Regarding the P ofPrevention we have noticed positive trendsin young people’s sexual behaviour, whichresulted in declines in HIV prevalenceamong young people in several Africancountries. Since the launch of the GlobalCampaign there has been significantprogress for children, however a lot morecan and should be done. In this light Mr.McCormick mentions the need tostrengthen healthcare systems in lowincome countries, the increase of funds torealize the goals, political will andconviction. “With enough committedpeople, we can make the campaign work”.

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Hon. Phillip Okundi, Member of the Parliamentof Kenya and Chairman OVC Committee.

“HIV/AIDS, more than any other healthissue, is critical in setting back a country’sdevelopment because it attacks children,young people in their most productiveyears, placing an undue strain on theeconomy”, said Hon. Okundi. Hecontinued by stating that parliamentariansas elected representatives have a vital roleto play and must be encouraged toactively participate in and support theglobal campaign. He described variousparliamentary actions to be taken, e.g.monitoring and evaluating theresponsibilities of the governments,particularly in the health sector. Anothereffective initiative is the development of aplan for basic needs and employment,connected to poverty-reduction projects,to generate income for OVC. At present,micro-finances are being established inthe constituencies of Kenya, to assist andsupport the communities. •

“above all they need to be

children who enjoy their

childhood”



how exactly development aid is spent and who in the end receives it. This is the roleof the parliamentarians in Europe, butalso in Africa. Therefore, as Mr. Howlincontinued, we also need to empower ourbrothers and sisters in the parliaments ofAfrica, so they can exercise the oversightcapacity given to them, to the people ofthe recipient countries, in order for themto determine how the aid is spent andhow effectively it is spent. The informationflow must be accessible. “We need toensure that we are delivering what isrequired”. •

Parliamentary Oversight of Development Assistance

At present, aid is very often negotiatedbetween governments of the donor

countries and recipient countries, withoutinforming parliaments. However,parliamentarians have a key role to play inassessing and monitoring the achievementof commitments and goals concerningODA, including as part of its financialoversight role. This session addressed theissue of parliamentary oversight ofdevelopment assistance.

Ms. Anni Sinnemäki, Member of theParliament of Finland, informed the MPsand experts that the image of developmentassistance is quite positive at the moment,70% of the Finnish population is of theopinion that this should be increased. TheFins have faith in a correct spending of aidand they respect the work that is done bythe parliamentarians. However there is stilla lot that needs to be done. Finland hasstayed behind in comparison to otherNordic countries and has not reached theinitial target of 0.7% and although theamounts had been increased, theestimation for next year will be only 0.43%.

Mr. Karim Dahou, Advisor of the AfricaPartnership Forum Support Unit of theOECD, addressed the Mutual Review ofDevelopment Effectiveness, as “a biennialprocess of dialogue between Africa andOECD leaders and policy makers ondevelopment progress in Africa, focusingon African policies and performance andOECD policies and performance”. It is aconsultation mechanism between Africaand OECD countries to assess andmonitor progress in deliveringcommitments made by OECD countries.In this respect Mr. Dahou emphasized theimportance of “ownership and leadership”

by the different partners, since this isessential for the relevant impact of mutualaccountability arrangements. Also thetone is important, it should be objective,frank and reasoned. Furthermore, by alsoexamining the lessons learnt (e.g. peerlearning), constructive engagement can beaccomplished.

“We need to know that every euro votedhas an effect on the ground”, as Hon.Brendan Howlin, MP Ireland and Vice-President of AWEPA, stated. According toMr. Howlin we are often ignorant about

Prof. Ben Turok, MP and Chair of the NEPADContact Group of African Parliamentarians(NCGAP)

parliamentarians from Africa and Europe toperform their respective roles andresponsibilities in exercising oversight overtheir Executives. According to Prof. Turokdevelopment assistance for Africa is notadequately discussed in the Parliaments ofEurope and Africa. In addition, Prof. Turoknoted that aid is negotiated between thegovernments of Europe and the govern-ments of Africa and parliamentarians arenot involved in this process. The MPsshould wonder why this information is notpublicly available, since both the public inthe donor countries and the public inAfrica would like to be reassured that ODAis used properly and effectively. To seewhether the allocations are in tune with theobjectives of NEPAD, the NEPAD ContactGroup will process the data by recipientcountry and the relevant parliaments. Thenit is the task of the recipient parliament toanalyse this data in the context of theirnational budgets. •

“Examine the truecharacter of ODA”

Prof. Ben Turok, MP and Chair of theNEPAD Contact Group of AfricanParliamentarians (NCGAP), said that “we are hoping that by re-examining thetraditional economic relations betweenEurope an Africa, by way of lookingdeeper into ODA, we shall strengthen ourown political institutions, in particularparliamentary oversight, and uncover newopportunities for Africa’s recovery so thatit can take its rightful place in the worldsystem”. Prof. Turok called on the

Mr. Pär Granstedt, AWEPA Vice-President,presented the recommendations forparliamentary action which werediscussed by the participants. The fullresult can be found in the followingsection of this report.

Closing remarks Hon. Alho closed the seminar with thefollowing appropriate poem:

By Eino Leino: ONE FAITH ALONE

On this earth there are many faithsand one supports the other.

The bard alone has but oneand for him that is quite enough.As much that there is love in usas much we have eternity,as much will also then remainwhen the end of our day is here.(translated by Börje Vähämäki)

During the closing session Dr. Jan NicoScholten, AWEPA Executive President

together with Hon. Arja Alho, Member ofthe Parliament of Finland, Head of theAWEPA section in Finland, reflected on thesessions that took place, the discussionsthat were held and the achieved results.They concluded that it is crucial tocooperate, to create strong partnerships inorder to improve the economicdevelopment in Africa and to meet theMDGs in line with the objectives ofNEPAD.


President’s welcome

ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OF AFRICANWOMEN

• Africa1. We endorse the ratification and

domestication of the ‘Protocol to theAfrican Charter on Human andPeoples’ Rights of Women in Africa’(the African Women’s Protocol) with aspecial focus on Article 13: “Economicand Social Welfare Rights”, statingthat legislative and other measureswill be taken to safeguard equalopportunities for women in work andcareer advancement and othereconomic opportunities, such asFamily Laws, property rights andreproductive and sexual rights in thecontext of the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

2. We welcome the recommendations onthe role of parliamentarians inimproving access to finance, especiallythe access of African women to micro-finance, which resulted from theUNEP/AWEPA regional seminar inArusha, Tanzania, on 8-9 September2006, and capacity building inagriculture ad cottage industries,especially in rural areas.

Recommendations for Action

Parliamentary Partnership for Africa’s Economic Development in the

Framework of NEPAD and the MDGs

Helsinki, 23 – 24 November 2006

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PARLIAMENTARY ACTION

2. We note and support the DraftGuidelines for Parliamentary Action onCreating a Conducive Environment forBusiness, Entrepreneurship,Investment and Trade, which resultedfrom the EALA/AWEPA/UNEP regionalseminar in Arusha, Tanzania, on 8-9September 2006, and stressed theimportance of the private sector foreconomic growth.

• Europe1. We are committed to creating an

enabling environment for Africa’seconomic and social development.Therefore high priority must be givento the establishment of fair traderelationships in international tradenegotiations, including the WTO andEPAs, and the enhancement of Aid forTrade.

2. We call for harmonization among theEU Member States of effective,proportionate and dissuasivesanctions against corruption,including in the private sector, and tomonitor the implementation of anti-corruption clauses, including to makeEuropean anti-corruption laws andmechanisms more effective in termsof prosecution in Europe and Africa.

We, as Members of Parliaments fromAfrica and Europe, participated in

the EU Presidency Seminar on Africa thatwas organized by AWEPA in cooperationwith the Parliament of Finland, withsupport from the Ministry of ForeignAffairs of Finland. In the framework of theFinnish Presidency of the European Unionwe met in Helsinki on 23 and 24November 2006 to discuss maintainingenduring partnerships between Africanand European parliamentarians in orderto create a conducive climate forsustainable economic development inAfrica.

Parliament is the pre-eminent democraticinstitution to provide oversight andaccountability, and to initiate actions inthe areas discussed during the Seminar.Parliament must be given the opportunityto function well, in the interest ofparticipatory democracy, and to undertakeregional and inter-regional dialogueamong parliamentary colleagues.We reaffirm our full support for the ‘NewPartnership for Africa’s Development’(NEPAD) and commit ourselves topromote partnerships based on mutualrespect.We reaffirm our full support for the‘Millennium Development Goals’ (MDGs)and call for a speedy and effectiveimplementation of the commitmentsmade by African governments and theEuropean Union.

We would like to undertake action uponthe following points:

INVESTMENT CLIMATE IN AFRICA

• Africa1. We note and support the

commitments of NEPAD policy and ofthe AU Heads of States meetings topromote economic development,including entrepreneurship,investment and trade in and withAfrica, including the MaputoDeclaration (2004) highlighting theimportance of the agricultural sectorand its contribution to Africaneconomies.


Recommendations for Action

PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT OFDEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

• Africa1. We support the NEPAD Contact

Group of African Parliamentarians(NCGAP) in their joint project withAWEPA to monitor how EuropeanOfficial Development Assistance(ODA) is spent in Africa.

2. We call for a parliamentary role in theOECD/ECA Mutual Review of Development Efficiency, and a greaterrole for parliamentary scrutiny of ODAagreements, before and after they aresigned.

• Europe1. We will continue to undertake action

to hold our governments to accounton international commitments, toexercise parliamentary oversight and to stimulate parliamentary questionsand debates about the level,distribution and effectiveness of theEuropean ODA.

2. We support the NCGAP/AWEPA ODAmonitoring project and will facilitateits work wherever possible, in theinterest of greater transparency andmutual accountability. •

Pre-conference meeting

3. We support the recommendations onthe provision of services in water,energy and insurances, as well as skillsformation in business development,cooperation with the private sectorand support for locally-based micro-finance institutions.

• Europe1. We are committed to undertake action

to reach Millennium DevelopmentGoal #3: “promote gender equalityand empower women” by 2015. Wewill give special attention to thepromotion of women’s economicindependence and women’s equalaccess to training opportunities, creditand other economic resources.

2. We are committed to theimplementation of the Platform forAction, which resulted from the BeijingDeclaration (1995) and which has beenreviewed in New York in 2000,especially the strategic objectives andactions linked to the chapter onwomen and the economy and moregenerally women’s empowerment,gender equality, the promotion ofwomen’s economic independence andwomen’s equal access to economicresources.

GLOBAL CAMPAIGN “UNITE FOR CHILDREN,UNITE AGAINST AIDS”

• Africa1. We note and support the Cape Town

Declaration of 2004 and promise to

take action to develop, implement orimprove the National Plans of Action(NPA) and National ParliamentaryPlans of Action (NPPA) for Orphansand Vulnerable Children (OVC) in ourcountries, to enhance and scale up thepositive developments already takingplace.

2. We call on our governments tostrengthen healthcare systems andbudgets and to enhance the capabilityof communities to properly respond to the OVC challenge, and to offeradequate social protection tovulnerable children.

• Europe1. We fully support the Cape Town

Declaration of 2004 and commit toensuring political accountability bymonitoring our governments’compliance with their commitments,initiating the reopening ofparliamentary debate and participatingactively in policy dialogue on OVC.

2. We recognize the importance of theUNICEF Global Campaign “Unite forChildren, Unite against AIDS”, withspecial attention given to the 4 P’s[Prevention of Mother-to-ChildTransmission (PMTCT), PaediatricTreatment, Prevention of the spread of HIV among young people, andProtection of OVC], and we willencourage our parliaments toparticipate in and support thecampaign.

Participant Institution

Hon. M. Bartyzel Polish Parliament

Hon. P. Csaky Slovakian Parliament

Hon. N. Abdisalam Alim Transitional Federal Parliament, Somalia

Hon. M.A. Duhulow Transitional Federal Parliament, Somalia

Hon. Prof. A.A. Ibrahim Transitional Federal Parliament, Somalia

Hon. J.A. Jama Transitional Federal Parliament, Somalia

Ms. R. Chevallier SAIIA, South Africa

Ms. A.M. Fourie HOPE Africa, South Africa

Ms. D. Mark HOPE Africa, South Africa

Hon. J. Lesiba Matlala Limpopo Legislature, South Africa

Hon. Ms Y. Phosa Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature, South Africa

Prof. B. Turok South African Parliament

Mr. D. Gkasa Embassy of Botswana, Sweden

Dr. B. Gwai Moses Embassy of Tanzania, Sweden

Mr. L. Indopu Embassy of Zambia, Sweden

Hon. E. Katagira Tanzanian Parliament

Hon. C. Ndalu Tanzanian Parliament

Hon. S. Sitta Tanzanian Parliament

Hon. Ms. W. Masiko Women Parliamentary Association, Uganda

Mr. P. McCormick UNICEF Geneva

Mr. H. Laakkonen UNICEF ESARO

Mr. P. Orr Raitt Orr, United Kingdom

Dr. B. Chisya Zambian Parliament

Dr. J.N. Scholten AWEPA Executive President

Mr. P. Granstedt AWEPA Vice President

Dr. L. Dhoore AWEPA Honorary Vice President

Ms. L. Maximus AWEPA Vice President

Mr. F. Arnau Navarro AWEPA Council Member, Spain

Mr. J.W. Bertens AWEPA Council Member, The Netherlands

Hon. K. Bulbulia AWEPA Council Member, Irish Parliament

Ms. B. Lührman Fuchs AWEPA Council Member, The Netherlands

Dr. J. Balch AWEPA Amsterdam, Director Research and

Evaluation

Mr. J. McKendy AWEPA Amsterdam, Director Programme

Development

Ms. T. Van den Ham AWEPA Amsterdam, Project Officer

Ms. L. Helmich AWEPA Amsterdam, PA to the Executive

President

Ms. I. Kaandorp AWEPA Amsterdam, Logistics Officer

Ms. E. Montani AWEPA Somalia, Project Officer


Participant Institution

Hon. P. Bayr Austrian Parliament

Hon. F. Glaser Austrian Parliament

Ms. I. Jäger AWEPA Council Member, Austria

Hon. J. Wirnsperger Austrian Parliament

Hon. M. De Meyer Belgian Parliament

Hon. M. Smet AWEPA Vice President, Flemish Parliament,

Belgium

Hon. A. Abdi East African Legislative Assembly

Hon. K. Kamba East African Legislative Assembly

Hon. Maj. Gen. East African Legislative Assembly

M. Muntu Oyiera East African Legislative Assembly

Ms. D. Makhan ECDPM

Ms. C. Ahopelto Finnish Parliament

Hon. A. Alho Finnish Parliament

Mrs K. Brolén Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Finland

Mr. R. Elomaa Finnish-Namibian Friendship Association

Mrs. B. Essak Finland-Somalia Association, Finland

Dr. B.G. Hans South African Embassy, Finland

Hon. A. Jokilaakso Finnish Parliament

Mr. H.A. Kalanje Finland-Tanzania Association, Finland

Ms. A.R. Ketokoski Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Finland

Hon. K. Kiljunen Finnish Parliament

Mr. P. Kotoaro UNICEF Finland

Ms. M.L. Kultanen Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Finland

Mrs. R. Laatu Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Finland

Hon. S. Lindén Finnish Parliament

Hon. P. Lipponen Finnish Parliament, Speaker

Mr. A. Luukkainen Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Finland

Ms. L. Marsio Finnish Parliament

Ms. M. Mattila Family Federation of Finland

Mr. J. Oksanen Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Finland

Ms. S.L. Peltola Finland-Tanzania Association, Finland

H.E. M. Rasi Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Finland

Mr. K. Silfverberg Finland-Ethiopia Friendship Society

Ms. S. Talvitie Finnish Parliament

Hon. A. Sinnemäki Finnish Parliament

Ms. S. Varpama The Finnish UN Association

Ms. T. Virtanen Finnish Parliament

Ms. H. Vuorenmaa Family Federation of Finland

Mr. T. Vuori ICC Finland

Mr. T. Vuosio Finnish Parliament

Ms. K. Ylipahkala Finland-Ethiopia Association, Finland

Hon. G. Groneberg German Parliament

Mr. Th. Georgiou AWEPA Council Member, Greece

Hon. Ch. O'Connor AWEPA Council Member, Irish Parliament

Hon. B. Howlin AWEPA Vice President, Irish Parliament

Hon. J. G. Wanyoike Kenyan Parliament

Mr. T. Githui Ruhiu National Chamber of Commerce, Kenya

Hon. Eng. Ph. Okundi Kenyan Parliament

Dr. J. Riria Women’s Finance Trust, Kenya

Hon. Z. Syongo 'h Kenyan Parliament

Hon. I. Circene AWEPA Council Member, Latvian Parliament

Dr. E. Vareikis AWEPA Vice President, Lithuanian Parliament

Hon. A.G. Mabunda Mozambican Parliament

Hon. M. Mocumbi Mozambican Parliament

Hon. M.V. Videira Mozambican Parliament

Mr. K. Dahou OECD

Participants


For more details for the Helsinki EU Presidency Seminar, includingelectronic copies of the Recommendations for Action, the Terms ofReference, the full programme, and the speeches made in full,please see the new AWEPA website at www.awepa.org.

AWEPA mission statementAWEPA works to support the well-functioning of parliaments inAfrica and to keep Africa on the political agenda in Europe. Action is undertaken for human resource development withparliamentarians and other elected representatives andinstitutional capacity building within parliaments and decentralisedauthorities.

This includes attention to: • the key role of well-functioning parliaments with regards to

democracy, human rights, peaceful conflict management,poverty reduction and sustainable development

• the attainment of gender equality at all levels of politicaldecision-making;

• African-European sharing of parliamentary experience • building parliamentary networks at national, regional and inter-

regional levels as fora for political and non-governmentalinteraction

AWEPA also informs and mobilises European parliamentarians onpolicy issues in African-European relations, developmentcooperation and democratisation in Africa.

More details PARTNERS:

AWEPAParliament of FinlandMinistry for Foreign Affairs of Finland

Colophon

Text Tatjana van den Ham

Editing Tatjana van den Ham, Jeff Balch,

Geertje Hollenberg, Marc Holtkamp

Photos Awepa, Pieter Boersma (page 7)

Design Lena Shafir/www.shafir-etcetera.com

Printing drukkerij Mart.Spruijt bv

AWEPA International Office

Prins Hendrikkade 48

Tel: +31 20 5245678

Fax: +31 20 6220130

E-mail: [email protected]

© AWEPA, 2007

awepa no5 eng hels

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