EU/African, Caribbean and Pacific partnership: MEPs list key aims for renewal | WPN World People News

● Fighting poverty must remain key in the future agreement

● Human rights and good governance to remain priorities

Political dialogue and mutual respect should remain at the core of the future EU/African, Caribbean and Pacific partnership from 2020, MEPs said on Thursday.

Ahead of negotiations for a renewed partnership between the EU and the ACP group of 78 African, Caribbean, and Pacific states, which are to start in August 2018, MEPs welcomed the proposed overall architecture of future cooperation between the two regions, as recommended by the EU Commission, in a debate on Wednesday.

However, MEPs also stipulated that the future deal, to replace the EU-ACP partnership’s founding treaty, the Cotonou Agreement, should:

● have as central element the fight against poverty,

● include the principles of equity, mutual respect and mutual interest,

● keep political dialogue as an integrated part of the partnership, and

● integrate support schemes for sustainable agricultural practices.

MEPs also underlined that the parliamentary dimension of the ACP-EU partnership should be further reinforced, with its Joint Parliamentary Assembly dialogue between MEPs and their ACP counterparts at the core of the new partnership.

The resolution was adopted by a show of hands.

Source: European Parliament