Participation of the Diaspora in the Joint Africa-EU Strategic Partnership

Abstract

The Joint Africa-EU Strategic Partnership and Action Plan was adopted in Lisbon in 2007. This new strategy, which is often referred to as a ‘people-centred partnership’, was launched with the purpose of scaling-up political dialogue between the African Union (AU) and the EU in the interests of building a solid and sustainable continent-to-continent partnership. It aims to reinvigorate and elevate cooperation between Africa and Europe in the fight against poverty, injustice, human rights violations, lawlessness, insecurity and political and social instability. The priorities of the partnership programme are organised around eight themes: peace and security; democratic governance and human rights; trade, regional integration and infrastructure; the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); energy; climate change; migration, mobility and employment; and science, information society and space. The programme stipulates that Africa and the EU will pursue and implement policies and programmes that facilitate the active involvement of diaspora communities in the implementation of the strategy.