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22-11-2005
Historic Background:
Africa has been plagued by the entrenchment of a vicious cycle, in which economic decline, reduced capacity, and poor governance reinforce each other, thus confirming Africa's peripheral and diminishing role in the world economy and world affairs in general.
Thus, African leaders have reached the conclusion that a holistic, integrated and coordinated approach that tackles the root causes of Africa 's backwardness is needed. NEPAD was designed as a vision that aims at breaking this vicious cycle of poverty, underdevelopment, and marginalization that Africa has suffered from for decades.
Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria and South Africa took the initiative; holding a series of experts meetings in 2001 to draft a program for Africa's development, which was, named ”Millenium Partnership for African Recovery Program-MAP”. Meanwhile, Senegal proposed another ambition development plan known as ”Omega”.
Egypt hosted the Steering Committee meeting in Cairo/June 2001, with the participation of experts from the five nations (Egypt-Nigeria-Algeria-South Africa-Senegal). The meeting succeeded in integrating the two initiatives under the name ”New African Initiative”, which was later on unanimously adopted by the 37-th OAU Summit held in Lusaka, Zambia as the continent's socio-economic development program .The name was subsequently changed to ”New Partnership for Africa's Development” (NEPAD). The Summit endorsed the NEPAD vision and policy framework document that covers several sectoral priorities as follows: Peace and Security, Democracy and Good political, economic and corporate governance, Health, Agriculture, Market Access, Infrastructure, Education, Environment.
The AU Summit oversees the implementation of the initiative and endorses progress reports submitted by the chairman of the NEPAD HSGIC.
The Lusaka summit resolved to establish HSGIC, comprised of three heads of state and government from each of the five OAU/AU regions, including the five-initiator countries (the number was later on increased to four). The mandate of the Committee is to lead the further development of the initiative. Membership of the committee is formed of the following countries (Egypt-Algeria-Tunisia-Libya-Nigeria-Senegal-Ghana-Mali-Cameroon-Republic of Congo-Saotome' and Principe-Gabon-Rwanda-Kenya-Mauritius-Ethiopia-South Africa-Mozambique-Botswana-Angola).
The committee is instructed by HSGIC to prepare detailed implementation plan for different NEPAD priorities, as outlined in the NEPAD vision and policy framework endorsed by the OAU/AU Lusaka Summit. Its membership includes representatives of the five founding nations of the initiative (Egypt-Algeria-Nigeria-Senegal-South Africa)
The committee as well holds extended meetings with the participation of representatives of the other heads of State and Government of the HSGIC.
Based in Pretoria-South Africa, It provides technical and administrative assistance for both HSGIC and Steering Committee. Egypt has dispatched a full-time working diplomat to join the secretariat staff as a coordinator for Agriculture and Market Access sectors; the two files Egypt has been delegated to follow up their plans of action and programs.
NEPAD structures have been working closely with the AU Commission on issues of peace and security and have developed the AU/NEPAD Peace and Security Agenda, based on the priorities approved by the HSGIC consultations process; which includes most importantly: Developing mechanisms, institution building process for achieving peace and security in Africa, Improving capacity for early action for conflict prevention, management and resolution, Improving early warning capacities, improving the efficiency of prevention, combating, and eradication of the problem of the illicit proliferation and trafficking of small arms and light weapons and assisting in resource mobilization for the AU Peace Fund and for regional initiatives aimed at preventing, managing and resolving conflicts.
NEPAD has formulated - in coordination with FAO- The Comprehensive Africa's Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), which was approved by the African Ministers of Agriculture in June 2002, and endorsed by the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Maputo July 2003. CAADP identifies four fundamentally reinforcing pillars, on which the improvement of Africa's Agriculture, food security as well as trade balance are based on: Extending the area under sustainable land management, increasing food supply and alleviating hunger, Improvement of rural infrastructure and market access, Promoting Agricultural research and technology.
The Maputo Declaration adopted by the AU summit in July 2003 calls for urgent implementation of CAADP and evolving plans of actions at the national, regional and continental levels. Based on the Declaration, African Countries committed themselves to allocating 10% of their national budgetary resources for their implementation within 5 years. The Declaration also calls upon the African Union Commission, the NEPAD Steering Committee, FAO, and other partners to continue their cooperation, providing effective support to African countries and the REC 's in the implementation of CAADP.
A CAADP Support Group was established in September 2003. The Support Group membership consists of representatives of the African side: Egypt (in its capacity as a coordinator for the agriculture file within NEPAD), current chairman of the African agriculture ministers conference, the current chair of the AU Assembly) as well as principal financing institutions (World Bank, ADB, IFAD) and multilateral organizations (WFP, FAO) and include, where appropriate, sub-regional development banks, and interested NEPAD bilateral partners.
The CAADP Support Group will work to Provide support for the operationalisation of CAADP and to serve as a platform for deepening NEPAD's engagement with its stakeholders, particularly financing institutions and development partners.
The NEPAD “Market Access Initiative” aims at adopting a comprehensive strategy to overcome the problems of trade deficits and the constant decline in the size of exports earnings. This strategy also aims at overcoming the complicated constrains facing Africa's efforts to achieve a better trade performance, exports, market diversification and putting an end to the developed countries' protectionism trade policies and subsidies, thus allowing African exports free access to their markets.
NEPAD recognizes that infrastructure development is an integral component of a comprehensive approach to development. Therefore, NEPAD has produced a Short-Term Action Plan (STAP) in July 2002.The plan was prepared in coordination with the African Development Bank (ADB), and Regional Economic Communities (REC's). NEPAD is working closely with ADB, REC's and development partners to bring a number of projects prioritized in the STAP to implementation. Short- term projects have been identified in the following areas: energy, transport, ICT, Water and Sanitation. Drafting of another list of medium to long-term action plan of infrastructure projects is underway in coordination with technical partners particularly the ADB. In this context, ADB has established the ”NEPAD Infrastructure Projects Preparations Facility (NEPAD-IPPF) to provide technical and financial assistance to t African countries, Regional Economic
Communities (REC'S) and related institutions to prepare high quality and viable infrastructure projects and programmes.
An African ministerial forum was established within the NEPAD framework to address critical policy and political issues pertaining to the development and application of science and technology .It will provide high-level political leadership to the process of developing and adopting NEPAD science and technology framework and action plans. The forum has also established a panel of eminent scientists to develop regional plans of action, the vice-president of the Egyptian National center of Researches has been appointed as the coordinator for the North Africa region.
NEPAD has worked closely with UNEP in the preparation of the Environment Action Plan for Africa under the leadership of the African Ministers of Environment Conference. The plan was adopted by the AU summit in July 2003.Thus; it became the plan guiding all NEPAD environment activities.
A partnership conference with the participation of development partners was held in Algeria in November 2003 to launch the action plan for the NEPAD environment initiative. Egypt has submitted a list of three projects to be included within the action plan. An earlier preparatory meeting was hosted by Egypt in October 2003, focusing mainly on determining criteria for the selection of projects to be included within the action plan.
The e-Africa Commission has been established to drive forward the NEPAD Information and Communication Initiative. The programme under the Commission includes an e-schools projects and rollout of the African Virtual University programme.
The AU summit held in Durban/2002 has endorsed the declaration on the Implementation of NEPAD in which it has encouraged member states to adopt the Declaration on Democracy, Political, Economic and Corporate Governance and accede to the African Peer Review Mechanism. The APRM is an instrument voluntarily acceded to by AU member states. It's a self-monitoring mechanism intended to foster the adoption of policies and practices that will lead to political stability, high economic growth, sustainable development and accelerated sub-regional and continental economic integration through the sharing of experiences and the reinforcement of successful best practices, including identifying deficiencies and assessing the needs of capacity building.
To ensure the primary purpose is realized, the participating countries have committed themselves to adopting appropriate laws, policies, and standards as well as building the necessary human and institutional capacity. They have also committed themselves to adopting specific objectives, standards, criteria and indicators for assessing progress in key areas on a regular basis in accordance with the APRM base document and the Declaration on Democracy, Political, Economic, and Corporate Governance.
1 - APRM Forum: It's the highest decision making authority of the APRM, composed of the Heads of State and Government states acceded to the APRM.
2 - The Panel of Eminent Persons: It oversees the review process to ensure integrity, to consider review reports and to make recommendations to the APRM Forum.
3 - APRM Secretariat: It provides the secretarial, technical, co-coordinating and administrative support services for the APRM.
24 AU member states have acceded to the APRM- Egypt has acceded in February 2004-, The review process which has already started in 2004 will eventually cover all participating states according to the timetable designed by the APRM Secretariat
1- Egypt has actively participated in technical preparatory meetings that culminated in drafting the basic documented of the initiative, later on adopted by the OAU Lusaka summit in 2001.
2- President Mubarak has participated in the meeting held in Paris on February 28,2002 upon the invitation of President Chirac of France . The meeting was attended by several African Heads of State and Government as well as by the prime minister of Canada . African and world leaders attending the meeting discussed means to provide support to the ambitious NEPAD plans of action in preparation for the 2002 G-8 Kananaskis Summit .
3-President Mubarak has participated in the 2003 Evian Summit , attended by G-8 leaders, leaders of emerging economies countries as well as leaders of the other four African countries founders of NEPAD. H.E delivered a statement focusing on sectoral priorities of NEPAD stressing on the importance of addressing the issue of market access. Allowing African exports better access to international markets. H.E also pointed out to the question of access to medicine, and its crucial consequences on the socio-economic development programmes in the continent.
4- Egypt has participated in the United Nations General Assembly high-level dialogue in September 2002.Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt co-chaired the roundtable discussion, held to Introduce NEPAD to the world community, and to discuss possible mechanisms and channels to support its implementation.
5-Egypt's People's Assembly has established a parliamentarian NEPAD commission aiming at providing support and momentum to the initiative on the national level as well as on the continental and international levels.
6- Egypt participates in the activities of the newly established” Africa Partnership Forum” .The forum has held three meetings so far (Paris Nov.2003-Mapito April 2004-Washington Oct. 2004), aiming at establishing a new partnership between Africa and its development partners based on the principles of “shared responsibility” and “mutual accountability” .It focuses on providing practical and genuine support to the process of implementation of NEPAD programmes.
7-Egypt's Ministry of Transport has prepared a list of proposals of implementable regional transport projects. This list has been submitted to relevant regional economic communities (COMESA, Cen/Sad), NEPAD Secretariat and relevant technical partners (ADB) for assessment prior to inclusion within the NEPAD infrastructure programme of action.
8- Egypt 's role in the process of operationalization of CAADP:
a - Egypt is responsible for coordinating the agriculture file within NEPAD. In this capacity Egypt has effectively participated in the formulation of CAADP as well as in all meetings held to formulate programmes and plans for its implementation, in addition to its membership in the CAADP Support Group.
b - The Ministry of Agriculture has prepared a list of projects that was later submitted to the regional economic communities Egypt is member of, for their inclusion within their programmes and hence to be implemented within NEPAD.
c - Egypt hosted an African Expert Meeting from March 30 to April1-2003, which tackled-among other issues- obstacles facing African agricultural exports to international markets, as well as formulating a common African position with regard to liberalizing the agriculture sector in the ongoing multilateral trade negotiations.
d - The Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture - in collaboration with FAO - has organized a number of national workshops to introduce the ”CAADP” to different stakeholders on the national level, and to align national projects with the guideline of “CAADP”.
e - The Ministry has also concluded a Technical Cooperation Protocol with UN.F.A.O to fund studies on designing short to medium –term investment projects to be implemented within the framework of CAADP.
f - Egypt is expected to host a workshop on ”aqua-culture” next November, within the plan of action related to the fisheries sector of CAADP. This workshop is one of a series of meetings and workshops held in preparation to the upcoming Abuja “Fish For All” Summit , expected to take place next February.
9- Egypt being one of the founding five countries of NEPAD acts also as a coordinator for the “Market Access” file “. In this capacity, Egypt hosted an African expert meeting from March 30 to April 1-2003,for deliberations on topics on the multi-lateral trade negotiations agenda, so as to formulate a common African position. Recommendations of this meeting were later submitted to the African Ministers of Trade Conference, which took place in Maputo in July 2003. These recommendations were also taken into consideration in the process of Preparation for the WTO-Ministerial Conference, held in Cancun in September 2003.
National NEPAD Focal Point:
Office of Ambassador/Ibrahim Ali Hassan
Advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs for African Affairs
Egypt 's representative at the NEPAD Steering Committee
Fax: 00202 574 7406
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