EU en ACP landen willen onderzoek naar één financieel instrument voor nauwere samenwerking (en)

Members of parliament of the EU and the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States signed a joint statement requesting the feasibility of a single financial instrument for cooperation to be studied, in order to overcome the difficulties arising from using ERDF funds for this purpose.

This is one of the proposals set out in the aforementioned joint statement, which was signed in Tenerife by the members of the working party that is part of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) and the outermost regions of the EU.

The statement was presented by the joint president of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly of the ACP-UE, Louis Michel i; the permanent representative of the African Union in Brussels, Mahamat Annadif; and the Vice President and regional Finance Minister of the Regional Government of the Canaries, José Manuel Soria.

The chief demand contained in the document relates to promoting the creation of an area of cooperation called the "Euro-African Atlantic space". In addition, there is a desire to take a further step in support of the development of regional ACP-OMR (outermost regions) insertion in order to promote growth in this area and guarantee security and peace in the whole area.

There is also the intention to improve aspects contributing to promote development, such as air and sea connections, energy efficiency, the information society, tourism, combating illegal immigration, terrorism and organised crime, improving business investment, gender equality, combating climate change and achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

This meeting is being attended by the members of the joint parliamentary assembly of fifteen Atlantic African countries and MEPs from the Canaries, the Azores, Madeira and the French overseas departments.