Proposal for a Council Decision on the position to be adopted by the Community within the ACP-EC Council of Ministers regarding the use of resources from the long-term development envelope of the ninth EDF for the creation of a Peace Facility for Africa
Date: 2003-10-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Africa, European Development Fund, Partnership for Peace, development aid

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 27.10.2003
COM(2003) 638 final

Proposal for a

COUNCIL DECISION

on the position to be adopted by the Community within the ACP-EC Council of
Ministers regarding the use of resources from the long-term development envelope of
the ninth EDF for the creation of a Peace Facility for Africa

(presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1.

INTRODUCTION

Through  the  signature  of  the  ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement,  the  ACP  States  and  the
European  Union  have  agreed  to  pursue  an  active,  comprehensive  and  integrated  policy  of
peace building and conflict prevention and resolution1. They have also agreed that such policy
shall be based on the principle of ownership and focus in particular on building regional, sub-
regional and national capacities.

The adoption by the EU in May 2001 of its common position on conflict prevention in Africa
underscored the EU's resolve to enhance its political partnership with the AU and to move its
various  instruments  more  towards  the  area  of  conflict  prevention  and  peace  building.  In  its
communication to the EU Council on the EU-Africa dialogue (ref. COM 2003/316  of 23-6-
2003),  the  European  Commission  identified  conflict  prevention  and  peace  building  as  a
prerequisite for development and a top priority for the EU-Africa political dialogue. Regular
dialogue  between  the  donors  and  the  African  Union  Commission  should  enable  donors  to
identify and mobilise resources for the peace and security mechanisms of the African Union.

At  the Summit of  the  African Union in  Maputo from 4-12  July  2003, the  African  Heads  of
State have taken a "Decision on the Establishment by the European Union of a Peace Support
Operation  Facility  for  the  African  Union".  They  underlined  that  the  persistence  of  conflicts
and the lack of  resources to implement African initiatives prevent the  continent from taking
full  advantage  of  development  co-operation,  particularly  the  assistance  offered  by  its
development partners. They also requested the EU to examine the possibility of setting up a
peace  support  operation  facility,  to  fund  peace  support  and  peace  keeping  operations
conducted  under  the  authority  of  the  African  Union,  thereby  enhancing  the  capacity  of  the
Union to fully play its role in the promotion of peace, security and stability in Africa. They
finally  specified  that  such  a  facility  should  be  based  on  the  principle  of  solidarity  among
African countries and should be financed from resources allocated to each of them under the
existing  co-operation  agreements  with  the  European  Union,  initially  supplemented  by  an
equivalent amount of unallocated European Development Fund (EDF) resources.

The  EU  General  Affairs  and  External  Relations  Council  in  its  meeting  of  21  July  2003
confirmed the will of the EU and Member States to contribute to the strengthening of African
capacities  in  peace-keeping.  It  also  invited  the  Commission  to  present  proposals  on  the
possibility  of  setting  up  a  peace  facility  as  requested  by  the  Heads  of  State  of  the  African
Union.

1

Article  11  of  the  ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement  signed  in  Cotonou  on  23  June  2000  (OJ  L317,
15.12.2000, P. 3)

2

                                                
2.

FINANCING

Subject  to  agreement  by  the  ACP  Council  of  Ministers,  the  European  Union  can  respond
positively to the  request of the African Heads of State  as regards the use of  EDF-resources.
The proposal is in line with the provisions of Article 11 of the Cotonou Agreement on peace
building, conflict prevention and resolution. The decision taken by the African Heads of State
to  contribute  from  national  allocations  also  confirms  the  basic  principles  of  solidarity  and
ownership, enshrined in the Cotonou Agreement.

It is proposed  to  allocate a total  amount  of €250 million to  the  Peace Facility. This  amount
would  be  composed  of  contributions  from  9th  EDF  allocations  notified  to  ACP-countries  in
Africa  under  the  long-term  development  envelope  of  the  ninth  EDF  as  well  as  unallocated
resources (reserve) from the long-term development envelope. A contribution of 1.5% of each
country  allocation  shall  be  made  available  for  the  Peace  Facility,  from  the  uncommitted
balance  of  the  so-called  B-allocation  (if  the  uncommitted  balance  of  the  B-allocation  is
insufficient, the remainder will be taken from the uncommitted balance of the A-allocation).
This  represents  a  total  amount  of  €126.4  million,  which  will  be  complemented  by  €123,6
million  of  unallocated  resources,  which  are  already  available  under  the  reserve  of  the  long
term  development  envelope.  The  attached  draft  decision  foresees  the  transfer  of  these
resources  to  intra-ACP  co-operation  under  the  envelope  for  regional  co-operation,  with  an
earmarking for the Peace Facility.

Subject  to  adoption  of  the  attached  decision  by  the  ACP-EC  Council  of  Ministers,  detailed
modalities for the establishment of the Peace Facility shall be defined in a financing proposal
to be approved by the European Commission, in accordance with Article 16 of annex IV to
the Cotonou Agreement.

Table: contributions from country allocations to the Peace Facility

COUNTRY

A-allocation

B-allocation

Total

Contribution 1,5%

ANGOLA

BENIN

BOTSWANA

BURKINA FASO

BURUNDI

CAMEROON

CAPE VERDE

CENTR.AFR. REP.

CHAD

COMOROS

CONGO Republic

CONGO DR

COTE D'IVOIRE

DJIBOUTI

ERITREA

ETHIOPIA

GABON

GAMBIA

117,0

208,0

39,0

275,0

115,0

159,0

32,0

86,0

202,0

20,0

43,0

171,0

182,0

29,0

88,0

384,0

34,0

37,0

29,0

67,0

52,0

76,0

57,0

71,0

7,1

21,0

71,0

7,3

7,4

34,0

82,0

5,8

8,8

154,0

45,0

14,0

3

146,0

275,0

91,0

351,0

172,0

230,0

39,1

107,0

273,0

27,3

50,4

205,0

264,0

34,8

96,8

538,0

79,0

51,0

2,2

4,1

1,4

5,3

2,6

3,5

0,6

1,6

4,1

0,4

0,8

3,1

4,0

0,5

1,5

8,1

1,2

0,8

GHANA

GUINEA

GUINEA BISSAU

EQ. GUINEA

KENYA

LESOTHO

MADAGASCAR

MALAWI

MALI

MAURITIUS

MAURITANIA

MOZAMBIQUE

NAMIBIA

NIGER

NIGERIA

RWANDA

SAO TOME & PR.

SENEGAL

SEYCHELLES

SIERRA LEONE

SUDAN

SWAZILAND

TANZANIA

UGANDA

ZAMBIA

ZIMBABWE

TOTAL

231,0

158,0

62,0

13,0

170,0

86,0

267,0

276,0

294,0

33,0

104,0

274,0

48,0

212,0

222,0

124,0

9,4

178,0

3,9

144,0

135,0

31,0

290,0

246,0

240,0

108,0

80,0

63,0

19,0

4,3

55,0

24,0

60,0

69,0

81,0

1,6

87,0

55,0

43,0

134,0

44,0

62,0

3,5

104,0

0,8

76,0

20,0

12,0

65,0

117,0

111,0

19,0

311,0

221,0

81,0

17,3

225,0

110,0

327,0

345,0

375,0

34,6

191,0

329,0

91,0

346,0

266,0

186,0

12,9

282,0

4,7

220,0

155,0

43,0

355,0

363,0

351,0

127,0

4,7

3,3

1,2

0,3

3,4

1,7

4,9

5,2

5,6

0,5

2,9

4,9

1,4

5,2

4,0

2,8

0,2

4,2

0,1

3,3

2,3

0,6

5,3

5,4

5,3

1,9

6.180,3

2.219,6

8.399,9

126,4

The Commission proposes that the Council adopt the attached decision on the position to be
taken  by  the  Community  within  the  ACP-EC  Council  of  Ministers  regarding  the  use  of
resources  from  the  long-term  development  envelope  of  the  ninth  EDF  for  the  creation  of  a
Peace Facility for Africa.

4

Proposal for a

COUNCIL DECISION

on the position to be adopted by the Community within the ACP-EC Council of
Ministers regarding the use of resources from the long-term development envelope of
the ninth EDF for the creation of a Peace Facility for Africa

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article
310 in conjunction with the second subparagraph of Article 300(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

Article 15 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000
establishes  an  ACP-EC  Council  of  Ministers  with  powers  to  take  decisions  in
accordance  with  the  Agreement  and  Paragraph  8  of  Annex  I  allows  the  Council  of
Ministers to take appropriate measures if funds provided for in any of the instruments
of the Agreement are exhausted.

Funds  from  the  9th  EDF  envelope  for  regional  co-operation  and  integration  are
exhausted. The Community's position within the ACP-EC Council of Ministers should
therefore  be  established  with  a  view  to  its  adopting  a  decision  on  the  Community's
participation in the creation of a Peace Facility for Africa.

The EU General Affairs and External Relations Council in its meeting of 21 July 2003
confirmed the will of the EU and Member States to contribute to the strengthening of
African capacities in peace-keeping.

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The Community shall take the following position within the ACP-EC Council of Ministers on
the  use  of  resources  from  the  long-term  development  envelope  for  the  creation  of  a  Peace
Facility for Africa, based on the attached draft decision of the ACP-EC Council of Ministers.

Done at Brussels,

For the Council
The President

5

ANNEX

Draft

DECISION OF THE ACP-EC COUNCIL OF MINISTERS

on the use of resources from the long-term development envelope of the ninth European
Development Fund for the creation of a Peace Facility for Africa

THE ACP-EC COUNCIL OF MINISTERS,

Having  regard  to  the  ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement  signed  in  Cotonou  on  23  June  2000,
and in particular Paragraph 8 of its Annex I,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

By  Decisions  N°  10/2001  of  20  December  20012  and  N°  3/2002  of  23  December
20023,  the  ACP-EC  Council  of  Ministers  allocated  resources  to  peace-building,
conflict prevention and resolution for a total amount of € 75 million.

At  the  Summit  of  the  African  Union  in  Maputo  from  4-12  July  2003,  the  African
Heads of State have taken a "Decision on the Establishment by the European Union of
a Peace Support Operation Facility for the African Union". In their decision, they have
specified  that  such  a  facility  should  be  financed  from  resources  allocated  to  each  of
them  under  the  existing  co-operation  agreements  with  the  European  Union  and  be
supplemented  by  an  equivalent  amount  of  unallocated  European  Development  Fund
resources.

In  order  to  ensure  rapid  and  efficient  response  to  situations  of  violent  conflict,  the
creation of a Peace Facility is appropriate.

To allow for the creation of a Peace Facility for Africa, in accordance with Article 11
of  the  ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement,  it  is  necessary  to  allocate  supplementary
resources to intra-ACP co-operation. However, the envelope for regional co-operation
and  integration  as  defined  in  Article  3(b)  of  annex  I  to  the  ACP-EC  Partnership
Agreement  is  exhausted.  The  necessary  resources  will  therefore  be  transferred  from
allocations  notified  to  individual  ACP-countries  under  the  long-term  development
envelope of the ninth European Development Fund as defined in Article 3(a) of annex
I to the APC-EC Partnership Agreement, as well as from unallocated resources of the
long-term development envelope.

2

3

OJ L50/62 of 21.2.2002
OJ L59/24 of 4.3.2003

6

                                                
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1 – Peace support

1.

2.

A contribution of 1.5% shall be taken from allocations that were notified to African
ACP States in accordance with Article 1(b) of annex IV to the ACP-EC Partnership
Agreement.  Such  contribution  will  be  taken  from  the  uncommitted  balance  of  the
allocation  referred  to  in  Article  3(2)(b)  of  annex  IV  to  the  ACP-EC  Partnership
Agreement,  the  so-called  B-allocation.  If  the  uncommitted  balance  of  the  B-
allocation is insufficient, the remainder will be taken from the uncommitted balance
of  the  allocation  referred  to  in  Article  3(2)(a)  of  Annex  IV,  the  so-called  A-
allocation.  A  total  amount  of  €126.4  million  will  thus  be  transferred  from  the
respective  country  allocations  to  the  intra-ACP  allocation  under  the  envelope  for
regional co-operation and integration and used for the creation of a Peace Facility for
Africa.  Individual  contributions  are  specified  in  the  last  column  of  the  table  in  the
annex attached to this decision.

An amount of €123.6 million shall be transferred from unallocated resources of the
9th  EDF  long-term  development  envelope  to  the  intra-ACP  allocation  under  the
envelope  for  regional  co-operation  and  integration,  and  used  for  the  creation  of  a
Peace Facility for Africa.

Article 2 - Financing Request

In accordance with Article 13(2)(b) of Annex IV to the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement, the
ACP Council of Ministers requests the Commission to finance a Peace Facility for Africa for
a total amount of €250 million.

Done at ......

For the ACP-EC Council of Ministers
The President

7

Annex: contributions from country allocations

COUNTRY

A-allocation

B-allocation

Total

Contribution 1,5%

ANGOLA

BENIN

BOTSWANA

BURKINA FASO

BURUNDI

CAMEROON

CAPE VERDE

CENTR.AFR. REP.

CHAD

COMOROS

CONGO Republic

CONGO DR

COTE D'IVOIRE

DJIBOUTI

ERITREA

ETHIOPIA

GABON

GAMBIA

GHANA

GUINEA

GUINEA BISSAU

EQ. GUINEA

KENYA

LESOTHO

MADAGASCAR

MALAWI

MALI

MAURITIUS

MAURITANIA

MOZAMBIQUE

NAMIBIA

NIGER

NIGERIA

RWANDA

146,0

275,0

91,0

351,0

172,0

230,0

39,1

107,0

273,0

27,3

50,4

205,0

264,0

34,8

96,8

538,0

79,0

51,0

311,0

221,0

81,0

17,3

225,0

110,0

327,0

345,0

375,0

34,6

191,0

329,0

91,0

346,0

266,0

186,0

2,2

4,1

1,4

5,3

2,6

3,5

0,6

1,6

4,1

0,4

0,8

3,1

4,0

0,5

1,5

8,1

1,2

0,8

4,7

3,3

1,2

0,3

3,4

1,7

4,9

5,2

5,6

0,5

2,9

4,9

1,4

5,2

4,0

2,8

117,0

208,0

39,0

275,0

115,0

159,0

32,0

86,0

202,0

20,0

43,0

171,0

182,0

29,0

88,0

384,0

34,0

37,0

231,0

158,0

62,0

13,0

170,0

86,0

267,0

276,0

294,0

33,0

104,0

274,0

48,0

212,0

222,0

124,0

29,0

67,0

52,0

76,0

57,0

71,0

7,1

21,0

71,0

7,3

7,4

34,0

82,0

5,8

8,8

154,0

45,0

14,0

80,0

63,0

19,0

4,3

55,0

24,0

60,0

69,0

81,0

1,6

87,0

55,0

43,0

134,0

44,0

62,0

8

SAO TOME & PR.

SENEGAL

SEYCHELLES

SIERRA LEONE

SUDAN

SWAZILAND

TANZANIA

UGANDA

ZAMBIA

ZIMBABWE

TOTAL

9,4

178,0

3,9

144,0

135,0

31,0

290,0

246,0

240,0

108,0

3,5

104,0

0,8

76,0

20,0

12,0

65,0

117,0

111,0

19,0

12,9

282,0

4,7

220,0

155,0

43,0

355,0

363,0

351,0

127,0

0,2

4,2

0,1

3,3

2,3

0,6

5,3

5,4

5,3

1,9

6.180,3

2.219,6

8.399,9

126,4

9