Minutes of the sitting of Monday, 21 November 2011
Date: 2012-05-23
Institutions: ACP–EU Joint Assembly
Subjects: European Parliament, parliamentary debate








C_2012145EN.01000101.xml










23.5.2012   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 145/1





MINUTES OF THE SITTING OF MONDAY, 21 NOVEMBER 2011
2012/C 145/01
Contents
Formal inaugural sitting
Sitting of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly
Composition of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly
Accreditation of non-parliamentary representatives






1.

Adoption of agenda (AP100.956)









2.

Approval of the minutes of the 21st session of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly (OJ C 327, 10 November 2011)









3.

Co-Presidents’ announcements, including decisions taken at the Bureau meeting of 20 November 2011









4.

Statement by Andris Piebalgs, Member of the Commission with responsibility for development









5.

Debate with Andris Piebalgs, Member of the Commission with responsibility for development – catch-the-eye









6.

Question Time to the Commission









7.

Action taken by the Commission on the resolutions adopted at the 21st session of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly









8.


Impact of debt on development financing in ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific group) countries
Committee on Economic Development, Finance and Trade
Co-rapporteurs: Amadou Ciré Sall (Senegal) and Robert Sturdy





MINUTES OF THE SITTING OF MONDAY, 21 NOVEMBER 2011


(The sitting opened at 11.00 a.m.)



Formal inaugural sitting


The following addressed the Assembly:
El-Hadj Bonfoh Abass, President of the National Assembly of Togo, Assarid Ag Imbarcaouane, Acting Co-President of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, Louis Michel, Co-President of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, Mahamadou Issoufou, President of Niger, and Faure Gnassingbé, President of the Republic of Togo.

(The sitting adjourned at 12.50 p.m. and resumed at 3.10 p.m.)

IN THE CHAIR: Assarid Ag IMBARCAOUANE

Co-President



Sitting of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly


The Co-President welcomed all the participants and announced the entry into force of the new Rules of Procedure.


Composition of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly


The Co-President announced that the list of members of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly, as forwarded by the authorities of the ACP States and the European Parliament, would be annexed to the minutes.


Accreditation of non-parliamentary representatives


The Co-President announced that four requests for accreditation of non-parliamentary representatives had been received. In accordance with Article 17(1) of the Cotonou Agreement and Article 1 of the Rules of Procedure of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly, these representatives should be accredited and their names listed in an annex to the minutes.
1.   Adoption of agenda (AP100.956)

João Ferreira expressed his disappointment at the lack of active Portuguese interpretation. The Co-President suggested that he address his concerns to the Bureau of the European Parliament, which is responsible for the issue.
Speakers: Teshome Toga (Ethiopia) and Rabindre T. Parmessar (Suriname).
The agenda was adopted as shown in these minutes.
2.   Approval of the minutes of the 21st session of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly (OJ C 327, 10 November 2011)

The minutes were approved.
3.   Co-Presidents’ announcements, including decisions taken at the Bureau meeting of 20 November 2011

The Co-President reported on the results of the Bureau meeting of 20 November 2011
The following decisions were taken:






a)


The standing committees would draft the following reports:






 



Committee on Political Affairs







—


Responding to the political and humanitarian crisis in Somalia: the challenges for the European Union and the ACP Group














 



Committee on Economic Development, Finance and Trade







—


Enterprise at the heart of information and communication technology (ICT) and its impact on development in ACP countries.














 



Committee on Social Affairs and the Environment







—


The importance of energy access for sustainable economic development and the achievement of Millennium Development Goals.


















b)


The amendments to the Rules of Procedure by the Bureau would be submitted to the Assembly for adoption on 23 November 2011.










c)


The subject of the security situation in Somalia would be discussed during the debate on the food crisis in the Horn of Africa, especially in Somalia. The Co-Presidents would make a press statement on this subject.










d)


The next regional meeting, the first in the second cycle of regional meetings, would take place in Zambia during week 20 from 20 to 24 February 2012.










e)


The Bureau would send a fact-finding mission to Ispra (Italy) on 23 and 24 March 2012 and could also send a mission to Côte d’Ivoire in the first half of 2012.




The Co-President informed the Assembly that the Women’s Forum had met on Saturday morning. It had been co-chaired by Zita Gurmai and Mo-Mamo Karerwa (Burundi) and had discussed ‘The role of women in conflict prevention, management and resolution’.
IN THE CHAIR: Louis MICHEL

Co-President

The Co-President announced that the deadlines were as follows:






—


concerning amendments to motions for compromise resolutions and other urgent motions for resolutions to be put to the vote: Tuesday, 22 November 2011 at noon.










—


concerning questions related to voting methods: Wednesday 23 November 2011 at 10.00 a.m. in writing.




The Co-President announced that speaking time would be limited.
4.   Statement by Andris Piebalgs, Member of the Commission with responsibility for development

The Commissioner made a statement.
5.   Debate with Andris Piebalgs, Member of the Commission with responsibility for development – catch-the-eye

Speakers: Olle Schmidt, Bobbo Hamatoukour (Cameroon), Rabindre T. Parmessar (Suriname), Rajeshree Kumaree Nita Deerpalsing (Mauritius), Boniface Yehoue Tome (Benin), Komi Selom Klassou (Togo), Michael Gahler, Ali Soubaneh Attaye (Djibouti), Michèle Rivasi, Job Yustino Ndugai (Tanzania), Amadou Ciré Sall (Senegal), João Ferreira, Eunice Kazembe (Malawi), Piet Van Der Walt (Namibia), Moses Y. Kollie (Liberia), Ismael El Hag Musa (Sudan) and Véronique De Keyser.
The Commissioner answered the questions raised by Members.
6.   Question Time to the Commission

Altogether 17 questions were put to the Commission.
The Commission had previously responded to the questions in writing. The Commissioner gave oral replies to the supplementary questions by the following authors:






 


Question No 1 by Horst Schnellhardt on the funding of very small development projects.










 


Question No 14 by Catherine Bearder on nature tourism in Africa and the poaching of local knowledge on wildlife.










 


Question No 15 by Frank Engel on information and communication technology (ICT) in cooperation and development policies with the ACP countries.










 


Question No 17 by Ole Christensen on the situation in the Horn of Africa.










 


Question No 4 by Michael Cashman (replaced by Zita Gurmai) on support for tuberculosis vaccines from 2014.










 


Question No 2 by Michèle Rivasi on the monopolisation of land and food security.










 


Question No 7 by Gabriele Zimmer on Economic Partnership Agreements.










 


Question No 10 by Jo Leinen (replaced by Norbert Neuser) on energy security in ACP countries.










 


Question No 11 by Norbert Neuser on universal energy access.




The authors of questions 9, 12 and 16 had no supplementary questions.
The authors of questions 3, 5, 6, 8 and 13 were not present.
The following also spoke: Véronique De Keyser, Piet Van Der Walt (Namibia), Louis Michel and Glen Bénédict Noël (Grenada).
7.   Action taken by the Commission on the resolutions adopted at the 21st session of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly

The Commissioner referred to the document concerning the follow-up by the Commission to the resolutions adopted by the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly in Budapest (Hungary).
8.   Impact of debt on development financing in ACP countries

Committee on Economic Development, Finance and Trade
Co-rapporteurs: Amadou Ciré Sall (Senegal) and Robert Sturdy
Amadou Ciré Sall (Senegal) and Frank Engel (for Robert Sturdy) presented the report on the impact of debt on development financing in ACP countries.
Speakers: Bobbo Hamatoukour (Cameroon), Christa Klaß, Musa Hussein Naib (Eritrea), Norbert Neuser, Louis Michel, Emmanuel Kwasi Bandua (Ghana), Michèle Rivasi, Ali Soubaneh Atteye (Djibouti), Makhosini Hlongwane (Zimbabwe), João Ferreira, Job Yustino Ndugai (Tanzania), Hamadaou Sylla (Mali), Sábado Teresa Malendza (Mozambique), Ismael El Hag Musa (Sudan), Musikari N. Kombo (Kenya) and Domenico Rosa (European Commission).
Frank Engel and Amadou Ciré Sall (Senegal) wound up the debate.

(The sitting adjourned at 6.25 p.m.)



Assarid Ag IMBARCAOUANE
Louis MICHEL

Co-Presidents



Mohamed Ibn CHAMBAS and
Luis Marco AGUIRIANO NALDA

Co Secretaries-General