Minutes of the sitting of Wednesday, 27 November 2013
Date: 2014-03-04
Institutions: ACP–EU Joint Assembly
Subjects: European Parliament, parliamentary debate








C_2014064EN.01000801.xml










4.3.2014   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 64/8






MINUTES OF THE SITTING OF WEDNESDAY, 27 NOVEMBER 2013

2014/C 64/03
Contents






1.

Role of green growth economy in ensuring sustainable development in Ethiopia









2.

Statement by Rolandas Krisciunas, Lithuanian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and President-in-Office of the Council of the EU









3.

Statement by Fonotoe Luafesili Pierre Lauofo, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Samoa and President-in-Office of the ACP Council









4.

Question Time with the Council









5.

Debate with the Council: ‘Catch-the-eye’









6.

Urgent topic 2: situation in the Comoros archipelago









7.

Approval of the minutes of the sitting of Monday, 25 November 2013









8.

Report of the 10th Regional Meeting (West African Region) held in Abuja (Nigeria) from 17 to 19 July 2013 – report by the Co-Presidents









9.

Summary reports of the workshops









10.

Approval of the minutes of the morning and afternoon sittings of Tuesday, 26 November 2013









11.

Fight against female genital mutilation









12.

Attaining the MDGs in Africa









13.

Report of the economic and social partners









14.

Vote on the motions for resolutions included in the reports submitted by the three standing committees









15.

Vote on urgent motions for resolutions









16.

Vote on amendments to the Rules of Procedure of the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly









17.

Any other business









18.

Date and place of the 27th session of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly









Annex I

Alphabetical list of members of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly









Annex II

Record of attendance at the session held in addis ababa (Ethiopia) from 25 to 27 November 2013









Annex III

Accreditation of non-parliamentary delegates









Annex IV

Texts adopted









—

Resolution on respect for the rule of law and the role of an impartial and independent judiciary (ACP-EU/101.521/13/fin.)









—

Resolution on South–South and triangular cooperation: opportunities and challenges for ACP countries (ACP-EU/101.516/13/fin.)









—

Resolution on the social and environmental impact of pastoralism on ACP countries (ACP-EU/101.526/13/fin)









—

Resolution on security in the Great Lakes region (ACP-EU/101.541/13/fin.)









—

Amendments to the JPA Rules of Procedure (AP101.347)




MINUTES OF THE SITTING OF WEDNESDAY, 27 NOVEMBER 2013


(The sitting opened at 9.10 a.m.)

IN THE CHAIR: Louis MICHEL

Co-President

1.   Role of green growth economy in ensuring sustainable development in Ethiopia

Exchange of views with Dessalegne Mesfin (Deputy Director-General, Ethiopian Environmental Protection Authority)
Dessalegne Mesfin outlined the main challenges facing Ethiopia with regard to the reduction of carbon emissions and presented the measures adopted by the Ethiopian Government to mitigate the impact of climate change on the country and promote a green economy. Members congratulated Ethiopia on its ambitious plans to tackle climate change, but also stressed the need for the government to adopt measures that respected the rights of the Ethiopian population.
Speakers: Gay Mitchell, Jo Leinen, Fiona Hall, Michèle Rivasi, Edit Bauer, Ana Gomes and Louis Michel
Dessalegne Mesfin wound up the debate.
2.   Statement by Rolandas Krisciunas, Lithuanian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and President-in-Office of the Council of the EU

Rolandas Krisciunas presented the priorities of the Lithuanian Presidency of the European Union: the Sahel, Somalia and the conflicts in the Great Lakes region and the Central African Republic. He stressed the need for EU and ACP partners to cooperate on common challenges, such as climate change, and to reflect on how relations should continue after the 2020 expiry of the Cotonou Agreement. He also provided details of national and regional programming for the 11th EDF.
3.   Statement by Fonotoe Luafesili Pierre Lauofo, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Samoa and President-in-Office of the ACP Council

Fonotoe Luafesili Pierre Lauofo welcomed the united response from EU and ACP members to the threat of terrorism following the Westgate mall attack in Nairobi (Kenya). He stressed a number of areas in which both sides should cooperate closely: climate change, migration and the global trade regime. He also highlighted the importance of agricultural production and food security and noted that these issues should be a priority in the post-2015 development framework.
4.   Question Time with the Council

Fonotoe Luafesili Pierre Lauofo (Samoa) responded on behalf of the ACP Council to the following questions and supplementary questions:






 


Question 1 by Enrique Guerrero Salom on EU–Africa and EU–Sahel strategies;










 


Question 2 by Horst Schnellhardt on the danger of destabilisation in Kenya;










 


Question 3 by Jean-Jacob Bicep on ‘illegal panning for gold in Guyana: shared responsibility?’;










 


Question 4 by Fiona Hall on the Millennium Development Goals and the Sustainable Development Goals, and Question No 6 by Filip Kaczmarek on the post-2015 development framework;










 


Question 5 by Ana Gomes on the crackdown on freedom of the media and political dissent in Ethiopia;










 


Question 8 by Olle Schmidt on freedom of speech in ACP countries.




The authors of Questions 1, 2 and 3 had no supplementary questions.
The authors of Questions 7 and 9 were not present.
Rolandas Krisciunas responded on behalf of the Council of the EU to the following questions and supplementary questions:






 


Question 10 by Enrique Guerrero Salom on EU–Africa and EU–Sahel strategies;










 


Question 11 by Marielle de Sarnez (replaced by Fiona Hall) on European coordination of measures against piracy off the coast of Somalia;










 


Question 12 by Horst Schnellhardt on the danger of destabilisation in Kenya;










 


Question 13 by Gay Mitchell on food insecurity and malnutrition in the Sahel region;










 


Question 15 by Michèle Rivasi on concerns over the situation in Madagascar and the forthcoming elections;










 


Question 16 by Patrice Tirolien on the transition period between the 10th and 11th EDFs;










 


Question 19 by Jo Leinen on the Green Climate Fund;










 


Question 20 by Catherine Bearder on wild animal trophies;










 


Question No 21 by Ana Gomes on the crackdown on freedom of the media and political dissent in Ethiopia.




The author of Question 16 had no supplementary questions.
The authors of Questions 14, 17 and 18 were not present.
5.   Debate with the Council: ‘Catch-the-eye’

Speakers: Olle Schmidt, Catherine Bearder, Tesfaye Daba (Ethiopia), James Kemi-Gitura (Kenya), Michèle Rivasi, Laurent Ngon-Baba (Central African Republic), Ana Gomes, Manuel Jimenez (Dominican Republic), Elmi Obsieh Wais (Djibouti), Ibrahim Bundu (Sierra Leone), Mohammed Mukhtar Ahmed (Nigeria), Kennedy Hamudulu (Zambia), Moses Y. Kollie (Liberia), Louis Michel, Christophe Lutundula (Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Abdurahamane Chegou (Niger)
Fonotoe Luafesili Pierre Lauofo and Rolandas Krisciunas responded to questions and participated in the debate on various topics, including the Lampedusa tragedy, migration, Kenya and the International Criminal Court, the budgetisation of the EDF, the situation in the Central African Republic, the relationship between civil society organisations and local populations, and the political and human rights situation in Ethiopia.
6.   Urgent topic 2: situation in the Comoros archipelago

Speakers: Vincent Ringenberg (EEAS), Christophe Lutundula (Democratic Republic of the Congo), Philippe Boulland, Patrice Tirolien, Netty Baldeh (Gambia), Michèle Rivasi, Olle Schmidt, Moses Y. Kollie (Liberia), Djaé Ahamada Chanfi (Comoros) and Mohammed Mukhtar Ahmed (Nigeria)
EP members pointed to various developments and other challenges in the Union of the Comoros. ACP members strongly criticised the continued French control of Mayotte, the holding of relevant referenda on this island and its status as a département within the French Republic. In doing so, ACP members referred to the series of UN resolutions on these issues, as well as to positions taken on other territorial sovereignty issues. They also opposed the status of outermost region within the EU, which Mayotte would enjoy from 1 January 2014.
7.   Approval of the minutes of the sitting of Monday, 25 November 2013

The minutes were approved.

The sitting closed at 12.30 p.m. and resumed at 3.15 p.m.



Joyce LABOSO and
Louis MICHEL


Co-Presidents



Alhaj Muhammad MUMUNI and
Luis Marco AGUIRIANO NALDA


Co-Secretaries-General



IN THE CHAIR: Joyce LABOSO

Co-President

8.   Report of the 10th Regional Meeting (West African Region) held in Abuja (Nigeria) from 17 to 19 July 2013 – report by the Co-Presidents

Co-President Joyce Laboso and Michèle Rivasi gave an oral report of the main conclusions of the regional meeting held in Abuja from 17 to 19 July 2013, highlighting the main topics discussed.
Speakers: Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin (Ghana), Sangoné Sall (Senegal), Boniface Yehouetome (Benin), Mohamed Abdallahi Ould Guelaye (Mauritania), Michèle Rivasi and Mohammed Mukhtar Ahmed (Nigeria)
Members expressed concern about the issue of oil bunkering and a proposed traceability system aimed at increasing the level of control over oil and its final destination in the market.
9.   Summary reports of the workshops

Catherine Bearder gave an oral report on the workshop on the housing development programme to ensure urban sustainability.
Tutai Tura (Cook Islands) gave an oral report on the workshop on the creation of job opportunities for young people and women through the development of micro and small enterprises.
10.   Approval of the minutes of the morning and afternoon sittings of Tuesday, 26 November 2013

The minutes were approved.
11.   Fight against female genital mutilation

Debate without resolution with Bogaletch Gebre, founder of KMG Ethiopia
Bogaletch Gebre presented the work she had initiated and led against female genital mutilation.
Speakers: Achille Marie Joseph Tapsoba (Burkina Faso), Mariya Gabriel, Idriss Amaoud Ali (Djibouti), Maria Muniz de Urquiza, Mohammed Mukhtar Ahmed (Nigeria), Nyasha Eunice Chikwinya (Zimbabwe), Michèle Rivasi, James Kembi-Gitura, Edit Bauer, Nita R. K. Deerpalsing (Mauritius), Louis Michel, Vincent Ringenberg (EEAS) and Ana Gomes
Through dialogue with communities, female genital mutilation rates had been brought down from 100 % to approximately 3 % over a 10-year period. Bride abduction and domestic violence had also been reduced. Members praised Bogaletch Gebre’s commitment, method and results and called for legislation, education and other measures supporting and extending the work against female genital mutilation.
Bogaletch Gebre wound up the debate.
12.   Attaining the MDGs in Africa

Debate without resolution
Speakers: Peter Craig-McQuaide (European Commission), Boniface Yehouetome (Bénin), Filip Kaczmarek, Mo-Mamo Karerwa (Burundi), Ole Christiansen, Mohamed Abdirahman Abdillahi (Djibouti), Catherine Bearder, Abadula Gemeda Dago (Ethiopia), Jean-Jacob Bicep, Netty Baldeh (Gambia), Sàbado Teresa Malendza (Mozambique), Abdourahamane Chegou (Niger), Edit Bauer, Mohammed Mukhtar Ahmed (Nigeria), Philippe Boulland, Mariya Gabriel, Komi Selom Klassou (Togo), Makhosini Hlongwane (Zimbabwe), Simon Vuwa Kaunda (Malawi), James Kembi-Gitura (Kenya) and Mussa Azzan Zungu (Tanzania)
Members noted that poverty reduction lagged behind the extraordinary growth experienced in Africa in the last five years and was being undermined by inequality. In spite of considerable progress towards the child and maternal health MDGs, Africa still had the greatest proportion of child and maternal deaths. Members concluded that it was imperative for countries to continue to learn from one another and that those countries which combined sustained, equitable growth with political stability and human development-oriented policies were doing well in relation to most of the goals.
Peter Craig-McQuaide (European Commission) wound up the debate.
13.   Report of the economic and social partners

Presentation by Xavier Verboven, Chair of the ACP Follow-up Committee, European Economic and Social Committee
Xavier Verboven gave a presentation on the indispensable role of civil society in sustainable development.
Speakers: Netty Baldeh (Gambia), Michèle Rivasi, Adjedoue Weidou (Chad) and Kennedy K. Hamudulu (Zambia)
Members discussed the conditions surrounding civil society activities in certain countries.
Xavier Verboven wound up the debate.
The Co-President warmly thanked the Members for their excellent cooperation during her term in office and informed the Assembly that Fitz A. Jackson (Jamaica) would succeed her.
IN THE CHAIR: Louis MICHEL

Co-President

The Co-President thanked Co-President Joyce Laboso and extended his best wishes for the future.
14.   Vote on the motions for resolutions included in the reports submitted by the three standing committees

The Co-President reminded the Assembly of the voting procedures.






—


Respect for the rule of law and the role of an impartial and independent judiciary (ACP-EU/101.521/13/A/fin)
Committee on Political Affairs
Report by Dharamkumar Seeraj (Guyana) and Filip Kaczmarek
No amendments were tabled.
The resolution was adopted unanimously.










—


South–South and triangular cooperation: opportunities and challenges for the ACP countries (ACP-EU/101.516/13/A/fin)
Committee on Economic Development, Finance and Trade
Report by Elvis Mutiri wa Bashara (Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Jean-Jacob Bicep
Amendment adopted: 1
The resolution thus amended was adopted unanimously.










—


Social and environmental impact of pastoralism in ACP countries (ACP-EU/101.526/13/A/fin)
Committee on Social Affairs and the Environment
Report by Abdourahamane Chegou (Niger) and Fiona Hall
No amendments were tabled.
The resolution was adopted unanimously.




15.   Vote on urgent motions for resolutions







—


Security in the Great Lakes region (ACP-EU/101.541/13/fin.)
Amendments adopted: 1, 3, 4, oral amendment 1, 6
Amendment rejected: 2
Amendment fallen: 5
The resolution thus amended was adopted.










—


Situation in the Comoros archipelago (ACP-UE/101.542/13/fin.)
A vote by separate houses was requested.
Amendment withdrawn: 4
Amendments rejected: 1, 2, 3, 5
The resolution was rejected.




16.   Vote on amendments to the Rules of Procedure of the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly

The amendments to the JPA Rules of Procedure submitted by the Bureau in accordance with Article 35 of the Rules of Procedure were adopted unanimously.
17.   Any other business

Co-President Louis Michel gave an account of his visit to the Kaliti prison earlier that afternoon with Co-President Joyce Laboso.
Speakers: Michèle Rivasi, Co-President Louis Michel, Mohammed Abdallahi Ould Guelaye (Mauritania), Ana Gomes and Jacob Oulanyah (Uganda)
18.   Date and place of the 27th session of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly

The 27th session of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly would be held from 17 to 19 March 2014 in Strasbourg (France).
The Co-President thanked the Ethiopian authorities for their excellent facilities and effective organisation of the session, and the co-secretariat and all of the staff for their work.
The Co-President informed the Assembly that letters had been sent to the Greek authorities and the EU institutions to express strong disappointment that the Greek Presidency would not host the next session.

(The sitting closed at 6.20 p.m.)



Joyce LABOSO and
Louis MICHEL


Co-Presidents



Alhaj Muhammad MUMUNI and
Luis Marco AGUIRIANO NALDA


Co-Secretaries-General





ANNEX I

ALPHABETICAL LIST OF MEMBERS OF THE JOINT PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY








ACP representatives




EP representatives





LABOSO, (KENYA), Co-President


MICHEL, Co-President




ANGOLA


ALFONSI




ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA


ALVES




BAHAMAS


BAUER




BARBADOS


BEARDER




BELIZE


BICEP




BENIN


BULLMANN




BOTSWANA


CALLANAN




BURKINA FASO


CARVALHO




BURUNDI


CASA




CAMEROON (VP)


CASINI




CAPE VERDE


CASPARY




CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC


CASTEX




CHAD


CHRISTENSEN




COMOROS


COELHO




CONGO (Democratic Republic of the)


DE KEYSER




CONGO (Republic of the) (VP)


DELVAUX




COOK ISLANDS


DE MITA




CÔTE D’IVOIRE


DE SARNEZ




DJIBOUTI (VP)


DURANT




DOMINICA


ENGEL




DOMINICAN REPUBLIC (VP)


ESTARÀS FERRAGUT




ERITREA


FERREIRA, Elisa




ETHIOPIA


FERREIRA, João




FIJI


FORD




GABON


GABRIEL




GAMBIA


GAHLER




GHANA


GOERENS (VP)




GRENADA (VP)


GRIESBECK




GUINEA


GUERRERO SALOM




GUINEA-BISSAU


HALL




GUYANA


HÄNDEL




HAITI


HANNAN




JAMAICA


HAUG




KIRIBATI


JENSEN




LESOTHO


JOLY




LIBERIA


KACZMAREK




MADAGASCAR


KLASS (VP)




MALAWI (VP)


KORHOLA




MALI


KUHN




MARSHALL ISLANDS (Republic of the)


KURSKI




MAURITANIA (VP)


LEGUTKO




MAURITIUS (VP)


LE PEN




MICRONESIA (Federal States of)


LÓPEZ AGUILAR




MOZAMBIQUE (VP)


LÖVIN




NAMIBIA


McMILLAN-SCOTT




NAURU


MANDERS




NIGER (VP)


MARTIN




NIGERIA


MARTÍNEZ MARTÍNEZ




NIUE


MATO ADROVER




PALAU


MAYER




PAPUA NEW GUINEA


MITCHELL




RWANDA


MIZZI




SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS


MOREIRA




SAINT LUCIA


NEUSER




SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES


NICHOLSON (VP)




SAMOA (VP)


OMARJEE (VP)




SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE


OUZKÝ (VP)




SENEGAL


RIVASI (VP)




SEYCHELLES


ROITHOVÁ (VP)




SIERRA LEONE


RONZULLI (VP)




SOLOMON ISLANDS


SCHLYTER




SOMALIA


SCHMIDT




SOUTH AFRICA


SCHNELLHARDT




SURINAME


SCOTTÀ




SWAZILAND


SENYSZYN




TANZANIA


SPERONI (VP)




TIMOR-LESTE


ŠŤASTNÝ (VP)




TOGO


STRIFFLER




TONGA


STURDY




TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO


TIROLIEN




TUVALU


TOIA




UGANDA


VAUGHAN (VP)




VANUATU (VP)


VLASÁK




ZAMBIA


WEBER




ZIMBABWE


WIELAND




 


ZANICCHI




 


ZIMMER








COMMITTEE ON POLITICAL AFFAIRS








ACP members




EP members





PURCELL (SAMOA), Co-Chair


CASA, Co-Chair




HONGWANE (ZIMBABWE), VC


KORHOLA, VC




MILEBOU-AUBUSSON (GABON), VC


CASTEX, VC




ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA


ALFONSI




YEHOUETOME (BENIN)


CALLANAN




NGON-BABA (CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC)


CASINI




NDOUANE (CONGO, Republic of the)


DE KEYSER




TOURE (COTE D’IVOIRE)


DURANT




WAÏSS (DJIBOUTI)


FERREIRA, Elisa




ERITREA


GABRIEL




DAGO (ETHIOPIA)


GAHLER




USAMATE (FIJI)


GRIESBECK




GUINEA


HANNAN




DHARAMKUMAR (GUYANA)


HÄNDEL




HAITI


KACZMAREK




JACKSON (JAMAICA)


LE PEN




KIRIBATI


LÓPEZ AGUILAR




KOLLIE (LIBERIA)


MANDERS




MALI


MARTÍNEZ MARTÍNEZ




MOZAMBIQUE


MOREIRA




PALAU


NICHOLSON




TOZAKA (SOLOMON ISLANDS)


ROITHOVÁ




ST VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES


SCHMIDT




DLAMINI (SWAZILAND)


SPERONI




KLASSOU (TOGO)


STRIFFLER




OULANYAH (UGANDA)


WIELAND








COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, FINANCE AND TRADE








ACP members




EP members





SALL (SENEGAL), Co-Chair


CARVALHO, Co-Chair




LENGKON (VANUATU), VC


LEGUTKO, VC




VAN DER WALT (NAMIBIA), VC


ALVES, VC




DE FONTES PEREIRA (ANGOLA)


BICEP




WORREL (BARBADOS)


BULLMANN




WA BASHARA (DEMOCRATIC REP. OF THE CONGO)


CASPARY




 


ENGEL




KINGSFORD BAGBIN (GHANA)


FORD




MESSU (GUINEA EQUATORIAL)


GOERENS




KEMBI-GITURA (KENYA)


GUERRERO SALOM




SOFONIA (LESOTHO)


JENSEN




VUWA-KAUNDA (MALAWI)


KUHN




MARSHAL ISLANDS


MARTIN




OULD GUELAYE (MAURITANIA)


MATO ADROVER




DEERPALSING (MAURITIUS)


MAYER




AHMED (NIGERIA)


McMILLAN-SCOTT




POLISI (RWANDA)


MICHEL




SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS


MITCHELL




LONG (SAINT LUCIA)


MIZZI




SAO TOMÉ AND PRINCIPE


OMARJEE




POOL (SEYCHELLES)


SCHLYTER




SIERRA LEONE


ŠŤASTNÝ




AMIN ABDEL MAGID (SUDAN)


STURDY




PANKA (SURINAME)


TIROLIEN




HAVEA TAIONE (TONGA)


WEBER




KHAN (TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO)


ZANICCHI




TUVALU


 








COMMITTEE ON SOCIAL AFFAIRS AND THE ENVIRONMENT








ACP members




EP members





NDUGAI (TANZANIA), Co-Chair


RIVASI, Co-Chair




WEIDOU (CHAD), VC


BAUER, VC




GRENADA, VC


SCHNELLARDT, VC




BAHAMAS


BEARDER




BELIZE


CHRISTENSEN




BOTSWANA


COELHO




TAPSOBA (BURKINA FASO)


DELVAUX




KARERWA (BURUNDI)


DE MITA




OWONA KONO (CAMEROON)


DE SARNEZ




CAPE VERDE


ESTARÀS FERRAGUT




DJAE (COMORES)


FERREIRA, João




TURA (COOK ISLANDS)


HALL




DOMINICA


HAUG




DOMINICAN REPUBLIC


JOLY




BALDEH (GAMBIA)


KLASS




GUINEA BISSAU


KURSKI




MADAGASCAR


LÖVIN




MICRONESIA, FEDERATED STATES OF


NEUSER




NAURU


OUZKÝ




CHEGOU (NIGER)


RONZULLI




TAGELAGI (NIUE)


SCOTTÀ




KOIM (PAPUA NEW GUINEA)


SENYSZYN




SOMALIA


TOIA




SOUTH AFRICA


VAUGHAN




TIMOR LESTE


VLASÁK




HAMUDULU (ZAMBIA)


ZIMMER







ANNEX II

RECORD OF ATTENDANCE AT THE SESSION HELD IN ADDIS ABABA (ETHIOPIA) FROM 25 TO 27 NOVEMBER 2013







LABOSO, (Kenya), Co-President


MICHEL, Co-President (3), (4)





DE FONTES PEREIRA (Angola)


ALFONSI




WORRELL (Barbados)


ATTARD-MONTALTO (2), (3) (for MOREIRA, V.)




YEHOUETOME (Benin)


BEARDER




MOTLHALE (Botswana)


BINEV (for SPERONI, F. E.)




TAPSOBA (Burkina Faso)


BOULLAND (for DE MITA, L.)




KARERWA (Burundi)


CALLANAN




OWONA KONO (Cameroon) (VP)


CARVALHO (2)





NGON-BABA (Central African Republic)


CHRISTENSEN




WEIDOU (Chad)


DE SARNEZ (2)





DJAE (Comoros)


GABRIEL




LUTUNDULA APALA (Congo, Democratic Republic of the)


GOMES (for FERREIRA, E.)




NDOUANE (Congo, Republic of the)


GRIESBECK (2)





TURA (Cook Islands)


GUERRERO SALOM




TOURE (Côte d’Ivoire)


GUTIERREZ-CORTINES (for MATO, G.)




WAISS (Djibouti) (VP)


HALL




JIMÉNEZ (Dominican Republic) (VP)


KACZMAREK




USAMATE (Fiji)


KLASS (VP)




MILEBOU AUBUSSON (Gabon)


KORHOLA




BALDEH (Gambia)


LEINEN (for TOIA, P.)




BAGBIN (Ghana)


LOPEZ AGUILAR




SEERAJ (Guyana)


MARTINEZ MARTINEZ (2)





RAKOTOMIANDRISOA (Madagascar)


MAYER




VUWA-KAUNDA (Malawi)


MITCHELL




OULD GUELAYE (Mauritania)


MIZZI




SITHOLE (Mozambique) (VP)


MUNIZ DE URQUIZA (for CASTEX, F.)




VAN DER WALT (Namibia)


NEUSER




CHEGOU (Niger) (VP)


NICOLAI (for MANDERS, T.)




AHMED (Nigeria)


RINALDI (2), (3) (for JENSEN, E.)




TAGELAGI (Niue)


RIVASI




KOIM (Papua New Guinea)


SCHMIDT




KANAI (Palau)


SCHNELLHARDT




LONG (Saint Lucia)


STASTNY




PURCELL (Samoa) (VP)


TIROLIEN (3), (4)





SALL (Senegal)


VAUGHAN




POOL (Seychelles)


VANHECKE (2) (for SCOTTA, G.)




BUNDU (Sierra Leone)


VLASAK (2)





TOZAKA (Solomon Islands)


WIELAND




SWART (South Africa)


WLOSOWICZ (3), (4) for KURSKI, J.)




PANKA (Suriname)


 




DLAMINI (Swaziland)


 




NDUGAI (TANZANIA) (VP)


 




KLASSOU (Togo)


 




TAIONE (Tonga)


 




KHAN (Trinidad and Tobago)


 




OULANYAH (Uganda)


 




KALTALIO (Vanuatu) (1)



 




HAMUDULU (Zambia)


 




HLONGWANE (Zimbabwe)


 








Also present:


ANGOLA

TEIXEIRA
GUNGA
CHINLINGUTILA
TCHIKANHA
da Silva PEREIRA
AVELINO

BARBADOS

CHANDLER

BENIN

DAYORI
HOUNGNIGBO
AGNIDOZAN

BOTSWANA

MANGOLE
MOTSHOME
CHINGAPANE
LENGWADIBE

BURKINA FASO

DOAMBA
OUEDRAOGO ZARE
BAKIO

BURUNDI

MWIDOGO
KAREKEZI
NIYUBAHWE

CAMEROON

GBERI
AWUDU MBAYA
ESSOMBA ATANGANA
DAOUDA
FOKOU
NGOUNGOURE EPSE SAMBA
NDOUMBA NGONO

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC

NOUGANGA

CHAD

ADJI
TEKILO
DINGAOMAIBE
NGARSOULEDE
AFFONO
GUELPINA

CONGO, Democratic Republic of the

MABAYA GIZI AMINE
BASIALA MAKA
wa BASHARA
KAT MUSHITU
OTSHUMAMPITA ALOKI
NGOY SALIBOKO
LONTANGE BONGIMA
EBUA LIHAU
NGINDU KABUNDI BIDUAYA
MUKENDI
BOKO MUKE
LUKUKA

CONGO, Republic of the

IBOVI
KOURISSA
NGAMELLA
APATOUL
BOUNDA

COTE D’IVOIRE

F. TOURE
S. TOURE
KRA

CUBA

SHELTON
MARICHAL

DJIBOUTI

WAIS
GOUMANEH
ABDILLAHI
WARSAMA
SAID
HASSAN
BILIL
SAID
DAOUD
FARAH

EQUATORIAL GUINEE

NGUEMA MANANA
NOHAME ELA
CHEVOL ABOMALA
SANGO WILASI

ETHIOPIA

DABA
TOGA CHANAKA
TESSEMA
ESHETE
MELESE BELAY
TADESSE
DESTA

FIJI

VOCEA

GABON

DAMAS OZIMO
ONGOUORI NGOUBILI
RISSONGA
KOUMBA

GAMBIA

SILLAH
KEBBEH
CAMARA

GHANA

ASAMOAH
BROWN
SARKU
ALIFO

GUINEE

NOUNKE

GUYANA

GOMES

KENYA

WA KABANDO
ADEN
WERU
ONGUKA
MOGERE
NDINDIRI
MUNYUA
WAIGANJO

LESOTHO

MAHASE-MOILOA
MAPHIKE
LIPHOLO
LEBOTSA
MOKOALELI

MADAGASCAR

NORBERT RICHARD
SETILAHY

MALAWI

KAUNDA
KAMLONGERA
CHISALA
CHINYAMA
MAKANDE

MAURITANIA

MINT HAMA

MOZAMBIQUE

MALENDZA
MANUEL
MATE
DAVA

NAMIBIA

NAHOLO
NGHILEEDELE
MUCHILA

NIGER

OUSMANE
FOUKORI
TONDY
MAINA
CAZALICA

NIGERIA

IVVEJUO
AHMED
AUDU
ABDULLAHI
ALHASSAN
AKPAN
TILLEY-GYADO
ISIYAK

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

BALANGETUMA
MARO

SAMOA

LUTERU

SENEGAL

TALL
DIALLO
FALL
LO
SECK

SEYCHELLES

VEL
SAMSON

SIERRA LEONE

LEWALLY
KUYEMBEH
SORIE

SUDAN

AMIR ABDELMAGID
NASR-ADEEN
ISMAIEL ALBAGIER

SURINAME

CASTELEN
TARNADI
NELSON

SWAZILAND

MASUKU

TANZANIA

AZZAN ZUNGU
YAKUBU
NZOWA

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

JOSEPH
JOHNSTON

UGANDA

BIHANDE
AKOL
NABBANJA
KAWEESA
KAGORO

VANUATU

LENGKON
JOY
RURU

ZAMBIA

KABWE
NGULUBE
MUBANGA
MAYONDI

ZIMBABWE

CHIKWINYA
MPARIWA
MUCHADA
CHIPARE
CHIKURI
MASARA

ACP COUNCIL

Fonotoe Luafesili Pierre Lauofo, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Samoa and President-in-Office of the ACP Council

COUNCIL OF THE EU

Rolandas Kriščiūnas, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania and representative of the President of the Council of the European Union

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

PIEBALGS, Member of the Commission with responsibility for development

EEAS

COSTA PEREIRA, Head of Division, Pan-Africa

EESC

VERBOVEN

COMESA

NKANAGU

AU

MWENCHA

OIF

BARARUNYERETSE

ACP SECRETARIAT

MUMUNI, Co-Secretary-General

EU SECRETARIAT

AGUIRIANO NALDA, Co-Secretary-General


(1)  Country represented by a person who is not a parliamentarian

(2)  Present on 25 November 2013

(3)  Present on 26 November 2013

(4)  Present on 27 November 2013



ANNEX III

ACCREDITATION OF NON-PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATES

Fiji
Mr John Usamate,
Minister of Labour, Industrial Relations and Employment and head of the delegation of Fiji
Madagascar
Mr Jean Ernest Rakotomiandrisoa,
member of the National Congress of Transition and head of the delegation of Madagascar



ANNEX IV

TEXTS ADOPTED







—


Resolution on respect for the rule of law and the role of an impartial and independent judiciary
(ACP-EU/101.521/13/fin.)










—


Resolution on South–South and triangular cooperation: opportunities and challenges for ACP countries
(ACP-EU/101.516/13/fin.)










—


Resolution on the social and environmental impact of pastoralism on ACP countries
(ACP-EU/101.526/13/fin)










—


Resolution on security in the Great Lakes region
(ACP-EU/101.541/13/fin.)










—


Amendments to the JPA Rules of Procedure (AP101.347)





RESOLUTION (1)

on respect for the rule of law and the role of an impartial and independent judiciary

The ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly,






—


meeting in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) from 25 to 27 November 2013,










—


having regard to Article 18(1) of its Rules of Procedure,










—


having regard to the Treaty on European Union, in particular Articles 2 and 21(1) and (2) thereof,










—


having regard to the Cotonou Agreement, in particular Articles 8(4), 9, 33(1) and 96 thereof,










—


having regard to the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, adopted on 30 January 2007, in particular Articles 2(2), (5), (6) and (9), 3(1), (2), (5), (7), (8) and (9), 4, 10, 12, 15, 17, 27, 32 and 33 thereof,










—


having regard to the Caricom Charter of Civil Society of 19 February1997, in particular Article XVII thereof,










—


having regard to the Organisation of African Unity Declaration on Democracy, Political, Economic and Corporate Governance of 8 July 2002, in particular Articles 7 and 14 thereof,










—


having regard to the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption of 11 July 2003, in particular Articles 3 and 17 thereof (2),










—


having regard to the report of the United Nations Secretary-General of 16 March 2012 entitled ‘Delivering justice: programme of action to strengthen the rule of law at the national and international levels’,










—


having regard to the UN Basic Principles on the independence of the judiciary,










—


having regard to the Economic Community of West African States Protocol A/SP1/12/01 on Democracy and Good Governance, adopted in Dakar on 21 December 2001,










—


having regard to the report of the Committee on Political Affairs (ACP-EU/101.521/A/fin.),










A.


whereas respect for the rule of law and the balance of powers (executive, legislative and judicial) is a sine qua non for the implementation and functioning of a stable democracy – which is a common objective at the core of EU–ACP cooperation –, an essential element of good governance and a prerequisite for the promotion of a fair state and of sustainable political, economic and social development that enables parliamentary democracy to function more effectively;










B.


whereas the effective, firm and clear separation of powers is fundamental to ensuring the presence of a genuinely impartial, independent and accessible judiciary;










C.


whereas the legal structures put in place should guarantee a balance between the three constitutional powers, which must be independent of the individuals occupying particular posts;










D.


whereas having a free and ethical press network and a civil society whose rights are respected and taken into account in political decision-making could help to ensure a proper balance of constitutional powers;










E.


whereas both EU and ACP countries have a strong common interest in the continued development of democracy and the establishment of properly functioning constitutionalism;










F.


whereas the existence of an impartial, independent and accessible judiciary is a crucial aspect of the rule of law in all states, in order to ensure compliance with laws by all, to promote sustainable economic growth and to strengthen people’s confidence in their government, thereby enhancing political stability and security;










G.


whereas corruption in the judicial sector breaches the principle of non-discrimination and the right of access to justice, a fair trial and an effective remedy, which are instrumental in the enforcement of all other human rights, and whereas corruption seriously distorts the independence, competence and impartiality of the judiciary and of public administration, fostering distrust in public institutions, undermining the rule of law and leading to violence;










H.


whereas having sufficient, well-trained human resources recruited on an objective and fair basis is essential to the proper functioning of the judiciary and the police;










I.


whereas citizens’ confidence in their country’s legal system and the legitimacy of the courts is dependent on a fair, transparent, honest and effective judiciary;










J.


whereas the integrity of public affairs and of the management of public funds is at the heart of good governance and the rule of law, being considered to be a factor that decreases corruption; whereas political leaders must be held accountable politically and before the courts for the private appropriation of public funds; whereas widespread corruption and a lack of transparency, access to information and inclusive participation in decision-making prevent citizens from holding governments and political representatives to account in order to ensure that revenue related to resource and market exploration is used to uphold their human rights; whereas it is incumbent upon governments to do everything in their power to combat corruption in public and private companies;










K.


whereas good governance, which is a key principle of cooperation between the EU and the ACP countries, is defined as a process of long-term change based on universal aims and principles and shared aspirations that must inform the main state functions of government and the interaction of public institutions and citizens (3);










L.


whereas education, in particular citizenship education, from an early age and general public awareness of a culture of peace, human rights, democracy, the rule of law and civil liberties are key to fostering a sense of belonging and commitment to society among citizens and enabling respect for the rule of law to take root;










M.


whereas the same principles must apply across the board and not be subject to specific national or regional ‘standards’, even though the way they are applied may vary according to the country;










1.


Recalls that any democratic system is based on a constitution and an associated judicial system, and emphasises, in this connection, the importance of the principle of judicial independence;










2.


Insists on the effective adoption and application of relevant articles on the rule of law, the separation of powers and an independent judiciary contained in treaties, charters, agreements and declarations of international organisations, such as the UN, the African Union and the EU, and of regional organisations;










3.


Calls on international and regional organisations to use their influence to help national parliaments implement their control function with respect to the executive; encourages, in this context, the exchange of good practice between the parliaments of the ACP countries and those of the EU Member States;










4.


Welcomes the launch of regional governance initiatives, such as the Africa Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), and calls for the development of similar instruments in the field of justice;










5.


Recommends that constitutions or fundamental constitutional documents clearly define the rules on separation of powers and specify the corresponding institutional framework; expresses reservations, in this connection, about the observable, constitutionally questionable practice whereby majorities which have a quorum to amend the constitution could curtail minority rights under domestic law that have been established for purposes of political scrutiny; stresses that revisions of constitutions should be the exception and should be designed to meet institutional rather than political needs; encourages, therefore, the establishment of systems to institutionalise political scrutiny and constitutional scrutiny by an independent court before any amendments are made to a constitution;










6.


Insists that the establishment of effective rights for parliamentary minorities, coupled with the application of strict rules on the funding of political parties which ensure a high degree of transparency, is essential in order to allow democratic oversight, balanced powers and sustainable democracy;










7.


Reiterates that civil society plays a positive and proactive role in the interaction between state powers, political parties and citizens and in preventing coups d’état or breaches of the rule of law;










8.


Emphasises the importance of free and independent pluralistic media able to contribute to democratic control and the balancing of state powers, with protected rights under freedom of information legislation; calls for an end to the harassment of journalists, who should be able to carry out their work in an independent manner, without fear of violence and recrimination, and for the immediate release of journalists and bloggers wrongfully imprisoned because of their work; calls for the amendment of anti-terrorism and anti-extremism legislation and of laws on national security, treason or subversion which can be used to prosecute and imprison journalists;










9.


Strongly recommends that state structures and institutions be reinforced, in particular those linked to the judiciary; calls on national authorities to allocate the necessary resources for this purpose; observes that sentences and convictions handed down by the courts cannot be executed without a credible penal system to which the necessary funding is allocated and which respects human rights;










10.


Considers that the EU should pay greater attention to the situation of ‘failed states’ in accordance with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) principles for international action in fragile states and precarious situations;










11.


Calls for clear and transparent law-making in the economic sphere which, coupled with an independent judiciary, would enhance investor confidence and could thus make a major contribution to sustainable economic development; calls in this connection for particular attention to be given to property rules and highlights the importance of implementing the right to participation and the right to access information and public accountability mechanisms, such as open data, as core principles of democracy;










12.


Emphasises the need to strengthen, through training and retraining, the intrinsic capacity of actors in charge of the judicial system (constitutional courts, independent national electoral commissions, judges, prosecutors and criminal investigation departments) and to institutionalise internal integrity control mechanisms;










13.


Recommends the establishment of a disciplinary tribunal for officers in the judicial system in order to guarantee the independence of judges in connection with possible career advancement and appointments;










14.


Emphasises the strong need to tackle everyday problems, such as poverty, lack of affordable health care and corruption, which reinforce public perceptions that democracy has not improved living conditions;










15.


Considers a strong and adequately resourced judicial system to be a bulwark against endemic corruption; considers, in this connection, that officers of the judiciary and police should be adequately remunerated and protected against any pressure which might threaten their integrity or hamper them in the performance of their duties;










16.


Stresses the importance of high-quality judicial and police training based on values and humanist ethics, the principles of democracy and good governance, and the rule of law;










17.


Advocates the establishment of parliamentary institutions and mechanisms which will initiate a transformation of society’s mentality so as to provide effective protection against corruption and patronage; welcomes the Jakarta Statement on Principles for Anti-Corruption Agencies of November 2012; stresses the need to address the lack of effectiveness of the anti-corruption institutions created in many countries when it comes to tackling corruption, stemming mainly from their institutional arrangements, lack of functional independence from the executive, lack of political support, the sourcing of their finances, their rules for selecting and appointing officers and their enforcement powers; calls for the development of international standards on the independence and effectiveness of anti-corruption authorities, drafted on an intergovernmental basis, with the aim of final adoption by the UN General Assembly, which would be equivalent to, and have the same robust scope as, the Paris Principles for national human rights institutions; emphasises that these principles should be used as benchmarks for accountability through peer review performance assessments;










18.


Supports the creation of an international commission against corruption by means of an international treaty or a protocol to the UN Convention against Corruption, which would establish an international body of criminal investigators endowed with powers equivalent to those of national law enforcement and prosecution authorities to investigate and prosecute crimes of corruption in the domestic territories of the signatory states, with the power to indict individuals in national criminal courts;










19.


Stresses that the principles and practices of good governance in the judicial sphere must be rooted at local level, particularly by means of the development of high-quality judicial infrastructure operating throughout a territory;










20.


Encourages initiatives to reform judicial systems, and considers that the European delegations concerned, their various partners and civil society should participate fully in such reforms;










21.


Recommends the inclusion in national education programmes of citizenship education from an early age in order to promote a culture of responsibility and awareness of human rights, democracy and the rule of law, in particular with a view to combating endemic corruption;










22.


Recommends the inclusion of local elements in the organisation of the judiciary and in a state’s general democratic structure in order to ensure a greater sense of ownership among citizens while maintaining full respect for democratic rules and principles; stresses, in this connection, the importance of dialogue at local level and of community policing in order to prevent crime and promote respect for, and defence of, the rule of law and the judicial system on the part of citizens;










23.


Underlines the important role being played by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in taking effective action in the fight against impunity; observes in this connection that the ICC is no substitute for an effective national system of criminal courts; encourages the establishment of an institutional arrangement for regular dialogue between the ICC and governments, particularly African Union heads of state and government, in order to improve the current functioning of the Court, taking account of the concerns of the various parties to the Rome Statute;










24.


Instructs its Co-Presidents to forward this resolution to the institutions of the African Union and the European Union, the ACP Council, the Economic Community of West African States, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the Southern African Development Community and the Secretary-General of the United Nations.






RESOLUTION (4)

on South–South and triangular cooperation: opportunities and challenges for the ACP countries

The ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly,






—


meeting in Addis Ababa from 25 to 27 November 2013,










—


having regard to Article 18(1) of its Rules of Procedure,










—


having regard to the Partnership Agreement between the members of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States of the one part, and the European Community and its Member States, of the other part, signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000 (5) (the ‘Cotonou Agreement’), as first amended in Luxembourg on 25 June 2005 (6) and as amended for the second time in Ouagadougou on 22 June 2010 (7),










—


having regard to Article 208 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union which stipulates that ‘Union development cooperation policy shall have as its primary objective the reduction and, in the long term, the eradication of poverty. The Union shall take account of the objectives of development cooperation in the policies that it implements which are likely to affect developing countries’,










—


having regard to the declaration adopted by the Joint Parliamentary Assembly in Budapest (May 2011) on the 4th High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan (South Korea) in 2011 (8),










—


having regard to the declaration of the 7th Summit of Heads of State and Government in Malabo, in particular paragraph 18 thereof, which calls for special attention to be paid to South–South and triangular cooperation with the aim of putting an end to aid dependency (9),










—


having regard to the Busan Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation agreed on 1 December 2011 (10),










—


having regard to the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness of 2 March 2005 and the Accra Agenda for Action of 4 September 2008 (11),










—


having regard to the conclusions of the 3166th meeting of the Council of the European Union (Foreign Affairs/Development) of 14 May 2012 on ‘increasing the impact of EU development policy: an agenda for change’ (12),










—


having regard to the note by the UN Secretary-General on a framework of operational guidelines on United Nations support to South–South and triangular cooperation (SSC/17/3) of 12 April 2012 (13),










—


having regard to the ACP–Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie symposium on ‘strengthening South–South cooperation: challenges and opportunities for the ACP group’ (14),










—


having regard to the final document of the building block meeting on South–South and triangular cooperation of 5 and 6 March 2012 in Brussels (15),










—


having regard to the conclusions of the Policy Dialogue on triangular cooperation in Lisbon on 16 and 17 May 2013, organised by the OECD and the Government of Portugal (16),










—


having regard to the Nairobi outcome document adopted by the High-Level United Nations Conference on South–South Cooperation (17),










—


having regard to the report on the joint meeting of the executive boards of the UN Development Programme, the UN Population Fund, the UN Office for Project Services, the UN Children’s Fund, UN-Women and the UN World Food Programme, held in New York on 4 February 2013, on leveraging South–South cooperation and triangular cooperation (18),










—


having regard to the European Commission proposal for a regulation establishing a financial instrument for development cooperation (19), having regard to the UN Millennium Declaration of 8 September 2000,










—


having regard to the report by the Committee on Economic Development, Finance and Trade on ‘South–South cooperation and triangular cooperation: opportunities and challenges for the ACP countries’ (AP101.516/13/fin),










A.


whereas the first decade of the 21st century was marked by rapid economic growth in the major emerging countries of the south (China, India, Brazil, Argentina, Indonesia, South Africa, etc.), which are increasingly establishing themselves as major development players, accounting for nearly 50 % of global GDP in 2010, according to OECD estimates, compared with 36 % 10 years ago;










B.


whereas, in this context and in the light of the challenges associated with development, the ACP countries have increasingly adopted approaches involving South–South partnership, covering not only financial flows but also the sharing of experience, technology transfer, preferential market access and approaches to trade which are more mutually supportive;










C.


whereas the future of South–South cooperation rests on collective measures which contribute to the development of all the participant countries and provide a response to common challenges;










D.


whereas the economic partnership agreements being ratified by the ACP countries must be a vehicle for the development of the EU’s partner countries, particularly through the diversification of their economies and the enhancement of cooperation between ACP countries;










E.


whereas the ACP countries have increasingly given consideration to new ways of pursuing the aims of eradicating poverty and achieving sustainable development on a more regional scale and through horizontal partnerships;










F.


whereas triangular cooperation is a process involving South–South cooperation with the support of a country in the North, which is distinct from mere technical cooperation programmes in that each actor defines its contribution on the basis of its own comparative advantages, thus assuming a share of the responsibility for development results;










G.


whereas South–South cooperation should be more transparent and increase the involvement of local civil societies;










H.


whereas, despite significant progress in reaching the targets set by the Millennium Development Goals, such progress has been extremely uneven;










I.


whereas countries in the North have a vested interest in ensuring that South–South and triangular cooperation is successful;










J.


whereas foreign direct investment (FDI) between developing countries accounted for 16 % of the global total in 2010 (approximately USD 210 billion, compared with USD 187 billion in 2008) and there still remains untapped potential for greater South–South cross-border economic integration;










K.


whereas, according to the UN Secretary-General’s report, South–South development cooperation has grown rapidly, reaching USD 16.2 billion in 2008, an increase of 63 % compared with 2006;










1.


Believes that South–South and triangular cooperation, although different in nature and scope, both create fresh fora and new means of cooperation, enabling emerging countries in the South to pass on to less developed countries, in particular the least developed ones (LDCs), the experience of their successes and the lessons learnt from their failures, and to provide them with development aid;










2.


Notes that emerging countries (China, India, Brazil, Turkey, Morocco, the Persian Gulf countries, etc.) are investing very heavily in the ACP countries and should be encouraged to use their role in addressing key international issues, ranging from economic recovery to food security, human rights and climate change;










3.


Recognises that the ACP countries possess technical know-how specific to their territory, thanks to geographical proximity and growing regional complementarities, although trade imbalances persist, as in the case of China in relation to Africa;










4.


Deplores the structure of trade between the ACP countries and the emerging economies, which is unchanging in qualitative terms, with the ACP countries continuing to be sources of commodities and raw materials used to power industrial growth in other countries; urges those countries to demonstrate their capacity to promote new forms of development mechanism and mobilisation of funds in order for economic relations with emerging countries to support structural diversification of the economy;










5.


Calls on the existing trading partners to assist with training and investment in the industries that add value to the products of the ACP countries and of other Southern countries in order to build skills and get the best value from their resources with a view to sustained future growth;










6.


Calls, therefore, on the EU to support South–South development cooperation which is firmly in line with the principles of mutual interest and equality, taking into account the imbalances existing between the two parties in the partnerships; considers that the mere selling-off of raw materials should be prevented and that fair trade in resources, and in particular intensive transfers of education, knowledge and technology, should be supported;










7.


Believes that triangular cooperation projects provide the EU with a further opportunity to foster sustainable partnerships with ACP countries;










8.


Encourages the development of innovative financing, such as the option of introducing a carbon tax based on the ‘polluter pays’ principle, given that developed and emerging countries are often a major, although not the only, source of CO2 emissions as a result of their rapid industrialisation; commends in this respect the EU Member States for their efforts to gradually phase out fossil fuels in line with the Union’s international commitments to fight climate change, and encourages triangular cooperation to focus on promoting the use of renewables and green technologies as part of a sustainable energy mix;










9.


Calls on the European Commission and the European Investment Bank to increase their funding for triangular cooperation initiatives, particularly between countries sharing a common border;










10.


Encourages all stakeholders to promote the strengthening of ACP countries’ capacity in the long term through the implementation of triangular cooperation which exploits the comparative advantages and complementarities between different development actors, bringing countries together around the common goal of eradicating poverty worldwide and promoting sustainable development;










11.


Takes the view that South–South and triangular cooperation should also focus on the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing with a view to sustainable economic development based on the rule of law;










12.


Takes the view that South–South and triangular cooperation should contribute to the sustainable and economically viable use of natural resources and raw materials;










13.


Recalls that for South–South and triangular cooperation to bring tangible benefits to citizens, they should be developed as a complement to proactive public, private and joint investments in public utilities, including, but not restricted to, transport, energy (particularly in relation to the electricity supply and access to electricity) and ICT infrastructure, and be accompanied by a set of pro-growth public policies, including an adequate fiscal regime and an adequate level of decentralisation in order to empower regions and local communities;










14.


Recognises that, given the poor mobilisation of internal resources and the declining volume of development aid, financing obtained through South–South cooperation is a lifeline for many ACP countries which have enormous funding needs; regrets, nevertheless, the fact that such financing is characterised by strong concentration on sectors such as natural and mineral resource extraction;










15.


Believes that development aid and cooperation projects should be more focused on promoting better use of the internal resources of ACP countries;










16.


Encourages the expansion of South–South and triangular cooperation into areas which would foster sustainable development, such as good governance;










17.


Insists on the need to strengthen the ACP countries’ capacity to frame and implement legislation for mutually supportive development which guarantees respect for human rights, good governance, social justice, fairness, democracy and respect for and protection of the environment;










18.


Believes that the ACP countries must be able to address environmental challenges, such as climate change, energy, environmental degradation and biodiversity loss, in particular using finance intended for the exploitation of natural resources, which must be done in a sustainable way;










19.


Suggests that the global partnership for effective development cooperation can provide a forum for partners sharing the same principles, and whose commitments are correctly defined, in order to obtain tangible development results by exploring comparative advantages and complementarities and improving transparency with regard to spending, recipients and the accountability of the local and regional actors involved in the processes concerned;










20.


Emphasises that the traditional donors remain the main providers of aid to the ACP countries and trade partners, with the EU and its Member States having reaffirmed their commitment to contributing 0.7 % of their Gross National Income to speed up progress towards attaining the Millennium Development Goals in 2015 and beyond;










21.


Encourages partnerships to be formed in specific fields and for specific measures in order to have a greater impact on international decisions; calls on the stakeholders to give consideration to the sustainability of these new forms of cooperation, bearing in mind the central issues of knowledge and technology transfer and protection of the environment beyond their borders;










22.


Considers that new forms of territorial integration call for a transfer of development projects to local and regional actors;










23.


Insists on the need to give a significant role to research and innovation by negotiating, in the context of international relations, arrangements favourable to research for development;










24.


Instructs its Co-Presidents to forward this resolution to the ACP–EU Council of Ministers, the European Parliament, the European Commission, the Presidency of the Council of the EU, the African Union, the Pan-African Parliament, regional and national parliaments and the ACP regional organisations.






RESOLUTION (20)

on the social and environmental impact of pastoralism in ACP countries

The ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly,






—


meeting in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) from 25 to 27 November 2013,










—


having regard to Article 18(1) of its Rules of Procedure,










—


having regard to the African Union Policy Framework for Pastoralism in Africa: Securing, Protecting and Improving the Lives, Livelihoods and Rights of Pastoralist Communities, adopted by the Conference of African Ministers of Agriculture in October 2010 and approved by the Executive Council at the 18th ordinary session in Addis Ababa in January 2011 (Doc. EX.CL/631 XVIII),










—


having regard to the N’Djamena Declaration of 29 May 2013 on the contribution of pastoral livestock to security and development,










—


having regard to the Framework and Guidelines on Land Policy in Africa, endorsed by the African Union Joint Conference of Ministers of Agriculture, Land and Livestock in 2009,










—


having regard to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Heads of State Decision A/DEC.5/10/98 regulating transhumance between ECOWAS states,










—


having regard to the agricultural policy of the ECOWAS states adopted on 19 January 2005 in Abuja,










—


having regard to the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) agricultural policy adopted on 10 December 2001 by Additional Act No 03/2001,










—


having regard to the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) draft Policy Framework for Food Security in Pastoralist Areas of December 2009,










—


having regard to the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Regional Policy Framework for Animal Health and Trade, approved in December 2009,










—


having regard to the ACP–EU Partnership Agreement (‘Cotonou Agreement’) and in particular Articles 32(1) on environment and natural resources, 32(a) on climate change, 31 on gender issues and 23 on economic sector development, covering rural strategies and agricultural production,










—


having regard to the European Commission communication of March 2013 entitled ‘Enhancing maternal and child nutrition in external assistance: an EU policy framework’ (COM(2013)0141),










—


having regard to the European Commission communication of 3 October 2012 entitled ‘the EU approach to resilience: learning from food security crises’ (COM(2012)0586),










—


having regard to the European Commission communication of 31 March 2010 on an EU policy framework to assist developing countries in addressing food security challenges (COM(2010)0127),










—


having regard to the EU-led AGIR and SHARE initiatives to address food and nutrition crises,










—


having regard to the 2012 report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) entitled ‘World Livestock 2011. Livestock in food security’,










—


having regard to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2007 (A/RES/66/142),










—


having regard to the European Council conclusions of 18 November 2002 on indigenous peoples (13466/02),










—


having regard to the Millennium Development Goals established by the UN in 2000,










—


having regard to the report of the Committee on Social Affairs and the Environment (ACP-EU/101.526/13/fin),










A.


whereas around 268 million pastoralists live across Africa, and whereas in some regions pastoralism constitutes the main livelihood; whereas pastoral areas cover almost 40 % of the African continent, and whereas pastoralism constitutes the main activity in certain regions – Niger for example having an estimated FCFA 2 000 billion in livestock capital –, with revenue from the sector contributing 21 % of the country’s export resources;










B.


whereas pastoralists have well-established indigenous knowledge and use both social networks and new information and communication technologies (NICTs) to seek out the most nutritious grazing land in arid and semi-arid areas and strategically move their livestock there, thereby making good use of uncultivated land ill-suited to other purposes;










C.


whereas statistics on the contribution of pastoralism to national economies are little known, despite its importance to the supply of livestock and the creation of a network of associated services;










D.


whereas in arid and semi-arid areas pastoralism is more productive than sedentary livestock farming in terms of production of meat per hectare and calories per hectare, and whereas it therefore helps to feed communities and enhance food and nutrition security and resilience;










E.


whereas mobile grazing in arid and semi-arid areas, together with the carbon sequestration potential of pastoral grasslands, could have a positive impact on the environment; whereas, on the other hand, grazing with flocks that are not moved around leads to overgrazing and loss of biodiversity, since plants are unable to recover sufficiently;










F.


whereas climate change increases the vulnerability of pastoralists to food insecurity and poverty, notwithstanding the fact that pastoralists’ mobility means they can adapt more easily to climate change than sedentary livestock rearers;










G.


whereas population growth is increasing the need for agricultural land and urbanisation in Africa, factors liable to restrict animal mobility, and whereas careful management and the creation of land-use codes and plans are therefore particularly important in order to preserve animal mobility;










H.


whereas addressing the management of cross-border mobility at regional level may provide solutions to inter-communal conflicts linked to access to water and land;










I.


whereas pastoralists, moving through remote areas, can play a positive security role;










J.


whereas by diversifying their activities some pastoralists can increase their income;










K.


whereas pastoralists can have difficulties accessing appropriate, good-quality healthcare, education, water and veterinary care for their animals, and whereas the difficulties in including them in census data can lead to their political marginalisation;










L.


whereas the AU Policy Framework for Pastoralism seeks to protect the livelihood of pastoralists, help them address the challenges they face, safeguard their rights and reinforce their contribution to the economy;










1.


Urges ACP states and local authorities to align their national, local and regional policies with the AU framework, and to involve pastoralists in defining the strategies to be used;










2.


Calls on the EU to recognise pastoralism as a valuable production system, and to support ACP states in implementing the framework;










3.


Points out the necessity of appropriate animal health and hygiene measures in order to avoid the spread of animal diseases, to preserve pastoralism and to protect public health; notes the importance of pastoralists having knowledge about the prevention and treatment of animal diseases;










4.


Calls on the ACP states to create and implement local, national, bilateral and regional initiatives, laws and codes for pastoralism, transhumance and land use; calls on the ACP states also to develop innovative supply concepts in fields such as education and public health to enable mobile population groups to be better provided for;










5.


Urges public and private actors to ensure that borders and boundaries do not negatively affect pastoralists’ safe mobility and access to resources, and that pastoralists can still graze their herds where land is privatised;










6.


Recommends that the ACP states support and advise pastoralist women in relation to their economic empowerment;










7.


Calls on the ACP states to strengthen their governance structures so as to ensure better representation of pastoralists, including by empowering traditional institutions and civil society organisations, in order to ensure that appropriate means are used to achieve the following objectives:






(a)


safe access to rangelands and dry-season buffer zones;










(b)


preservation of traditional knowledge and genetic resources while acquiring new knowledge relating to animal health, the environment and the securing of resources;










(c)


access to appropriate, good-quality education, healthcare, veterinary care and water in a way that is adapted to pastoralism;










(d)


provision and use of technologies, hygiene services, drought management systems, market information and financial services;










(e)


expansion and improvement of processing and market preparation infrastructure and marketing routes;














8.


Calls on the ACP states to give special attention to the education of girls in pastoral communities and to create facilities for their access to education;










9.


Calls on the ACP states and the EU to involve pastoralists in decision-making and to provide support to pastoralists in conflict resolution, using customary means wherever appropriate and possible, and to improve access to legal services;










10.


Calls on the ACP states to support and advise pastoralists who opt out;










11.


Recommends that the ACP states collect further data on pastoralists in order to make a better assessment of their contribution to the economy, and carry out socioeconomic studies to better categorise the vulnerability of pastoralists to, for example, climate change, conflict, changing land use and food insecurity;










12.


Calls on the EU and the ACP states to do all they can to combat climate change, given its damaging impact on pastoral populations; stresses, in this connection, the importance not only of supporting climate change adaptation and improving resilience among pastoralists in the ACP states, but also of pushing for an ambitious agenda in tackling greenhouse gas emissions in both EU and ACP states;










13.


Instructs its Co-Presidents to forward this resolution to the ACP–EU Council of Ministers, the European Parliament, the European Commission, the Presidency of the Council of the EU, the African Union, the Pan-African Parliament, regional and national parliaments and the ACP regional organisations.






RESOLUTION (21)

on security in the Great Lakes region

The ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly,






—


meeting in Addis Ababa from 25 to 27 November 2013,










—


having regard to Article 18(2) of its Rules of Procedure,










—


having regard to Partnership Agreement 2000/483/EC between the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group of states of the one part, and the European Union and its Member States of the other part, signed in Cotonou (Benin) on 23 June 2000 and subsequently revised in 2005 and 2010,










—


having regard to United Nations Security Council Resolution 2098 (2013) on the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),










—


having regard to the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly resolution on the situation of instability and insecurity in the Great Lakes region and, in particular, in the east of the DRC, adopted at its meeting in Paramaribo (Suriname) on 29 November 2012,










—


having regard to the statement of 14 November 2013 by the President of the UN Security Council on the situation concerning the DRC,










—


having regard to the Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region, signed in Nairobi (Kenya) in December 2006 by the heads of state and government of the member states of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR),










—


having regard to the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Region, signed on 24 February 2013 in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) by 11 heads of state and government of the member states of the ICGLR and the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC),










—


having regard to the Declaration of the Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the ICGLR meeting in Kampala (Uganda) on 5 September 2013 on the Security Situation in North Kivu Province in the DRC,










—


having regard to the final communiqué of the joint summit of the SADC and the ICGLR held in Pretoria on 4 November 2013,










—


having regard to the decision of the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council on the situation in eastern DRC, taken on 14 November 2013 at its 406th meeting,










—


having regard to the joint declarations of 9 September 2013 and 4, 6 and 11 November 2013 by the special envoys and representatives of the EU, UN, AU and US for the Great Lakes region,










—


having regard to the statements made by Catherine Ashton, Vice-President of the European Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, on 30 August 2013 on the situation in North Kivu, and on 7 June 2012 and 10 July 2012 on the situation in eastern Congo,










—


having regard to previous European Parliament resolutions on the DRC, particularly those of 17 December 2009, 13 December 2012 and 12 September 2013,










—


having regard to the statement of 26 June 2012 by Kristalina Georgieva, European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, on the worsening humanitarian situation in the DRC,










—


having regard to Article 3 of the 1949 Geneva Convention and to Protocol II thereof, which prohibits summary executions, rape, enforced recruitment and other atrocities,










—


having regard to the International Convention on the Rights of the Child of 20 November 1989, which, in particular, prohibits the involvement of children in armed conflicts,










—


having regard to the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,










—


having regard to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which was ratified by the DRC in 1982,










A.


whereas it is gravely concerned at the ongoing violence, massive human rights violations, crimes of all kinds (arbitrary arrests, extortion, looting, forced labour, sexual violence, forced recruitment of children, torture and executions) and insecurity in the Great Lakes region;










B.


whereas the presence and activities of armed groups in the Great Lakes region in general, and in the eastern DRC in particular, are among the root causes of the continuing lack of security in the region and pose a constant threat to peace, security, stability and economic and social development and to cooperation between the countries of the region;










C.


whereas the ongoing illegal exploitation and looting of the DRC’s natural and mining resources, in particular in the east of the country, remains one of the main causes of insecurity in the Great Lakes region; whereas rising unemployment and poverty, the food crisis and the inadequacy of basic social services are also instrumental in the resurgence of violence and in instability in the region;










D.


whereas in the past year the fighting has displaced more than 100 000 people, exacerbating the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region, in which there are around 2.6 million internally displaced persons and 6.4 million people in need of food and emergency aid – a situation caused mainly by the M23 rebellion and the criminal activities of other armed groups in eastern DRC;










E.


whereas, following the military offensive launched in late October 2013 with the support of the MONUSCO Intervention Brigade, the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) ended the M23 rebellion and allowed the progressive reinstallation of the territorial administration of the state in the areas occupied by the rebels;










F.


noting the declaration of 5 November 2013 by the leaders of the M23, announcing the end of their rebellion and their willingness to pursue the objectives of their movement through exclusively political means;










G.


whereas, despite this victory by the FARDC and the efforts made and resources brought to bear by the international community in the Great Lakes region, in particular in eastern DRC, the violence and serious human rights violations, war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated by armed groups, and the illegal exploitation and looting of the DRC’s natural resources, are still far from over; whereas it is therefore important for efforts to consolidate peace and security in the region to continue;










H.


whereas it deplores the difficulties in bringing the talks in Kampala between the DRC Government and the M23 to a swift conclusion, owing to a disagreement over the nature and title of the final text sanctioning those talks, despite the progress already made;










I.


whereas there is an urgent need to bring a definitive end to the activities of all other negative forces operating in eastern DRC, including the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), the Allied Democratic Forces / National Army for the Liberation of Uganda (ADF/NALU) and the different Mai-Mai groups, and to swiftly restore peace and security in the Great Lakes region;










J.


whereas it is regrettable that the commitments made in the aforementioned framework agreement signed in Addis Ababa on 24 February 2013 have not been honoured by all the parties involved;










K.


whereas, during his joint visit to the Great Lakes region with the UN Secretary-General in May 2013, the President of the World Bank announced that the World Bank would contribute USD 1 billion towards development projects in the region, alongside the efforts currently being made by the international community to bring lasting peace to the Great Lakes region;










1.


Condemns once again, in the strongest possible terms, the acts of violence, crimes, human rights violations, acts of rape and recruitment of child soldiers that have taken place, and reiterates its support for the peoples of the Great Lakes region who have been exposed to the atrocities of war; encourages states to promote dialogue, mediation and negotiation in internal conflict resolution as a means of eliminating the causes of dissension, which lead to attempts to depose democratically elected governments;










2.


Calls on the DRC Government to exercise its full authority throughout the territory of the DRC and to improve the general governance of the country, including in the human rights field, as well as to identify and implement appropriate means of ensuring that all sections of Congolese society have the same rights;










3.


Calls on the parliaments of the Great Lakes region to work with their governments and political parties to promote social justice with a view to securing lasting peace;










4.


Calls on parliaments and governments to ensure equal participation by all segments of society, including women and young people, minorities and vulnerable groups, in the democratic process and in democratic governance;










5.


Calls on the international community, including the AU, the EU and the UN, to continue to provide substantial, coordinated and more effective aid to people affected by the security situation in the Great Lakes region and to remain ready to respond to the humanitarian disaster in the region;










6.


Reaffirms its steadfast commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and national unity of the countries of the Great Lakes region in general, and of the DRC in particular, and stresses the need for these to be respected in order to promote the peace, security and development of the Great Lakes region;










7.


Reaffirms the inalienable and indefeasible right of each of the peoples of the region to benefit fully from their national assets and to dispose of them in a completely sovereign manner in accordance with their own laws;










8.


Expresses its support for the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Region signed in Addis Ababa, and calls on all the signatory parties to honour their commitments swiftly and in good faith; calls therefore on the UN Security Council to take appropriate measures pursuant to paragraph 6 of its Resolution 2098(2013) in respect of any parties that have not complied with the commitments set forth in that framework;










9.


Welcomes the EU’s support for the framework agreement and encourages it to make every effort, together with other international organisations, to promote peace and improve cooperation between the DRC, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania;










10.


Expresses its support for all the measures aimed at restoring peace and security in the Great Lakes region instigated and carried out by the UN, the AU, the EU, the ICGLR and the SADC, and urges them to continue their efforts and in particular to set up a programme for the harmonious development of the region in order to offer young people and the population of the Great Lakes region in general an alternative to war that will provide them with a better future;










11.


Welcomes UN Security Council Resolution 2098(2013) on the DRC and calls urgently on the leaders in the Great Lakes region and on the international community as a whole to work to ensure that this resolution is appropriately and fully implemented;










12.


Welcomes the deployment in North Kivu of troops from the Intervention Brigade established under that resolution within MONUSCO; welcomes that brigade’s active involvement in putting down the M23 rebellion, and calls on it to continue to provide support for Congolese Government troops, with a view to disbanding all other armed groups on DRC territory and putting an end to their criminal activities in the Great Lakes region;










13.


Urges the international community, in particular aid donors, to support efforts by the DRC authorities, following the military victory over the M23, to carry out institutional, political, economic and social structural reforms, in particular in the defence, security and justice spheres, with a view to strengthening democracy, the rule of law and good governance at all levels of public administration;










14.


Calls on the DRC and its neighbours to engage in closer and more effective regional cooperation, in order jointly to address the consequences of the recurring conflicts in the region and, in addition to dealing with security-related and political issues, to promote economic development in the Great Lakes region; calls on the international community, in particular the ICGLR, the AU, the EU, the UN and the US, to support such cooperation;










15.


Emphasises, to this end, the need to revitalise the Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries and to provide it with the wherewithal to promote peace, integration, economic growth and job creation, in order to give the people of the region a better life;










16.


Welcomes the progress made in the Kampala negotiations under the auspices of the ICGLR and urges the mediator and all the parties to conclude those talks swiftly, so as to settle urgent matters such as the extradition of former M23 rebels who have taken refuge in neighbouring countries and of people cited for war crimes, crimes against humanity and serious human rights abuses;










17.


Calls for the demobilisation, disarmament, rehabilitation and reintegration (DDRR) of former rebels to be carried out in strict accordance with both the basic international standards in this area and the specific demands of soldiering, as referred to in the ACP-EU JPA resolution on the threats posed by military coups to democracy and political stability in the ACP countries, and the role of the international community;










18.


Takes note of the national consultations in the DRC between the presidential majority, the political opposition and civil society, convened by President Joseph Kabila, and encourages the DRC authorities to act on the conclusions and recommendations of those consultations with a view to promoting national reconciliation and removing once and for all the root causes of the recurrent political crises in the DRC;










19.


Emphasises the need to lose no time in identifying, with the assistance of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Red Cross, former M23 rebels and Congolese refugees in Rwanda and Uganda, so that they may be voluntarily repatriated to their country of origin and anyone so wishing may take part in the DDRR programme;










20.


Emphasises that ending impunity is one of the preconditions for restoring peace and security in the Great Lakes region and repeats its call on the judicial authorities of the member states of the ICGLR and on the International Criminal Court to prosecute and punish the perpetrators of human rights violations, crimes against humanity, war crimes, rape and the recruitment of child soldiers in the Great Lakes region;










21.


Insists that all armed groups roaming the Great Lakes region that have not yet done so must lay down their arms immediately and undertake to return to normal civilian life in their respective countries;










22.


Urges all those countries in the Great Lakes region that have taken in civilian or military refugees from other countries to adhere strictly to the provisions of the 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) Convention of 1967 Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, in particular the ban on such persons engaging in political and military activities against their countries of origin;










23.


Calls on the World Bank to follow up the promise made by its President on 22 May 2013 in Kinshasa to invest the sum of USD 1 billion in development projects in the Great Lakes region, and recommends that this funding be earmarked as a priority for the areas affected by the conflicts;










24.


Urges the AU, the ICGLR and its member states, the UN and the EU to take firm and effective steps to combat the illegal exploitation of and trade in natural resources of the DRC and other countries in the Great Lakes region, and in particular to impose penalties on companies involved in such practices, in accordance with the transparency principles adopted at international level;










25.


Instructs its Co-Presidents to forward this resolution to the African Union, the ACP–EU Council, the Council of the EU, the European Commission, the Vice-President of the European Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the UN Secretary-General, the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for the Great Lakes Region, the member states of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region and the presidents, heads of state and government and parliaments of the states concerned.






Rules of Procedure of The Joint Parliamentary Assembly
Article 1
Joint Parliamentary Assembly
1.   The ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly (hereinafter ‘the Assembly’) is set up pursuant to Article 17 of the Partnership Agreement between the Members of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States of the one part, and the European Union and its Member States, of the other part.
2.   The Assembly shall be composed of two houses containing equal numbers of EU and ACP representatives. The members of the Assembly shall be, on the one hand, members of the European Parliament and, on the other, members of parliament or, failing this, in exceptional cases such as force majeure, notice of which must be communicated in writing in advance to the Bureau of the Assembly as referred to in Article 2 (hereinafter ‘the Bureau’), representatives designated by the parliament of each ACP State. In the absence of a parliament, the attendance without the right to vote of a representative from the ACP State concerned shall be subject to the prior approval of the Assembly.
3.   The credentials of the members of the Assembly shall be established by a letter of appointment from the appropriate authorities of the respective States in the case of ACP representatives and from the President of the European Parliament in the case of its representatives.
Article 2
Bureau
1.   Each house shall elect its members to the Bureau in accordance with its own practice.
2.   The Bureau shall consist of two Co-Presidents of equal status, and 24 Vice-Presidents. Half of the members of the Bureau shall be nominated by the representatives of the ACP States and half by the representatives of the European Parliament, in accordance with a procedure laid down by each of the two houses.
3.   The Bureau shall prepare the work of the Assembly, follow up the activities and resolutions of the Assembly and establish all necessary contacts with the ACP-EU Council of Ministers and the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors.
4.   The Bureau shall be responsible for the coordination of the work of the Assembly. The Bureau may designate some of its members as Vice-Presidents in charge of specific matters in accordance with the principle of parity between members of the parliaments of the ACP States and members of the European Parliament.
5.   The Bureau shall meet, on the initiative of its Co-Presidents, at least four times a year; two of the meetings shall take place in the days preceding the sessions of the Assembly.
6.   The Bureau shall submit to the Assembly the proposed agenda for the debates. It shall be responsible for ensuring that, as far as possible, half the items on the agenda concern matters of common interest.
It may propose a limitation of speaking time for debates.
7.   The Bureau shall be responsible for matters relating to the composition and the responsibilities of the standing committees referred to in Article 25 (‘the standing committees’).
8.   The Bureau shall be responsible for authorising the standing committees to draw up reports and motions for resolutions.
9.   The Bureau may also refer matters for consideration by the standing committees, which may subsequently request authorisation to draw up a report on a particular topic.
10.   The Bureau shall be responsible for monitoring the follow-up to resolutions and decisions of the Assembly. In the case of resolutions tabled by a standing committee, it may delegate responsibility for monitoring the follow-up to the chairman and rapporteur of the standing committee concerned.
11.   The Bureau shall be responsible for discussion, in camera, of individual human rights cases.
12.   The meetings of the Bureau shall not be public.
Article 3
Attendance of other institutions
1.   The ACP-EU Council of Ministers, as provided for in Article 15 of the Partnership Agreement, shall be invited to present to the Assembly its annual report on the implementation of the Partnership Agreement. That presentation shall be followed by a debate.
2.   The ACP Council of Ministers and the ACP Committee of Ambassadors, as well as the Council of the European Union, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (hereinafter ‘the High Representative’) and the European Commission, may attend sessions of the Assembly at the invitation of the Bureau.
3.   The ACP Council of Ministers, as well as the Council of the European Union, the High Representative and the European Commission, may, at the invitation of the Bureau, attend meetings of the Bureau in relation to items concerning their respective areas of responsibility.
Article 4
Observers and other guests
1.   The following States, as permanent observers, may send a representative to attend sessions of the Assembly:






(a)


States which are in the process of ratification of the Partnership Agreement;










(b)


States which are members of the ACP Group.




The permanent observers may address the Assembly.
2.   Other organisations or bodies may attend, as observers, sessions of the Assembly, meetings of the standing committees and regional parliamentary meetings upon the invitation of the Co-Presidents, with the agreement of the Bureau.
They may, on a case-by-case basis, address the session or committee meetings, with the agreement of the Assembly or the Bureau of the committee concerned, respectively.
3.   Observers, permanent or not, shall not have the right to vote.
4.   The participation, with a consultative status, of other guests, such as representatives of civil society, in the sessions of the Assembly, the meetings of the standing committees and the regional meetings of the Assembly shall be approved by the Bureau on a case-by-case basis.
Article 5
Sessions of the Assembly
1.   The Assembly shall meet twice a year for a period of three days; its sessions shall be convened by its Co-Presidents and it shall meet alternately in an ACP State and a Member State of the European Union, if possible the one holding the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union.
2.   Consideration shall be given in turn to the regions of the ACP Group of States and the Member States of the European Union when deciding on the venue of the sessions.
3.   An extraordinary session of the Assembly may be convened by the Co-Presidents at the request of the Bureau or of the ACP-EU Council of Ministers.
Article 6
Regional meetings of the Assembly
1.   In accordance with Article 17(3) of the Partnership Agreement, the Assembly 
shall
 hold regional parliamentary meetings. Such meetings shall be decided upon the request of the Bureau or of the regions concerned.
2.   For the purposes of these Rules of Procedure ‘region’ shall mean entities to be defined by the national parliaments of the ACP States. Any such defined entities shall be presented for the Assembly’s final approval.
3.   One member of parliament from each ACP State in the region and an equivalent number of members of the European Parliament shall participate in regional meetings.
4.   The Assembly shall hold no more than three regional meetings a year, lasting for up to three days each. If more than two are held, one of them shall take place in the margins of the session held in an ACP State. Those meetings shall adopt conclusions in the form of a communiqué. These Rules of Procedure shall apply mutatis mutandis to regional meetings.
5.   Regional meetings shall focus on matters of regional and topical interest, in particular the Regional and Country Strategy Papers for the region concerned. A follow-up report relating to each regional meeting shall be presented to the subsequent Assembly session.
6.   A report on each ACP region shall be drawn up before each regional meeting, to be debated in the context of that regional meeting.
Article 7
Agenda
1.   The Bureau shall prepare the draft agenda of the session. The Co-Presidents shall submit that draft to the Assembly for its approval. Subjects shall relate to development cooperation between the European Union and the ACP States in the framework of the Partnership Agreement.
The draft agenda of each session shall include the following categories of topic:






(i)


reports submitted by the standing committees. These will be limited to three per session. The length of the motions for resolution contained in the reports is laid down in Annex II to these Rules of Procedure;










(ii)


urgent topics, proposed by a standing committee or submitted by the Bureau itself. Urgent topics shall only be included on an exceptional basis and may not exceed two per session. Other topics shall be forwarded to the standing committee responsible;










(iii)


a keynote topic for a high-level debate.




2.   On urgent topics, a motion for a resolution may be tabled by a representative of the ACP States, a political group or ten members. Motions for resolutions must be limited to the urgent topics entered on the draft agenda for the session and may not exceed the length laid down in Annex II. Motions for resolutions must be tabled no later than four weeks prior to the opening of the session at which they are to be debated and voted on.
3.   In cases of urgency, the Co-Presidents may update the draft agenda between meetings of the Bureau through the written and/or silence procedure.
4.   Motions for resolutions on urgent topics shall be submitted to the Bureau. The Bureau shall check that each motion for a resolution that meets the criteria set out in paragraph 2 is entered on the agenda and is available in English and French. The Bureau’s proposals shall be submitted to the Assembly for approval.
5.   The Bureau shall forward the motions for resolutions on urgent topics to the committee responsible, for information.
Article 8
Quorum
1.   A quorum of the Assembly shall be attained when a third of the representatives both of the ACP States and of the European Parliament are present.
2.   All votes shall be valid whatever the number of voters unless the President, on a request made by at least ten members before a vote has begun, ascertains that the quorum is not present at the moment of voting. If the quorum is not present, the vote shall be placed on the agenda for the next sitting.
Article 9
Presidency of sittings
1.   The Co-Presidents shall jointly decide which of them is to preside at each sitting of the Assembly.
2.   The President shall open, adjourn and close the sittings of the Assembly. The President shall ensure the Rules of Procedure are observed, maintain order, call upon speakers, close debates, put matters to the vote and announce the results of the vote.
3.   The President may speak in a debate only to sum up or to call speakers to order; should he/she wish to take part in a debate, he/she shall vacate the chair.
4.   Either Co-President may elect to be replaced in the chair by a Vice-President.
Article 10
Seating arrangements
Members shall be seated in alphabetical order, by name in the case of representatives of the European Parliament and by country in the case of ACP representatives, the starting letter to change to the next consecutive letter of the alphabet for each session.
Article 11
Official languages
1.   The official languages of the Assembly shall be Bulgarian, 
Croatian
, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish and Swedish.
For all meetings held at the European Parliament’s normal places of work, interpretation facilities shall be provided in all the working languages of the members of the European Parliament actually present. For all meetings held outside the European Parliament’s normal places of work, interpretation facilities shall be provided in accordance with the relevant internal rules of the European Parliament, as contained in the Rules governing meetings of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly and its Bodies, laid down in the decision of the Bureau of the European Parliament of 10 February 2003 (22). Translation services shall be provided during each meeting in English and French.
2.   Acts adopted by the Assembly shall be published in the official languages. Preparatory documents and working documents shall be published in at least English and French.
Article 12
Public nature of proceedings
Sessions of the Assembly shall be public unless it decides otherwise.
Article 13
Minutes
1.   The minutes of proceedings of each sitting, containing the decisions of the Assembly and the names of speakers, shall be distributed at the next sitting.
2.   The minutes of proceedings shall be published by the European Parliament in the Official Journal of the European Union and by the ACP Secretariat in whatever form it may deem appropriate. The minutes of the last sitting of the session shall be submitted for approval at the start of the next session and any corrections thereto shall be published by the European Parliament in the Official Journal of the European Union and by the ACP Secretariat in whatever form it may deem appropriate.
Article 14
Co-Presidents’ statements and press releases
1.   The Co-Presidents may, wherever possible after consulting the members of the Bureau through the written and/or silence procedure, issue joint urgent statements on any matter concerning the ACP-EU Partnership. Such statements shall be based on any existing resolutions and declarations. Once they have been issued, the Co-Presidents shall first inform the Bureau thereof with a view to their being discussed and, as soon as possible thereafter, all the members of the Assembly.
2.   Press releases shall be drawn up in English and French. They shall not rank as official documents.
Article 15
Right to speak
1.   A member of the Assembly may speak only if called upon to do so by the President. Representatives of countries named in resolutions or during debates shall have the right to reply within their allocated time-limit.
2.   Speaking time in debates in the Assembly shall be divided equally between representatives of the European Parliament and of the ACP States. On a proposal from the President, the Assembly may decide to limit speaking time. Members may present written contributions supplementing their statements, limited to 2 000 characters. Written contributions shall be archived in their original language.
3.   For members of the European Parliament, speaking time will be allocated in accordance with the d’Hondt system.
4.   Members of the ACP-EU Council of Ministers or their designated representatives and representatives of the bodies and institutions referred to in Article 3(2) shall be heard at their request.
5.   The Secretary-General of the European Parliament and the Secretary-General of the ACP Secretariat may speak at meetings of the Bureau and at sessions of the Assembly where duly mandated by their respective houses and if asked to do so by the Co-President chairing those meetings and sessions.
6.   A speaker shall not be interrupted except by the President if he exceeds his allocated speaking time, except in compliance with paragraph 6.
7.   If a speaker departs from the subject, the President shall call him to order. If the speaker persists in departing from the subject, the President may forbid him to speak for such time as he thinks fit.
Article 16
Right to vote and methods of voting
1.   Each member with a right to vote shall have a single, non-transferable vote.
2.   Normally the Assembly shall vote by show of hands. If the result of the show of hands is doubtful, a fresh vote shall be taken using coloured cards, or by an electronic vote.
3.   If a request has been submitted in writing by 10 a.m. on the day of the vote by no fewer than ten members, the Assembly shall vote by secret ballot.
4.   A decision shall be deemed to have been adopted only if it has secured a majority of the votes cast. If a request has been submitted by 10 a.m. on the day of the vote by no fewer than five members, for a vote by separate houses, a vote shall be taken in which the members of the parliaments of the ACP States and the members of the European Parliament shall vote by separate houses with the order of vote alternating between them. In that case, the text in question shall be deemed to be adopted only if it secures a majority of the votes cast by both the members of the parliaments of the ACP States and the members of the European Parliament participating in the vote.
5.   In the event of a tie, the motion shall not be adopted. It may be tabled again at the next session of the Assembly.
6.   If a request has been submitted by 10 a.m. on the day of the vote by no fewer than five members, the Assembly shall vote on separate parts of the text of a paragraph or an amendment.
7.   Any request tabled in accordance with paragraphs 3, 4 and 6 may be withdrawn by its authors at any time before the vote.
Article 17
Explanations of vote
Any member may give an oral explanation on the final vote for no longer than one minute and a half or give a written explanation of no more than 200 words. Written explanations shall be archived in their original language.
Article 18
Assembly resolutions
1.   The Assembly shall vote on motions for resolutions included in reports submitted by the standing committees, in accordance with Article 7.
2.   The Assembly shall also vote on any motions for resolutions on urgent topics, in accordance with Article 7.
3.   The President shall invite the authors of any motions for resolutions on a similar urgent topic to draw up a compromise motion. At the end of the debate, each compromise motion for a resolution and the amendments thereto shall be put to the vote in the Assembly. Once a compromise motion for a resolution has been adopted, all other motions tabled on the same topic shall fall.
4.   Resolutions adopted by the Assembly shall be forwarded to the European Commission and the ACP-EU Council of Ministers and to any other interested parties. The European Commission and the ACP-EU Council of Ministers shall report on follow-up to adopted resolutions at the next session of the Assembly.
Article 19
Amendments
1.   An ACP representative with the right to vote, a political group or ten members may table amendments. Amendments shall relate to the text it is sought to alter and shall be submitted in writing. The President shall decide, on the basis of these criteria, whether they are admissible.
2.   The deadline for the tabling of amendments shall be announced at the beginning of the session.
3.   When a vote is being taken, amendments shall have priority over the text to which they relate.
4.   If two or more amendments have been tabled to the same part of a text, the amendment that departs furthest in content from the original text shall be put to the vote first. Only oral amendments which correct factual mistakes or language may be taken. All other oral amendments will be by leave of the Assembly. An oral amendment shall not be taken if it is objected to by ten members standing.
Article 20
Questions for written answer
1.   Any member of the Assembly may put questions for written answer to the ACP-EU Council of Ministers or the European Commission.
2.   The questions shall be submitted in writing to the Bureau, which shall decide whether they are admissible and, if such is the case, forward them to the ACP-EU Council of Ministers or the European Commission, as applicable. The ACP-EU Council of Ministers or the European Commission shall be invited to give a written answer within a period of two months from the date on which the question was forwarded to it.
3.   Questions to which an answer has been given shall be published, together with the answers thereto, by the European Parliament in the Official Journal of the European Union and by the ACP States in whatever form each of them may deem appropriate.
4.   Questions to which no answer has been given within the set time-limit shall be published, with an indication that no answer has yet been given, in the same manner.
Article 21
Question Time
1.   Question Time with the ACP-EU Council of Ministers and the European Commission shall be held at each session at times decided by the Bureau, so as to ensure the presence of both those institutions at the highest level.
2.   Each member of the Assembly may put one question to the ACP-EU Council of Ministers and one to the European Commission. On multiple named questions only one member will be called.
3.   The questions shall be submitted in writing to the Bureau by the deadline set by the latter.
4.   In urgent cases, and with the agreement of the institution to which the questions are addressed, the Co-Presidents or the Bureau may decide to place a question on the agenda even if the deadline set by the Bureau has expired.
5.   The Co-Presidents of the Assembly shall rule on the admissibility of questions. This shall be governed by the scope and terms of the Partnership Agreement. Questions relating to subjects which are already included in the agenda for discussion with the institution concerned shall be declared inadmissible. Questions declared admissible shall be forwarded to the ACP-EU Council of Ministers or the European Commission. The Co-Presidents shall decide as to the order in which questions are taken. The author shall be notified immediately of their decision.
6.   Questions shall not be more than 100 words long. The question must be in the form of a question and not a statement.
7.   The Assembly shall set aside a specific time during each session for dealing with questions to the ACP-EU Council of Ministers and the European Commission. Questions that remain unanswered for lack of time shall be answered in writing unless the author withdraws his question.
8.   A question may be answered only if its author is present or has notified the Co-Presidents in writing, before Question Time begins, of the name of his substitute.
9.   If neither the author nor his substitute is present, the question shall be answered in writing.
10.   The ACP-EU Council of Ministers or the European Commission shall provide answers in writing beforehand. One brief supplementary question may be put by the author of the original question, if he is present, or by his substitute, provided that the author of the original question has notified the Co-Presidents in writing, before Question Time begins, of the name of that substitute. The President may refuse any question which does not relate to the original question. Other questions may then be put to the ACP-EU Council of Ministers or the European Commission on a ‘catch-the-eye’ basis, if time permits.
11.   At the request of ten or more members of the Assembly, the answer given by the ACP-EU Council of Ministers or the European Commission may be followed by a debate. The President shall set a time-limit for that debate.
Article 22
Report on the implementation of the Partnership Agreement by the ACP-EU Council of Ministers
The report on the implementation of the Partnership Agreement by the ACP-EU Council of Ministers, which shall deal inter alia with measures taken pursuant to the resolutions and recommendations adopted by the Assembly, shall be printed in the official languages and distributed for an annual debate in the Assembly.
Article 23
Scrutiny of the implementation of the Partnership Agreement
Without prejudice to the regional reports referred to in Article 6, on a proposal from the Bureau, the Assembly may appoint one ACP and one EU co-rapporteur to draw up a report on a specific region, or on any other matter relating to the implementation of the Partnership Agreement.
Article 24
Requests from the ACP-EU Council of Ministers for an opinion
1.   If the Assembly is asked to deliver an opinion on a decision or a proposed decision, resolution, recommendation or opinion of the ACP-EU Council of Ministers, the request in that regard shall be submitted to the Bureau, which shall place the matter before the Assembly with a recommendation.
2.   The Bureau may give a final ruling on a matter declared urgent by the ACP-EU Council of Ministers.
Article 25
Standing committees
1.   The Assembly shall set up three standing committees (23) responsible for the following areas in the context of the implementation of the Partnership Agreement:






—


promoting democratic processes through dialogue and consultation;










—


economic, financial and trade matters and implementation of the European Development Fund;










—


social and environmental issues.




2.   In line with the general arrangements for the functioning of the Assembly, the standing committees shall be composed of members of the Assembly, in accordance with Article 1, and shall function in a strictly joint manner.
3.   The rules of procedure of the standing committees shall be adopted by the Assembly on a proposal from the Bureau.
Article 26
Temporary follow-up committees
1.   The Bureau may, on a proposal from the Assembly, set up temporary follow-up committees on specific subjects related to the Partnership Agreement or matters covered by it. Not more than two such committees may be operational at the same time. Follow-up committees must complete their work within one year.
2.   The Bureau shall determine their responsibilities, composition and mandate.
Article 27
Workshops
1.   With a view to facilitating ‘greater understanding between the peoples of the European Union and those of the ACP States and raising public awareness of development issues’, the Assembly shall organise workshops at regular intervals in both the European Union and the ACP States.
2.   The workshops shall be organised under the responsibility of the Bureau and shall, in particular, provide an opportunity to invite persons able to give the Assembly first-hand information about political, economic, social and cultural situations that are of concern.
3.   Up to three workshops shall be held the day before the opening of each session of the Assembly. A short oral report shall be presented to the session by each rapporteur, followed, possibly, by a debate.
Article 28
Missions and delegations
1.   The Bureau may decide to send fact-finding missions to ACP States or EU Member States or to international organisations, subject to budgetary constraints. The Bureau or the Assembly may also decide to send joint delegations for the observation of presidential or parliamentary elections, at the invitation of the country concerned, provided that there are no concerns about security and that, in the case of members of the European Parliament, this is compatible with the internal rules of the European Parliament. Furthermore, in accordance with the principle of close cooperation laid down in Article 29, the Bureau may send delegations to meetings of the European Economic and Social Committee and of the social partners, including those held outside Brussels.
A report shall be submitted to the Bureau and to the subsequent session of the Assembly. There shall be a concrete follow-up at the next Bureau meeting to the recommendations made in the report.
2.   The Co-Presidents or their Vice-Presidents may attend high-level meetings or meetings of international parliamentary bodies when invited to participate in their official capacity, either singly or jointly, on behalf of the Assembly. Such missions must represent the Assembly as a whole and the activities entailed must reflect shared ACP-EU interests.
Article 29
Consultation with civil society
The Assembly shall take steps to ensure that the ACP States and the European Union have regular contacts and consultations with representatives of the ACP-EU economic and social partners and other representatives of civil society, in order to obtain their views on the attainment of the objectives of the Partnership Agreement. Those representatives of civil society shall have the opportunity to attend regional meetings and standing committee meetings and to take part in workshops. The Bureau shall examine, in each case, the conditions under which invitations should be addressed to them.
Article 30
Honorary President
On a proposal from the Bureau, and in exceptional cases, the Assembly may confer the title of Honorary President on one of its former Co-Presidents. This honour shall be a mark of recognition by the Assembly of the distinguished service rendered by the person concerned, during his/her membership of the Assembly, to the cause of the Assembly.
Article 31
Secretariat
The Secretary-General of the European Parliament and the Secretary-General of the ACP Secretariat shall take all necessary steps to assist the Assembly and to ensure that it functions smoothly. They may designate a senior official of their respective Secretariats to represent them as Co-Secretary-General of the Assembly. They shall be answerable to the Bureau.
Article 32
Financial regulation
The Assembly shall adopt its financial regulation on the basis of proposals from the Bureau.
Article 33
Interpretation of the Rules of Procedure
The President – or, at his request, the Bureau – shall rule on questions relating to the interpretation of these Rules of Procedure.
Article 34
Points of order
1.   A member may raise a point of order or move a procedural motion and shall have a prior right to speak. He may speak on the point of order or procedural motion for not more than two minutes.
2.   The President may, on request, give the floor to one speaker against the motion for not more than two minutes.
3.   No further speakers shall be heard.
4.   The President shall announce his decision on the point of order or procedural motion. He may first consult the Bureau.
Article 35
Revision of the Rules of Procedure
1.   Amendments to these Rules of Procedure shall be decided on by the Assembly on the basis of proposals from the Bureau, having consulted the Committee on Political Affairs.
2.   Amendments shall be adopted only if they obtain the majority of the votes of each of the two groups of representatives in the Assembly.
3.   Unless otherwise specified when the vote is taken, amendments to these Rules shall enter into force on the first day of the session following their adoption.


ANNEX I

Powers, responsibilities, membership and procedures of standing committees

Article 1
There shall be three standing parliamentary committees with the following powers and responsibilities:






I.



COMMITTEE ON POLITICAL AFFAIRS

This committee is responsible for matters relating to:






1.


Political dialogue (Article 8 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement), development and institutional matters;










2.


Respect for and the promotion of human rights, democracy and good governance (Article 9 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










3.


Peace-building policies and conflict prevention and resolution (Article 11 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










4.


Issues concerning migration (Article 13 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










5.


Assembly relations with relevant international organisations.




This committee will coordinate the work of fact-finding missions, including those sent to monitor elections, in accordance with Article 28 of the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly.










II.



COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, FINANCE AND TRADE

This committee is responsible for matters relating to:






1.


Economic development and trade cooperation, as well as capacity-building for development and partnership;










2.


Macroeconomic and structural reforms, economic sector development and tourism (Articles 22 to 24 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










3.


New ACP-EU trading arrangements, market access and the gradual integration of ACP States into the world economy (Articles 34 to 37 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










4.


Trade and labour standards (Article 50 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










5.


Rural development, fisheries and food security (Articles 53 and 54 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










6.


All issues concerning development finance cooperation including follow-up of the implementation of the European Development Fund.














III.



COMMITTEE ON SOCIAL AFFAIRS AND THE ENVIRONMENT

This committee is responsible for matters relating to:






1.


Social and human development;










2.


Social infrastructure and services, including health and education issues (Article 25 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










3.


Youth and cultural issues (Articles 26 and 27 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










4.


Gender issues (Article 31 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement);










5.


Environment and natural resources (Article 32 of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement).








Article 2
1.   Each member of the Assembly shall have the right to be a member of one of the standing committees.
2.   The committees shall be composed of 52 members and shall consist of equal numbers of, on the one hand, members of the European Parliament and, on the other, members of parliament from ACP States. Should the number of ACP States increase, the number of places on the standing committees will increase pro rata.
3.   Members may also attend meetings of committees to which they do not belong in an advisory capacity or if the subject under discussion covers their country or region, if invited by the Committee Bureau.
4.   The participation of representatives who are not members of a parliament shall only be allowed if the subject under discussion covers their country, but they will not have the right to vote.
5.   Unless a committee decides otherwise, all meetings shall be public.
Article 3
1.   The composition of the committees shall, as far as possible, reflect the composition of the Assembly.
2.   The committees shall elect a Committee Bureau from amongst their members for a period of one year.
3.   The Committee Bureau shall consist of two co-chairs (one representative of the European Parliament and one representative of the ACP States) and four co-vice-chairs (two representatives of the ACP States and two representatives of the European Parliament).
4.   The committees shall be jointly chaired by a member of the European Parliament and by a member of parliament from an ACP State.
5.   The committees may appoint rapporteurs to examine specific questions within their competence and prepare reports to be submitted to the Assembly subject to authorisation from the Bureau, in accordance with Article 2 of the Rules of Procedure.
Motions for resolutions contained in reports may be accompanied by an explanatory statement, which shall not exceed four pages.
6.   The standing committees may discuss other agenda items without a report and advise the Bureau in writing that the said items were discussed.
7.   Committees shall also contribute to the dialogue with non-state actors, in accordance with Article 17(3) of the Partnership Agreement, in particular by means of hearings.
8.   The committees shall report to the Assembly on their activities.
Article 4
1.   Committees shall meet when convened by their co-chairs and for a maximum of four sessions per year, two of them during the session of the Assembly.
2.   Any member may table amendments for consideration in committee. As far as the procedure is concerned, Articles 3 (attendance of other institutions), 4 (observers), 8 (quorum), 9 (presidency of sittings), 16 (right to vote and methods of voting) and 29 (consultation with civil society) of the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly shall apply mutatis mutandis to committee meetings.


ANNEX II

Length of texts

The following maximum lengths shall apply to texts submitted for translation and reproduction:






—


Explanatory statements, preparatory working documents and reports on fact-finding missions: six pages










—


Motions for resolutions contained in reports and urgent topics: four pages, including recitals but excluding citations




A page shall be taken to mean a text of 1 500 characters (not taking into account spaces).
This annex may be amended pursuant to a simple decision by the Bureau.


ANNEX III

Meetings of political groupings

Political groups of the European Parliament, as well as members of the European Parliament and of parliaments of ACP States, according to their political affiliations, may meet in the margins of the sessions of the Assembly, but not at the same time as the sessions themselves. Interpretation shall be provided for such meetings.


ANNEX IV

European Parliament rules regarding interpreting and translation facilities (Article 11 of these Rules of Procedure)

Interpreting and translation facilities (24)







(a)


For all meetings held at Parliament’s normal places of work:






(i)


interpretation will be provided in all the working languages of the European JPA members actually present;










(ii)


actual presence within the meaning of this paragraph refers to attendance at all sittings of a session, and at meetings of the Bureau and the standing committees for the members concerned;










(iii)


translation services during each meeting will be provided in English and French.














(b)


For all meetings held outside Parliament’s normal places of work:






(i)


Interpretation facilities shall be provided for the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly as a general rule in English, French, German, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese; other languages might be considered under exceptional circumstances for particular meetings (e.g. the language of the Council Presidency);
If it is established two weeks before a scheduled meeting that fewer than three Members using any one of these languages will attend, interpretation will not be provided in the language(s) concerned.
Attendance is confirmed in the following ways:






—


in the case of meetings outside the European Union, by booking a plane ticket with the European Parliament’s accredited travel agency, or










—


in the case of meetings within the European Union, on the basis of the lists sent by the political groups to the European co-secretariat, with reservation of a travel ticket and/or a hotel room,














(ii)


once the meeting has started interpretation will be provided in the languages foreseen even if fewer than three Members using any one of those languages remain present at that specific meeting,










(iii)


if, after application of the rules in paragraph (i), the language of the host country is not included in the interpretation language profile for the JPA session, active and passive interpretation of that language can be provided additionally, if the language is a Community language,










(iv)


translation services during each meeting will be provided in English and French.











(1)  Adopted by the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly on 27 November 2013 in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia).

(2)  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_Union_Convention_on_Preventing_and_Combating_Corruption-cite_note-1#cite_note-1

(3)  COM(2006)0421.

(4)  Adopted by the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly on 27 November 2013 in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia).

(5)  OJ L 317, 15.12.2000, p. 3.

(6)  OJ L 287, 28.10.2005, p. 4.

(7)  OJ L 287, 4.11.2010, p. 3.

(8)  OJ C 327, 10.11.2011, p. 11.

(9)  http://www.acp.int/content/outcome-documents-7th-summit-acp-heads-state-and-government-and-96th-acp-council-ministers

(10)  http://www.oecd.org/dac/effectiveness/49650173.pdf

(11)  http://www.oecd.org/development/effectiveness/34428351.pdf

(12)  http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_Data/docs/pressdata/EN/foraff/130243.pdf

(13)  http://ssc.undp.org/content/dam/ssc/documents/HLC%20Reports/Framework%20of%20Operational%20Guidelines_all%20languages/SSC%2017_3E.pdf

(14)  Final report (2011), 4.5.2011.

(15)  Final document final (2012), 20.3.2012.

(16)  http://www.oecd.org/dac/dac-global-relations/dialogue-triangular-cooperation.htm

(17)  A/RES/64/222 A-RES-64-222f.doc

(18)  http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/corporate/Executive%20Board/2013/English/B-11712E-2013-JBM-Leveraging%20South-South%20cooperation%20and%20triangular%20cooperation.pdf

(19)  COM(2011)0840, 7.12.2011.

(20)  Adopted by the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly on 27 November 2013 in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia).

(21)  Adopted by the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly on 27 November 2013 in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia).

(22)  See Annex IV.

(23)  For more detailed rules see Annex I.

(24)  See also the Code of Conduct on Multilingualism, particularly Articles 2(2) and 8(2) thereof.