Highlights from ECDPM’s Weekly Compass Newsletter – Great insights, Volume 4, Issue 2 (February/March 2015)

Coherent EU external action & the ACP | Universality & differentiation post-2015 | African strategies & the SDGs,
Weekly Compass, 6 March 2015
The Cotonou Agreement between the EU and the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group is up for revision. Some may be tempted to deal with the future of ACP-EU relations as a standalone reflection, disconnected from other aspects of EU external action. However, discussing ACP-EU relations in a silo is a risky choice, Jean Bossuyt and Andrew Sherriff explain in this ECDPM blog. They look at how the partnership will fit into the EU’s external action, particularly around the reflections on European Security Strategy, the Neighbourhood Policy and the post 2015 agenda. ECDPM has also launched its new study (to be published this summer) to contribute to a well-informed debate on the future of ACP-EU partnership through a ‘political economy approach’ (PEA). PEAs examine how political and economic processes interact and shape policies and practices. The website page Rethinking the ACP-EU partnership will be updated throughout the study process.

First 100 days of Mogherini & Mimica | A guide to EU decision making on Africa | Developmental regimes in Africa, 
Weekly Compass, 27 February 2015
A paradigm shift in international cooperation will need much more than European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica’s, first 100 days in office have given. ECDPM’s Alisa Herrero Cangas says, “Mimica has shown a few cards in his hand, and its not looking likely he’s holding many aces.” These cards are – a normative vision on what parties should do; looking to emerging economies only as donors; too much focus on financial contributions; and a recycled EU commitment to the 0.7% Official Development Assistance (ODA) target.  The EU has more chances of increasing its political leverage in international development negotiations by putting itself in pole position by bringing concrete commitments on Policy Coherence for Development (PCD) to the negotiation table, rather than ODA pledges with limited credibility. Non-financial means of implementation, in particular PCD, may be a better bargaining chip with emerging economies.

Civil registration & vital statistics in conflict | Linking ‘Food Security’ & ‘Peace & Security’, 
Weekly Compass, 13 February 2015
One cannot ignore the role of conflict in the genesis of food insecurity. However, the question of whether it is competition for access to limited resources that is causing “food wars” or if it is the conflicts that cause food insecurity, remains open. This conference, hosted by the The Royal Higher Institute for Defence, aimed to bridge the gap between research and policy and to encourage discussions on how to optimise the international food aid system. ECDPM’s Francesco Rampa made a presentation on the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) showing how it is an attempt at fully implementing the new approach to development cooperation in the case of food security. It is more about development effectiveness and public private partnership than just aid effectiveness.

The threat of terrorism and election violence | Mining Indaba | The Comprehensive Approach in the Sahel, 
Weekly Compass, 6 February 2015
The African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) is the only continental tool that has the potential to improve all governance aspects in its member states argues Steven Gruzd, head of the Governance and APRM Programme at the South African Institute of International Affairs. But only three (out of a possible 35) presidents attended the meeting of the APRM Forum last week. It will be up to the new chief executive officer of the APRM Secretariat, Professor Adebayo Olukoshi, to demonstrate that there is still energy and drive in the APRM project, and to demonstrate tangible governance results. He will need to strategise how to re-engage the continent’s leaders to actively participate. And he will have to raise serious funding to fulfil the APRM’s potential aspirations.

This article was published in GREAT insights Volume 4, Issue 2 (February/March 2015).