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11.02.2014 Feature Article

J’Accuse: ECOWAS betrays Community Citizens on the EPAs, while “Super Fatima”, Remains...Saviour

JAccuse: ECOWAS betrays Community Citizens on the EPAs, while Super Fatima, Remains...Saviour
11.02.2014 LISTEN

“The Accidental Ecowas & AU Citizen”:
J'Accuse: ECOWAS betrays community citizens on the EPAs, while “Super Fatima”, Remains African Unity's Saviour

By E.K.Bensah Jr
I wish I could say that my one-week absence from this column was because I had taken a one-week of mourning upon hearing the depressing news, that as the African Union was exhorting and admonishing Africa to carve out its policy space in Africa's diplomatic home of the African Union, ECOWAS policymakers were rather opening the policy-space to the dictates of the voracious European Commission that is ever-ready to further-exploit the sub-region for the resources it has. Never mind that normal citizens appreciate the resources they have. We now know without a shadow of a doubt that elements at the ECOWAS Commission management continue to think about their pocket—despite their already-fat salaries – at the expense of the sub-region's interests.

Truth is someone had to monitor what was happening at the African Union.

Although I did say elsewhere that it was disappointing to see Ghana's president at Davos rather than at the African Union summit, where the continental organisation was discussing the very important issue of agriculture, it turns out a delegation by Ghana was necessarily sent to the AU summit in the latter part of the week and which included the Vice-President Amissah-Arthur. I saw him on television praising the necessity of discussions as they help you know what you did not know. I think that must have been the only interesting and relevant thing he said with respect to Ghana's take on integration. The President himself was conspicuously absent, but the Foreign Minister Hannah Tetteh, whom many in civil society categorically point to clearing the path, and leading Ghana down the nefarious road of the Economic Partnership Agreements, was also present. The journalists, as per usual, had few difficult questions to ask her on what the delegation actually went to do in Addis.

I wish I could say the delegation was pressed on Ghana's take on West African integration; the rumours on the fact that Ghana was going to sign the EPAs—against all advice by ECOWAS experts; and reputable institutions like the UNECA and UNCTAD not to—including the fact that the Mahama administration had yet offered a joint roadmap by the government and the government of Niger on how Ghana would prosecute the agenda of getting the sub-region down to a common currency by 2015. I think I could only shake my head in wonderment that if even the ECOWAS Commission top-brass have been strong-armed by the European Commission to sign the EPAs, how on Earth would a Ghana president with so much on his plate be able to deliver?

My only solace, really, was in burying my head to the sweet words by whom I call “Super Fatima”, or the AU's Commissioner for Trade and Industry Fatima Haram Acyl.

True to form, the Chadian diplomat did not disappoint as she called for the economic integration of African countries, and the necessity for African countries to speak with one voice. Addressing a press conference on 27 January at the AU headquarters in Addis, she was concerned about the lack of coherence with respect to international negotiations, and the manner in which it is obstructing these countries' economic productivity.

Commissioner Acyl explained that dependency on commodity and unprocessed raw materials will not allow Africa to achieve its vision of an integrated, people-centred, prosperous Africa. She added that to further the cause of Agenda 2063, it was pivotal for an economic transformation of African countries and wealth-creation for Africans. In other words, Africa's policymakers have to begin to place premium on implementing existing frameworks such as PIDA(Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa); CAADP (Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program); BIAT/CFTA (Continental Free Trade Area); AMV (Africa Mining Vision); and AIDA (Accelerated Industrial Development for Africa.)

The statement revealed that there has been significant movement around the CFTA. For starters, the AU Commission is in the process of establishing an African Trade Observatory to gather and analyze trade and industry statistics; a CFTA Secretariat that will work with member states and regional economic communities, as well as prepare for the CFTA negotiations in 2015; as well as an African Business Council that will seek to integrate private sector holders with the decision-making process of the Commission.

Incidentally, the AU Institute for Statistics—to be headquartered in Tunis—is a new AU organ (approved by the AU Assembly in 2013), which mandate is to promote the production of AU official statistics, mainly by collecting, harmonising and aggregating data published by African countries' national statistics institutes. The Institute will be established under article 7 of the African Charter on Statistics, which provides that the AU Commission shall institute an “appropriate mechanism for implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the Charter”, which was adopted by the AU in February 2009. According to the newly-published AU Handboook (produced by the AUC and the New Zealand government), the Statistics Unit from the Department of Economic Affairs of the AU Commission is currently working on a Business plan for 2014-2018.

Which all means that the AU is getting to work. There are a number of interesting developments that this column will use the next couple of editions to spell out, and speculate on what it all means for Africa and the necessity of finding and crafting its policy space – for good!

In 2009, in his capacity as a “Do More Talk Less Ambassador” of the 42nd Generation—an NGO that promotes and discusses Pan-Africanism--Emmanuel gave a series of lectures on the role of ECOWAS and the AU in facilitating a Pan-African identity. Emmanuel owns "Critiquing Regionalism" (http://www.critiquing-regionalism.org). Established in 2004 as an initiative to respond to the dearth of knowledge on global regional integration initiatives worldwide, this non-profit blog features regional integration initiatives on MERCOSUR/EU/Africa/Asia and many others. You can reach him on [email protected] / Mobile: 0268.687.653.

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