EU Commissioner Discusses Strengthening Europe-Africa Relations at 2024 Hamburg Sustainability Conference

Thank you for chatting to us and thank you I think for coming and talking about a conversation not often had. We speak obviously of partnerships, we speak about the collaboration that we see between our governments. Rarely do we get an opportunity to talk at an EU level about the partnerships between the European Union and the continent. So I want to tie one that partnership and then secondly I want to tie to the conversations that are taking place here about sustainability, particularly at this juncture where we've got a fraction of international relations and we're seeing schisms between north and south, east and west. Well Africa is our neighbour, Africa is really the sister continent and I would say that the future of Europe is very much linked to the future of Africa. So our futures are linked, intertwined and that's why it has been so important for us to strengthen our partnership with Africa and get rid of this donor-recipient kind of relationship where the Europeans go and impose and tell Africans how they should behave. So instead of that really create equal mutually beneficial partnerships where we can trust each other even though we don't always agree, we can have disagreements, we can have irritants, but despite that we can have a mutual trust and mutual respect and I would say that the kind of highlight of our partnership was the African Union European Union Summit which took place in 2022 just before Russia attacked Ukraine and one of the outcomes of that summit was actually this global gateway investment package for Africa. So our commitment to invest in Africa up to 150 billion euro by 2027 and invest in energy sector, in transport, in digital, but also in health and education. Right. And now we can see several different global gateway flagships taking place in different parts of Africa. For instance we have a Maaf Plus initiative through which we want to strengthen vaccine production in several parts of Africa including South Africa but also Rwanda, Ghana, Senegal. So the idea is that Africa could produce vaccines in Africa for Africa. Right. But that's one initiative. We also have a different energy initiative for instance with Namibia we really focus on green hydrogen and renewable energies or if we look at the West Africa we also have a big Lopito corridor. Yes. Which combines actually Angola but also Democratic Republic of Congo as well as Zambia. So there are several initiatives but what is also important for us is like you said not only focus on government to government approach and cooperation but also engage with different stakeholders in Africa. So of course we need also more private sector investments in Africa so we need to engage more with private companies. Yeah. But in addition to that also engage with civil society organizations as well as young people. Yeah. Because we know that the Africa is the continent of youth. Yeah. 65% of your citizens are below 35 years old. 100%. Exactly. So that's why we need to empower young people in Africa but also engage with them as well as connect young people from Europe to Africa. Absolutely. I wanted to follow up on the did you say 150 billion euros. Yeah. Targeted for the continent. Yes. Quick update in terms of progress areas of challenges. Are you on target to meet that number? I'm very confident that we will get that number by the year 2027. There is a lot of interest also in European companies to come to Africa invest in Africa and Africa doesn't want to be a subject of aid. Yeah. Africa wants to stand by its own feet. For sure. And that's why it's important that we also strengthen the economic growth in Africa. Yeah. We can support Africa to create more jobs and we can do that in a sustainable way. Because this is of course our I would say common objective really to meet Agenda 2030 and sustainable development goals. Yeah. And this is of course what this conference is about. 100%. Sustainable development goals and we want to support Africa really to reach those objectives. Yeah. That partnership of course is being tested very severely. Some may suggest particularly given the context of as I said in my introductory remarks the divisions that we're seeing that have come about as a result of one the Ukraine war that you referenced. Then of course there are the tensions with China. And I just wanted to know how the EU is managing that division. Those stresses that we are seeing that are coming as a result of that conflict in the northern part of your continent. And then also the geopolitical challenges that we are seeing emerging between the US as well as China. What kind of an impact does that have on your relationship with the continent. Well I would say that for us for Europeans Ukraine is not only fighting for its sovereignty but Ukraine is also fighting for international rule based order and the UN Charter. So this is very important for us. And we know that many African countries have supported us in the United Nations for instance but then there are countries who have not wanted to take sides and we respect that. Of course we see more and more geopolitical tensions. Not only between the US and China but I would say that Africa is a kind of geopolitical hotspot. Many of different geopolitical actors are present in Africa. In terms of our partnership I would say that if we look at the facts and figures the European Union and Team Europe. So we are still the biggest investor in Africa. We are still the biggest training partner for Africa and we are still the biggest official development assistance provider to Africa. So I would say that from those facts point of view and perspective we are of course a very reliable and important partner to Africa. But we understand that we don't only face a battle of narrative in Africa. We also face battle of offers. So what different geopolitical actors offer also to Africa and our I would say positive offer is the Global Gateway Investment Strategy and our commitment to invest in that continent up to 150 billion euro. Yeah and I was going to say that you of course being challenged very strongly by China. The numbers are certainly made for interesting reading but I wanted to change the conversation slightly and bring in other ways where one issue where there has been. I think it's a point of disappointment for the continent. We've spoken about the reform of international institutions, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank as well as the UN itself and Africa has been making their case for representativity on the UN Security Council as a counterweight to the US, China and of course sorry Europe. What is the EU's position on Africa's climate for a sit at the highest decision-making body of the world? Well we have been supporting the reform of multilateral development banks including the World Bank as well as the IMF. We also very much supported from the beginning African Union partners membership to the G20. So for us it was very important that the African Union become a member of the G20. And I also see that it is important to reform the United Nations. It's important to reform the Security Council of the United Nations and I think that Africa should be represented in the Security Council and not only Africa but I think it would be important to have a broader geographic representation in the Security Council permanently. That is representative of the current world that we live in. You just told me you have two months to go before you retire so I wanted to take a moment for you to reflect in particular as it references Africa your low lights and your highlights and I'm hoping that some of those highlights is somewhere in southern or is it middle Africa or is it west Africa? Well I have had a privilege to visit the southern Africa the east Africa the west Africa and I'm going to Africa next week. So I'm going to Ethiopia. We had an event together with the African Union and the president of the African Union Commission but in addition to that I'm also going to Senegal and I'm very much looking forward to that. I think I have always been interested in Africa but I think my time as a commissioner has really made me a fan of Africa. So even though I leave my office I'm sure that I keep my connections and my conviction to strengthen the partnership between the EU and Africa in future capacity. All the best commissioner. Thank you very much.

CNBC Africa’s Godfrey Mutizwa spoke with Jutta Urpilainen, EU Commissioner for International Partnerships on the side-lines of the 2024 Hamburg Sustainability Conference. 

The EU on strengthening Europe-Africa relations

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