ACP, EU take joint stand on sustainable development

Groupe des Etats d’Afrique des Caraïbes et du Pacifique
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ACP, EU take joint stand on sustainable development at Rio+20
PRESS RELEASE

21 June 2012: The European Union and the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States reaffirmed their shared commitment to the Principles of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development in a joint declaration calling for an “ambitious and action oriented” outcome at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio +20), currently underway in Rio de Janeiro.

“We are committed to advancing the sustainable development agenda at the global level – especially as our 79 ACP members are developing countries, with 40 of them amongst the least developed in the world. The joint declaration is the result of hard work over some time, and represents the kind of North-South cooperation needed to drive this issue home. We must congratulate both ACP and EU sides for their contribution,” said Secretary General Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas, head of the ACP Group's delegation at the Rio +20 global conference.

"The ACP-EU Partnership numbers 105 countries on four continents. It is a large part of the world community, which jointly has a significant voice. We have a common interest in combating climate change and poverty while promoting sustainable development for all," stated the Danish Minister for Development Cooperation Mr Christian Friis Bach.

Amongst other things, the declaration pledges both the ACP’s and EU’s commitment to working constructively during the Rio +20 Conference, urging the forum to adopt decisions in line with the outcomes of the Durban Conference on Climate Change, the Nagoya Conference on Biodiversity and the Changwon Conference on Desertification, and calling on the international community, including non-traditional donors, to deliver on commitments
(Read the full declaration EN FR)

The document backs the transition to a green economy as a mutually beneficial way to achieve sustainable development in ACP and EU member states, while also highlighting the value of the blue economy – oceans and marine resources – to the survival of many ACP countries, especially Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

In addition, the joint declaration stresses the need for an improved Institutional Framework for Sustainable Development to monitor progress towards goals, calling for the transformation of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) into an international specialised agency for the environment, based in Kenya. It also welcomes the proposal on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a way to help monitor the implementation of sustainable development commitments, to be coordinated and coherent with the Millennium Development Goals.

The joint declaration was adopted at the ACP-EU Council of Ministers meeting on the 14th and 15th of June in Port Vila, Vanuatu.

The ACP Group is comprised of nearly 80 member states from Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific, working towards the eradication of poverty and the integration of member countries into the world trade system. On behalf of its member states, the ACP carries out political dialogue as well as trade and development aid negotiations with the European Union, within the framework of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement.

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ABOUT THE ACP GROUP

The ACP Group is the largest trans-national intergovernmental organisation of developing countries in the international system. Its 79 member countries from Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific hold a collective goal of driving North-South cooperation as well as South-South solidarity for the sustainable development of ACP countries and their successful integration into the world economy. Originally brought together as a result of the Association Clause in the Rome Treaty of 1957, which established the European Common Market, the Georgetown Agreement of 1975 formally established the ACP Group as an intergovernmental association. Based in Europe’s capital city of Brussels, the ACP Group has a Secretariat that coordinates its activities and provides a rallying point for its meetings and development agendas.


LE GROUPE ACP

Le Groupe ACP est la plus grande organisation intergouvernementale transrégionale de pays en développement. Ses 79 États membres d’Afrique, des Caraïbes et du Pacifique ont unis par un but principale - la promotion de la coopération Nord-Sud et la solidarité Sud-Sud par le développement durable des pays ACP et leur intégration dans l’économie mondiale. Constitué au départ en application de la « clause d’association » du Traité de Rome de 1957 instituant la Communauté économique européenne, le Groupe ACP a été officiellement institué comme organisation intergouvernementale par l’Accord de Georgetown de 1975. Le Secrétariat du Groupe ACP a son siège Bruxelles, la capital de l’Europe. Il est chargé de la coordination des activités du Groupe et offre un pointde ralliement pour ses réunions et ses programmes de développement.

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