The Stakeholders Consultation Meeting (SCM) of the the African Governance Architecture Support Project (AGA-SP) was held at the Seat of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) in Midrand, South Africa. The meeting provided an opportunity to conduct the mid -term project evaluation with a view to providing critical input in the design of a similar project in the future.
The SCM involves all political heads of organs of the five AGA Platform members namely the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), the Pan African Parliament (PAP), the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCHPR) and the Committee on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC).
The AGA-SP is part of the partnership and collaboration between the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU). It is implemented through two main modalities: (1) A Grant component; and (2) Technical Assistance (TA).
In her welcome remarks, Hon. Lúcia Dos Passos, 3rd Vice President of the Pan-African Parliament highlighted the significant role played by the AGA-SP in accompanying AU organs, mandated to promote good governance and strengthen democracy in Africa, to deliver on their mandates. She called for enhanced commitment, refocusing of resources and rethinking coordination to ensure the project meets its targets as envisaged.
Commissioner Rémy Ngoy Lumbu, Chairperson of the AGA Bureau called for an improved structural mechanism to enhance coordination of the project. He described the SCM as an opportunity to engage with the European Union Delegation in cross learning and obtaining clarity of their expectations with regard to project delivery so far and plans for the future of AGA-SP.
Ms. Maria Tronconso, Leader of the EU delegation to the AU, said that this year’s SCM hosted by the PAP, is testament to the growing collaboration between African Union and European Union through the #AGA-SP.
The SCM was preceded by the Technical Oversight Meeting. Ms. Lindiwe Khumalo, Technical Head of the AGA Bureau briefed the SCM on the outcomes of the their consultations for their guidance and strategic direction. Among the issues brought to the SCM, Ms. Khumalo highlighted the need to strengthen citizen engagement, coordination and communication among organs.
The African Governance Architecture (AGA) is inspired by the Constitutive Act AU that expresses the Union’s determination to ‘promote and protect human and people’s rights, consolidate democratic institutions and culture and ensure good governance and the rule of law’. The principle objective is implementation of AU Shared Values and in particular the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG).
The AGA is a platform for dialogue between the various stakeholders who are mandated to promote good governance and strengthen democracy in Africa, in addition to translating the objectives of the legal and policy pronouncements in the AU Shared Values.
The AGA Support Project aims to build the capacities of the members of the AGA platform and promote effective coordination and cooperation between the actors. The platform members produce a lot of legal information that can be best disseminated by incorporating open-data principles.
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