Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
16 July 2002
President Mbeki, left South Africa today, Tuesday 16 July for Denarau, Nadi Fiji to attend the Third Summit of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States from 18-19 July 2002. The President is attending the Summit at the invitation of the Fiji Government. The President's delegation includes Deputy Minister of Finance, Mandisi Mpahlwa.
It is expected that the Third ACP Summit will be attended by all ACP Heads of State and Government under the central theme "ACP Solidarity in a Globalised World". This Summit will be preceded by preparatory meetings of the ACP Council of Foreign Ministers and Ministers responsible for ACP/EU Relations from today 16-17 July 2002.
The 3rd Summit will assess the current position of the ACP Group in the global environment. It will also consider pro-active means of responding to the new challenges of globalization, political developments affecting the ACP Group of States and poverty alleviation to which NEPAD and the ACP is committed.
Lastly, South Africa's participation at the Summit is important because of its membership of the Steering Committee of NEPAD (which was) endorsed by the Joint ACP-EU Parliamentary Assembly in Cape Town in March 2002.
South Africa's participation in the Third ACP Summit will be an opportunity to further consolidate positions of the South vis-a-vis the forthcoming multilateral negotiations, in particular;
For further information contact Ronnie Mamoepa on 082 990 4853.
Background
The inaugural ACP Summit was held in Libreville, Gabon, in November 1997. It was at this first Summit that ACP Heads of State and Government resolved to meet periodically and mandated the ACP Council of Ministers to take appropriate measures in this regard.
South Africa joined the ACP Group of States and acceded to the Lome (IV) Convention in 1997, as a qualified member. Due to the size of her economy South Africa was excluded from the Convention's provisions on trade and development co-operation, but fully included in all political structures.
The ACP Group of States is comprised of 48 Sub Saharan African States, 16 Caribbean, and 15 Pacific States.
The ACP countries have in common a historical relationship including a non-reciprocal trade regime with the European Union dating back to the Yaounde Conventions and the four Lome Conventions. Since June 2000 the latter have been replaced by the ACP-EU Cotonou Partnership Agreement.
Despite its membership of the Cotonou Partnership Agreement (CPA) being likewise qualified, South Africa plays a prominent role as a member of the ACP. Notwithstanding its unique position in the North-South ACP-EU relationship, South Africa's participation in the South-South intra ACP relationship is also fully reflective of its foreign policy priorities.
The CPA requires that the unique non-reciprocal trade relationship between the ACP and the EU be replaced by a WTO Compatible trade arrangement for which negotiations will commence in September this year. On the eve of the ACP's negotiations with the EU for a New Trading Arrangement (NTA), the Free Trade Agreement incorporated in the SA-EU Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) is regarded as instructive, and South Africa is committed to share its experience of negotiating with the EU. This was graphically demonstrated by its hosting of the first ACP Trade Ministers' meeting in Johannesburg in April 2001. Subsequently, senior officials from South Africa have been taking part in regional preparations for the forthcoming NTA's.
COMPOSITION OF ACP COUNTRIES (78 Countries)
AFRICA
CARIBBEAN
PACIFIC
Least Developed Countries
a.. Angola
a.. Haiti
a.. Kiribati~
a.. Benin
a.. Samoa~
a.. Burkina Faso
a.. Solomon Islands
a.. Burundi
a.. Tuvalu~
a.. Cape Verde~
a.. Vanuatu?
a.. Central African Republic
a.. Chad
a.. Comoros~
a.. DRC
a.. Djibouti
a.. Equatorial Guinea~
a.. Eritrea~
a.. Ethiopia?
a.. Gambia
a.. Guinea
a.. Guinea Bissau
a.. Lesotho
a.. Liberia~
a.. Madagascar
a.. Malawi
a.. Mali
a.. Mauritania
a.. Mozambique
a.. Niger
a.. Rwanda
a.. Sao Tome & Principe~
a.. Senegal
a.. Sierra Leone
a.. Somalia~
a.. Sudan?
a.. Tanzania
a.. Togo
a.. Uganda
a.. Zambia
NON LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
a.. Botswana
a.. Antigua/Barbuda
a.. Fiji
a.. Cameroon
a.. Bahamas~
a.. Papua New Guinea
a.. Congo-Brazzaville
a.. Barbados
a.. Tonga?
a.. Cote d'Ivoire
a.. Belize
a.. Marshall Islands~
a.. Gabon
a.. Cuba?
a.. Cook Islands~
a.. Ghana
a.. Dominica
a.. FS of Micronesia~
a.. Kenya
a.. Dominican Republic
a.. Nauru~
a.. Mauritius
a.. Grenada
a.. Niue~
a.. Namibia
a.. Guyana
a.. Palau~
a.. Nigeria
a.. Jamaica
a.. Seychelles?
a.. St. Kitts/Nevis
a.. South Africa
a.. St. Lucia
a.. Swaziland
a.. St. Vincent & the Grenadines
a.. Zimbabwe
a.. Surinam
a.. Trinidad & Tobago
~ not a WTO member
? observer status at WTO
? Cuba is a member of the ACP Group but not part of the Cotonou Agreement