Economic cooperation between the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU) was strengthened on the 6th European Union – African Union Summit held last February 17th and 18th 2022.
It was co-chaired by the President of the European Council, Mr. Charles Michel together with the President Republic of Senegal, and Chairperson of the African Union, Mr. Macky Sall.
The summit tackles the challenges and business opportunities that the members want to address or take advantage of. This partnership of nations aims to build a sustainable and progressive future. Moreover, it plans to respect the sovereignty, mutual accountability, shared values, equality between partners, and reciprocal pledges.
It recognized the AU Theme of the Year 2022. The importance of food security and nutrition, the security and prosperity of citizens, the protection of all human rights, gender equality and women’s empowerment in all spheres of life, respect for democratic principles, good governance, and the rule of law.
As a gesture of camaraderie and goodwill, the EU will allocate EUR 425 million to speed up vaccination. Furthermore, in collaboration with the Africa CDC, they will assist the distribution of doses, medical team training, and analysis and sequencing capabilities.
The EU is dedicated to assisting Africa in achieving complete health sovereignty to react to future public health crises. They support the agenda for vaccines, medicines, diagnostics, therapeutics, and health products manufacturing in Africa. It includes investments in medicine production and voluntary technology transfers.
Meanwhile, what does this renewed partnership mean to your business expansion?
The EU supports the Common Framework for Debt Treatments beyond the Debt Service Suspension Initiative for African economies.
They’re also committed to combating Illicit Financial Flows (IFF) and tackling domestic tax base erosion, profit shifting (BEPS), and tax transparencies.
Through the extended Erasmus+ program, they will stimulate exchanges of young people, volunteers, and students, as well as create university collaborations.
They’ve announced the launch of the Africa-Europe Investment Package of at least EUR 150 billion, consisting of an Investment, a Health, and an Education Package, to support our joint objective for 2030 and the AU Agenda 2063. It will aid in the development of economies to be more diverse, inclusive, sustainable, and resilient.
They will also strengthen regional and continental economic cooperation, notably through the African Continental Free Trade Area. The existing trade agreements between the EU and several African nations have helped build and deepen commercial and economic ties between the two continents. They will seek to integrate their distinct continental markets soon.
Both Unions have long-standing cooperation based on the principle of African solutions to African problems, designed to combat instability, radicalization, violent extremism, and terrorism. It’s within the framework of the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) and in the AU-EU MoU on Peace, Security, and Governance of 2018.
Moreover, the partnership will continue to address all elements of migration and mobility in an integrated, comprehensive, and balanced manner by national competencies. It aims to prevent irregular migration, improve cooperation against smuggling and human trafficking, support strengthened border management, and improve return, readmission, and reintegration processes.
The European Union will assist Africa to develop sustainable climate-neutral paths. It will utilize accessible natural resources as part of the energy shift. Africa will host the UN Climate Change Conference 2022 (UNFCCC COP 27) in Egypt.
Indeed, there’s a promising future in Africa when it comes to business expansion. Reach us today and together we will explore business opportunities in Africa with our Employer of Record or PEO services.
Olivia Yu has decades of experience in the Human Resources industry. She’s the Regional Director for Asia Pacific of a famous international HR company. Olivia’s international experience inspires her to write articles about human resources and global staffing.
