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Africa
moves to launch a Conference on Security, Stability,
Development & Co-operation in Africa (CSSDCA)
I.
Preamble
We,
for and on behalf of the People of Africa, the participants
at the Kampala Forum on Security, Stability, Development
and Co-operation in Africa having assembled in Kampala,
Uganda from the 19th day of May to the 22nd day of
May 1991;
CONSCIOUS
of the political changes which are taking place in
Africa and other changes which are taking place elsewhere
in the world and their impact on Africa;
MINDFUL
of the serious multifarious problems which are crippling
Africa's economic survival and progress;
RECALLING
that in July 1990 the Assembly of Heads of State and
Government of the Organization of African Unity (OAU)
adopted a Declaration on Socio-Economic Situation
in Africa and advised that the fundamental changes
taking place in the world should guide Africa's collective
thinking about the challenges they face and options
available to them;
COGNISANT
of the fact that the recent geopolitical changes that
have also brought about the relaxation of military
tensions between the two super powers and their allies
have enhanced the trend towards political pluralism
which has in turn created an environment conducive
to the promotion of intra- and inter-state security
and stability in African countries;
CONVINCED
that the transition to political pluralism in African
Countries needs to be encouraged, supported and sustained;
REALISING
that there is need to transform the African Charter
on Human and People's Rights as well as the African
Charter for Popular Participation in Development into
effective instruments for promotion and protection
of human rights as well as for fostering genuine involvement
by the people in their governance and management of
their national affairs;
AWARE
of the emergence of regional economic trading blocs
in various parts of the world and the rapid advances
in science and technology, and alarmed at the observable
shift of resources from the Western industrialised
nations to Eastern Europe and for the reconstruction
of the Gulf States which jeopardises resource flows
to Africa;
CONCERNED
that Africa cannot achieve economic and social progress
at their present levels of external debt burden;
CONVINCED
that the responsibility for security, stability, development
and co-operation on the African continent rests not
only with the people of Africa themselves but also
on international co-operation, support and participation;
EMPHASISING
that it is timely and imperative to launch an effective
process among African countries which would create
a framework for preventing, containing and eliminating
pernicious intra- and inter-African conflicts and
serve as an instrument, for the management and resolution
of such disputes and conflicts as well as for the
sustenance of regional co-operation, integration and
development;
HEREBY
RECOMMEND to the heads of State and Government of
African countries to launch a Conference on Security,
Stability, Development and Co-operation in Africa
(CSSDCA) to lead to the adoption of the following
principles, policy measures and a process for its
implementation after due negotiations.
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II. Principles and policy measures
for CSSDCA
A.
General principles
I.
Every
African State is sovereign. Every State respects the
rights inherent in the territorial integrity and political
independence of all other African States.
II.
The
security, stability and development of every African
country are inseparably linked with those of other
African countries. Consequently, instability in one
African country reduces the stability of all other
African countries.
III.
The
erosion of security and stability in Africa is one
of the major causes of its continuing crises and one
of the principal impediments to the creation of a
sound economy and effective intra and inter-African
co-operation.
IV.
The
interdependence of African States and the link between
their security, stability and development demand a
common African agenda based on a unity of purpose
and a collective political consensus derived from
a firm conviction that Africa cannot make any significant
progress on any other front without creating collectively
a lasting solution to its problems of security and
stability.
V.
A
Conference on Security, Stability, Development and
Co-operation in Africa (CSSDCA) should be launched
to provide a comprehensive framework for Africa's
security and stability and measures for accelerated
continental economic integration for socio-economic
transformation. CSSDCA shall encompass four major
areas henceforth called calabashes: security, stability,
development and co-operation.
VI.
A
new order embodied in the framework of CSSDCA must
be created in Africa through a declaration of binding
principles and a commitment to ideological independence,
which will guide the conduct of governance in individual
African states as well as the imperatives of intra-African
and inter-African relations. The implementation of
the new order should seek an active partnership and
positive involvement of the rest of the World.
VII.
The
fulfilment in good faith of all the CSSDCA principles
must be adhered to by all participating states within
the context of any other obligations each participating
member may have under international law.
B. Specific principles and policy
measures
Security
calabash
The
concept of security goes beyond military considerations;
it embraces all aspects of the society including economic,
political and social dimensions of individual, family,
and community, local and national life. The security
of a nation must be construed in terms of the security
of the individual citizen to live in peace with access
to basic necessities of life while fully participating
in the affairs of his/her society in freedom and enjoying
all fundamental human rights.
Lack
of democracy in which people freely participate in
government, denial of personal liberties, abuse of
religion, precedence given to military expenditure
over other sectors of national life and the lack of
proper administrative machinery for the control and
management of public funds are some of the deep-rooted
causes of insecurity. The security calabash on CSSDCA
will be anchored on some specific key principles to
be adhered to by all participating member states:
-
Conflict Prevention and Containment: Greater attention
should be paid to measures to prevent or contain
crises before they erupt into violent confrontation;
-
Internal and external security for Africa must derive
from a framework for common and collective continental
security;
-
African governments must individually and collectively
be guided by the principle of good neighbourliness
and peaceful resolution of conflicts;
-
National and continental self-reliance in certain
strategic areas covering both military and non-military,
including popular participation in national defence
is vital for Africa's security.
The
security of the African people, their land and property
and their status as a whole, is absolutely necessary
for stability, development and co-operation in Africa
and must be a sacred and a primary responsibility
of all Africans and all African governments individually
and collectively, which must be exercised within the
basic freedoms and rights of the African people.
Security
must be the first pillar of the CSSDCA process because
of the organic links between the security of all African
states as a whole and the security of each of them,
arising from their common history, culture, geography
and destiny which necessitates collective responsibility
and action. In order to achieve local, national and
continental security, certain principles involving
a wide range of policy measures with focus on conflict
prevention, resolution and management process must
be agreed upon, concluded and implemented under CSSDCA.
While
giving due recognition to the provisions of the UN
and OAU Charters with respect to the principles of
good neighbourliness and non interference in the internal
affairs of states, growing international concern for
humanitarian causes and the experience in Africa of
civil strifes and acts of wanton repression, have
led to an increasing concern over domestic conditions
pertaining to threat to personal and collective security
and gross violation of basic human rights. The CSSDCA
must aim at promoting and strengthening this welcome
development to enable African countries to co-operate
in ensuring the security of Africans at all levels.
Aside
from military security, food self-sufficiency for
Africa, and affordable resources to achieve self-reliance
in energy, is as much a security matter, as it is
an economic priority. As a matter of regional security
and socio-economic necessity, existing regional efforts
(in the areas of agriculture and energy research and
development) should be pooled under the CSSDCA process
into two separate major centres - one to be charged
with the responsibility of ushering in a "green
revolution" for Africa and the other with the
task of achieving a major breakthrough in specific
renewable sources of energy especially solar energy.
The
following policy measures to give effect to the CSSDCA
principles on securities are recommended:
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Mechanisms
for mediation, conciliation and arbitration
There
is, indeed, the urgent requirement to prevent conflicts
and disputes from escalating into armed hostilities.
This calls for the strengthening of conflict resolution
mechanisms for negotiation, mediation, conciliation
and arbitration at the governmental, political and
diplomatic levels, within the framework of intervention.
Africa under CSSDCA should revitalise the operational
effectiveness of the OAU Commission on Mediation,
Conciliation and Arbitration. In conformity with African
tradition, the emphasis should be put on timely mediation
and reconciliation.
Peace-keeping
operations
Building
on the limited experiences of Africa and cumulative
lessons of the United Nations' operations, and taking
measures that would avoid the mistakes which have
been committed in such instances, Africa under CSSDCA,
should institute a continental peace-keeping machinery
as an important instrument for the preservation of
peace in instances which potentially or actually threaten
the security of African state(s) or the continent
as a whole. Such arrangements, however, should not
preclude United Nations peacekeeping operations where
necessary. In particular, the vital issues of:
- authorising
body for mandating the establishment, extension
and termination of peace-keeping operations;
- command
and control structures;
- administration
and logistic support for operations;
- funding
systems; procedures for acquisition of troops; and
- modalities
for rapid deployment in reaction to situations of
aggression against participating member States should
be well defined.
Confidence-building
measures
To
restore a lasting state of national and continental
security, confidence building measures between African
countries are called for under the CSSDCA process
to cover inter alia exchange of information on troop
locations and movements; joint military training;
joint military manoeuvres; joint naval patrols, joint
studies and seminars on sub-regional, regional and
continental security issues.
Non-aggression
pacts
A
more enhanced policy measure for continental security
requires a non- aggression treaty among all African
countries under the CSSDCA process, along the model
of a similar treaty that already exists between the
member states of ECOWAS. The non-aggression treaty
among African should also incorporate commitment to
defend each other in the event of external military
aggression.
Lowering
of military expenditures
The
undertakings involving all the preventive security
measures outlined above should appreciably reduce,
if not substantially eliminate, inter-African tension
and dangers of open military conflicts. Such collective
efforts must pave the way for a collective process
of lowering military expenditures in Africa under
the CSSDCA process. Overall reduction of military
expenditures by participating member states should
involve actual reductions and ceilings in manpower
and reduced expenditures on military hardware. Consideration
should also be given to collective understanding of
the type of military equipment that could be justifiably
procured or manufactured by African countries. In
order to gradually build up measures of relative self-reliance
in the military field as well, collective African
effort should be undertaken under CSSDCA for the selective
manufacturing of desirable military equipment for
Africa's defence. Additionally, member States should
undertake to report their arms imports and exports
to the OAU Secretariat.
As
an effective measure for national defence as well
as strategy for reduction of military expenditure,
national service schemes should be expanded to cover
military training as well as encourage popular participation
in defence.
Africa's Elders Council for Peace
To
move Africa from the confinement of purely reacting
to events, to a capacity for anticipatory and containment
measures for its security, an African Peace Council
should be formed and charged with the task of ensuring
that peace and harmony reigned in the continent and
a state of intra-African and inter-African tranquillity
is created and maintained. The African Peace Council
under CSSDCA should be pre-eminently comprised of
the most distinguished personalities and African elder
statesmen. The Council must be empowered under the
CSSDCA and given discretion to effect a measure of
intervention in national security problems of participating
member states or determine appropriate actions which
may involve reconciliation and mediation or recommendation
of deployment of African peace-keeping operations
or both. The Council should operate under the OAU
framework.
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Stability calabash
Promoting
political and social stability in individual African
countries will be a key component in the CSSDCA process.
The stability calabash will have to be guided by certain
important principles to be adhered to by all member
states.
- Adherence
to the Rule of Law: Governments will have to
vigorously follow the provisions of laws or codes
legislated by an assembly of freely elected representatives.
No one should be exempted from accounting for his
conduct when a law is breached.
- Popular
Participation in Governance: Active and genuine
participation of the citizens of every country in
the governance of public affairs has to be fostered.
- Respect
for Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms: Promoting
and protecting the rights and freedoms of the citizens
of member states will be deemed vital.
- The
Establishment of Political Bodies: Political
organizations should not be created on religious,
ethnic, regional or racial basis and considerations
and these should not be exploited by leaders.
- Transparency
in Public Policy Making: Decisions relating
to governance of public affairs should be freely
discussed and choices assessed so that the public
will be mindful of the risks and rewards associated
with any action of government.
-
Religious fundamentalism, no matter from whatever
religion, fosters instability. Governments must
encourage the principle of separation of State and
religion. Religion must remain a personal affair.
To
fulfil the CSSDCA principles on stability, African
governments will have to initiate, design and implement
policy measures and strengthen institutions, which
adjudicate in disputes, resolve conflicts and attenuate
the possibility of violence.
There
has to be due recognition of the fact that a fundamental
link exists between national security, stability and
sustainable development and these conditions can only
be brought about by democratic practice and democratic
institutions encompassing full respect for human rights,
official accountability and popular participation.
The following policy measures are recommended for
implementation in fostering intra-country stability
and cohesion consistent with the proposed principles:
Freely
promulgated constitution with Bill of Rights provisions
Every
state should have a constitution that is promulgated
after thorough national debate and adopted by an assembly
of freely elected representatives of the people. Such
a Constitution should contain a Bill of Rights.
Existence
of plural political structures
Every
country would ensure that there is no hindrance to
alternative ideas, institutions and leaders competing
for public support. In the case of multiparty pluralism,
this principle requires that every participating member
should ensure the separation of party from the state.
Limitation
to the tenures of elected political leaders
There
should be periodic renewal of the mandate of political
leaders. At the same time, the tenure of elected leaders
in various branches of government should be constitutionally
limited to a given number of years.
Security
of tenure for officers in the judiciary
Not
only should the legislative and executive branches
of government unfetter the actions of the officers
of the bench, but also their tenure should be guaranteed
and provided for in the national constitutions. A
Judicial Commission should exercise decisions relating
to the removal of officers from the bench. Independence
of the judiciary must be effected through an inviolate
tenure of offices, and through stable emoluments guaranteed
by an act of parliament.
Annual
publication of records of compliance with human rights
instruments
To
promote vigorous observance by African Governments
of the various international legal instruments to
which they would subscribe or have subscribed, it
would be essential that the performance of governments
be monitored. In addition to whatever organs, individual
governments may establish for this purpose, the charter
and mandate of The African Commission on Human and
Peoples Rights (ACHPR) should be expanded for ACHPR
to undertake an annual assessment of human rights
record of each African country and publish its findings.
The monitoring role prescribed for the ACHPR is not
intended to be exercised only in situations of human
rights violations but as an annual routine and applied
to all African signatory states of the CSSDCA process.
The establishment of African court of justice on Human
Rights within the framework of ACHPR is recommended.
The court will adjudicate between governments and
people's rights. ACHPR should be funded separately
drawing upon the funds of international organizations
and other independent sources.
Signing,
ratification and implementation of legal instruments
for protection and promotion of human rights
An
important element in fostering stability is to protect
and promote human rights of individual citizens. This
not only assures the individual of his rights and
dignity but also enables him to actualise his full
potential which itself is necessary for socio-economic
development. Therefore, every participating state
would be required to sign, ratify and implement African
and other relevant international legal instruments
in the field of human rights.
Establishment
and protection of organs for monitoring accountability
Institutions
that promote accountability in public service should
be established. These include board of audits for
public expenditure, code of conduct bureau should
be given adequate protection through measures that
enable independent financing and guarantee tenures
for the officers of the institutions.
Independence of financing for national institutions
of adjudication and accountability
The
financing of organs of adjudication and accountability
(courts, audit board, code of conduct bureaux or ombudsman)
should be paid from consolidated revenue funds not
subject to arbitrary interference by executive fiat.
Independence
of the civil service
An
independent civil service having a guaranteed security
of tenure, salary and pension with members nominated
on professional grounds by an independent Civil Service
Commission. Removal of a Civil Servant must be exercised
solely by an independent Civil Service Commission.
Right
to own property
A
constitution approved by a freely elected legislature
must guarantee the individual right to own property
and the right to enjoy societies' socio-economic and
cultural benefits.
Free
and fair elections
The
national constitution should stipulate inter alia
that the citizens of participating members have the
right to participate in free and fair elections in
their countries through an election based on a secret
ballot and universal adult suffrage. By the same token,
every citizen of a participating member state has
the right to stand for election of public office and
participate in the affairs of the state. The presence
of international observers in national elections is
desirable, as it will enhance the credibility of election
process and results.
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Freedom
from arbitrary arrest and detention
No
citizen should be subject to arbitrary arrest or detention
without trial or subject to trial and other forms
of human or cruel treatment. Provisions for habeas
mandamus and habeas corpus should be made in national
codes or laws. Legal aid services for those who cannot
provide legal services for them should be funded from
public revenue. All participating African countries
should remove from their statute books all laws authorising
detention without trial.
The
status of women
All
the existing laws that discriminate against women
should be abrogated and juridical instruments and
mechanisms that will guarantee and preserve the rights
of women should be adopted. The United Nations Convention
on the elimination of discrimination against women
should be ratified by and applied in all African countries.
Youth
and education
The
future of Africa will be in the hands of the youth
of today. Educational systems should incorporate in
their curricula, teachings in African values, cultures,
history, philosophy, etc. Research in African humanities
should be given no less attention than the pursuit
of science and technology. In the face of escalating
education costs, strategies should be devised to ensure
the acquisition of basic education by all youth. Education
is a prerequisite to the full and effective participation
of people in the democratic process and all efforts
should be made to eliminate illiteracy.
Proportional
representation
With
respect to electoral mechanism that promotes maximum
participation of all groups in their Government, the
principle of proportional representation should be
adopted, taking into consideration the peculiar situation
of each country. The principle of proportional representation
should be applied for legislative elections. To foster
stability in governance of national affairs, governments
should ensure that in making appointments, due regard
is given to equitable representation at the central,
regional and local levels.
National
borders
To
restore and maintain stability along national borders,
bilateral treaties on non-aggression should be concluded
and ratified by each African nation separately with
each of its border neighbours.
Trade
union rights
In
order to ensure industrial peace and harmony, which
is a prerequisite for economic growth and development,
all governments should respect trade union rights
in accordance with ILO conventions and recommendations.
Development calabash
Africa
must subscribe to some basic fundamental principles
to fashion a common direction of development under
the CSSDCA process.
- Development
based on self-reliance is the only viable basis
- in Africa's circumstances - for the internalisation
of a self-sustaining economic growth on the continent.
- Rapid
physical and economic integration of the African
continent is a sine qua non to Africa's economic
survival in the 21st century and prospects for socio-economic
transformation and competitiveness with the rest
of the world.
- Reliance
on commodity production solely for export has been
one of the major causes of Africa's economic crisis.
Effective diversification both horizontally, in
terms of broadening the production base and vertically,
with respect to processing and marketing is imperative
for the socio-economic transformation of the African
economies.
- Popular
participation and equal opportunity and access must
be promoted and sustained as a crucial basis for
the realisation of Africa's development objectives
and strategies.
- In
order to foster effective domestic partnership in
development, leaders and the governed should have
recognisable responsibility for various aspects
of development. The Leaders should provide the vision
that should guide development.
The
development "calabash" is the raison d'être
for the CSSDCA process. Collective continental policy
measures must aim at a development process that epitomises
the African person. A maximum harnessing of the energies
and initiatives of people by unlocking and developing
their capacity for imagination and developing their
ability to participate in the definition and implementation
of development goals must be pursued; CSSDCA should
create a truly people-centred development.
Africa's
development policy measures must be based in the short-term
on Africa's immediate struggle for survival in order
to address the more excruciating long-term imperatives
of socio-economic transformation. Out of pragmatic
necessity, the process should only address limited
but key development issues to ensure a realistic chance
of success.
The
following measures are recommended to give effect
to the CSSDCA principles, under the Development calabash.
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Human
resources development
People
are both the means and the desired end of the benefits
of development. Africa's development is principally
hampered by inadequate human capabilities. Priority
measures by Africa under CSSDCA should highlight the
relevant elements of the Khartoum Declaration on Human
Centred Development and the Mauritius Declaration
on education. The CSSDCA process should, in addition,
embody the following major priorities on a collective
continental basis in the field of human resources
development:
-
The adoption of programmes aimed at eliminating
illiteracy across the continent by the year 2000.
-
Increase in the allocation of financial resources
to education and training by diverting a significant
proportion of such resources now devoted to military
expenditures to education.
-
Adoption of national systems of meritocracy. In
addition, appropriate levels of incentive and compensation
for professionals and African civil servants must
be introduced, to assist in curbing the brain drain
from Africa.
-
Introduction of science and technology at the early
years of education should be encouraged.
-
Measures to achieve an overall improvement in the
quality of education should be implemented and monitoring
systems to ensure continuity in the enhanced quality
of education must be developed.
-
The adoption of clear policies of preference for
using African talent thereby promoting the development
of a critical mass of professionals to replace the
expatriate technical skills that currently cost
Africa in excess of $4 billion annually.
-
Promotion of vocational and business training and
management skills.
-
Promoting the use of and support for existing and
new regional and sub-regional institutions that
serve as centres of excellence.
-
Establishment of Human Resolution skills bank for
Africa to be used in facilitating resource sharing.
-
Implementation of the Mauritius Declaration on education.
-
Harmonisation of the continent's educational policies
to improve the quality and relevance of education
at all levels.
-
Pooling of resources for specialised training and
expansion of student exchange programmes especially
for language training; countries with under-utilised
universities should offer opportunities to others
at a nominal cost.
Capacity
building and development
Collective
and co-ordinated continental policy measures in capacity
must first target development of capabilities in the
area of governance - the nurturing and development
of those with leadership potential should be pursued
and; measures adopted to reverse the decline and enhance
the efficiency of government administration in Africa
which must remain the hub for originating policies
and strategies on both the process of governance and
the direction of economic development. Special policy
measures under CSSDCA must be targeted towards a comprehensive
development of African entrepreneurial capabilities.
The strategy on entrepreneurial development should
be buttressed by active government encouragement and
support covering extensive exchange of visits by entrepreneurs
and some form of technical co-operation among African
countries.
Focus on entrepreneurial development must go hand
in hand with policy measures for the development of
endogenous institutional capabilities especially technical
and other forms of private consultancies. Relevant
continental professional associations must be strengthened.
In this regard, considerations must also be directed
to policy restrictions at three levels in the use
of certain consultancies and in the award of related
contracts: national consultants; continental consultants;
and others. National consultants will be included
in any assignment involving the last two categories.
Major
changes must be instituted to ensure accountability
and the pursuit of modern systems of management. Among
other measures to be instituted should include a system
of orienting leaders at ministerial and senior levels
and adoption of the African Charter for Popular Participation
in Development.
Economic
transformation of Africa
There
is need for complete restructuring of African economies
to ensure in the long run a judicious combination
of diversified agriculture together with industrialisation
as basis for sound African development.
Viable
development in the long run must depend increasingly
on the application of science and technology. Schools
and institutions of learning should be made to place
more emphasis on science-oriented subjects. Moreover,
since technology is, in the main, within the prerogative
of transnational corporations, which appear to hoard
it, African countries should initiate programmes and
policies for the development of indigenous technology.
This calls for huge investments of resources in Research
and Development (R & D).
African
countries should adopt liberal economic policies that
will attract capital, a factor of production in which
African States are enormously deficient. While encouraging
privatisation and divesting government of equity in
public enterprises, the first option must be given
to indigenous African entrepreneurs. If necessary
they should be offered assistance in the take over
of enterprises privatised. Part of this whole process
is to ensure Africa's resource mobilisation without
which Africa's survival and development cannot be
met.
If
Africa is to achieve a rate of growth that fosters
economic transformation, it will be necessary to adopt
those policies and measures that firstly harness the
continent's own resources, and secondly, provide incentive
to attract investment both local and external. Specific
policies such as an International Reporting System
on capital flight aimed at the repatriation Track
to Africa of the continent's human and financial resources
must be put in place.
These
transformation measures to curb unemployment should
be developed through such means as massive infusion
of resources into the private and informal sector.
Finance
resource mobilisation
The CSSDCA process must, as a top priority, seek to
mobilise financial resources for Africa's socio-economic
development and co-operation through, inter alia,
advancing a collective continental position on Africa's
crippling external debt.
Changing
circumstances reflected in favourable debt policy
shifts by major creditors towards some debtor countries
provide a realistic basis for implementing better
strategies within the objectives of Africa's Common
Position on the External Debt reached by the Special
OAU Summit in 1987.
Increased
efforts at mobilisation of domestic resources should
involve control of excessive consumption and adoption
of measures to promote domestic savings.
Africa's
financial mobilisation process should also aim at
the collective measures toward an operational common
ground between IMF/IBRD supported SAPs in Africa and
AAF-SAP as adopted by African leaders. These policy
measures must seek changes in IMF's lending conditionalities
(to Africa) that must both achieve large net balance
of payments support and a measure of greater independent
policy by African governments. Appropriate strategies
must be adopted for collective comprehensive policy
measures to reverse the net outflow of financial resources
from Africa based on a moratorium that must be secured
on the external debt and improved arrangements with
multinational lending agencies. Promotion of joint
projects by two participating members or more for
funding from external/internal sources is a more practical
measure in resource mobilisation. The lending policies
of the African Development Bank for joint projects
by different sovereign states should be reviewed to
devise a mechanism for substantial lending to such
projects.
The
combined effect of the various policy measures on
financial mobilisation should be geared to the restoration
of Africa's import capacity for the necessary short-term
recovery and development of domestic factor input
for long-term socio-economic transformation.
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Agricultural
development for food self-sufficiency
The
transformation of the agriculture sector by increasing
food productivity and food self-sufficiency with a
view to turning Africa into a food exporter is key
to Africa's socio-economic development. The strategy
for the attainment of this goal is one that should
make it possible for Africa to be self-sustaining
on food requirements in both the short term and the
long run.
This
strategy is in keeping with the Lagos Plan of Action
and the African Priority Programme for Economic Recovery.
We therefore call for their full and effective implementation.
In
addition, we recommend the following:
-
Africa should pool together some existing agriculture
research centres and mobilise the best available
talents for such centres in a collective co-ordinated
research for a "green revolution" on the
continent.
-
Other policy measures should include removal of
all domestic non-sanitary restrictions to internal
food marketing.
-
Consider removal of all duties on some priority
food items for intra- African trade under proper
rules of origin.
-
Discourage importation from non-African countries
of food items available in Africa.
-
Launch an African commodity exchange with emphasis
on food items. All these measures should aim at
expanding agriculture output to a minimum target
of 4 per cent a year.
-
Governments should establish food and nutrition
policy to ensure that food and nutrition considerations
are made explicit objectives in agriculture and
rural development projects.
-
Adopt the food basket concept of using traditional
foods in local communities to formulate balanced
diets.
-
Establish systems of production, processing, distribution
and marketing of traditional foods.
-
Embark on land reform (where this is not yet in
place) to ensure that land is within the reach of
the ordinary person, especially farmers in rural
areas as opposed to land speculators.
-
Mobilise women especially in the rural areas and
ensure that at least one-third of the State's technical
assistance to small farmers goes to women. Mobilisation
should also take into consideration the role of
NGOs, who in collaboration with small farmers, could
design, implement and concretise literacy programmes
that are production-oriented.
-
Private investment in agriculture should be encouraged.
This should be aimed at providing profitable opportunities
in farming and incentives in the production of local
agricultural inputs to satisfy domestic consumption
as well as export needs; while mechanised farming
should be undertaken for export purposes, it should
not be at the expense of rural farming.
To
achieve our agricultural objectives, arrest environmental
degradation and ensure increased production for sustainable
development Africa Governments should formulate sound
policies for Water Resources Planning and Development.
Energy
development
Next
to agriculture and food self-sufficiency, implementation
of policies by Africa on energy self-reliance are
essential considering that in some respects, the economic
crisis in Africa is traceable to shortages and high
cost of energy. Collective continental effort under
CSSDCA must be concentrated on pooling human talents
and material resources for research on alternative
sources of energy, especially solar energy. Africa
must also encourage and be involved in international
research on solar energy.
Priority
in alternative energy policies must be directed towards
sources to address the serious shortage of firewood
for an estimated 55 million people in Africa in order
to alleviate worsening environment problems. Effective
policy measures to address this problem should include
rural electrification. Major areas to power Africa's
socio-economic transformation will remain hydropower
and hydrocarbons.
Under
CSSDCA, joint development initiatives should be undertaken
to cover (a) inter-state co-ordination and implementation
of hydro schemes in recognition of their spin-off
effects towards other sectors and (b) expansion of
explorations and development operations for hydrocarbons
through joint ownership, bearing in mind that large
scale development of hydrocarbons in other developing
regions has largely been brought about by state supported
efforts.
Industrial
development
The
CSSDCA process should urgently arrest the on-going
de-industrialisation in Africa, particularly under
orthodox Structural Adjustment Programmes. Intermediate
and capital goods industries should be encouraged
through multinational projects, and small to medium-scale
industrial enterprises should be promoted vigorously
with the provision of credit and technical support.
The
current excessive import dependence of African industries
must be eliminated through a shift of industrial strategy
to domestic resource-based manufacturing in order
to enhance industrial value-added in Africa. There
should also be a shift in the focus of African industries
to processing of raw material for exports and manufacturing
to meet basic domestic needs for food, drugs, educational
materials, housing, transport and water treatment
chemicals.
Mineral
industries should be encouraged through sub-regional
and regional co-operation. All these require the pooling
of limited national capital, technologies and technical
expertise as well as the pragmatic use of planning
at national, sub-regional and regional levels.
Trade
development
Intra-African
trade is the most important component in the necessary
structuralist integration of African economies. Collective
policy measures should target expanded intra-African
trade in food and agricultural commodities including
raw materials, through an accelerated implementation
of special trade preferences. A second set of collective
policy measures should create special arrangements
for intra-African trade expansion linked to the establishment
of some specific core and strategic industries. Further
policy focus should be targeted to collective approach
to Generalised System of Trade Preferences (GSTP)
and multilateral trade negotiations taking into account
the impact of Trade Related Investment Measures and
Services (TRIMS) and Trade Related Intellectual Property
Rights (TRIPS).
Transport
and communication
The
CSSDCA process should serve as a vehicle for accelerating
within specifically stipulated targets the implementation
of the Second Transport and Communication Decade for
Africa. A long-term policy strategy under CSSDCA should
aim at the development of multi-model transportation
capable of sustaining the movement of a large volume
of intra-African economic activities. The viability
of this effort aimed largely at railroad development
must be based on its direct linkage with the establishment
or expansion of core industries and the use of Africa's
technical capabilities. Joint coastal shipping operations
should be established. Air transportation should regroup
carriers in Africa and expanded traffic rights should
be negotiated and implemented within the CSSDCA.
Population
and environment
In
recognition of the link between population expansion
and the environment, a set of policy measures must
simultaneously target both and proceed on other environmental
problems: consideration of harmonised laws on minimum
age of 18 for female and 21 for male before marriage;
putting a ceiling on number of children per mother;
and authorising property ownership for women and long
term national schemes for old age support.
Second
set of policy measures under CSSDCA should set targets
for reforestation, diversified sources of energy,
regulation of all activities in logging in Africa;
measures for safe disposal of waste and non-disposal
of toxic waste from outside the continent; a development
pattern that is environmentally sensitive; and a long
term strategy co-ordinated with UNEP to deal with
Africa's environmental problems.
Science
and technology
Science
and technology must be promoted to facilitate full
exploitation of resources by optimising the use of
existing institutions (both sub-regional and national).
Financial support for this worthy cause should be
increased. Access to the exploitation of resources
should be open to both the public and African private
sector with the Government playing a regulatory and
not a restrictive role that kills African entrepreneurship
and initiative, which are important vehicles for the
enhancement of science and technology. Views of the
Business Community should be solicited on how obstacles
could be overcome for every country.
Women
in development
Africa's
development in all aspects cannot be assured without
the full involvement of women in decision-making processes
at all levels and their full access to all factors
of production (land, labour, capital). This calls
for appropriate policies and implementation of strategies
at the national, institutional and regional levels.
Specifically, we call for the early implementation
of African Declaration on the Advancement of African
Women, notably the Abuja Declaration, and the Arusha
and Nairobi Forward looking Strategies.
In
order to assure collaborative efforts in advancing
the role of women in all countries and organisations,
there is need for Governments to enunciate policies
on these matters.
Given
the central role of women in food and agriculture
all practical measures should be taken to ensure their
equal access to technologies that can alleviate their
workload and enhance their productivity.
In
addition to access to land, women should be given
land rights by law so as to improve their access to
credit and other services.
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Co-operation calabash
Africa
should proceed along the three tiers of co-operation:
- Among
African countries - using bilateral and multilateral
agreements and the existing sub-regional economic
groupings as building blocks towards the achievement
of an African Economic Community;
-
South-South Co-operation which Africa should pursue
to achieve more fruitful results; and
-
North-South Co-operation.
Co-operation
as a key component of the CSSDCA process should be
guided by certain vital principles to be adhered to
by all member states:
- Economic
Integration: African countries cannot expect
to compete or develop individually, in the evolving
international economic system dominated by regional
economic blocs. Economic integration should be intensified
and a shortened timetable for the African Economic
Community should be agreed upon. Economic integration
should be fostered by encouragement of increased
interaction by people through removal of restrictions
for temporary entrance and exits by Africans from
and to any other African country.
-
Joint Development of Common Natural Resources:
African countries will need to collectively act
in utilising such resources as waterways, forests,
coastal zones and the management of environment.
-
Interdependence: African countries must seek
to explore opportunities for beneficial co-operative
relations with other developing and industrialised
nations. There is no contradiction between the need
for intensified co-operation between African and
non-African countries and the principle for self-reliant
and self-sustained development.
-
Supranationality: As African countries foster
co-operation and integration, the need for devolving
certain key responsibilities to continental institutions
would be imperative.
The
CSSDCA process should develop a framework for collective
action and policy so as to provide impetus for co-operation
on a wide range of areas. The participating states
of the CSSDCA process will decide upon what those
areas should be.
Promotion
of integration and co-operation should be guided by
some basic common policy measures.
Trade
and Production: Improvement of a variety of trade-related
facilities such as transport, communications, payments
arrangements are keys to enhanced intra-African trade.
At the same time, there is need for African countries
to deliberately seek and promote trade opportunities
among themselves. The process of seeking trade opportunities
should be complemented by joint production, as discussed
under joint ventures.
Joint
Ventures: The main focus of joint ventures should
be increased production, even though such efforts
should be directed to other areas as well. African
countries should co-operatively stress the production
of key components of medium and high technology goods,
while taking into account economics of scale. Such
joint ventures should build on comparative endowment
of African countries. Thus, the CSSDCA process should
promote co-operation in joint production by matching
countries that have natural resource endowments with
those that have financial capital or other inputs.
The private sector should assume the lead role in
promoting joint ventures while the public sector assumes
the role of facilitator.
Financing
Regional Co-operation Programmes: The policy on
financing co-operation and integration should be given
special attention. Innovative ways of raising resources
for co-operation and integration programmes and projects
have to be found, given the very many difficulties
associated with financial resource mobilisation: in
particular, the paucity of intra-African savings and
investments and donor preference for bilateral co-operation.
African countries should set up a fund financed by
a certain percent of surcharges from the imports of
individual countries. This approach will need to be
implemented alongside arrangement for resources from
multilateral financial institutions.
Selecting
Lead Countries to Promote Co-operation Projects: An
important element in accelerating co-operation process
is the identification, development and management
of co-operation projects. Pending the time that co-operation
projects are fully established and independent management
installed, a lead country should be designated for
promoting the project. That way, the other member
states can have recognised focal points to which all
issues pertaining to the project are directed. The
lead country then becomes a catalyst for bringing
a project to fruition, while the process of sustenance
of the project becomes the responsibility of the management
of the project.
Focal
points should be established in various African countries
to promote co-operation and integration. In particular,
priority consideration should be given to establishing
ministries of co-operation and integration. The participation
of non-governmental organisations in promoting co-operation
should also be encouraged.
Joint
Development of Infrastructures: To accelerate
co-operation and economic integration among African
countries, there should be intensified efforts at
common development among African countries, of such
infrastructural facilities as railways, roads and
air and river transport, as well as energy resources.
Accelerating
Integration among African Countries: The Final
Act of Lagos endorsed the approach of phased continental
economic integration, with the sub-regional economic
groupings as the building blocs. Presently, all the
sub-regional economic groupings in Africa now have
an economic group, though some countries do not, as
yet, belong to any of these groups. The signing of
the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community
would be a watershed event. But more important would
be the policy mechanisms, which are designed to give
effect to the treaty as a framework for African wide
co-operation.
The
prospects for all the development policy measures
in every sector in Africa and the whole CSSDCA process
will critically be determined by the degree of collective
effort towards continental integration. The locus
of policy and development initiatives must therefore
be directed to collective measures for a rapid economic
and physical integration of the continent. A structuralist
model of continental integration should be adopted
based on a minimum timetable for an African Economic
Community. Continental Integration through strictly
sub-regional models should be reviewed to allow for
more innovative measures and strategy.
Promoting
and accelerating integration among African countries
would depend crucially on the support and commitment
of African countries. Equally important, however,
is the need to encourage and promote active involvement
in the integration process of various socio-economic
factors such as trade unions, chambers of commerce,
women, youth associations as well as other professional
associations. These professional associations should
be a vanguard force in co-operation, in standards,
in training and research and civil liberties, as well
as in other areas. National borders must not restrict
the operations of professional associations, entrepreneurs
and research scientists. Free movement of persons
must be encouraged bilaterally, sub-regionally and
continentally. More importantly, the selection of
personnel of the secretariat of African Economic Communities
should be based on merit to ensure the highest calibre
of such personnel.
Rationalisation
of Existing Inter-governmental Organisations:
Given the multiplicity of intergovernmental organisations
in the field of co-operation and integration in Africa,
it is vital that their numbers be reduced. Such a
step would not only reduce the expenditures of member
states for such organizations, but would also enable
governments to devote more attention to the IGOs that
would remain. The few IGOs should then be re-designed
to render more effective services to member States.
South-South
(African and other developing countries) Co-operation:
There is considerable scope for promoting co-operation
between African and other developing countries. The
Global System of Trade Preferences (GSTP) already
serves as a framework for accelerating South-South
trade. African countries should identify specific
areas of benefit in the GSTP in the context of the
continent's structural weaknesses.
African
countries should encourage foreign investments from
other developing countries, which can contribute to
enhancing their production and exports. Such investments
should emphasise technology transfer arrangements
and may be organised through licensing arrangements,
franchising and joint ventures. Investments should
be targeted at producing not only consumer goods but
also intermediate and capital goods.
Co-operation
between Africa and the Industrialised Countries:
Co-operation between Africa and the industrialised
countries would continue to be an important source
of acquiring financial and industrial capital for
the socio-economic development of Africa. The objective
of these co-operation arrangements should be to remove
the basic structural weaknesses of the African economics.
Seeking to elevate Africa from its status of exporters
of raw materials to producer of manufactured and other
processed products should be the key consideration
in any co-operation arrangements with the industrialised
nations. Very importantly, there is need to promote
co-operative arrangements in the areas of science
and technology, food and agriculture, environment
and energy.
International
policy initiatives, such as the Global Coalition for
Africa and others, designed to promote development
and co-operation should include significant African
participation in decision-making and management; just
as they must produce substantial results leading to
increased resources and capacity building in the areas
of food and agriculture, science and technology and
industrial development.
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Recommendations
for the implementation of the process
This
section embodies recommendations for implementing
the process of the CSSDCA in order to realise its
objectives. Thus, it describes what African governments
could do from the time that the Kampala Document on
the CSSDCA is submitted to and considered by the Assembly
of Heads of State and Governments of the Organization
of African Unity.
A.
Launching of negotiations of the CSSDCA process
On
submission of the Kampala Document to the OAU Summit,
a decision would have to be taken to launch the negotiation
process. The purpose of the negotiations will be to
adopt a convention that is politically binding under
the
CSSDCA. Such negotiations could begin at the level
of plenipotentiaries and conclude at the Foreign Ministers
level with the final adoption of a convention by participating
States at the summit level.
The
chairman of the OAU could set the dates as well as
venue for launching the negotiations after consultations
with his colleagues.
The
negotiations on the CSSDCA process should centre on
the principles and policy measures proposed in part
II of this document as well as this part of the document,
particularly, sections C to G. These negotiations
among African countries should not exceed two years,
culminating in the signing of the convention. The
implementation of the provisions of the convention
of the CSSDCA is for limitless duration, hence the
CSSDCA is described as a process, subject to periodic
review as proposed in section E below.
B.
Support mechnisms for the negotiations
For
the duration of the negotiations of the convention,
a two-tier support mechanism is suggested. A Consultative
Secretariat for backstopping the negotiations should
be established. There shall also be a Consultative
Committee, whose functions will be to assist African
governments during difficult times of the negotiations.
The Consultative Committee will also organise an annual
Forum, on an NGO framework, to assess progress in
the implementation of the CSSDCA process with a view
to sensitising and sustaining public awareness about
the process. The Committee shall be co-chaired by
two African eminent Statesmen.
Funding
for the support mechanisms and other measures envisaged
under the process shall be sought from voluntary contributions
of participating States, international organizations
and other donors.
C.
Permanent Secretariat CSSDCA
A
Permanent Secretariat for the CSSDCA process may be
established at the end of the negotiations. The proposed
Consultative Secretariat to backstop the negotiations
on CSSDCA could form the nucleus of the Permanent
Secretariat of CSSDCA. In this regard, the participating
States will have to decide on the size, structure,
responsibilities and location of such a permanent
secretariat.
D.
Review conferences
The
CSSDCA is a process. As such, there shall be periodic
review conferences to collectively review the progress
made in the implementation of the Convention and in
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