18 Amendments of Fabio Massimo CASTALDO related to 2017/2083(INI)
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Stresses the importance of Africa as a key strategic partner and a priority for the EU; underlines that today the EU is collectively Africa's main foreign investor, its principal trading partner, a key security provider, its main source of remittances and its first partner in development and humanitarian assistance; acknowledges that the profound economic, political and societal changes underway in Africa, have an important impact on EU priorities and interests;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Underlines the importance of the upcoming 5th EU-Africa Summit as a crucial moment to reshape and deepen the Africa-EU partnership: welcomes the special focus of the Summit on youth as the demographic dynamics of both continents put the topic at the heart of the relations between Africa and the European Union; welcomes the proposal of the Commission to launch an African Youth Facility expanding the scope of Erasmus+ through 3 initiatives: “a Youth empowerment” programme, a pilot on a Vocational Education and Training mobility project and the reinforcement of the African chapter of the Erasmus+ Students and Alumni Association;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2c. Recognizes the importance of demographic dynamics in Africa in the 21st century as a result of which by 2050 Africa’s population will be 2.4 billion of predominantly young people; points out that according to projections, sub- Saharan Africa will need to create 18 million new jobs each year up to 2035 to absorb new labour market entrants thus avoiding serious consequences for the stability of societies; insists the creation of sustainable jobs, especially for young people, should be one of the priorities of EU actions in Africa; welcomes the proposal to extend support for Vocational Education and Training and Entrepreneurship by launching an EU Vet Facility to help target countries’ national stakeholders to fill the gap between the needs and opportunities of the labour market and the qualifications of graduates while at the same time promoting inclusion of vulnerable groups;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2d. Recognizes the importance of youth as a driving force for the continent’s future; acknowledges that while education in most African countries has increased significantly in the last years, many young people, especially girls, still do not complete primary education and more than 48 million youth in Sub-Saharan Africa are illiterate; calls for a strengthened support of quality education at all levels through improved bilateral programmes and the continued support of global initiatives such as the Global Partnership for Education; stresses the importance of promoting mobility partnerships, tackling the phenomenon of brain drain and supporting programs such as Erasmus+ and of harmonization of higher education through cross-border programmes and the recognition of qualifications;
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Calls for continued EU support to African partners in the area of peace and security and conflict prevention, including through specific instruments such as CSDP operations and the African Peace Facility; highlights the importance of fostering security and stability by helping our partners to build more resilient states and societies, including through capacity building and security sector reforms, the creation of more and better jobs, especially for young people, the empowerment of women and the support of education; calls for continued EU support to the increasingly pro-active approach of the African Union and of the respective regional organisations to the full operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture; calls for an EU initial contribution to the AU Peace fund to activities under the window "mediation and diplomacy";
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Stresses that the pursuit of common interests and cooperation on security must be totally consistent with the EU's fundamental values and with the objectives of supporting democracy and promoting human rights and the rule of law; calls for a more strategic, comprehensive and structured approach to political dialogue under the Cotonou Partnership Agreement, with the greater involvement of civil society and a stronger people-to-people dimension; calls for the modernisation and reform of the existing EU-ACP institutional structures, in order to have a more efficient framework; encourages stepping up EU support to own African human rights instruments, such as the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Recognizes that violent extremism leading to terrorism is a growing threat to peace and security in both Africa and the EU and that conventional counter- terrorism measures, including military measures, are mostly ineffective and do not counter root causes of radicalization such as social exclusion, poverty, and a lack of education; believes a comprehensive approach combining diplomatic, socio-economic, development, conflict prevention, peacebuilding and crisis management tools is needed to counter terrorism and stresses the necessity to conduct targeted and upgraded security and counter-terrorism dialogues with African partners to jointly address grassroots factors that may lead to radicalization and terror acts; highlights the importance of improving interfaith dialogue, supporting initiatives aimed at integrating young people in society, countering terrorist propaganda taking into account the role of internet and social media in radicalization processes, countering the financing of terrorism and reinforcing judicial cooperation;
Amendment 53 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Recalls the importance of the effective implementation of external EU policies that are able to address the real root causes of migration; calls for increased joint efforts to implement the Valetta Action Plan based on a fair and true partnership with third countries of origin and transit; recalls the importance of a balanced approach in the new partnership framework; stresses that the new partnership framework with third countries must not become the only pillar of EU action on migration and should extend beyond a quantitative approach focused mainly on border management; notes the Emergency Trust Fund for Africa remains severely underfunded; welcomes the European External Investment Plan on the condition that it could really deliver on its commitments to mobilize investments in Africa, support inclusive and sustainable growth and stimulate jobs creation thus contributing to address the root causes of migration;
Amendment 68 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5b. Considers that Africa and Europe have a shared interest and a shared responsibility concerning migration and that the crisis calls for global solutions based on solidarity, responsibility sharing, the respect of migrants' rights and the principle of non-refoulement; stresses that a strong cooperation between African countries and the EU, and in particular between countries on the two sides of the Mediterranean, is key in fighting against the trafficking of human beings and the smuggling of migrants; supports, in this regard, the implementation of comprehensive policy and legal frameworks based on the UN Convention against Transnational Organised Crime and its protocols;
Amendment 77 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 (new)
Paragraph 6 (new)
6. Acknowledges the importance of inter- parliamentary cooperation such as those with the pan-African parliament and with South Africa as well as the crucial role of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly ACP- EU in promoting common interests and a genuine dialogue between equals; calls for a further strengthening and deepening of the inter-parliamentary dimension in the relations between EU and Africa also by launching new parliamentary partnerships with key Africa partners;
Amendment 78 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 (new)
Paragraph 7 (new)
7. Stresses that respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms constitutes an invariable element of the Union’s engagement with third-country partners; calls on the EU to support the vision of Africa’s Agenda 2063 by strengthening its support to democracy, the rule of law and accountable, transparent and responsive governance through the full use of existing and new frameworks and agreements; stresses the importance of fostering dialogue, information exchange and cooperation in a number of fields such as public finance management and fair and efficient tax systems, the fight to corruption, a transparent and accountable public administration, the participation of civil society and citizens in decision making processes and sustainable management of natural resources;
Amendment 80 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 (new)
Paragraph 8 (new)
8. Recognizes the important dimension, the significant potential and the transformative power of regional, trans- regional and continental integration for growth and development in Africa; considers African Union encompassing the whole of the African continent as a very positive step in the direction of pan- Africa integration and welcomes the renaming of the “Africa-EU Summit” to “AU-EU Summit”; supports the cross- regional, continental and global dimension of projects and programmes in areas ranging from sustainable agriculture and environment to higher education, ICT and research as well as the development and strengthening of physical infrastructure networks; recognizes as well the possible positive effects of a deeper economic integration at the continental level but is well aware of the formidable political, economic, legal and functional/institutional challenges that would need to be tackled in the process;
Amendment 81 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9 (new)
Paragraph 9 (new)
9. Recognizes that Africa suffers from a massive shortfall in energy supply as 645 million people do not have access to affordable electricity and at least 25 sub- Saharan Africa countries are facing an energetic crisis; is of the opinion, also in the light of Africa's urban population increasing to 1.2 billion over the next 30 years, that sustainable solutions based on renewable energies, mini-grid and off- grid systems should be prioritized; calls on the EU to assist its African partners in overcoming the financial, technical and political challenges of this process and recognizes the need of improvements in governance in the energy sector and the necessity of spurring public and private investment in renewable energy on all levels and cross-border; believes that the new External Investment Plan presented by the Commission could represent an outstanding opportunity in this regard; calls for a continued EU support to the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI) and welcomes the proposal of the Commission to launch a new EU-Africa Research and Innovation Partnership on climate change and sustainable energy;
Amendment 82 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 (new)
Paragraph 10 (new)
10. Emphasizes the fundamental role of women in development and considers that women’s participation in governance constitutes a precondition for socio- economic progress, social cohesion and equitable democratic governance; calls for positive measures to be taken to ensure progress towards women’s equal participation in society, including in decision making positions at all levels; calls, at the same time, on African countries to encourage and support more female participation in the labour market and to take all the necessary measures to prevent gender discrimination in the work place;
Amendment 83 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 11 (new)
Paragraph 11 (new)
11. Calls on the EEAS to continue to rise the issue of LGBTI persons in its human rights and political dialogue with African countries and to provide support to LGBTI human rights defenders through the appropriate instruments;
Amendment 84 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 12 (new)
Paragraph 12 (new)
12. Reiterates its support to the ICC and EU's commitment to full co-operation on the prevention of serious crimes falling under the jurisdiction of the court; calls on the EU to remain open for constructive discussion where concerns are raised within the framework of the Rome Statute and to keep supporting African countries transitioning from conflicts in fighting against impunity and achieving accountability for international crimes;
Amendment 85 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 13 (new)
Paragraph 13 (new)
13. Notes that in the last decade a number of countries, including China and India, have significantly increased their engagement in Africa; believes that EU, China and other investors have a strong shared interest in promoting peace and a stable and sustainable development in Africa and should work together and with the AU to promote good governance, the rule of law, the respect of human rights and a sustainable management of the environment and natural resources;
Amendment 86 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 14 (new)
Paragraph 14 (new)
14. Is deeply concerned by cases of corporations, business enterprises as well as individuals, non-state actors and states alike causing or contributing to human rights violations and affecting the rights of vulnerable groups such as minorities, indigenous people, women and children or contributing to environmental problems; calls on the Commission and the Member States to cooperate with international partners to take appropriate steps to prevent, investigate and halt such abuses and to establish a mandatory human rights due diligence for business enterprises which are owned or controlled by states;