Activities of Claude GRUFFAT related to 2020/2041(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on a new EU-Africa Strategy – a partnership for sustainable and inclusive development
Amendments (17)
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Deplores the fact that the Commission continues to promote free trade with the ultimate aim of establishing a comprehensive free-trade area between the two continents; points out that free- trade agreements disrupt local agriculture, are damaging to small producers and exacerbate the African continent’s dependency on food imports and completely distort the terms of trade given the huge differences in productivity between the rich countries of the EU and Africa;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Recalls the importance of food sovereignty, a principle based on the capacity of each country or region to feed its population and to do so to the largest extent possible through its own resources; emphasises that this principle is especially important for the African continent which is still the region in the world most affected by malnutrition and which is expected to see very significant demographic growth in the coming years, notably in the sub-Saharan region;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 c (new)
Paragraph 1 c (new)
1c. Deplores the overproduction of meat and milk in the European Union and its aggressive export model which damages the African market and local producers;
Amendment 30 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 d (new)
Paragraph 1 d (new)
1d. Calls on the EU to develop a geostrategic approach to agriculture in order to support a thoroughly reformed common agricultural policy committed to sustainability keeping the sustainable development of African farming in its quest for self-sufficiency intact;
Amendment 31 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 e (new)
Paragraph 1 e (new)
1e. Supports agro-ecological practices as the foundation for ecological, social and economic sustainability in Africa and in Europe, and the multifunctional solutions offered by this approach already promoted by UNEP and the FAO, to make African agriculture more resilient to climate shocks, better able to protect its soils by combating erosion and desertification, more bio-diverse and thus reduce the risk to producers by making them more self-sufficient and adaptable to climate change; considers that the European Union must significantly develop cooperation with Africa on such agro-ecological practices;
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 f (new)
Paragraph 1 f (new)
1f. Stresses the importance of the role of seeds as regards sustainable agriculture and food production and the control of living things by farmers; points out that the exchange of seed of local varieties is indeed a way for farmers not to be dependent on the agro-industrial sector, an appropriate means of adopting a food security policy and, finally, of adapting production to pedoclimatic conditions and rapid climate change;
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 g (new)
Paragraph 1 g (new)
1g. Highlights the potential of agroecological approaches, inter alia permaculture and agro-forestry, conservation and sharing of seeds, organic farming to improve the diversity of the diet of rural communities, moving away from monocultures and promoting food autonomy;
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 h (new)
Paragraph 1 h (new)
1h. Recalls the resolution (2015/2277 (INI)) adopted on 16 April 2016 by the DEVE Committee of the European Parliament and on 7 June 2016 concerning the NAFSN and contests the support of GMOs by the EU and more generally the G8 in Africa;
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 i (new)
Paragraph 1 i (new)
1i. Recalls the importance of agroforestry and permaculture approaches in mixed gardens which are excellent for food safety for small farmers and communities; stresses that certain trees are also leguminous plants which capture atmospheric nitrogen, thereby eliminating the need for chemical fertilisers, which destroy soil life and increase farmers’ production costs by adding to the dependency on input products; stresses that the lack of trees in rural environments leads to desertification and extreme soil erosion; stresses that this is partly due to the need of local populations for fire wood and also due to pressure from overgrazing; notes the need for simple, fair, effective and integrated rural development solutions on the ground;
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 j (new)
Paragraph 1 j (new)
1j. Warns against a neo-colonialist approach and new forms of input dependency (seeds, fertilisers, pesticides), but also with regard to financing and farmers going into debt in the pursuit of digital technologies; stresses that they should not seek to promote or firmly establish existing or new dependencies, but should rather allow farmers and their communities to be autonomous;
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Is particularly concerned about the fact that deforestation is gaining pace in Africa and in Europe; is equally alarmed by the role of European policies, in particular the biofuels policy (Directive on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources and indirect land use change (ILUC)), and stresses, in particular, the effects of fuel production on global deforestation and food crops; points out that the destruction of the African rainforests leads to an irreversible loss of biodiversity and of carbon sinks and of the habitat and ways of life of indigenous communities living in the forests; calls on the Commission to submit, without delay, a proposal for a European due diligence framework in order to guarantee sustainable and deforestation- free supply chains for all products placed on the EU market;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Deplores that fact that land- grabbing is rife in Africa; points out that land-grabbing is a brutal practice that undermines food sovereignty and endangers rural African communities; calls on the Commission to establish an observatory for deforestation, fires and land-grabbing using satellites (remote detection) and an early warning system with the support of the local populations, while respecting policy coherence for development, in particular by using the provisions of the regulation on the financing, management and monitoring of the common agricultural policy (CAP);
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Welcomes the NaturAfrica initiative which aims to protect wild flora and fauna, while at the same time providing local people with opportunities in the ‘green’ sectors.
Amendment 73 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Calls for increased cooperation between Africa and Europe in terms of rural development practices, in particular the exchange of appropriate, low-cost and efficient techniques and approaches, including marketing and processing of food, alternatives to pesticides, agroforestry and cooperation models and other solutions that benefit small farmers, groups of small-scale farmers and communities, without creating dependency on inputs or debts and increasing resilience and self-reliance;
Amendment 77 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Stresses that the EU needs to bring its policies, notably the CAP and trade policy, into line with its development policy;
Amendment 82 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the Africa-EU Partnership to focus its efforts in the area of agriculture on safeguarding African countries’ right to food security and on promoting small-scale agro-ecological farming with the emphasis on healthy food production and farmer well-being; demands that the EU's cooperation agreements shift the focus back to supporting sustainable development of agriculture and to making third-country farmers self-sufficient.