14TH EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MINUTES - UCLGAknowledge.uclga.org › IMG › pdf › 14th_executive_committee...14th Executive Committee Minutes (Final) Rabat, 10 May 2016 (Page 4 of 14)

14TH EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MINUTES

14th Executive Committee Minutes (Final) Rabat, 10 May 2016 (Page 1 of 14)

14th Meeting of the United Cities and Local Governments Executive

Committee held on 10 May 2016 from 09.45 to 17.30 at Hotel Farah Golden

Tulip, Rabat, Morocco

1. Confirmation of Quorum for the Meeting The president announced the presence of twelve designated members and two apologies. He declared a quorum and formally opened the meeting. The attendance list is appended to these minutes.

2. Announcements and Opening Remarks The president welcomed all delegates to the meeting and announced the presence of and welcomed the newly elected president of the Association of Local Authorities of Tanzania (ALAT) attending the Executive Committee meeting for his first time. He welcomed the Minister of Communal Development responsible for Decentralisation and Local Government of Burundi. The president of the Moroccan Association of The Presidents of Municipal Council (AMPCC) welcomed delegates to the country. He congratulated those elected to serve on the statutory organs of the UCLG-Africa at the Africities Summit held in December in Johannesburg, South Africa. He also thanked the South Africa Government and the hosts, the City of Johannesburg and the South African Local Government Association for having ably conducted the Africities Summit and the wisdom with which they had dealt with the issues of the Assembly. The president of UCLG-Africa thanked the Kingdom of Morocco for its continuing support for the UCLG-Africa and also thanked the president of the Morocco Association for making delegates feel at home. The president announced that the Minister Delegate attached to the Minister of Interior of Morocco would arrive at 11.00 hours to welcome delegates and officially open the meeting.

3. Confirmation of Minutes of Previous Executive Committee Meeting The president called for the confirmation of minutes of the Executive Committee held on 28 November 2015 at Johannesburg. He said that the minutes had been circulated to members in advance of the meeting By acclamation, the minutes were confirmed as a correct record of the proceedings of the 13th session of the UCLG-A Executive Committee. ADOPTED

4. Status of Executive Committee Membership: Southern Africa The President and Secretary General sought clarification from the Southern Africa representatives on the status of their representation on the Executive Committee, in particular, relating to the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) and the City of Johannesburg.



Following a request by the Southern Africa delegates for internal consultations among themselves, the delegates confirmed that the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) would seat on the Pan-African Council and the Executive Committee of UCLG-A.

5. Matters Arising from Previous Meetings Matters Arising were drawn from the following statutory meetings held during the AFRICITIES Summit held in Johannesburg, South Africa over the period 28 November to 2 December 2015: Executive Committee: 13th Meeting held on 28 November 2015 Pan African Council Meeting held on 29 November 2015 General Assembly held on 02 December 2015.

a) New Constitution for UCLG-Africa

The President announced that a draft constitution had been circulated for comments and suggestions

from members.

Some members asked that the Secretariat clarify which Constitution was being amended and

suggested that, normally, it was the Constitution adopted in 2005 by the united organisation that

would be placed on the table for amendment. It was also pointed out that since the Executive

Committee meeting held in Brazzaville, several amendments had been proposed but these were

missing from the draft under circulation.

The President reiterated that it would be the General Assembly that would adopt a new Constitution

for the UCLG-Africa and that all proposals would be considered, initially, by the team agreed to during

the General Assembly held in Johannesburg in December 2015 comprising President Khalifa SALL and

Mayor Parks TAU.

Following deliberations on the matter, the meeting:

RESOLVED that the Committee of two, President Khalifa Sall and Johannesburg City Mayor Parks Tau

supported by the General Secretariat consider all proposals submitted by members for the

amendment of the Constitution and (1) establish due process for the consideration of amendments

to the Constitution; and (2) drawing on all inputs from members in an inclusive process, prepare a

draft constitution for circulation to member for consideration before preparing the Final Draft

Constitution for consideration and adoption by an Extra-Ordinary General Assembly to be held no

later than December 2016.

b) Deputy Secretary General Position

With regard to the appointment of a Deputy Secretary General, the President announced that draft

Terms of Reference for the position had been circulated to members and called upon delegates for

their inputs. The following summarises the contributions from members:



Some members considered that the three-year work experience proposed was inadequate

and suggested at least five years.

It was also argued that the job description of the deputy mirrors too much that of the

Secretary General, and should be better specified.

Some members considered that in order to ensure continental inclusiveness, the required

languages must be stated as ‘English or French’ and not both as currently presented while

others also felt that other official languages of African countries such as Portuguese and

Spanish be considered as well. Others felt that the candidate for the position must be fluent

in both English and French, these being the official languages of UCLG-Africa.

It was suggested that the breath of required experience should not be confined to Non

Governmental Organisations but also include experience working for national associations of

local governments and related positions.

It was suggested that the Deputy Secretary General carry both administrative and financial

oversight.

Following deliberations, it was

AGREED: That the Committee of two of President Sall and Mayor Parks Tau and supported for

technical inputs by the Secretariat review all the proposals emanating from the meeting and finalise

the Terms of Reference defining the job description and qualifications for the position of Deputy

Secretary General.

c) Review of Organisation’s Governance

It was suggested that in the same manner as the review of the Constitution, any proposals regarding

the organisation’s governance be submitted, through the Secretary General, to the committee of two

appointed by the General Assembly for the purpose.

6. Official Opening Ceremony President Sall welcomed the Minister for the Interior of the Kingdom of Morocco to the meeting and invited speakers for the official opening ceremony to deliver their addresses:

a) Mayor of Rabat

The Mayor of Rabat welcomed delegates to the City and to their second home. He invited delegates to enjoy the hospitality of the city and visit its historical heritage sites whose importance was recognised by the UNESCO. The city could be considered as the cultural capital of the country. It had hosted many important events. This meeting was considered important, being the first after the Johannesburg General Assembly. It was also an opportunity to demonstrate unity within the organisation. He called on UCLG-Africa to continue supporting local governments and national associations in building democracy as there could be no meaningful democracy nor development without decentralisation. He also implored on



members to seriously prepare for Bogota Elective Assembly of UCLG World and especially to support Africa’s candidate for the position of UCLG World President. He informed delegates that the country would host COP 22 in Marrakesh, Morocco, and invited all to attend this important event that would address the world challenge of Climate Change. He also proposed the Executive Committee to consider holding its General Assembly at the fringes of COP22 in Marrakesh. Finally, the mayor asked delegates to continue to support the candidacy of Rabat for the position of Treasurer of UCLG World.

b) Burundi Minister of Communal Development and Decentralisation

The Minister responsible for Communal Development and Decentralisation in Burundi extended her greetings and those of the people of Burundi wishing the meeting peace. She also thanked the people of Morocco and the organisers of the meeting. Stressing the importance of decentralisation, the Minister chronicled the achievements and challenges that Burundi had experienced on the road to democratisation and improved service delivery in the country. She stressed the importance of good local governance. Citing some challenges, she lamented the reluctance of some central government sectors to hand over authority and resources to local governments. She also observed the weaknesses in the taxation systems leading to poor resource base for local governments. In conclusion, the Minister thanked the Kingdom of Morocco for its continued support to UCLG-Africa and called upon local governments to serve their populations and be available to them.

c) President of the Moroccan Association of The Presidents of Municipal Council (AMPCC) The President of the Moroccan Association of The Presidents of Municipal Council (AMPCC) reiterated his welcome to the delegates and wished all a pleasant stay in Morocco. He noted Morocco’s commitment to the African cause and cited the establishment of REFELA, the Elected Women in Local Government organisation that had been created in Morocco. He congratulated the Republic of South Africa and the Local Government institutions in that country for hosting a successful AFRICITIES Summit in December 2015. He called for the consolidation of the role of UCLG-Africa based on African unity. Referring to partnerships, he emphasized the importance of beneficial partnerships among local governments, and called on the strengthening of South-South partnerships. In response, President Sall expressed gratitude for Morocco’s support of UCLG-Africa and requested the Minister to extend the UCLG-A members’ gratitude to the King of Morocco. He also reiterated the organisation’s commitment to support Africa’s candidate for the position of President of UCLG World.

d) Official Opening by the Honourable Minister Delegate attached to the Minister of the Interior: Kingdom of Morocco

The Honourable Minister addressed the meeting. He expressed his pride to be invited to the Executive Committee meeting and welcomed delegates on behalf of the King. The Honourable Minister commended UCLG-Africa for championing the values of decentralisation and good governance. He said that following the good deliberations during the General Assembly held in Johannesburg, delegates were urged to use the consensus reached to renew their commitment and maintain the unity of the organisation throughout the whole continent.



While acknowledging the worth of North-South development cooperation, the Honourable Minister also reiterated the importance of South-South cooperation as this not only positively impacted development but also improved solidarity among African nations. Turning to the forthcoming elections for the presidency of UCLG World, the Honourable Minister also rallied his support for the candidacy of the City of Johannesburg represented by Mayor Parks Tau. Finally, the Honourable Minister thanked the UCLG-Africa for strengthening and improving local decision-making in Africa. He also thanked the Honourable Minister from Burundi for taking an active interest in improving local government on the continent. In his response, the UCLG-Africa president thanked the Honourable Minister for accepting the invitation to officially open the meeting, for supporting UCLG-Africa and for being available and dedicating his time to the organisation whenever called upon to do so. Following the Official Opening, the meeting adjourned at 12h40 and resumed at 14h30.

7. Financial Matters 2015

a) Approval and Discharge of 2015 Accounts

The Secretary General presented a summary of the budget outturn for 2015. He highlighted the

following:

There had been a significant improvement in the payment of membership fees. The Secretary

General attributed this to members seeking to ensure that they were not disqualified from

voting as this was an election year.

Some activities had not been implemented due to the delay in payment of expected grants.

This had adversely affected the implementation of projects such as Local Economic

Development; Dialogue on Financial Decentralisation; as well as some REFELA activities.

However, overall, the implementation of the budget had conformed to the what had been

planned

The audited accounts for 2015 had just been received. The audit had also included the

Africities and Exhibition accounts.

The following points were raised:

Congratulating the Secretary General for managing the accounts well, a member noted the

need to improve on the presentation of expenditures to make the items more explicit to

clearly show the nature of the expenditure as well as the different grants, their sources and

how they were applied. The suggestions were supported by other members

Referring to the non receipt of the South African Government grant, a member suggested that

the amount transferred to SARO should be removed from the books of the UCLG-A as its



continued reflection in the accounts portrayed failure to realise funds, whereas the amount

had been paid to another organisation.

It was suggested that the implementation of more activities be devolved to Regional Offices

in the interests of ensuring improved funds utilisation. However, it was also pointed out that

the structure of the offices had to be reviewed in order to improve their capacity to undertake

regional work.

Some members emphasized the need for UCLG-A members to demonstrate their

commitment to the organisation through meeting their membership dues obligations. It was

pointed out that failure of members to meet these obligations reflected a poor image of the

organisation to other financial support partners.

It was pointed out that all meeting documents be in both languages, English and French. The

Secretary General noted and explained that the reports that had been presented in French

had just been completed by the auditors leaving no time for translation.

It was suggested that a representative of the audit firm should present the audit report and

clarify any issues that members raised.

It was suggested that Regions collaborate more effectively with the Secretariat headquarters

in order to improve on grants spending

The Secretary General noted members’ observations and gave explanation on the following:

He noted the need to elaborate on expenses and grants reporting. This will be observed in the

future.

The outstanding debt relating to tax arrears had been negotiated with the Moroccan

Government and would be resolved during 2016.

Regarding the non payment of the expected grant from the Government of South Africa, the

Secretary General explained that the blame was with UCLG-A as the report for the previous

allocation to SARO had been submitted too late for consideration to be given to disbursement

of the next support grant. He explained that the outstanding report had now been submitted

to the Department of Cooperative Development and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA)

Three Regional Offices (EARO, SARO and WARO) had now been provided with the core staff

comprising a Regional Director and Programme Officer. However, additional support staff as

envisaged in the Regional Headquarters Agreements had not yet been put in place as the

Agreements were still outstanding. The non resolution of the Headquarters Agreements was

also delaying the equipping of Regional Offices as it would not be prudent to equip offices that

did not have any approved status. The case of SARO had necessitated the temporary re-

location of the Southern Africa office to Botswana (the home country of the Regional

Director).



Regarding unspent EU grant, the Secretary General reiterated the explanation provided during

the last Executive Committee meeting regarding the late disbursement of funds. He also

emphasized that the spending of EU funds required the observance of strict financial

management processes including international tendering that often required substantial time

to complete.

The Secretariat would endeavour to arrange for the presence of auditors in future when the

report was presented as requested by members.

The president also supported the suggestion to engage Regions in the implementation of

programmes in order to improve on grants expenditure.

Following these observations and responses it was RESOLVED to approve and discharge the 2015 Budget outturn.

8. AFRICITIES Summit 1. Johannesburg 2015 Africities Summit Report The Secretary General presented a report on the AFRICITIES Summit. The Summit had been a resounding success attended by over 1000 mayors, 13 Central Government Ministers, representatives of the African Union, researchers and academicians as well as technical experts drawn from a wide range of institutions.

He also highlighted the issue of migration, cross-border movements and conflicts and indicated that

the UCLG-A would develop a project on migration and cross-border cooperation.

The Secretary General cited cooperation with traditional leaders as an important area that the UCLG-

A would explore and develop.

In the ensuing discussion, it was recommended that the contributions made by the City of

Johannesburg to the AFRICITIES Summit should be indicated and acknowledged. The amounts should

also be reflected in the main budget of the UCLG-A. The Secretary General said that the integration of

Africities Budget into the main UCLG-A budget could be done if desired.

The AFRICITIES Summit report was

ADOPTED. 2. Hosting of 2018 Africities Summit The Secretary General reported that the bid of the City of Brazzaville to host the next AFRICITIES Summit in 2018 had been officially submitted for consideration. The proposed dates were 4 to 8 December 2018. It was



RESOLVED to approve the bid by the City of Brazzaville, Congo Republic, to host the 2018 Africities Summit over the period of 04 to 08 December 2018.

9. Budget Proposal and Activities Programme for 2016 The Secretary General advised that following the request by members for the presentation of the

budget indicating the planned activities, a revised presentation of the budget approved during the

13th session of the Executive Committee held in Johannesburg has been prepared for consideration

by the Executive Committee.

He also informed members that the regional offices would be engaged to implement some of the

activities in order to ensure regional orientation and improve on implementation capacity.

Following consideration the new presentation of Budget for 2016 was confirmed and

APPROVED.

10. Schedule of Statutory Meetings The Secretary General asked members to take note of the calendar of events and meetings of the UCLG-Africa and the UCLG-World and diarise for planning.

a) Pan African Council Meeting

It was suggested that the Pan African Council Meeting that would consider the issues referred to it be

held during the same period as the COP22 Conference. It was considered that due to uncertainty of

attendance by all Pan-African Council members at the Bogota UCLG World Assembly it would be

unadvisable to convene the PAC meeting alongside this World event.

AGREED That the statutory meetings including Executive Committee, Pan-African Council, and

Extraordinary General Assembly be held during the period of 03 to 05 November 2016 in Marrakech,

Morocco.

b) 22nd Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

(COP22)

The president of the AMPCC announced that the COP22 Conference would be held in Marrakech,

Morocco. The Conference was expected to draw the participation of more than 1000 mayors. He

encouraged African local authorities to participate en masse.

The president of the UCLG-A called upon African mayors to be better prepared for this event in order

to make a meaningful impact on the global discussions and decisions. He noted that with the

assistance of the French, local governments had been able to lobby more effectively during the 2015

climate summit in France. He suggested that following this precedent, a meeting of 1000 Mayors and

Local Authorities be also convened in Marrakesh in the framework of COP22.



11. Preparations for the UCLG World Congress: Bogota, Colombia In response to a suggestion to convene the UCLG-Africa statutory meetings during the Bogota UCLG World meetings it was considered that the risk of non-participation by African members was high due to the cost and distance. However, African mayors were encouraged to attend the Bogota events.

The Secretary General explained the composition of representation of the UCLG World Statutory

Organs noting, in particular, Africa’s 45-seats share of the World Council and 15-seats on the Executive

Bureau. The Africa region was also entitled to 1 vice-president position. Africa currently held a co-

president position that could fall off as the region was contesting for the presidency of the World

organ.

He advised that all 45 members of the Pan African Council complete the required nomination form for

the World Council. A short extension of the deadline for submission had been granted, however, it

was critical that members expeditiously complete the required documentation.

Regarding campaigning for the position of World President, it was reported that the support of four

regions had been secured and that lobbying was currently under way for the fifth. The City of

Johannesburg had distributed its campaign manifesto.

Mayor Parks Tau, City of Johannesburg, was given the floor to present his campaign election appeal

and his manifesto. The manifesto had three pillars – (1) Local governments as the centre of a changing

world (2) Promoting Collaborative Local Government; and (3) Enhancing Organisational Consolidation.

He also advised that the manifesto was available on electronic media including in Spanish

He thanked UCLG-Africa members for nominating him as its candidate and for actively supporting his

campaign.

It was also reported that the position of Treasurer was currently occupied by the mayor of Rabat,

Morocco. Members agreed to re-nominate the Mayor of Rabat for the position of Treasurer.

Members were encouraged to mobilise and lobby at least two other mayors at international level to

attend the Bogota meetings and to support Africa’s candidate for president. They were reminded that

the World Council was the organ that would elect the president. They were also reminded that the

voting process at the World Council proceedings does not accept proxies. It was therefore imperative

that all 45 representatives of Africa on the World Council be present in Bogota.

The following candidates for the positions on the Statutory Organs of the UCLG – World were

APPROVED

President of the UCLG-World Mayor of Johannesburg, Parks Tau, of South Africa


14th Executive Committee Minutes (Final) Rabat, 10 May 2016 (Page 10 of

14)

Vice-president of UCLG World Mayor of Libreville, Mrs. Osouka Raponda, of Gabon

Treasurer Mayor of Rabat, Mohamed Sadiki of Morocco

NOTED

12. Standing Orders of the UCLG-Africa Draft Standing Orders for UCLG-Africa were presented and ADOPTED

13. Closing Remarks

President Khalifa Sall thanked His Majesty, the King of the Kingdom of Morocco and the people of the

land. He also thanked the president of the Association of Mayors of Morocco and the mayor of the

City of Rabat for hosting, the Secretary General and his Team as well as the UCLG-Africa special

advisors present, Mr Daby DIAGNE and Mr Hamza Ahmed HAMZA.

He wished all delegates and participants safe travel back to their homes.

He declared the meeting adjourned at 17h55.

Confirmed as a Correct Record

Jean Pierre ELONG MBASSI

Khalifa Ababacar SALL

SECRETARY GENERAL PRESIDENT OF UCLG-AFRICA



14)

14TH EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING:

MEMBERS PRESENT AND PARTICIPANTS LIST

No MEMBER ORGANISATION REPRESENTED BY MEETING STATUS

Northern Africa Region

1

Association of Mayors of

Mauritania (AMM)

UCLG- A Vice-Presidence for

north Africa Region

Mr Cheikh Ahmed BAYA

Président de l’AMM

2 Moroccan Association of The Presidents of Municipal Council (AMPCC)

Mr. Fouad EL OMARI

President de l’AMPCC Present

3

National Federation of Tunisian

Cities (FNVT)

M. Seifallah LASRAM

Président de FNVT

Maire de Tunis

Western Africa Region

4

UCLG-Africa President

UCLG-A Vice-President for

Western Africa Region

M. Khalifa SALL

Maire de la Ville de Dakar Present

5 National Association of Locales

Authorities of Ghana (NALAG) Isaac Ashai ODAMTEN

President of NALAG Present

6

National Association of

Municipalities of Cape Verde

(ANMCV)

M .Manuel Monteiro de PINA

President of ANCV Present

Eastern Africa Region

7

Association of Districts of Victoria

(ADV)


Eastern Africa Region

Ms. Jacqueline MOUSTACHE

BELLE

Presidente of ADV

Mayor of Victoria

Present

8

Association of Local Authorities of

Tanzania (ALAT) GULAMHAFEEZ Abubakar

MUKADAM

President of ALAT

Mayor of Shinyanga

Present



14)

No MEMBER ORGANISATION REPRESENTED BY MEETING STATUS

9

Uganda Local Government

Association

(ULGA)

Mr. Frederick GUME

President of ULGA

Present

Central Africa Region

10

Association of Mayors of Congo

AMC


Centrale Africa Region

M. Hugues NGOUELONDELE

President AMC Proxy to M. Khalifa

SALL

Maire de la

Ville de

Dakar

11 Association of Mayors of Gabon

AMG Mrs Rose Christiane OSSOUKA

RAPONDA

Maire de Libreville

Present

12

United Councils and Cities of

Cameroon (CVUC)

M. Emile ANDZE ANDZE

President represented by

Mr HAMADOU HAMIDOU

Mayor of Maroua

Present

Southern Africa Region

13 South Africa Local Government

Association

SALGA


Southern

Africa

Mr. Thabo MANYONI

President of SALGA

Mayor of Mangaung

Present

14 Botswana Association of Local

Authorities

BALA

Mr. Mpho MORUAKGOMO

President of BALA Present

15 Association of Local Authorities of

Namibia ALAN Mr Leonard JONA

President of ALAN Present

16 City Of Johannesburg Mr. Mpho PARKS TAU

Executive Mayor Present

17 UCLG Africa General Secretariat Mr Jean Pierre ELONG MBASSI

Secretary General



14)

INVITED

No NAME DESIGNATION

1 DRAISS, Charki Minister Delegate to the Minister of the

Interior, Morocco

2 KAGAYO, Jeanne d'Arc Minister of Communal Development and

Decentralisation in Burundi

3 DIAGNE, Daby Special Advisor, UCLG-Africa

4 HAMZA, Ahmed Hamza Retired Vice-president, Northern Africa

Region

5 ABDEL MALICK, Fatimatou Maire de Tevragh-Zeina, REFELA vice

president

6 KAFANA Kone, Gilbert President, UVICOCI, member of the

Financial management committee

7 KAYITESI, Adette Vice-president REFELA, East Africa

9 MOLWELE, Nonceba Vice-president REFELA, Southern Africa

10 ZAIDI, Souad Deputy Mayor, Rabat

NATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS STAFF

No NAME POSITION

1 Hon NGIRIRWA Gervais Secretary General, ABELO, Burundi

2 Dr OUMAR ABDERAHMAN Permanent Secretary, ANCT,

Representative of the Chair, Financial management committee

3 GEORGE, Xolile Chief Executive Officer, South African

Local Government Association (SALGA)

4 MBANGA, Sithole Chief Executive Officer, South African

Cities Network



14)

STAFF MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE

No NAME POSITION

1 MAIGA, Souleymane Idrissa Chief of Staff and Director of Operations

2 YATTA, Francois Director of Programmes

3 PATSIKA, Charles Director, Membership Development, External Relations and Networks Coordination

4 TANHARTE, Youssef Director, Finance and Administration

5 Dr NYENDE, Juma Menlya Director, Eastern Africa Regional Office

6 MEKONE SALE, Juliet Director, West Africa Regional Office

7 BENDIMYA, Souad Membership Officer

8 CHERKAOUI Mohamed Protocol Officer

9 DJENGUE, Anne Stéphanie LEDNA Facilitator

10 BENSMAIL, Nihad Communications

11 TOUKAM YOMI, Gaelle Journalist

12 ZNAIDI, Khadija Communications

13 PABA SALE, Iyamma Officer, administrative and financial department

14 RAZOUKI, Fatima Personal Assistant to Secretary General

15 NZAMBA -NZAMBA, Lionel Assistant, Direction of Operations

16 ANBAR, Hajar

Assistant, Directorate of Membership Development, External Relations and Networks Coordination

Documents

14TH EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MINUTES - UCLGAknowledge.uclga.org › IMG › pdf › 14th_executive_committee...14th Executive Committee Minutes (Final) Rabat, 10 May 2016 (Page 4 of 14)