MINISTER LAUDS ECOWAS VOLUNTEERS

PROGRAMME

G uinea's Minister

of International

Cooperation, Prof.

Koutoub Sano on

Monday 21st May

2013, commended the

burgeoning ECOWAS

Volunteers Programme

(EVP) as a strategic

tool whose faithful

implementation will

contribute to the reali-

zation of the ECOWAS Vision 2020 for a citizen-driven

community.

The EVP was launched in Monrovia, Liberia in March

2010 and, under its ongoing pilot phase, covers Guinea,

Liberia and Sierra Leone. Its objective is to deploy volun-

teers as part of efforts to promote the ECOWAS ideals in-

cluding peace, unity, democracy, sustainable development

and regional integration.

Opening a week of induction training for 40 ECOWAS

volunteers deployed to the country, the minister described

the programme as an important mechanism for coopera-

tion and development in the region. He applauded the use

of youths as the best guarantors of the success of the pro-

gramme considering their vigour and capacity to contrib-

ute to change and development through structural trans-

formation of Member States.

"Youths are the best tools for promoting progress and

improving the conditions of our people," the minister stat-

ed, noting that the volunteers will be deployed to strategic

sectors of the country's economy.

He enu-

merated the

four pillars of

volunteerism

as a tool for

cooperation

and develop-

ment which

has the ca-

pacity to

adapt to vari-

ous condi-

tions, contribution to the reinforcement of human capaci-

ty, the neutrality of members and capacity to maximize

impact.

The minister also commended the participation of the

UN in the programme through the UN Volunteer and the

UNDP, adding that the implementation architecture would

ensure the participation of all stakeholders for the effec-

tive delivery of its mandate. He pledged Guinea’s determi-

nation to support the programme, to complement its de-

velopment efforts.

In an earlier speech, the ECOWAS Commissioner for

Human Development and Gender, Dr. Adrienne Diop said

the programme would help to reinforce the community

spirit among the citizens, with volunteers contributing not

only to regional development but also to the promotion of

regional peace and stability.

The Commissioner said that youths as a significant

segment of the region's population, represent an im-

portant tool for creating a culture of peace in the region

and that the EVP provides an important platform to de-

ploy their energies for development.

In the speech, delivered by the director of the ECOWAS

Youth and Sports Development Centre, Mr. Francis Chuks

Njoaguani, the commissioner said the volunteers for Guin-

ea who were recruited from seven Member States, will

help reinforce capacity in various areas.

The UNDP Resident Representative and Coordinator of

the UN System in Guinea, Mr. Anthonny Kwaku Ohemeng

-Boamah said the UN leadership, in promoting volunteer-

ism, recognized the value it would add to world develop-

ment.

Describing the EVP as an opportunity for citizen partic-

ipation and for promoting solidarity and reciprocity, he

extolled the dynamism that ECOWAS has demonstrated in

the pursuit of the programme.

The UN official urged the volunteers to see themselves as

ambassadors of development, and commended the govern-

ment of Guinea for its interest and support for the pro-

gramme.

A minute of silence was observed at the opening for a

pioneer ECOWAS volunteer, Stephen Udu Arusi who died

in Liberia and Mr. Namory Traore, a staff of the Ministry of

Mr. Njoaguani speaking to journalist

ECOWAS Bulletin Volume 13 20th - 26th MAY 2013

Some of the ECOWAS Official with some Volunteers in a group

Photograph

A group photo of some of the ECOWAS Volunteers

International Cooperation of Guinea who also passed on

after very active involvement in the implementation of the

EVP in Guinea.

Thirty-three volunteers from Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote

d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, Togo and Senegal were initially de-

ployed in December 2012, with another seven added this

year to bring to 40 the number of volunteers deployed to

the country.

These young volunteers, aged between 18 and 35 years,

will contribute to strengthening the capacity of their host

country in various fields including health care, secondary

education and civil society youth development capacity

building.

They will serve for an initial period of twelve months, renewable upon confirmed satisfactory performance, for another twelve months.

ECOWAS SEEKS GREATER COLLABORATION

WITH UNFPA ON HUMANITARIAN ISSUES

E COWAS has called for more support from the UN Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) for effective imple-

mentation of the region’s gender, child and humanitarian policies. The Vice President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr.

Toga McIntosh told a visiting delegation led by the Fund’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa Mr. Benot Kalasa, that the organization "is desirous of working with you in this area and facilitating project implementation and coordination for greater impact." He regretted that political crises have overshadowed economic development in the region, but assured that the present management at the Commission was focusing on the organization’s core mandate of promoting the region’s socio-economic development for the benefit of its citizens. The Vice President applauded the mutual decision by both organizations to deepen cooperation for improved ef-fectiveness in delivering on their common mandate includ-

ing an agreement to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for the realization of this objective. The Health Adviser to the President of the Commission, Dr. Mariane Ngoulla, who attended the meeting, briefed the visitors on efforts by ECOWAS to revitalize its intervention to reduce child and maternal deaths from malaria through the strengthening of the vector control component of a multi-sectoral strategy for malaria elimination in the re-gion. Cuba is providing the technology for the programme while Venezuela is providing the funds for the construction of three factories for the production of biolarvicides against malaria in Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria, all of which

are expected to be operational within two years. The ECO-WAS Malaria Elimination programme is in four phases with the active participation of community citizens including the armed forces of Member States. Mr. Kalasa stressed the need to develop an advocacy tool

for the implementation of existing regional instruments as well as a follow up mechanism for monitoring application in Member States. He said both organizations should also identify areas of cooperation to improve synergy and effectiveness. On his delegation was the Resident Representative of the UNFPA, Ms. Victoria Akyeampong, who explained that the visit was meant to encourage West Africa to develop com-mon positions on population, health and development is-sues ahead of forthcoming meetings on the post-Millennium Development Goals agenda later this year, in Addis Abba and New York.

FORMULATION OF AN ECOWAS AID FOR TRADE

STRATEGY TO MAXIMIZE OPPORTUNITIES OF

GLOBAL AID FOR TRADE INITIATIVE

W est Africa has set October

2013 as the deadline for the finalization of the region’s Aid for Trade strategy which will define its trade related development priorities in order to ensure that trade is better utilized for stimulating the re-gion’s economic de-velopment. The deadline was agreed as part of a road map during a

three day meeting of the trade experts of ECOWAS Member

States which ended on 23rd May 2013 which discussed the Trade for Aid (TfA) initiative, the formulation of the regions strategy, the practical dimensions of the initiative as well as regional integration and trade. The policy is expected to be guided by a vision, inclu-sive, consistent with existing policy and strategic docu-ments and accompanied by a gradualist and flexible com-munication strategy.

ECOWAS Bulletin 20th - 26th May , 2013 Volume 13/2013 2

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION, ECOWAS COMMISSION ; 101 YAKUBU GOWON CRESCENT, ASOKORO, ABUJA-FCT. NIGERIA Tel: (234-9) 314 7641/314 7647/ 314 4227-9 Fax: (234-9) 314 3005/ 314 7641 Email: info@ecowas.int, Website: www.ecowas.int

left, Mr. Aka Anghui with Mr Kola Sofola, P.P.O Trade

(l-r); Dr. Ngoulla, Dr. Diop, Vice President McIntosh, Mr. Kalsas and Ms Akyeampong

The road map envisages a five step process prior to the finalization of the strategy beginning at the end of May with the finalization of a study, the circulation of the draft strat-egy and action plan followed with consultations even dur-ing the 4th Global Review meeting in Geneva between July and September 2013. The two-stage approach to the formulation of the ECO-WAS AfT strategy began with the development of an Ap-proach paper in May 2012. The Aid for Trade (AfT) initiative began in the framework of the Doha Round of World Trade Organization (WTO) talks and seeks to help developing countries, in particular the least developed, to build the trade capacity and the in-

frastructure needed to harness the benefits of trade. In 2009, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), AfT flows to sub-Saharan Africa increased by almost 40% to reach $13 bil-lion and Africa received the largest share among the differ-

ent regions. In 2010, the top recipient’s in West Africa were Ghana, Nigeria and Mail. In 2011, over 80% of the priori-ties identified by ECOWAS member States were in econom-ic infrastructure and capacity building with the top con-tributors being mainly Japan, USA, World Bank, Germany, EU and African Development Bank (AfDB). Specifically, the meeting considered the technical back-ground paper on the ECOWAS Aid for Trade strategy and shared West African experiences in the implementation of trade-related programmes in Infrastructure, Agriculture and the Free Movement of Goods and Persons. The World Trade Organisation (WTO) Task Force has specified the following six categories for AfT: such as Eco-nomic Infrastructure to link domestic and global markets; investing in productive sectors to diversity exports, helping with the costs associated with tariff reduction, trade policy and regulations and trade development. At the opening of the meeting, the Acting Director of the Directorate of Trade, Dr. Gbenga Obideyi, who represented

the Commissioner for Trade, Customs, Mines, Industry and Free Movement, highlighted the benefit of an AfT strategy as it would help the region maximize the opportunities of the AfT initiative by addressing harmonization, coordina-tion and coherency of AfT delivery and implementation In the opening presentation, Mr. Kola Sofola, the AfT coordinator at the ECOWAS Commission, gave an overview of the AfT in West Africa, citing key meetings such as the three WTO review meetings held in Geneva in 2007, 2009, 2011, as well as the ECOWAS Aid for Trade review meeting held in Abuja in 2010. There were also presentations on the Community Devel-opment Programme (CDP), Infrastructure, Agriculture and

Free Movement of Persons. The next WTO Global Aid for Trade review meeting, themed “Connecting to Value Chain”, is scheduled for 8 – 10 July 2013 in Geneva.

Also in attendance were representatives of the UN Eco-nomic Commissioner for Africa (UNECA), European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM), Internation-al Organisation of Francophonie (IOF), SAANA Consulting, GIZ, the German technical cooperation agency and the Eu-ropean Union.

MESSAGE OF CONDOLENCES OF THE AFISMA

HEAD OF MISSION, FOLLOWING THE DEATH OF

BRIGADIER GENERAL YAYE GARBA

P resident Pierre Buyoya, Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission and

Head of the African-led International Support Mission in Mali (AFISMA), has learned with shock and sadness of the sudden and untimely demise of Bigadier General Yaye Gar-ba, AFISMA Deputy Force Commander, who passed away

in his home in Bamako, Mali, today, at the age of 55.

On this sad occasion, the Special Representative extends his deepest condolences, as well as those of the African Union, the Economic Commission of West African States

(ECOWAS), and the entire African Continent, to the bereaved widow and fami-ly, and to the Government and People of Niger. “Brigadier General Yaye Garba was a great soldier and an efficient Field Commander, who was

highly respected by his superiors and the troops under his command. He was a Senior Officer who had served in several peacekeeping missions, and since his deployment

to Mali in January 2013, he discharged his duties

ECOWAS Bulletin 20th - 26th May , 2013 Volume 13/2013 3

PUBLISHED BY!

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION, ECOWAS COMMISSION ; 101 YAKUBU GOWON CRESCENT, ASOKORO, ABUJA-FCT. NIGERIA Tel: (234-9) 314 7641/314 7647/ 314 4227-9 Fax: (234-9) 314 3005/ 314 7641 Email: info@ecowas.int, Website: www.ecowas.int

A group photograph of Participants at the meeting Late Brigadier General Garba

as AFISMA Deputy Force Commander with commendable dedication and outstanding efficiency. He will always be remembered as a valiant soldier for peace in Africa and a worthy Son of the Continent.” The Special Representative

declared. May his soul rest in peace.

ECOWAS SYMPATHIZES WITH NIGERIA OVER

PILOTS DEATH

T he President of the ECOWAS

Commission, His Excellency Kadré Désiré Ouédraogo has sent a condo-lence message to

Nigeria’s President Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan over the death of two Nigerian Air Force fighter-jet pilots who died while providing support to the African-led Inter-national Support Mission in Mali (AFISMA). “The death of Flt Lt Benjamin Bem Ado and Flg Officer Ayuba Joad Layelmenson, two gallant officers is no doubt a great loss not only to your country but also to the entire ECOWAS Community particularly as they paid the ultimate price in their effort to promote peace and stability in a be-

leaguered member State,” President Ouédraogo said in the message, in which he also condoled with the bereaved fami-lies and the entire people of Nigeria. “It is our fervent prayers,” he said, “that the demise of these two young officers and many others in the past who laid their lives in the course of such noble duty, will not be in vain.” The ECOWAS chief also used the opportunity to convey the Commission’s appreciation for Nigeria’s “untiring ef-forts” in support of the quest for enduring peace and stabil-ity of the ECOWAS region.

REGIONAL EXPERTS PROPOSE FURTHER

CONCESSION IN EPA NEGOTIATIONS WITH EU

R egional experts have recommended an upward review

of West Africa's market access offer to the European Union (EU) in a major concession to revive stalled negotia-tions of an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the two regions. The negotiations have stalled for over a year following disagreements between the two parties over the degree and duration of market opening among other issues. While the EU wants an 80-per cent market opening, West Africa is now offering 70 per cent, based on worries that the

opening level demanded by the EU would expose West Afri-ca to an avalanche of imports from the EU and damage its industrial base particularly sensitive products. The regional experts proposed the review at their meet-ing in Banjul, the Gambia, 6-10 May 2013. This followed the decision by the last regional Ministerial Monitoring Committee (MMC) meeting in Cape Verde in March 2013 urging the region to continue discussions on the stimulated offer proposed by the ECOWAS and UEMOA Commissions. Members of the two Commissions had raised concerns over the treatment of some products under the EU offer and its impact on their domestic economies. In addition to West Africa's concern over the market access

offer, the region is also concerned over EU’s position on the EPA Development Programme (EPADP )for which the region is asking for some 15 billion Euros in fresh funds to enable it cope with the cost of adjustment to the EPA. On the contrary, the EU prefers to support the region from existing commitments amounting to about six billion

euro under the European Development Fund (EDF) and bilateral contributions to Member States. The experts further recommended that efforts should con-tinue to determine the extent of fiscal revenue losses that will accompany the opening for each country and the re-gion, while a simple mechanism should be established in each country for offsetting the fiscal impact of tariff dis-mantling, and the process for the formulation and imple-mentation of tax reforms fast tracked. They also called for the prioritization of the develop-ment of regional infrastructure in order to lower production costs in the region to improve the competitiveness of na-tional economies. Member States were equally urged to make budgetary provisions in 2014 to kick off the implemen-tation of some prelim-inary activities for the EPADP and the set-ting up of the EPA Regional Fund.

“ Its only when an egg

breaks, that you realize that

it is not only all white.”

…… Sierra Leone..…..

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION, ECOWAS COMMISSION ; 101 YAKUBU GOWON CRESCENT, ASOKORO, ABUJA-FCT. NIGERIA Tel: (234-9) 314 7641/314 7647/ 314 4227-9 Fax: (234-9) 314 3005/ 314 7641 Email: info@ecowas.int, Website: www.ecowas.int

ECOWAS Bulletin 20th - 26th May , 2013 Volume 13/2013 4

EDITORIAL TEAM Sunny Ugoh ** Ag. Director Communication

Paul Ejime ** Editor

Doscof Aho ** Internal Communication Officer

Uwem Thompson ** Information Officer

Amamata Sulaiman ** Graphics Information Officer

David Oduyingbo ** Photos

Sani Malgwi ** Photos

Flt Lt Ado & Flg Officer Layelmenson