Citizens’ Continental Conference Communiqué

(CCP-AU)--Civil society organisations’ communiqué from the fifth citizens’ continental conference on the 13th African Union summit, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 5-6 June 2009

We, the undersigned Civil Society Organisations in Africa and the Diaspora working in all five geographical regions of the continent, having met on 5 and 6 June 2009, in our Fifth Citizens’ Continental Conference to consider issues facing our leaders in the upcoming 13th Ordinary African Union Summit of Heads of State and Government. We welcome this opportunity to collectively reflect on the state of issues on the continent, and developments made since the last summit to allow us to communicate concrete recommendations to our Heads of State and Government.

In light of the theme of the upcoming 13th Ordinary Summit ‘Investing in Agriculture for Economic Growth and Food Security’ and other agenda items, we would like to make the following recommendations on the issues of ‘Agriculture, Food Security and Financing for Development in Africa’ and ‘Peace, Security and Human Rights in Africa’
On the issue of Agriculture, food security and financing for development in Africa
Recalling African Union Summit decisions from Maputo in 2003, Sirte in 2004, Abuja in 2006 and Sharm El Sheikh in 2008- calling upon member states to increase their investment in Agriculture as a strategy for sustainable economic growth and diversification, achieving food self-sufficiency , social protection and employment creation;
Noting in particular the commitments of the Heads of State and Government for the implementation of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) underlined in the report of the Joint Conference of African Union Ministers of Agriculture, Land and Livestock (CAMA/Min/Rpt(XI);
Recognising also the possible adverse impacts of the global financial crisis, the food crisis, the fuel crisis and climate crisis on the effort of African countries to achieve food self-sufficiency through agricultural development
Recognising further that the falling commodity prices, declining export revenue, contracting aid flows and significantly reduced private capital inflows into Africa translate into reduced public as well as private funding for investment in agriculture and related infrastructure
Affirming that attaining a standard of living for all citizens free from want, food insecurity and hunger is not an option but a duty enshrined in several international human rights laws. To this end, we commend and acknowledge the efforts of Heads of State and Government aimed at finding lasting solutions to end hunger and poverty;
Recognising that agriculture remains a vital pillar of Africa’s development, and the need to provide to small-scale farmers affordable, accessible and adequate financing is a pre-requisite for sustainable agricultural transformation and food security in Africa;
Concerned with the negative impacts that climate change will have with time if decisive and concrete actions are not taken;
Deeply concerned with the lack of due attention on the multi-functional role played by the agricultural sector in Africa in terms of its contribution to national and household food security, rural employment, income generation, government revenue and foreign exchange;
Noting that competition for land and other productive resources for bio-fuel production will exacerbate hunger and food insecurity on the continent;
Keenly aware that African governments are obliged to take positive actions to identify vulnerable groups, which include, but not limited to women, youth and indigenous communities and to implement policies to ensure their access to adequate food by facilitating their ability to feed themselves;
Understanding that the full potential of Africa’s agricultural sector requires concerted efforts from African leaders, the private sector, Civil Society Organisations and the Diaspora;

We therefore make the following recommendations to the Heads of State and Government of Africa on the following issues: ‘Agricultural Financing’, ‘Food Security and Land Management’, ‘Climate Change, Agro-fuels and Agriculture’, and ‘Land and Vulnerable groups’

1. To domesticate and implement the Maputo Declaration and make public a timetable with specific timeframes showing clear targets and benchmarks towards realising your commitments to spending at least ten per cent of national budgets on agriculture as well as other CAADP commitments
2. To invest more in rural infrastructure, rural education, public extension and training services for farmers, as well as taking greater steps to secure more equitable access to land and water, paying particular attention to the needs of women small scale farmers and to address the underlying causes of food crisis by addressing distributional issues and protect farmers from unfair pricing practices
3. To develop flexible legal instruments to simplify complex traditional or cultural laws, which recognise, reconcile, and reform gendered rights to use land, forests and their products
4. To protect African markets by enabling free circulation of local products within all the regions of Africa and integrate small farmers in regional value chains
5. To guarantee an adequate support mechanism of social protection programmes for farmers and vulnerable groups through subsidies, input schemes, access to affordable and accessible finance, access to expanded markets, sound infrastructure, value addition, agribusiness product upgrading, and post-harvest storage
6. To seek international compensation for the negative impact caused by climate change to Africa for a fair and effective climate adaptation. A significant portion of such funds should be specifically dedicated to support rural livelihoods, food security, and sustainable development.
7. To look for mechanisms to compensate African farmers who have been affected by natural disaster or man-made disasters including price volatility
8. To stop supply-driven agricultural development on the continent that are not targeted at small-scale farmers and in turn promote effective farmer driven sustainable agro-ecological and distributive approaches
9. To stop policies that facilitate access and control over African natural resources and in particular land by multinational corporations and develop comprehensive national plans on bio-fuel production that reflect the interests of African people, as well as guarantee sustainable development and national sovereignty
10. To deliver a strong statement on the need for a comprehensive and multi-pronged approach to reduce under nutrition and ensuring food security ahead of the proposed world summit on food security in November 2009, and the standing Committee on Nutrition High level Meeting on Recapturing Malnutrition Reduction in September 2009
11. To protect the land of local communities and develop a system that will protect the environmental ecosystem against desertification including soil and water management to ensure food security
12. To ensure equity in distribution of land, small holder farming, market access in order to improve the product value chains
13. To set up mechanisms for the harmonisation of national, regional and continental agricultural frameworks as a starting point to establishing strong sectoral linkages with up-stream and down-stream industries
14. To address to the overall constraints to agricultural development at the national and regional level, including economic policy direction, inadequate investment in smallholder agriculture and absence of post-harvest support, markets and intra-regional trade
15. To ensure that agricultural policy is driven by critical stakeholders such as farmer organisations, civil society organisations and other disadvantaged groups
On the issue of Peace, Security and Human Rights in Africa

Peace and Security
We;
1. Call on the AU to strengthen the mechanisms to deal with Military Coup d’ Etats in the continent beyond a simple suspension of Member States

2. Call the AU and its Peace and Security Council (PSC) to hold a special session to discuss the issue of human rights defenders in the continent

3. Urge the AU Member States to allow Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to carry out their activities freely without any interference from states as guaranteed under the Constitutive Act and the Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance

4. Urge the AU to ensure that Member States open up space and opportunity for CSOs to provide early warning of impending crisis as provided for in the Peace and Security Council Protocol under the CEWARN and the Livingstone Formula

5. Appeal to the AU to guarantee the right for victims of human rights violations to have access to redress at the highest level as they deem it necessary

6. Call upon the AU to ensure those victims’ rights to Justice and reparation are fully respected and guaranteed and those victims’ interests are fully taken into account

General Recommendations

Fight against Impunity
Recalling that African countries have been actively involved in the drafting of the Rome Statute and the establishment of the International Criminal Court
1. Call upon the AU Member States to respect the independence of the ICC and its judicial processes, as well as that of national courts

2. Call on the AU to conclude a cooperation agreement and sign an MOU with the ICC

3. Call upon the AU Commission to facilitate the opening of an ICC liaison office in Addis Ababa

4. Call upon the AU to operationalise the African Human Rights and Justice Court in order to fight impunity in Africa

5. Urge the AU to make a clear distinction between the principle of universal jurisdiction and the ICC

6. Urge the AU Commission to support transitional justice initiatives

7. Call upon African Heads of State and Government to ensure the protection of human rights defenders relating to their work in fighting impunity

8. Call on the AU to urge Member States to cooperate with ICC by enforcing the ICC warrants of arrest

Country specific Recommendations

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
1. Call on the AU to ensure accountability for the heinous human rights violations that are still being committed in DRC

2. Call on the AU to encourage the continuation of President Obasanjo’s mediation efforts with the different parties (LRA, FDLR) and call on the PSC to monitor the process

3. Urges the AU Member States to contribute to the strengthening of the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC)

4. Call on the AU to request for the reinforcement of the mandate of MONUC to protect civilians

5. Call upon the AU to urge the DRC government to enforce the ICC’s warrant of arrest issued against Bosco Ntaganda

Mauritania

1. Call on the AU to strongly condemn any violation of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, notably the freedom of expression and the right to assemble

2. Call on the AU to urge the military junta to ensure that all political opponents currently arbitrarily detained be released immediately

3. Call on the AU to urge for free and fair elections in respect of the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance to which Mauritania is a party

Guinea

1. Call on the AU to urge the Guinean military Junta to respect the independence of the judiciary

2. Call on the AU to urge the Junta to respect the agreed road map towards a civilian government to prepare for free and fair elections

Guinea Bissau

1. Call on the AU to condemn the recent killings of presidential candidates in Guinea Bissau

2. Call on the AU to be fully involved in the resolution of the crisis in the country

Somalia

1. Call on the AU to increase the number of the AMISOM troops and strengthen its logistical capacity as well as its mandate regarding the protection of civilians

2. Call on the AU to enlarge the humanitarian space in order to assist the numerous internally displaced persons (IDPs) and Somali refugees who are living in a very precarious humanitarian condition

3. Call on the AU to enforce the UN Arms Embargo and to impose targeted sanctions against those who are providing arms to the parties in Somalia

4. Call on the AU to condemn the ongoing human rights and humanitarian law violations committed in Somalia by all parties in conflict

Sudan

1. Call on the AU to condemn the recent expulsion of international humanitarian NGOs and the closing down of three independent Sudanese human rights NGOs

2. Call on the AU to ensure that the humanitarian aid gap in Darfur left by the expulsion of the humanitarian aid agencies is filled

3. Call on the AU to ensure that the Sudanese government respects local human rights organisations and allows them to operate in Sudan

4. Call on the AU to condemn the ongoing human rights and humanitarian law violations committed in Darfur by all parties in conflict

Zimbabwe

1. Call on the AU to urge the Government of Zimbabwe to guarantee independence of the Judiciary, respect the rule of law, and guarantee the security of human rights defenders

2. Urge the PSC to monitor the implementation of the Global Political Agreement

Kenya

1. Urge the AU to closely follow up on the implementation of the agreement that lead to the government of national unity

2. Urge the AU to closely monitor developments in preparation of the 2012 elections

3. Call on the AU to support transitional justice mechanisms in Kenya as well as the establishment of the special tribunal with the mandate to prosecute crimes committed during the post-election violence

Adopted in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, June 6th 2009
Signed,

ACORD, Action Aid, Action for Self Reliance (AFSR), African Wide Movement for Children, African Youth Association, Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, Centre for Citizens’ Participation in the African Union, Coalition for the International Criminal Court, Continental Network Farmers Africa, Darfur Consortium, Dialogue Initiative, FAHAMU/AU Monitor, FIDH, Groupe Loutus, International Alert, International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute, Juris Club International, Institute for Democratic Governance, International Refugee Rights Initiatives, Institute for Security Studies, Open Society Initiative East Africa (OSIEA), Organisation for Social Justice in Ethiopia, Partnership Africa Canada, Peace and Development, Peace journey in Africa 2000 Promotion, Plan International, RODI Kenya, Save the Children Alliance, Speak Africa, SOCICO, Solidarity for African Women’s Rights Coalition, Trust Africa, World Federalist Movement- Responsibility to Protect, Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum.

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The Center for Citizens participation in the African Union (CCP-AU) is a platform of CSOs/NGOs aiming to encourage African citizens’ engagement and participation in the African Union.

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