25 YEARS OF STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP IN TURBULENT TIMES - Africa-Europe relations and the Austrian Africa Strategy

Geert Laporte, Miriam Mukalazi, Robert Zischg, Philomena Apiko, Georg Krenn, Jamie Just, Stephan Scholz

25 YEARS OF STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP IN TURBULENT TIMESAfrica-Europe relations and the Austrian Africa Strategy

Twenty-five years have passed since the establishment of the EU–Africa Partnership at the first summit in Cairo, and seventeen years since the adoption of the historic Joint Africa–Europe Strategy in Lisbon in 2007, whose preamble says “Africa and Europe are bound together by history, culture, geography and a common future, as well as by a community of values – respect for human rights, freedom, equality, solidarity, justice, the rule of law and democracy.”

Since then, the partnership has faced many tensions around diverging priorities like migration policies, vaccine distribution among others. The Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Israel–Hamas war have further exposed geopolitical rifts, and Brexit and the decline of French influence in West Africa have weakened Europe’s traditional position on the continent and African scholars and policymakers continue to question the notion of a “partnership of equals” as long as power asymmetries, colonial legacies and the full historical context remain insufficiently addressed.

Today, Europe is challenged to engage as a genuine partner with a more self-confident Africa — an Africa that increasingly pursues its own interests and has strategic alternatives with China, India, Russia, or the Gulf states, in view of the new geopolitical and economic realities, the EU has a renewed interest to reach out to Africa with its emerging markets, trading and investment opportunities. According to EU President Antonio Costa, the 7th AU–EU Summit, held in Luanda on November 24–25 was set “strengthen cooperation in key areas such as economic integration, trade and investment, green transition, digitalization, migration, peace and security, multilateralism, and human development”.

The Austrian Foreign Minister Meinl-Reisinger also emphasized that Africa is a continent of opportunity, marked by enormous economic potential and a dynamic young population and the new Austrian Africa Strategy, recently announced by the Austrian government, shall follow similar priorities.

The event shall analyze the major achievements, potentials and challenges of the current AU – EU partnership, discuss the main results of the summit in Luanda from different point of views and explore how the priorities and modalities of the upcoming Austrian Africa Strategy could contribute to embolden a renewed partnership among equals.

Moderator
Miriam Mukalazi, Africa Policy Programme, VIDC

Key note
Geert Laporte, Senior Associate of ECDPM, former Director of the European Think Tanks GroupAU-EU Summits-25 years of strategic partnership in turbulent times: What are the majors achievements, potentials and challenges of the current AU – EU partnership?

Discussants
Robert Zischg, Head of Department for Sub-Sahara Africa and the African Union, Austrian Federal Ministry for European and Internationals Affairs

Philomena Apiko, Policy Analyst on AU-EU relations, ECPDM

Jaimie Just, African European Civil Society Engagement Platform (CSEP/Concord)

Georg Krenn, Austrian Commercial Counsellor & Head of ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA Cairo

Stefan Scholz, design. Head of Department for Sub-Sahara Africa and the African Union, Austrian Federal Ministry for European and Internationals Affairs

In cooperation with the ⁠Vienna Institute for International Dialogue and Cooperation (VIDC)⁠