Theme: Popular Participation in the African Union  

1. Introduction

The 2^ndSummit of the African Civil Society, slated for Yaounde from February 5 – 7 2001, is in line with the desire and commitment of African civil society organizations to affirm and manifest themselves as efficient partners of states and governments through complementary actions and summits to those undertaken by states and governments. This summit is also a continuation of efforts made by these organizations to organize and register the African civil society within the general framework of the Global Civil Society Forum retained by the UN during the NGO Millennium Forum held in New York from May 22 – 26, 2000. More specifically, this 2^nd summit is a logical follow-up of dispositions taken by the 1^st Civil Society Summit on panafrican renaissance held in Dakar and in the Island of Gorée(Gorée 2000) from August 21 to 25, 2000. In deed, one of the main resolutions of the 1^st Summit is to organize a 2^nd summit in Yaounde in 2001, with a double view to put in place a veritable organization representative of the African Civil Society(ACSO), and to help in the effective creation of the Economic, Social and Cultural Council of the African Union, which has been confided to the African civil society.

 

2. Objectives

1. Adopt a final draft protocol instituting the Economic, Social and Cultural Council of the African Union. This Council, created by Article 22 of the Constitutive Act of the African Union, is the consultative organ of the Union confided to the civil society. A preliminary draft of this protocol was elaborated by the Cameroonian civil society last August. Once the draft protocol is adopted, the Executive Bureau of ACSO will be responsible for submitting and following it up within the decision making process of the forth coming OAU summit.
2. Formally and representatively establish an African Civil Society Organization(ACSO). An ACSO Steering Committee(ACSO/SC) was created in January 2000 in Yaounde to prepare the Constitutive Assembly of this continental organization. It has elaborated a draft constitution of ACSO which is presently available in French and English on the web site.
3. Adopt practical orientations for the implementation of common projects of member organizations. One of the duties assigned to the Steering Committee was to propose common projects to future members. It has proposed two: the OAU Volunteers Corps(OAU.VC) and the New Opportunities for African Development (NEDA). These projects will be open to the participation of member organizations wishing to do so.
These two big projects will also reinforce the efforts of states and governments of all African countries in the various domains concerned.
4. Adopt a strategy for the promotion of common financial resources, in order to reinforce the capacities of the African civil society organizations, particularly as far as basic self financing is concerned. Basic self financing here refers to the minimum recurring annual financial resource that should enable an African civil society organization to carry out its specific functions.

3. Participation

Participants will be leaders of representative or influential civil society organizations in the majority of African countries. The ideal would be that 40 to 45 countries be represented. In any case, as many as possible national, regional and continental organizations will be invited with the prospect of having about 80 to 90 delegates sent by these organizations to the summit. UN organizations which have a support program for the civil society will equally be invited. It will be same for certain organizations of bilateral and multilateral cooperation. Organizations of the African Diaspora, which take a keen interest in the development of the continent, will also be invited. 4. Financing Considering the interest that this 2^nd Summit represents for African civil society organizations, those invited have to look for the necessary funding to sponsor their delegates. Notwithstanding, the Organizing Committee is looking for funds to finance general costs of organization and a maximum of 80% of participation costs(air tickets, lodging) of delegates of some organizations which shall not have got all the necessary funding. In principle no delegate will receive 100% financial assistance from the Organizing Committee. The idea is to get some minimum financial participation from all organizations that will send delegates to the 2^nd Summit. The priority of financial assistance will be given to delegates whose partial sponsorship has been assured by their respective organizations. The order of priority will depend on the reception of letters announcing partial self financing, i.e. first come first served.

5. Draft program

6. Information

Important information as well as essential documents on the 2^nd Summit of the African Civil Society are already available on the following web site: http://www.wagne.net/panaref. For more information, please contact Professor Maurice TADADJEU, Chairman of the Organizing Committee, at the above address.