Brussels, 14 January 2022/OACPS: The 113th Session of the Council of Ministers of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) was held on 30 November to 2 December 2021. The Session was chaired by the Hon. Mr. Tete António, External Relations Minister, Angola and President-in-Office of the OACPS Council of Ministers.

At the meeting, the ministers and their representatives approved twelve decisions and three resolutions.

Brussels, 13 January 2022/OACPS: The Secretary-General, H.E. Mr. Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti, has learnt with deep sadness of the passing of the incumbent President of the European Parliament Mr David Sassoli, on Tuesday, 11 January 2022.

A leader of one of the key EU institutions, Mr Sassoli steadfastly defended and promoted democratic ideals. Through this, he inspired the work of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.

Brussels, 17 December 2021/OACPS: Key policy recommendations were submitted to the Mauritanian government for developing a strategy to make research and innovation (R&I) a vector for sustainable development. They result from the OACPS R&I Policy Support Facility (PSF) service, requested by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, through the National Agency for Scientific Research and Innovation.

Brussels, 10 December 2021/OACPS/UNWomen: Today we mark Human Rights Day, as the 2021 UNiTE campaign “Orange the World: End Violence against Women Now! concludes. We reaffirm together, in the face of continuing and even increasing gender-based violence during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the global context of violent conflicts, that women’s rights are human rights.

JOINT STATEMENT OF THE ORGANISATION OF AFRICAN, CARIBBEAN AND PACIFIC STATES (OACPS) AND THE UNITED NATIONS OFFICE ON DRUGS AND CRIME (UNODC), ON THE OCCASION OF INTERNATIONAL ANTI-CORRUPTION DAY 

Brussels, 8 December 2021/OACPS: On 3 December 2021, Ambassador Andri Hadi and Secretary-General Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) between the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Brussels and the Secretariat of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) on Capacity Building Cooperation in the field of Information, Communication and Technology (ICT).

Brussels, 3 December 2021/OACPS: Members of the Council of Ministers of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) concluded three days of intense discussion during their 113^th Session, held virtually from 30 November to 2 December 2021.

H.E. Mr Tete António, External Relations Minister, Angola and President-in-Office of the OACPS Council of Ministers, presided over the meeting, which was preceded by a virtual meeting of the Bureau of the Council of Ministers on 30 December.

Brussels, 30 November 2021/OACPS. Over 400 participants from the Members of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and the Europe Union (EU) gathered to take part in the inaugural ClimSA’21 Forum from 15,16 and 18 November 2021. This fully-virtual event, with the theme of “Connecting suppliers and users of climate information in ACP regions”, was hosted by the Government of the Republic of Kenya.

Brussels, 25 November 2021/OACPS: On the occasion of the annual commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on 25 November each year, H.E. Mr Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti, Secretary-General of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), recalls that violence against women and girls is a violation of human rights that currently knows no borders.

     The Least Developed Countries’ (LDCs) category was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1971 and refers today to 46 countries that are diverse in their economic, social and political structures but which face structural challenges and constraints. These halt their productive capacities and make them particularly vulnerable to external shocks. Macroeconomic instabilities, the volatility of the private sector, the narrow production and export bases hinder trade integration, technological advances and job creation, and inhibit economic self-resilience.