Brussels, 18 September 2019: Member States of the Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) signatories of the interim Economic Partnership Agreement held an internal meeting from 20-22 August in Cape Town, South Africa to prepare for the negotiations on the strengthening of the ESA - EU interim Economic Partnership Agreement (EU - iEPA). The group, which consists of Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles and Zimbabwe (ESA – 5) harmonised and coordinated their positions in advance of the first joint negotiations with the EU at technical level which will be held in Mauritius from 3-4 October 2019.

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 26th September, 2019

For a Joint Side Event by the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States, the Alliance of Small Island Developing States (AOSIS), and the European Commission (EC) at the UN Climate Summit on at UN Headquarters in New York, entitled:

ACP Countries leading by example: “Supporting 1.5 to Stay Alive”

On behalf of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States, H.E. Dr Patrick Gomes expressed his condolences to the Government and people of the Republic of Zimbabwe on the passing of H.E. Mr. Robert Gabriel Mugabe, the founding father and former President of the Republic of Zimbabwe.

The President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, H.E. Mr. Emmerson D. Mnangagwa, has accorded Mr. Mugabe Hero status and declared a period of national mourning from 6 September 2019 until the official burial date.

At a special Committee of Ambassadors (CoA) meeting on 5 September 2019, African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) ambassadors paid tribute to outgoing Director-General (DG) of International Cooperation and Development at the European Commission, Mr Stefano Manservisi. The ambassadors warmly reflected on their relationship with the outgoing DG and thanked him for his efforts with respect to their individual countries as well as for his leadership and guidance on the joint agreements brokered between the ACP and EU.

GENEVA, Sept 9, CMC – The Secretary General of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group, Dr. Patrick Gomes Monday called for increased efforts to deal with the impact of climate change noting that the “painful reality” is that its adverse impacts are more severe in the poorest and most vulnerable countries.

Brussels, 09 September 2019: In a wide-ranging interview with the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC), ACP Secretary General, Dr. Patrick I. Gomes opined that the recent visit of Kenya’s President, Uhuru Kenyatta, to the Caribbean could help boost the region’s participation at the December 9-10 ACP Summit to be held in Nairobi, Kenya.

Brussels, 04 September 2019: Dr Pendo Maro, team leader of the Intra-ACP GCCA+ Programme – an initiative of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group funded by the European Development Fund (EDF) – recently chaired a panel discussion on the progress and successes of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in the Caribbean region during the Regional Dialogue on NDCs for Latin America and the Caribbean. The Regional Dialogue was held on 19 to 20 August during the Latin America and Caribbean Climate Week 2019 (LACCW), from 19 to 23 August in Salvador de Bahía, Brazil.

Brussels, 03 September 2019/ACP: The next Brussels Development Briefing n. 57 on “Investing in smallholder agriculture for food security and nutrition” organised by CTA, the European Commission/EuropeAid and the ACP Secretariat will be held on Wednesday 11th September 2019, 9h00-13h00 at the ACP Secretariat, Avenue Georges Henri 451, 1200 Brussels, Room C. The Briefing will discuss smallholder agriculture and its key role in delivering food security/nutrition, and sustainable food systems, as recognised in SDG 2.