During first summit in 2008 in Delhi a “Delhi Declaration” was adopted for enhanced cooperation .
It has been decided to enhance our partnership with new initiatives for the mutual benefit of Africa and India, In recent years, this has included substantial financial flows from India to Africa in terms of grants, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and concessional loans that continue to contribute to capacity building in the socio-economic sectors, particularly in the human resource development, the development of the private sector, increasing support to infrastructure, agriculture and SMEs, leading to a substantial expansion of Indian investment in Africa and of trade between Africa and India.
Climate change
Developed countries have been urged to take steps towards reducing the green house gas effect . Stressing upon the importance of Bali action plan 2007 , the declaration appealed to the developed counties to operationalise all the institutional arrangements included in the Cancun decisions. Futher it showed a firm commitment to a balanced outcome from the climate change negotiations which are commensurate with the principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities on the basis of respective capabilities, in the process of COP17 which will be held in Durban, South Africa.
It took note of the African common position on Climate Change and support efforts towards combating drought and desertification in Africa, as well as support for Africa's Great Green Wall Project.
South-South Cooperation
The declaration affirmed the critical importance of South-South cooperation as an instrument that can effectively supplement existing international efforts and lead to tangible and real benefits for developing countries. It stressed that South-South Cooperation should be a supplement to North-South Cooperation and not a substitute for it.
Economic angle
It acknowledged the G20 process as an important forum for international economic cooperation, and request fair representation of Africa in the evolving architecture of decision-making process in the global economic system.
Further the declaration underlined the importance of supporting stable, long-term capital flows to developing counties to simulate investment, especially in infrastructure. This will help enhance global demand, thus securing the long-term sustainability of the recovery and address developmental imbalances.
UN MDG
The declaration reaffirmed commitment to achieving the MDGs by 2015, including through technical cooperation and financial support. Sustainable development models and unique paths of development in developing counties should be respected, including by guaranteeing the policy space of developing countries. The aid commitments for developing counties must be fulfilled and that development assistance should not be reduced. It urged developed counties to fulfill their obligations of achieving the target of 0.7% GNI as official development assistance (ODA) to developing countries. We also support African economic programmes within the context of Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), and Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).
Doha Rounds
The declaration underscored the importance of balanced and positive out come of DOHA rounds and also stresses upon the need of continued solidarity among developing countries in this regard . It urges all parties to oppose all types of protectionism and trade distorting domestic subsidies.
UN reforms
The declaration called for multilateralism and strengthening the democratic structure of UN so that developing nations can participate more effectively in its decision making processes .The expansion of the UN Security Council, in permanent and non-permanent categories of membership, with increased participation of developing counties in both categories, is central to the process of reform and for enhancing the credibility of the United Nations, Further it stressed upon the need of enhanced cooperation between India and Africa at UN , G-77 and other multilateral for a , to foster common purpose in addressing areas of mutual concern.
Libya
we call for an immediate cessation of all hostilities in Libya and urge the parties in the conflict to strive towards a political solution through peaceful means and dialogue.
Nuclear Weapon
It recognized that the security of all nations would be enhanced by a global, non-discriminatory and verifiable elimination of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. It reaffirmed commitment to the consensus in the Final Document of the Tenth Special Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations on Disarmament, which accorded priority to nuclear disarmament. It also expressed support for an International Convention Prohibiting the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Nuclear Weapons, leading to their destruction. The declaration called for negotiating specific steps to reduce and finally eliminate nuclear weapons, leading to a world free from all weapons of mass destruction as envisaged in the Rajiv Gandhi Action Plan of 1988. It look forward to the commencement of negotiations on the Treaty Banning the Production of Fissile Material for Nuclear Weapons and Other Nuclear Explosive Devices in the Conference on Disarmament.
The declaratioon welcomed the entry into force in July 2009, of the Africa Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone Treaty (the Pelindaba Treaty) of 1995 and the efforts towards the operationalisation of the African Commission on Nuclear Energy (ACNE) in November 2010, which, among others, will promote the peaceful application of nuclear energy and technology within Member States.
Arms and drug Trafficking
It stressed the importance of addressing the threat posed by illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons through full implementation of the UN Programme of Action on SALWs and welcomed the African Union's efforts towards that end.
The declaration pledged to work to eradicate drug trafficking, trafficking in human beings, especially women and children, organized crime and money laundering. In this regard, it called on all States to ratify and implement all relevant International Instruments relating to these crimes.
It has been agreed to add further substance to our Framework of Cooperation and to broaden exchanges to cover all facets of our relationship. In this context, the Africa-India Framework for Enhanced Cooperation to supplement the existing Framework has been adopted. We agree to institutionalize this Summit process. Accordingly, we agree that the next India - Africa Forum Summit will be held in 2014 in India.
Comments
Post a Comment