EU-Africa Ministerial Meeting

The first Africa-Europe Ministerial Meeting, established as part of the mechanism to drive and monitor the implementation of the Cairo Action Plan, took place in Brussels on 11 October 2001. This Ministerial Meeting reaffirmed the commitment of the Heads of State and Government to work towards a new strategic dimension of the overall partnership between Africa and Europe. They viewed this meeting as a step towards the Lisbon Summit in the first half of 2003. The Ministers emphasized the significant alignment of views on conflict prevention, including landmines, regional integration and cooperation, and the integration of desertification. All Ministers welcomed the transformation of the Organization of African Unity into the African Union as progress in Africa’s political and economic integration. The Ministers also expressed their satisfaction with the new African initiative as a partnership program that should form one of the foundations for future cooperation between Europe and Africa.