Washington, DC — The "National Policy Plan of Action for U.S. Africa Relations in the 21st Century," being discussed and debated by delegates at the National Summit on Africa, will "ultimately be the key to opening a new partnership and establishing new approaches in the conduct of U.S.-Africa relations," the acting dean of the African diplomatic corps here in Washington, D.C. has told the Summit leadership.
The National Summit working document, while "fine," wrote Ethiopian Ambassador Berhane Gebre-Christos, to Summit CEO Leonard H. Robinson, Jr. just before the start of the Summit, lacks an important element. To "enhance the overall integrity and credibility of the document and ensure it enjoys wide acceptance," Gebre-Christos said, it needs to reflect the concerns of the African Ambassadors Group Of particular interest to ambassadors are sections III-VII. These address trade and investment issues, democracy and human rights, peace and security, education and culture. Among the group's recommendations are: facilitation of the process by which African students get visas to study in the United States, assistance to Africa in fighting terrorism, and increased support for the International Ad Hoc Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. The Africa group asks that there be no specific reference to countries by name in the Democracy and Human Rights section of the final plan of action. "In some cases there are countries that feel very strongly about certain languages and characterizations in the working document," wrote Ambassador Gebre- Christos.
A key item on the Africa group's agenda is passage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The measure has been stalled in Congress awaiting reconciliation of House and Senate versions. Although the Clinton administration has called on Summit participants to press Congress for action, rallying support from Summit delegates has been slowed by wrangles over a variety of issues.
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Some delegates think too much is being given up or ignored to get a bill passed. "They think if they don't get this bill they won't get anything at all," said one participant in the Summit's Economic Development, Trade and Investment and Job Creation deliberation, where many of the relevant issues are being discussed.
While hailing strong bipartisan support for the bill as "a promising sign" of likely passage by this spring, Gebre-Christos's letter also registered concern about the measure's scope and depth. HIV/AIDS, debt relief, and labor and environmental standards, currently linked to the AGOA in the working document, are "very valid and important," the group said, but "it is our view that these issues merit their own specific legislative initiatives after AGOA has been enacted." And though the AGOA emphasizes trade and investment over assistance, aid is still needed the ambassadors wrote. They urge inclusion of an explicit sentence: "The need and importance of continued aid cannot be overemphasized." ?
