AFRICAN FORUM FOR ENVISIONING AFRICA:
"FOCUS ON NEPAD"
International Conference
Date: April 26-29
Venue: Safari Park; Nairobi, Kenya
Organised in co-operation with the Mazingira Institute and the African
Academy of Sciences
The New Partnership for Africa's
Development (NEPAD), Africa's plan to meet the development challenges
of the future, is to be "prepared through participatory processes involving
the people." However, until now, it remains unknown to a majority of the
African peoples, is barely understood by African development agents, including
those in African governments. Yet it is to define Africa's development
path for the 21st century.
In April 2002, the Heinrich Boell Foundation, together with the Mazingira
Institute and the African academy of Sciences, held its African Forum
for Envisoning Africa: Focus on NEPAD
to cricically examine NEPAD and its underlying principles. More than 50
African scholars attended the conference.
The Forum concluded that NEPAD follows the same neoliberal principles
that are under heavy criticism by Civil Society world wide and responsible
for increasing gaps between rich and poor and result in economic desasters
such as the recent clashes in Argentina. In spite of the recognition of
the central role of the African people, civil society has not played any
role in the conception, design and formulation of NEPAD. Furthermore,
NEPAD adopts social and economic measures that contribute to the marginalisation
of women; NEPAD does not question the global economic system that, in
civil society's views, plays a major role in Africa's continued marginalisation.
It was concluded that NEPAD may rather be a continuation of the highly
questionable Structural Adjustment Programmes, now including privatisation
of public services such as water and electricity supply or health services.
The conference was convened as a follow-up to the first African Scholar's
Forum held in September 2001, entitled "Sustainable
Development, Governance and Globalization: An African Forum for Strategic
Thinking and Action towards the Earth Summit 2002 and Beyond".
The papers presented at the forum are for download here.
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