EU plans annual Pacific talks to improve political dialogue
The 12 Pacific members of the group of African, Caribbean and Pacific nations which receive aid support from the
European Union are to receive annual development funding of around half a billion euros for the years 2008 through to
2013.
Speaking from the ACP-EU ministers meeting in Port Moresby, the European Commission’s director general of development,
Stefano Manservisi, says a key aspect of their new Pacific strategy will be to strengthen political dialogue between the
EU and the region.
He says greater dialogue at the political level, through likely annual ministerial level meetings, is necessary because
development cannot be treated simply as a technical issue.
“Just if we look at the Pacific as area, let us say, where big public goods, international public goods, like for
example biodiversity in the sea, forestry, and so on, you can easily understand that political dialogue means to talk
about all the common issues for Europe and the Pacific.”