Brussels, 21/03/2016 (Agence Europe) - The Dutch foreign affairs minister, Bert Koenders, is to visit West Africa from Thursday 14 to Saturday 16 April in order to step up dialogue on migration with Mali, Senegal and Ghana ahead of implementing the Valletta EU-Africa action plan that was adopted on 12 November 2015 (see EUROPE 11429).
This is a visit that has been assigned to him by High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini in order to build on the commitments jointly undertaken by the EU and Africa to tackle the root causes of illegal migration and to put an end to the tragedy of the migrants who drown in the Mediterranean.
“I'm hopeful that together with Mali, Senegal and Ghana we can take steps to combat people smuggling and tackle the root causes of illegal migration”, Koenders stated in a press release. “We're working hard to put the agreements we've made into practice. Political dialogue with African countries should ensure we quickly reach agreements on practical implementation and tailored support packages for each country”, he added.
The Valletta action plan, which is based on five priorities, contains a commitment from both parties (point 4) to prevent and fight against illegal migration, migrant smuggling and people trafficking. The return, readmission and reintegration of illegal migrants is also a priority (point 5).
The action plan underlines the advantages of migrants in terms of development (point 1) and records the commitment of the EU and Africa to promote legal channels for migration and mobility (point 2). The plan prioritises the obligation to ensure the protection and asylum of migrants in respect of human rights (point 3), and states that concrete steps must be taken for each of these points before the end of the year at the latest (16 in total).
Once Koenders has completed his tour, discussion on this migration dialogue will quickly be continued within the EU Foreign Affairs Council. Migration has already been the subject of an in-depth dialogue as part of the partnership between the ACP (Africa, Caribbean, Pacific) countries and the EU, as stipulated in Article 13 of the Cotonou Agreement, and as part of the strategic partnership between the EU and Africa. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)