What: Global Africa People to People Forum (PPF)
Who: The African Union’s Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC)
When: Thursday, July 28, 2022 2:00 (PM) UTC / 4:00 (PM) CAT / 10:00 (AM) EST
Where: Virtual via Zoom: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_45oPxzFwQU2n8z375Kx4Jg
Speakers:
- Mr William Carew, Head of ECOSOCC Secretariat
- Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Dr. the Hon. Ralph E. Gonsalves
- Ambassador Dorbrene O’Marde, Vice-Chair of the CARICOM Reparations Commission
- Professor Hilary Beckles, Chairman, CARICOM Reparations Commission
- Dr. Chenzira Kahina, Pan African Network
- Mr Khafra Kambon, Emancipation Support Committee, Trinidad and Tobago
- Mr Makmid Kamara, Director, Africa Transitional Justice Legacy Fund
- Dr Fidelia Graand-Galon, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Suriname to the Republic of Ghana, Founder of the Maroon Women Organisation of Suriname
- H.E Amb. Cessouma Minata Samate, Commissioner for Health, Humanitarian Affairs & Social Development (HHS)
- Mr. Terry Bascombe Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Nutritional Security, Barbados
- Dr. Gosnell Yorke, The Dag Hammarskjold Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies, Copper belt University, Kitwe, Zambia
Objectives:
The overall objective of the Global Africa People to People Forum is to foster long-term interaction, partnerships, and solidarity between the people of Africa and the people of the African Diaspora, both at the level of government and civil society. The following specific objectives are envisaged:
- To contribute to the 2022 Pan African Festival Commemorating Emancipation, hosted by the Emancipation Support Committee of Trinidad and Tobago;
- To strengthen the attainment of the AU objectives, particularly the 2022 AU Theme on Food Security, Agro Industry and Nutrition, which will be incorporated as part of the forum’s theme;
- To facilitate multi-sectoral discussions and comprehensive and pragmatic solutions on reparations and the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent (UN-IDPAD);
- To increase visibility AU and ECOSOCC's visibility on a national, continental, and international scale;
- To strengthen and expand civil society engagement in anticipation of the proposed AU-CARICOM Summit, which is scheduled to take place annually on September 7th (African-Caribbean Day), as an implementation of the decisions made at the first AU-CARICOM Summit, which took place on September 7th, 2021.
Background:
In September 2020, ECOSOCC and the Caribbean Pan African Network (CPAN) identified several areas for collaboration. Among these was the need to convene a ‘People to People Forum’ (PPF) to facilitate sustained communication, interaction, partnerships, and solidarity between Africans and African Diasporas, both at the level of government and civil society.
The Global Africa People to People Forum is being held against the backdrop of the successful inaugural People to People Forum (PPF) in 2021, which enabled the creation of a space for African Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the African Diaspora to review the implementation of the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent (UN-IDPAD) and make recommendations for actions in the remaining years 2022-2024.
The PPF reflects a strong collaboration between ECOSOCC, CPAN, the Emancipation Support Committee of Trinidad and Tobago (ESCTT), and the Africa Transitional Justice Legacy Fund. Furthermore, the theme of the 'Global Africa People to People Forum,' which focuses on increasing diaspora engagement in achieving the goals of the 2022 AU Theme on “Strengthening Resilience in Nutrition and Food Security on the African Continent,” exemplifies the consistency between CARICOM's ongoing development agenda, which prioritises food security and agriculture, and that of the AU.
The media is invited to cover the launch online, on July 28, 2022, at 2:00 (PM) UTC / 4:00 (PM) CAT / 10:00 (AM) EST, via Zoom: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_45oPxzFwQU2n8z375Kx4Jg
