21
Oct
2025
Watch
Renewing the EU-Africa Partnership: building common priorities ahead of the Angola Summit (debate)
Mr President, Africa is a crucial continent for Europe. If you look at Africa today, you will see a continent of growth, of youth, of innovation. This is the first pillar on which this cooperation must be based: enhanced cooperation on Erasmus+. The second pillar is that of peace and security, and we reiterate here our previous resolutions that Europe must play a role in ending that war between Rwanda and Congo. At the same time, Africa is also an important partner in the fight against irregular migration. Together, we can address these root causes beyond symptom control. And the third pillar, as the Commissioner has said, is that of prosperity: the Global Gateway, working together around energy, around our ports, around rare earths. We must realise that Africa is as important to Europe today as China or America. That we are going to need Africa very badly to get our energy prices down, to get rid of our dependence on Russian and Chinese earth metals. Europe has had several phases in its cooperation with Africa. The first was that colonial phase in which Europe enslaved and the second was the era of development cooperation in which we always waved that finger. Today we must move towards that third era in which Europe and Africa become partners with mutual respect, mutual interests and mutual strengths. Time for a renewed partnership.