On September 7, 2003, Kawa Hassan, Nonresident Fellow, MENA Program gave a presentation at the event of Wilfred Martens Centre for European Studies entitled “Rethink the Periphery: European Policy Towards Northern Africa”.
As the EU prepares itself for the next Parliamentary elections scheduled for 6-9 June 2024, it is high time for a critical discussion and devising a new, forward-looking strategy that benefits both shores of the Mediterranean.
Despite good intentions, previous and current cooperation frameworks including Barcelona Process, Union for the Mediterranean and ENP have not worked, they don’t reflect the rapidly and radically changing geopolitical landscape. There is a consensus among experts that they have been designed by and for the EU- the policy knowledge on North Africa is EU-centric.
The EU suffers from political sterility- it lacks inspiring, visionary, imaginative leadership. The EU needs a new, positive, visionary narrative towards North Africa.
Some policy ideas:
– Appreciate the complexity of the ongoing transitions and transformations in North Africa. The uprisings of 2010-2011 are only 12 years old! In the grand, historic scheme of things, this is a very short time!
– Engage in a sincere and meaningful dialogue and knowledge exchange with regional activists and experts, include their perspectives and ideas in the new EU North Africa strategy.
– Initiate a major scale up of the Erasmus programme similar to the current programme with Eastern European countries.
– Developments in the Sahel have an impact on North Africa. The neighborhood of the Southern Neighborhood of the EU is undergoing major changes. Align the Sahel strategy and North Africa strategy.
– Explore feasibility of new cooperation frameworks that bring together Sahel, Southern Mediterranean and new players such as Gulf countries.