AU-EU Summit: Catholic Church Calls for Equitable Africa-Europe Partnership Away from “extractivism”

The race for critical raw materials (CRM) continues to place African countries at the least favourable position in their relationship with European countries, various Catholic entities in Africa and beyond have said. [Credit photo: African Union/SECAM – ACI Africa]

In their message ahead of the planned summit that is to bring together representatives from the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU) in Angola from November 24-25, members of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) join other Catholic entities in calling for an “equitable” Africa-Europe partnership that shifts away from Africa’s unending commodity dependence.

They particularly decry the existing “extractivism”, a term referring to the large-scale extraction of minerals for export with minimal processing in the place of origin, in this situation, Africa.

In their Monday, November 10 statement, also signed by the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE), CIDSE (Coopération internationale pour le développement et la solidarité), ahead of the 7th AU-EU summit, the Catholic Church leaders see the summit as “an opportunity to work together on the building blocks of an equitable partnership between the two regions.”

“Speaking from the direct experiences of our communities and people we serve, among them those experiencing poverty and hunger, farmers, fisherfolk, pastoralists, Indigenous Peoples, women and youth, we take this occasion to advocate for a fair and responsible AU-EU partnership,” the Church leaders say in the statement also signed by Caritas Africa, Caritas Middle East and North Africa, and Caritas Europa.

They add, “We reaffirm our commitment to social, environmental and global justice, while denouncing false climate solutions, a development model based on extractivism and the commodification of nature.”

The Church leaders urge the leaders who are set to gather in Luanda to place the dignity of the African peoples at the heart of AU-EU relations.

Equitable partnership between the two regions, they say, requires decisive choices across various fields.

“We recognise the efforts of many EU initiatives to help advance human development. At the same time, however, as we witness that several of these initiatives seem to replicate extractive patterns of the past, we share our concerns regarding the EU’s increased focus on its geopolitical and economic interests, at the expense of justice and solidarity with African people, of their needs and of their aspirations,” they say.

They maintain that the culture of extractivism cannot lead to a true partnership, and can also not address existing imbalances between Africa and Europe.

In their statement, the Catholic Bishops in Africa alongside other Church entities address challenges in the Africa-Europe partnership, including in the areas of energy and climate partnerships, as well as in food systems and debt.

They further offer perspectives on how joint action on areas of the partnership may better serve the objective of integral human development. 

Proposing a move from “extractivist energy deals” to fair partnerships and democratic energy systems, the Catholic Church leaders lament that the race for critical raw materials is devastating territories, sacrificing communities, and it risks reinforcing historical patterns of extractivism.

The race, they say, is taking place within systems that put profit above people and that treat land, water, and minerals as commodities for foreign profit rather than as common goods to be stewarded with care and for the benefit of all.

The Church leaders maintain that African countries are seeking to break with historic patterns of extraction and commodity dependence, to keep more of the processing of their own resources on their soil and to unlock more domestic value addition.

Such a move, they say, requires a different industrial partnership between European and African countries, in which Europe does not turn to an overly protectionist “Europe first” approach.

“European policymakers must recognise that the EU’s own supply chain security agenda cannot be achieved through domestic processing alone, and that true partnership with African countries can only be built if it is aligned with Africa’s value addition ambitions,” they say.

“To be better partners, the EU and European governments must translate the EU’s declared support for local value addition in African countries into tangible action,” the Church leaders say.

In their statement, the Catholic Church leaders also propose a move from excessive consumption to what they describe as “joyful sobriety” in regards to the social and environmental pressure on resource-rich countries in Africa.

According to the Church leaders, recent EU energy and climate partnerships with African countries have been designed based on minerals demand predictions that assume a significant increase in energy consumption in Europe.

They say that the partnerships lack serious efforts to address excessive consumption in Europe, which “would be essential to reduce the social and environmental pressure on resource-rich countries and to care for our common home.”

“Europeans must recognise that, past a certain level, greater material consumption is not linked with an improvement in wellbeing, and that they can no longer sustain an economic model that exploits people and resources without limit,” the Church leaders say, and add, “The AU-EU partnership must be based on the recognition of the ecological limits of the planet and place care for life in all its forms at its centre.”

They urge European leaders to adopt policies aimed at demand production and consumption reduction, which they say would lower the EU’s over-reliance on imported energy and prevent further social and environmental impacts on African territories.

The Church leaders also appeal for movement from debt trap to debt justice, noting that the current debt crisis “is the worst in history, affecting over 40 African countries.”

Their statement is a unique call for an Africa-Europe partnership that brings justice for the African people.

They envision a summit that offers reparations for historical injustices and exploitation inflicted on the African continent.

“Europeans must acknowledge the root causes of present issues, and that the legacy of colonialism and slavery continues to shape struggles of extractive economies and debt crises,” the Catholic entities say in their joint call.

They add, “Concrete steps from the EU’s side regarding local value-addition, democratic energy systems, promoting agroecological principles and practices, as well as debt resolution, are all key to address the root causes of poverty and inequality in Africa.”

“This is how European leaders can pave the way for a forward-looking relationship with African countries. This is how the AU-EU partnership can be at the service of life,” the Church leaders say.

Agnes Aineah – ACI Africa