(PRESS RELEASE)- The Samoa Agreement – a testament to the enduring Partnership Arrangement between the European Union (EU) and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS).

On 15 November 2023 the European Union (EU) and its Member States, and the 79 Member States of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) will sign the partnership agreement that will both govern and forge strengthened relations between the OACPS and EU, for the next twenty years.

The partnership, which unites 106 countries and some 1.5 billion people, will be called the Samoa Agreement.

It succeeds the Cotonou Agreement and other ACP-EU partnership agreements that have been signed since the first Lomé Convention of 1975.

The historical signing ceremony to be held on 15 November 2023 in Apia Samoa is the first of such comprehensive partnership agreements between the OACPS and EU to be signed in the Pacific.

Negotiations for the new partnership agreement started in 2018, with the agreed text being initialed in April 2021 by the Chief Negotiators – the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Togo for the OACPS, and the European Commissioner for International Partnerships for the EU.

Samoa’s bid to host the signing ceremony was approved by the OACPS Council of Ministers in 2019 and further endorsed by OACPS Heads of State and Government at their 10th Summit held in Luanda, Angola in December 2022.

The delay in setting the date for the signing of the agreement was predicated on receiving the final Decision by the EU Council.

The Samoa Agreement aims to strengthen cooperation between the EU and her Member States and the Member States and Regions of the OACPS, and highlights key priorities for partnership, including human rights, democracy and governance, peace and security, human and social development, inclusive sustainable economic growth and development, environmental sustainability and climate change, migration and mobility. It has a common foundation and three regional protocols, which aim to focus on the specific needs of Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific regions.

Apart from hosting the signing of the Samoa Agreement, Samoa will also host a Special Session of the OACPS Council of Ministers and a Session of the Joint ACP-EU Council of Ministers on 14 and 15 November, 2023.

The Government and people of the Independent State of Samoa look forward to welcoming the Parties to the Samoa Agreement from Africa, the Caribbean, Europe and the Pacific.

An anticipated 500 plus delegates will be in Apia for the signing to be held at the National Multipurpose Gymnasium at Tuanaimato.

Hon Fiame Naomi Mataafa, Prime Minister of Samoa confirms that the gathering in Samoa in mid-November 2023 provides yet another opportunity for the Blue Pacific to expose partners and the international community to the Pacific Way and lived realities. It will also allow for focused discussions, to ensure effective implementation of the Samoa Agreement, which reinforces an already longstanding partnership between the EU and OACPS.

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS & TRADE – 24th October 2023

November 6, 2023