1. The pan-African opportunity: AfCFTA and Africa’s economic integration

• African and EU Businesses call upon the AU and EU Commissions to design programme aimed at promoting joint venture between African and EU businesses to transform African resources for continental consumption and exports. This would also include the development of an enabling environment, such as fast-tracking the conclusion of the AfCFTA Investment Protocol.
• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and AU Member States to direct the AU and EU Commissions to design and implement robust programmes to strengthen the capacity of all the relevant institutions, in particular national,regional and continental levels private sector organizations, as well as in the education sector, involved in implementing recommendations emanating from the EABF.

1. Integrating EU and Africa value chains

• African and EU Businesses agree to work together to reverse the current composition of trade between the EU and Africa and ensure that more the value addition takes place in Africa, including through joint ventures and partnerships.
• African and EU Businesses call upon the AU and EU Commissions to identify and implement relevant business support programmes to ensure that and increasing number of final products originating from Africa access the EU market.
• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and AU Member States to direct the AU and EU Commissions to design a Global fund/Trust fund to finance, investment and overall development in Africa through low interest loans. The fund will be opened to contribution from the EU and AU Financial Institutions, African Diaspora as well other partners.
• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and the AU Commissions to supporting businesses capacity to implement and comply with the African Commodities strategy and the African Mining Vision, including identify priority recommendations for implementation in the two policy documents.
• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and AU Member States to direct the AU and EU Commissions to identify and develop for consideration by the EU-AU Summit of a scheme aimed at facilitating mobility of business travelers, as well as professionals and students.

1. Financing Africa’s sustainable growth

• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and AU Member States to direct the AU and EU Commissions to design a Global fund/Trust fund to finance, investment and overall development in Africa through low interest loans. The fund will be opened to contribution from the African Diaspora as well other partners. The fund could help fund joint venture and partnerships between EU and African businesses in several areas, such as infrastructure, skills and capacity development, education, manufacturing, research and development…

1. Sustainable Infrastructure & strategic corridors

• African and EU Businesses call upon the AU and EU Commissions to design an infrastructure initiative like the BRI for consideration by the EU-AU Summit, that will help build or upgrade the infrastructure within Africa as well as link Europe and Africa.

1. Renewable & Clean Energy

• African and EU Businesses note that the development of natural gas is still a priority for Africa as it is seen as clean fuel; and call upon EU and AU Member States to support Africa’s capacity to produce green hydrogen.

1. Sustainable Agri-food Systems

• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and AU Member States working withthe AU and the EU Commissions and relevant AU and EU Business organizations to promote public-private partnership and sustainable investment in the Agriculture sector.
• EU and African businesses agree on the need to work towards sustainable value addition in agricultural resources to ensure that transformation takes place in Africa.

1. Automotive & Sustainable Mobility

• African and EU Businesses call upon the AU and EU Commission and other key stakeholders, to design programmes to support the implementation of actions identified in an MoU between the African Association of Automotive Manufacturers (AAAM) and the German Automotive Industry (VDA).

1. Healthcare & Pharmaceutical Systems

• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and AU Member States to strengthen Africa’s capacity to respond to pandemic such as the COVID-19 pandemic, including the capacity to produce its own equipment and vaccine. This would include addressing the issue of rigid IPRs regime; increasing funding in R&D; enhancing Africa’s capacity to take part in all the components of the value chains, strengthening the capacity of the Africa CDC.
• African Businesses call upon AU Member States to increase public investment in healthcare from the current 1% GDP spending to a much higher threshold; promote and support PPP and investment in the healthcare system; and urge the EU to support Africa in this endeavor.

1. Ethical Fashion & Apparel Industries

• African and EU Businesses underscore the need for greening the ethical fashion and apparel industry.
• African and EU Businesses call upon the EU and AU Member States to support the development of textile regional hubs across Africa.

1. Sustainable Raw Materials

• African and EU Businesses agree on the need to move towards sustainable value addition in mineral, energy and agricultural resources to ensure that transformation takes place in Africa.
• African and EU Businesses agree to play their part in the implementation and domestication of the African Commodities strategy and the African Mining Vision Instruments especially the African Minerals and Energy Resources Classification and Management Framework and Pan African Reporting Code (AMREC-PARC) and to ensure that these instruments become the main frameworks for projects taking place in Africa.

1. Youth & Entrepreneurship

• African Young Entrepreneurs and SMEs call upon the AU and EU Commissions to work with Member States toward establishing/strengthen Regional Business Development Centers and business incubators.
• African Young Entrepreneurs and SMEs call upon the AU and EU Commissions to work with their member States to set a percentage of government procurements, which should be reserved for businesses owned by the Youth and SMEs.
• African Young Entrepreneurs and SMEs underscore the need for an EU-Africa SMEs database and call upon the AU and EU Commissions to establish such a database to facilitate matchmaking.
• African Young Entrepreneurs and SMEs call upon EU and AU Member States to an SMEs Development Fund for African and EU SMEs doing business in Africa. This could be part of the Global Fund for Investment in Africa.

1. Digital Innovation for Job Creation & Sustainability

• African and EU Business call upon EU and AU Member States to promote PPP and increase public investment in cross-border digital infrastructure and services including smart finance enabled by emerging technologies and big data analytics  as well as Interoperable payment system in line with Agenda 2063 and the AfCFTA.
• African Businesses urges Africa and the EU to promote and advocate for a balanced IPRs regime that incorporatesthe flexibilities needed to facilitate development in Africa.
• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and AU Member States to establish a Global Fund for investment that will contribute towards digital capacity building, regional research and innovation centers, and support the development of cloud computing with open-source applications as a service to the business community.
• The fund will also finance large-scale investment for laptop and smartphone manufacturing facilities in Africa and Europe in a twinning arrangement to be operational by 2025 with the target to distribute 20 million devices a year to bridge the digital divide; bridging the digital infrastructure gaps in Africa to achieve universal connectivity by 2030.  

1. Additional Recommendations

• African and EU Business urge the AU and EU to work with their member States to address the issue of mobility of business travelers and professionals.
• African and EU Business Organizations agree to work together to promote and implement social dialogue and social protection, to ensure inclusive, sustainable and socially responsible practices.
• African and EU Businesses call upon EU and AU Member States to direct the AU and EU Commissions to design a Global fund/Trust fund to finance, investment and overall development in Africa through low interest loans. The fund will be opened to contribution from the African Diaspora as well other partners. The fund could help fund joint venture and partnerships between EU and African businesses in all the thematics covered in the Business Declaration.