The Sixth European Union-African Union Summit was held from 17th to 18th February 2022.  This summit took place in Brussels, Belgium.

Overview:

The event was scheduled for October 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was postponed.  The summit was co-chaired by Charles Michel, President of the European Council, and Macky Sall, President of Senegal, who was also the Chairperson of the African Union at the time.

A study conducted by the European Union

Representatives from the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU), as well as their member states, attended the event. Despite being Africa’s leading trade partner, the European Union is not seen as a major partner by African countries. This is according to a study which was done by the European Commission, with the United States and China ranking higher.

The organization of the summit was done to address some of these problems, as well as other matters such as African immigration to Europe and the European Union’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A side event was also organized on the importance of collaborative research and development to EU-Africa ties by the AERAP Africa-Europe Science Collaboration Platform.

A series of discussions were organized on

• vaccine production and health systems
• growth financing
• vocational training and culture, education, mobility and migration
• sustainable development and agriculture
• economic integration and private sector support
• security, peace, and governance
• digital and transport connectivity and infrastructure
• energy transition and climate change

By: Brijesh Kumar