The Bahá’í International Community’s (BIC) Brussels Office co-hosted a dialogue meeting between Churches, faith-based organisations, policy-makers, economic actors and youth representatives on the topic “Towards a new EU-ACP partnership: Leaving no one behind through sustainable investments & decent jobs?”. The dialogue aimed to examine what it means to have fair, comprehensive and people-centred partnerships, as well as practical ways to implement them.

In partnership with COMECE (Commission of the Bishop’s Conferences of the European Union), CEC (Conference of European Churches), and the Quaker Council of European Affairs, the BIC co-hosted the gathering, the second in a series focused on the EU-ACP (European Union & Africa, Caribbean, Pacific) partnership, following the EU’s recent proposal for a new 'Africa–Europe Alliance for Sustainable Investment and Jobs'. Conversations centered around what the main drivers of a new EU-ACP partnership should be and whether trade and business interests are compatible with local development needs in ACP countries. Among the questions raised were : Who will be the main stakeholders and beneficiaries of an EU-ACP partnership? Which responsibilities and conditions are needed to encourage a transition from a donor-recipient dynamic towards a true, reciprocal partnership? How to empower women, young people and strengthen civil society? What about the most vulnerable actors that are out of the ‘business and employment system’?

In order to address these questions in a practical manner, Mr Pascal Jossi a young entrepreneur, emphasized the importance of adopting an attitude of learning when working in partnership with the local communities, attending to their context and circumstances, and thereby going beyond merely providing financial investments towards creating new socioeconomic dynamics. “This approach,” said Mr. Jossi in his address, “is crucial for business endeavors to have a meaningful impact in communities they are serving.”