Towards a greater effectiveness and alignment with the priorities of Southern Mediterranean partners through strategic coordination activities
Launch event of the South Programme II, 10 April 2015, Strasbourg
In line with the European Consensus on Development, the Paris Declaration, and the Accra Agenda for Action and the Busan Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation, consultations have been carried out between the Council of Europe and other international organisations and bilateral donors, aiming at complementarity of actions and preventing fragmentation and overlapping of efforts.
Strategic coordination activities have been organised with the European Union, as the main partner who is funding the South Programme. Regular meetings between the two organisations are organised at the very high level, as are also the day-to-day coordination activities at the operational level, to increase the impact of the Council of Europe action on the ground. This includes coordination at the Council of Europe level, since the South Programme II implementation involves different Council of Europe instances, and ensuring that different Council of Europe actions are conducive to the achievement of the Programme's objectives.
The coordination team of South Programme II is based at the Council of Europe headquarters in Strasbourg. The effectiveness of development cooperation activities of the Programme has been greatly facilitated with the establishment of the Council of Europe offices in Rabat and Tunis. They have played a critical role in the planning, implementation, follow-up of activities, and assisting partner countries to take ownership of the Programme and align it with their national reform agenda.
To keep the momentum going, the Council of Europe is planning to reinforce its field presence by opening in the near future a field office in Jordan, the third country with which the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers agreed to engage into deeper bilateral cooperation.
The Council of Europe takes into account other donors' interventions in the areas covered by the South Programme, in particular concerning project implemented by the European Union. The Organisation participates regularly in the coordination meetings with the World Bank in the framework of anti-corruption missions, with the International Organisation for Migrations with respect to the fight against trafficking in human beings or with other UN Agencies relevant to the Programme's themes.
Further donor coordination is ensured from headquarters in Strasbourg also through the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers and in particular its Rapporteur Group on External Relations (GR-EXT), which allows for exchanges with other Council of Europe member states, including coordination issues.
Launch event, South Programme II, 10 April 2015 Operational Conclusions
First Bilateral Steering Committee with Tunisia, 26 November 2015, Operational Conclusions (French only)
First Bilateral Steering Committee with Morocco, 30 November 2015, Operational Conclusions (French only)
Council of Europe
CoE and the Southern Neighbourhood
Office of the Directorate General of Programmes