Margallo Calls Sub-Saharan African Ambassadors Representatives of Spain’s “Global Policy” in the Region

Spanish Translation of the Week

José Manuel García-Margallo, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, hosted a working lunch today for Sub-Saharan African ambassadors where he highlighted the "global policy" that was "designed" in Spain and is "intended to be permanent" in the region.

According to a Ministry statement, an "example" of this policy is Spain's "extensive diplomatic and consular" network, "one of the largest of all E.U. member countries." Spain has opened six new embassies in the last few years, including "Casa Africa," an "instrument of public diplomacy to promote mutual understanding."

"El ministro de Asuntos Exteriores y Cooperación, José Manuel García-Margallo, ha ofrecido hoy un almuerzo de trabajo a los embajadores de los países de África subsahariana acreditados en España en el que ha puesto de relieve la "política global" que ha "diseñado" España en la zona "con vocación de permanencia".

Según ha destacado Exteriores en un comunicado, un "ejemplo" de esta política es "la extensa red diplomática y consular" de España, "una de las mayores de los países miembros de la Unión Europea". España ha abierto seis nuevas representaciones en los últimos años y cuenta también con Casa Africa, "instrumento de diplomacia pública para fomentar el conocimiento recíproco."

This article has been translated from Spanish. Click here to read the original version on El Diario.es

The statement also pointed to the "growing" level of travel and tourism, which shows "shared determination producing a climate of growing confidence" between Spain and Sub-Saharan Africa.

At the lunch, the statement said, Spanish participants focused on increasing trade and the presence of Spanish companies in Sub-Saharan Africa. Businesses, they added, want to contribute to development in the region, focusing on critical sectors in which they are leaders — such as infrastructure development, energy, water treatment, urban planning, ironworks, and agribusiness.

The government feels that "the stability of many African countries and the significant growth of the continent in recent years" will make the region "much more attractive" for Spanish businesses.

The minister and the ambassadors also examined the status of efforts towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals in Sub-Saharan Africa, and stressed Spain's "great compromise" on multilateral participation through the United Nations and regional organizations (of particular priority for Spanish cooperation), particularly the African Union and ECOWAS.

Furthermore, they discussed new forms of development aid, "taking into account the budgetary restrictions or most donor countries."

On the other hand, they emphasized the importance of humanitarian and peacekeeping operations on the continent, particularly on the Horn of Africa. Spain is an active participant in EU missions like Atalanta and EUTM Mali, as well as in promoting conflict prevention initiatives such as the Mediation Initiative and the Algerian Water Strategy.

At the lunch, many topics recently in the news were addressed, including the situation in Mali, the Sahel, the Horn of Africa, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Special emphasis was placed on the importance of security and development as objectives in resolving existing conflicts: "with deep respect and appreciation for the challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa, the solutions to these problems will come from Africans themselves."

Spain also explained its objectives for its candidacy for a seat on the U.N. Security Council in 2015-16 and demonstrated its determination to create dialogue with African leaders to create peace and stability on the continent.

Article translated by Joshua Lacey, Staff Intern for the African Program at the Wilson Center

Photo attributed to Casa de América, on Flickr Commons