PRESENTATION FILE SHAPING THE FUTURE OF AFRICA WITH THE PEOPLE THE - - PDF document

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AFRICITIES 7 JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

29 November to 3 December 2015

PRESENTATION FILE SHAPING THE FUTURE OF AFRICA WITH THE PEOPLE

THE CONTRIBUTION OF AFRICAN LOCAL AUTHORITES TO THE AGENDA 2063 OF THE AFRICAN UNION

Version

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as 10/0 /03/2 /2015

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SUMMARY

PRESENTATION NOTE……………………………………………………………………………… P.

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SESSIONS’ PLANNING………………………………………………………………………………. P.

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SUMMIT ARCHITECTURE………………………………………………………………………… P.

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14 CONCEPT NOTE……………………………………………………………………………………… P.

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AFRICITIES 7 JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

29 November to 3 December 2015

SHAPING THE FUTURE OF AFRICA WITH THE PEOPLES

THE CONTRIBUTION OF AFRICAN LOCAL AUTHORITES TO THE AGENDA 2063 OF THE AFRICAN UNION

PRESENTATION NOTE

Version as 10/03/2015

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SHAPING THE FUTURE OF AFRICA WITH THE PEOPLE

THE CONTRIBUTION OF AFRICAN LOCAL AUTHORITIES TO THE AGENDA 2063 OF THE AFRICAN UNION PRESENTATION NOTE THE

HE THEME OF OF THE AFRICI CITIES 7 SUMMIT

1. 1. The Africities 7 Summit, the seventh edition of the Local Governments Pan-African Days, will be held in Johannes esburg, South th Afri rica, fro rom 29 29 Novem ember to to 3 December er 2015. Its central theme will be: “SHAPI

PING THE FUTURE OF OF AFRICA WITH THE PE PEOPLE: THE HE CONTRIBU BUTION OF OF AFRICAN LOCAL AUTHORITIES TO TO AGENDA 2063 OF OF THE

AFRICAN UNION.” It is an exciting time for Africa, filled with possibility and a renewed sense of self-confidence. This is powerfully captured in the Agenda 2063 – Towards an Africa we Want, which incites everyone to play an active role to see the following vision come to fruition: We aspire that by 2063, Africa shall be a prosperous continent, with the means and resources to drive its own development, and where: African people have a high standard of living, and quality of life, sound health and well-being; Well educated citizens and skills revolution underpinned by science, technology and innovation for a knowledge society; Cities and other settlements are hubs of cultural and economic activities, with modernized infrastructure, and people have access to all the basic necessities of life including shelter, water, sanitation, energy, public transport and ICT; Economies are structurally transformed to create shared growth, decent jobs and economic opportunities for all… (Agenda 2063 - The Africa We Want) Importantly, the vision is rooted in a sober understanding of the lessons of the past, the changing position and role of African in a rapidly changing international system, and how far we need to go still to meet the needs of all our people. It is also incites all of us to identify the strategic opportunities in the short and medium-term to lay down tracks towards this alternative future to ensure a positive socio- economic transformation of Africa within the fifty years ahead. Taking its cue from Agenda 2063, The Africities Summit 7 theme is designed to connect a rigorous understanding of likely future trends with a strategic debate about what needs to be done at the local level, with immediate effect to address the emergency of service delivery, shelter, economic

• pportunities, safe and affordable mobility, and so on.

The Africities Summit, with its seventh edition, has always been a highlight for the gathering of African local authorities. It intends to be the mouthpiece of the 15000 African local governments from all the regions of Africa. The Africities Summit pursues two major objectives:  Define appropriates shared strategies in order to improve the living conditions of the people at the local level.  Contribute to the integration, peace and unity of Africa starting from the grassroots.

5 THE

HE HISTORICAL BA BACK CKGROUND OF OF THE AFRICI CITIES SUMMITS

2. 2. The 7th Africities Summit fits in with the succession of the Africities Summits which were held in the five sub-regions of Africa. Africities 1, in Abidja jan in 1998, had the theme of “Rec ecogniti tion of

• f th

the es essenti tial ro role of

• f local govern

rnments ts in in the dev evelopmen ent of

• f Afri

rica”. This summit witnessed the emergence of the African local authorities movement on the regional and international scene. It offered the opportunity to cut across the official languages inherited from the colonial rule and to build a local African voice on the challenges of decentralization, local development, regional integration and cooperation with Africa. Africities 2, in Windhoek ek, in May 2000, was held on the theme “Funding African local gover ernmen ents ts to to en ensure the susta tainable devel elopmen ent of

• f th

the continen ent”. This summit marked the beginning of the structuring of the African local authorities movement and the Pan-African dialogue on decentralization and local development. It prepared the setting up of an All-Africa Conference on Decentralization and Local Development (AMCOD) with the aim to include decentralization among priorities of the African political agenda; and a Council of Cities and Regions of Africa (CCRA), with a view to building and representing the unified voice of the African local governments. Africities 3, in Ya Yaoundé, in December 2003, has chosen as theme “Spee eeding up up access to to basic serv rvices with thin Afri rican local govern rnments ts”. This summit marked the unification of the African local authorities movement, with the effective setting up of United Cities and Local Governments of Africa, UCLG-A, that replaced CCRA, and the definition of its participation in the world local authorities movement. It placed decentralization and strengthening of local governments in the perspective of improvement of the living conditions of the people, and participation of citizens. Africities 4, in Nairobi, in September 2006, has the subject “Bu Building coaliti tions to to att ttain th the Millen ennium Dev evel elopment Goals with thin Afri rican local govern rnments”. This summit brought together the major stakeholders at the level of local governments so as to enable them to discuss the best way to work together to attain the MDGs within the African local governments. It confirmed the alliance between the African local governments and the institutions of the United Nations system. It mobilized, around the African local governments, the different social movements and citizens in Africa. Africities 5, in Marr rrakec ech, from 01 to 5 December 2009, thought about “The res esponse of

• f Afri

rican local gover ernmen ents ts to to the global cri risis: promoti tion of

• f sustainable local dev

evel elopment and and em employm yment”. This summit helped to build the alliance between African local governments and the economic stakeholders, and mobilize the economic stakeholders with a view to promote local development and job creation in Africa. Africities 6, in Dakar, from 04 to 08 December 2012, met around the theme “Building Afri rica from its ts te terri rrito tori ries es: which challen enges for th the local gover ernmen ents?”. This Summit illustrated the role of local governments in building Africa in present and future world. It proposed as strategy to start from the local level and its territory as the relevant level for connecting people, and environment, development and democracy. The local level perspective helps redefine the public space, citizenship and sovereignty of national level and build supranational spaces embedded in local territories. The Summit proposed to the African Union, who agreed, the adoption of an African charter on values and principles of decentralization and local development as well as the creation of High Council of African Union Local Authorities.

6 THE

HE GLOBA BAL CO CONTEXT

3. 3. The Africities 7 Summit fits in with an international context that impacts on the development of Africa. After the 2008 financial and economic upheavals and the ensuing contradictions that resulted, the new context is marked by major uncertainties. Several questions must be considered:  The global crisis is deepening and the structural imbalances remain. A first questioning concerns, for the future, the place of Africa in contemporary globalization and its crisis.  The context is also characterized by a geopolitical, economic, social and cultural reorganization

• f the different world regions linked to their specific developments. A second questioning

concerns the specificities of the African evolution among the major regions of the world.  The last decades marked a trend towards extending the worldwide dynamic of democratization. A third questioning concerns the forms that democratization will take across Africa.  The approach via territories, highlighted in the Africities 7 Summit, helps to reconsider and redefine the dynamic of African unity and integration. With decentralization and the creation

• f regional levels, public governance becomes more complex. We can identify at least four levels
• f governance in Africa: local, national, regional and sub-continental. A fourth questioning

concerns the structuring of the various levels of governance across the African continent, across the five sub-regions of the African continent, national African States, and the scale of local and regional authorities.  The approach via territories helps also to link up the people, the activities, the ecosystems and the institutions. Dogmas that travel with mainstream globalization is trying to spread a uniform development model which is not sustainable neither from the perspective of ecosystems nor from the point of view of equity. A fifth questioning concerns the possibility for Africa to provide development modes and transformations of African societies that are more sustainable and just. THE

HE ARCHITECT CTURE OF OF THE AFRICI CITIES 7 SUMMIT

4. 4. The Africities Summit 7 proposes to address all of these questions based on the construction of the 2063 Vision of Africa which debate is proposed by the African Union Commission. From 29 November to 3 December 2015, the Africities 7 Summit will host, in Johannesburg, over 5000

• participants. The latter will represent all the stakeholders of African local life as well as their partners of

the other regions of the world: ministers in charge of local governments, ministers in charge of housing and urban development and ministers of public service; local authorities and local elected officials;

• fficials of local and central administrations; civil society organizations, associations and trade unions;

economic operators of the public and private sectors as well as of the social/ solidarity economy, traditional rulers; researchers and academics; international cooperation agencies. The Africities 7 Exhibition will host between 400 and 500 exhibitors.

7 The Africities 7 Summit is organized in three segments:

• Them

emati tic ses essions, the Summit will deepen the theme of shaping the future of Africa with the

• peoples. The contribution of the African local authorities to the African Union 2063 Agenda will

be supported with a development of local government policies and strategies to meet the needs

• f the people in concrete situations.
• Open

en ses essions allow different networks of African local authorities and networks wishing to work with the African local authorities to present their proposals and to contribute to the reflections. Open sessions will be organized in three blocks:  The block of Afri rican local coaliti tions: which will address the relationship between the local authorities and the different African local stakeholders.  The block of UCLG-A pro rogra rams: which will take stock ok the work done by the

• rganization in implementing its long term perspectives strategy, also known as the

Governance, Advocacy and decentralized development in Africa. (GADDEPA)  The block part rtners rs wishing to cooperate with African local authorities for proposals of programs, methods and tools in response to the main concerns of African local governments.

• Political ses

essions ns: political meetings of mayors, local authorities, ministers, followed by a political dialogue between mayors and local authorities, ministers, African institutions and development partners. THE

HE AFRICI CITIES 7 EXHIBI BITION

5. 5. From 29 November to 2 December 2015, the “Africi citi ties 7 Exhibiti tion” will take place under the Africities 7 Summit. Exhibition stands will be proposed to the local governments, associations of local governments, international and cooperation institutions, public and private businesses, as well as banking institutions and financial establishments, research and training institutions that wish to work with the African local governments. Debates will be organized at the initiative of the organizers of the Exhibition. A project exchange will be set up to link the demands expressed by the African local governments with the proposals of the exhibitors of the exhibition. SOME SPE

PECI CIAL EVENTS

6. 6. Several events of major significance will mark the Africities 7 Summit. These include notably:  The UCLG-A General Assembly.  The meeting of ministers of public service, local governments, urban development and decentralization.  The political dialogue meeting between local authorities, ministers, African institutions and cooperation partners.  The General Assembly of REFELA, the Network of Local Elected Women of Africa.  The meeting of the African Former Heads of State, Honorary Members of UCLG-A.  The meetings of African local authorities with their Chinese, Brazilian, European, Turkish counterparts.

8  The meetings of BRICS on local authorities.  The presentation of the United Nations program on Afro-descendants.  The launch of Network of African major cities.  The launch of the African council on local government foresight.  The revival of inter-African decentralized cooperation.  The discussion on the African participation to the COP 21 on climate change.  The discussion on the African participation in HABITAT 3 conference. 7. 7. These events, like all the activities of the Africities 7 Summit will be relayed by the Africities internal communication tools:  The Africities-Daily (newspaper) circulated every morning at the hotels and at the event site.  Africities TV and Radio.  A daily press conference  Specific press releases  The Africities and UCLG-A websites  The social networks Facebook, Twitter, etc. The Africities 7 communication will also be provided by national and international media invited by the

• rganizers.

THE

HE AFRICI CITIES 7 SE SESSI SSIONS

8. 8. All the Africities 7 session will be structured as follows: Each session lasts three hours. The interventions are limited to one hour (60 min). One hour and half (90 min) will be devoted to the debates and exchanges with the participants. The last half hour (30 min) will be dedicated to the adoption of the resolutions and recommendations for the political sessions (mayors, ministers, African institutions, cooperation partners). Each session will have 3-4 facilitators, 2 mayors and 1 or 2 others representing institutions, experts and other categories of stakeholders. Each session will be coordinated by a chairperson who will be an African mayor, a facilitator and a

• rapporteur. This team will be proposed by the structure responsible for the preparation and
• rganization of the session, in consultation with the Secretariat of UCLG-A.

THE

HE THEMATIC SE SESSI SIONS

9. 9. The first session, on 29 November in the morning, will be devoted to the general opening ceremony of the summit. It will comprise an inaugural conference on the theme: “Which possible futures es for the Afri rican local governments?” The conference will provide an opportunity to present the foresight approach applied to the case of local governments, to show interest as well as limitations. The inaugural conference will also serve as a general introduction to the thematic sessions of the summit.

9 10. 10. The afternoon, of 29 November 2015, will be devoted to the th themati tic ses

• essions. They will be structured

around the three analytical steps of the prospective approach, namely:

• a. The inventory.
• b. The exploration of possible futures.
• c. The formulation of strategies at the level of governments.

Under the first analytical step, two thematic sessions will be organized: 1) African local governments: which diagnosis can be carried out? 2) How to move from the experts’ diagnoses to the participatory diagnoses? Under the second analytical step, three sessions will be organized: 1) What can happen to the African local governments? Review of some exploratory scenarios. 2) The territorial visioning: conceptual and methodological progress. 3) From specific studies to the institutionalization of the foresight reflection. Under the third analytical step, six sessions will be organized: 1) Formulation of strategy or the art of making possible what is desirable. This will be followed by five others, corresponding to areas that may be a subject of strategic planning. These are: 2) Strategies for human resources. 3) Strategies for financial resources. 4) Strategies for natural and resources. 5) Information as a key resource for strategies formulation. 6) Strategies for strengthening the institutional environment of local governments. 11. 11. The eleven thematic sessions should help to answer five key questions which are at the heart of any well conducted foresight reflection:

• a. Where does the reviewed system come from? : A retrospective analysis helps to answer the

question.

• b. What is the current state of the system: which diagnosis can be conducted?
• c. What may happen to the system: what are the possible futures? It is by answering this question

that one can have an overview of the scenarios.

• d. Out of the possible futures, which ones meet the preferences of the stakeholders? This is the

stage for the formulation of a vision.

• e. How to make possible the desirable? This is the stage of strategies formulation.

12. 12. The various thematic sessions will be fed, as much as possible, with data collected and analyzed from 10 case studies selected and defined representative of the different regions of Africa and different territorial configurations.

10 THE

HE OPE PEN SE SESSI SSIONS

13. 13. The second and third days, on 30 November & 1st December 2015, will be devoted to the open en sessions. They address the various issues that the local governments would like to be considered, or that some institutions or networks would like to discuss with the local authorities. Each open session will last three hours. Their structure is similar to the thematic sessions one. However, their organization will enjoy more flexibility left to the initiators. They may, like the thematic sessions, formulate recommendations addressed to ministers, local authorities, African institutions, development partners, who discuss in during political sessions. Three blocks of open sessions will be organized:

• The block of African local coaliti

tions: which will address the relationship between the local authorities and the different African local stakeholders.

• The block of UCLG-A pro

rograms: which will take stock ok the work done by the organization in implementing its long term perspectives strategy, also known as the Governance, Advocacy and decentralized development in Africa. (GADDEPA)

• The block of part

rtners rs wishing to cooperate with African local authorities for proposals of programs, methods and tools in response to the main concerns of African local governments. 14. 14. The series of open sessions on Afri rican local coaliti tions discusses the contribution of local actors in territorial foresight exercise. For instance, in Africities 6, the actors considered were: peasants’ organizations, union organization of salaried staff, associations of inhabitants, women movements, youth movements, local entrepreneurs, popular economy and micro-credit movements, large African businesses, financial institutions,

• perators of local public services, solidarity associations and NGOs, traditional and moral authorities,

associations of migrants and the diasporas, academics and researchers, professionals from local and central governments, the media and journalists. A call for expression of interest will be sent out, to the different networks of actors, for the organization

• f this block of sessions.

15. 15. The series of open sessions on UCLG-A progra rams will be organized by the UCLG-A secretary in relation with the association of local authorities and the cities involved in their implementation. We can already, include the following programs: This series of sessions concerns:  Local elected women.  African Local Government Academy.  Participatory budgets.  Migrants and the Diasporas.  Local economies (LEDNA).

11  Local finance observatory.  Basic services and the Millennium Development Goals.  Local entrepreneurship.  Partnership with the traditional authorities.  Peace, security, African integration.  Decentralization and local governance observatory.  Network of medias (MADEL).  Transparency and integrity in the management of local governments.  Peer review program.  Territorial coaching. 16. 16. The block of part rtners rs handle the main questions and concerns raised by and for local authorities. This block is open to anyone who wants to organize a session at Africities and who meet the requirements specified by the organizers to the open sessions. For instance, a shortlist of subjects discussed in precedents summits: Alliance of Mayors against HIV/ AIDS; decentralized cooperation (CUF); Cities Alliance initiative; local governments, MDGs and poverty alleviation (UCLG); the Public / Private Partnership; Taxation and Local Development; Bank of Cities (Metropolis); Heritage (UNESCO); Network of Cities and Social Forums (FAL and FALP); etc. THE

HE PO POLITICA CAL SE SESSI SIONS

17. 17. The last two days, 2 & 3 December 2015, will be devoted to the politi tical sessions of the Summit, dedicated to the meetings of ministers of public service, local governments, urban development and decentralization; to the meetings of mayors and local authorities; and the meeting of political dialogue between ministers, mayors, African institutions and development partners. These political meetings will review the proposals formulated by the thematic and open sessions. The meeting of political dialogue will evaluate the possibilities and conditions of cooperation for the implementation of a strategic program on shaping the future of Africa with the peoples. 18. 18. On 2 December 2015, in the morning, the political sessions will be inaugurated by a plenary session. It will begin with the formal interventions. It will be marked by a roundtable that will be centered on “shaping th the futu ture of

• f Afri

rica with th th the peoples es”. This roundtable will bring together top level African decision makers that supported African local government motion and the organization of Africities Summits. 19. 19. On 2 December 2015, in the first part of the afternoon will be held the General Assembly of UCLG-A. The assembly will appoint first a commission that will offer the main issues that local authorities wish to discuss at the meeting of the political dialogue and next the delegation of local authorities in the political dialogue meeting. The meeting of mayors and local authorities will continue with the adoption of the recommendations proposed by the thematic and open sessions and adopts declaration of local authorities. These will be prepared by a "Resolutions Committee" set up by the mayors and local authorities. On 2 December 2015, in the second part of the afternoon will be held the elective part of the General Assembly of UCLG-A to renew its authorities for a period of 3 years.

12 20. 20. On 2 December 2015, in the first part of the afternoon, will be held in parallel to the General Meeting

• f UCLG-A, the meeting of ministers of public service, local government, urban development. It will be

prepared by a meeting of the relevant managers within ministerial departments concerned. It will receive an introductory report on the state of decentralization in Africa and discuss the agenda of decentralization and urban development in Africa. The meeting of ministers will discuss the recommendations proposed by the thematic and open

• sessions. It will discuss and adopt the main topics to be proposed for political dialogue meeting between

the African institutions, the ministers, the development partners and the local authorities, and will appoint the delegation of ministers at this political dialogue meeting 21. 21. On 3 December 2015, in the morning, will be held the political dialogue meeting between ministers, mayors, African institutions and cooperation partners. The meeting will be based on a preliminary report on the foresight in African territories and on cooperation and partnership needed to achieve the desired foresight vision. THE

HE CL CLOSI SING SE SESSI SION

22. 22. On 05 December 2015, from 17H to 18H, will be held the closing session that will include:



The reading of declarations



Addresses by categories of guests (international institutions, African institutions, decentralized cooperation, cooperation partners)



The three official speeches: the President of the Republic of South Africa, the Mayor of Johannesburg, the President of Africities and UCLG-A. A gala dinner will be organized at the invitation of the Mayor of Johannesburg.

13 ANNEX: PREPARATION OF OF AFRICI CITIES 7 SESSIONS The sessions of Africities 7 will be structured as described on point 8. The preparation of the Africities 7 sessions comprise three stages and it’s followed by a final report: Sta tage 1 (Deadline 01/04/2015)  Identification and choice of the structures associated with the preparation and coordination of each session.  Partnership convention between the structure associated with the preparation and coordination of the session and the UCLG-A secretariat Sta tage 2 (Deadline 15/05/2015)  Brief presentation of the session: theme, argument on the interest of the session, major addressed issues, major presented experiences. (2 pages)  Outline of the session program: time organization, nature and theme of interventions, indications on the themes. (1 page)  Names of the chairperson, the facilitator and the rapporteur Sta tage 3 (Deadline 15/08/2015)  Background paper – 10 to 15 pages  Draft proposal of resolutions and recommendations (addressed to the mayors, the ministers, African institutions, development partners, etc.)  Other reports presented by the speakers  CV and photos of coordinators (chairperson, facilitator, rapporteur)  Brief presentation of the organizers of the session (namely your institution, its objectives and its activities)  Requirements in terms of logistics for the conduct of the session  Proposals in terms of communication before, during and after the Summit (wishes in terms of interviews, key messages to be developed, projects to be promoted, local African or non-African leaders to be presented – plan a short presentation note on these leaders which will be given to the media)  Participation in the Africities Exhibition (stands, debates, etc.)  Any other interesting issue to be raised. Sta tage 4 (Deadline 30/01/2016)  Proceedings and final report of the session  First evaluation report.

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AFRICITIES 7 SUMMIT ARCHITECTURE

Tuesday 1st December 2015

AM GENERAL OPENING OF THE AFRICITIES 7 SUMMIT AND AFRICITIES EXHIBITION Inaugural conference on the prospective approach of African local governments On the theme: “Which possible futures for the African local governments?” PM THEMATIC SESSIONS (11 SESSIONS)

• A. Thematic sessions on the

inventory.

• B. Thematic sessions on the

exploration of possible futures. C. Thematic sessions on the formulation of strategies at the level of governments. A.1. African local governments: which diagnosis can be carried out? B.1. What can happen to the African local governments? Review of some exploratory scenarios. C.1. Formulation of strategy or the art of making possible what is desirable. C.2. Strategies for human resources. A.2. How to move from the experts’ diagnoses to the participatory diagnoses? B.2. The territorial visioning: conceptual and methodological progress. C.3. Strategies for financial resources. C.4. Strategies for natural and material resources B.3. From specific studies to the institutionalization of the foresight reflection. C.5. Information as a key resource for strategies formulation. C.6. Strategies for strengthening the institutional environment of local governments.

Wednesday 2 December 2015 OPEN SESSIONS Thursday 3 December 2015 OPEN SESSIONS Friday 4 December 2015

AM

POLITICAL SESSIONS

Opening followed by a Roundtable centered on: shaping the future of Africa with the peoples PM GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF UCLG-A ( UNITED CITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS OF AFRICA) (Discussions and recommendations) MEETING OF AFRICAN MINISTERS (ON PUBLIC SERVICES, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND

DECENTRALIZATION) (Discussions and recommendations)

Saturday 5 December 2015

AM POLITICAL DIALOGUE MEETING : ministers, mayors, African institutions and cooperation partners PM CLOSING SESSION ADOPTION OF RESOLUTIONS / OFFICIAL CLOSING CEREMONY Gala dinner will be organized at the invitation of the Mayor of Johannesburg This indicative program don’t include neither special events nor activities organized in the framework of Africities 7 exhibition.

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AFRI FRICITIES ES 7 JO JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRI FRICA SH SHAPING THE FU FUTURE RE OF OF AFRI RICA WITH THE PEOPLES

TH THE CONTR TRIBUTI TION OF OF AFR FRICAN LOCAL AUTH THORI RITIES TO TO TH THE AGENDA 20 2063 63 OF OF TH THE AFR FRICAN UNION

1ST

ST CON

ONCE CEPT NOTE 20/10/14 Africa is no longer doomed … it has a future Africa has now invited itself in the international agenda, one could be tempted to say, and for a good reason: its growth. Quite remarkable, in view of the stagnation, indeed even the regression of the other continents since the economic and financial crisis of the years 2008-2010, this growth allows us to envisage a future of shared prosperity and inclusive development. This is how the scenario of a vibrant Africa winning in globalization, which is the one of the African Union Agenda 2063 has been established. In this narration, the continent could emerge, like the other regions of the South, based on a number of comparative advantages, ranging from its endowment in natural resources1 to new technologies, and including its youth and its openness. In this scenario, the continent would transmute within half a century; from a marginalized and impoverished continent, into a continent that counts. The turn of Africa would have come. Doubt is no longer allowed; the judgment is clear: "Africa is rising," a slogan considered as a trivial detail as a result of its continuous repetition in all the spoken languages at the international conferences. For many experts, this scenario seems more than plausible, unavoidable, due to the powerful marketing drive on Africa. The forerunner portents would be, for some, the "new African billionaires." For others, it is the "new middle class" which is estimated by ADB, to be as at today, 313 million people, that is 34% of the population of the continent. For others, Ghana, Ethiopia, Mauritius, Botswana, Nigeria and more recently, Rwanda prefigure this Africa that gives every reason to hope. It is against this background that numerous public and private, national and international institutions are working to develop strategies to build this desirable future and transform somehow the performance of the last decade into a decisive point. These strategies range from the promotion of the private sector to the development of natural resources, and including vigorous investments in infrastructures and energy, not to mention the inevitable problem of funding for which the recommended formulas are now on the increase2.

1 Africa 2063,page 19 :Natural resources sector is expected to generate …more than US$ 600 billion …in government

revenue over the next 20 years… ……

2 In a recent paper of ODI, 21 sources of funding were identified.

16 Without trying to reject the pleasure that this good news offers regarding the future of a continent that is depicted just about ten years ago, as lost because ill- governed, in the grip of epidemics of all kinds; a number of agencies and institutions highlight some prerequisites without which the current advances will continue to be fragile. An improved local governance is one of these prerequisites. In a nutshell, it would be initiating a process to build up the capacities of local governments to contribute to the building of a united, strong and prosperous Africa. UCLGA has been advocating for years this significance of equipping the local governments with the requisite powers, notably through its flagship program ‘Africities’ which is considered as a materialization of a choice and a will. A choice and a will The choice consists in fitting its action with the dynamics of African integration which is one of the top priorities of the political agenda of African States, as enshrined in 1963 with the establishment of the Organization of African Unity, pursued and extended since 2002 by the African Union. As for the will, the one prevailing consists in overcoming some shortcomings noted in the implementation

• f the African political agenda. Actually, it is clear that the efforts of the intergovernmental organizations
• n the continent focused almost exclusively on the central governments, and consequently the African

people were not really involved in this movement. For UCLGA, it is overcoming these shortcomings, by starting from the territories. Starting from the territories i.e. the living space of the African people, helps to build a global vision of Africa that is rooted in the realities experienced by the local people and the local communities. This perspective entails setting in motion the dynamics of integration and unity of the continent not only at the central government level, but also, and increasingly at the level of local governments, the level of public governance closest to the

• people. In this way, the reflection tends to move from the conception of the unity of the continent of an

Africa of Nations-States to an Africa of its Peoples. Such an approach clearly means the option to cut across the borders inherited from the colonial rule as a condition for the participation of Africa in the world of tomorrow which will be, to a large extent, a world of large regions as it is sketched in our eyes in Europe, America and Asia. If local governance backed by the political project for the integration of the continent has been the common thread of Africities since its inception, the themes have evolved over time from one summit to another3. Africities 7 The 7th Summit to be held in Johannesburg from 29 November to 03 December 2015 on the central theme "Shaping the future of Africa with the people: the contribution of African local governments to the 2063 Vision of Africa". There is behind this formulation, an ambition, as well as a fear and a concern.

3: Africities 1 in Abidjan in January 1998, on the theme Recognition of the vital role of local governments in the development of

Africa; Africities 2 in Windhoek in May 2000 on the theme Funding African local governments to ensure the sustainable development

• f the continent; Africities 3, in Yaoundé, in December 2003, on the theme Speeding up access to basic services within African local

governments; Africities 4 in Nairobi in September 2006, on the theme Building local coalitions to achieve the Millennium Development Goals within African local governments; Africities 5 in Marrakech in December 2009, on the theme The response of African local governments to the global crisis: promotion of sustainable local development and employment. The theme of Africities 6, from 4 to 9 December 2012, in Dakar, was Building Africa from its territories: which challenges for the local governments?

17 The ambition of the Africities 7 Summit consists in building on the progresses achieved by the continent, in terms of both renewed growth and democratization, notably with regard to local governance, in order to address the issue of building the future, the subject of Agenda 2063, from a different but complementary angle: the one of improving local governance with the people. The originality being the preposition/ conjunction with. Unquestionably, it will be therefore consolidating the gains where they were registered, encouraging development where it exists or where it is not yet achieved, extending the scope of democracy everywhere so as to ensure all the dimensions of life are covered by this process. But beyond deepening democracy whose classical definition -Government of the people by the people- is still topical, the ambition is to make the peoples a historical topic. The fear is, symmetrically, to witness the stagnation of the recent advances and to be overtaken by the old demons, and as a result, to see people being deprived of the fruits of their struggles. The tendencies towards the restoration of authoritarian regimes/ orders, contrary to the promises and hopes that stemmed from the African springs of the 90s, and twenty years later from the Arab springs, justify to a large extent these fears which come as a reminder that nothing is definitively acquired. We must therefore develop in Johannesburg the appropriate strategies to avert these risks. It starts with a reconceptualization effort of democracy to link it more closely with citizenship. It should be recalled that the citizen is defined by his/ her ability to defend his/ her vital rights and not by his/ her

• bedience to the laws. Actually enjoying a right, means, in this approach, and first foremost, keeping intact

the power to defend it, claim it and promote it. The establishment of a rule of law is probably in this respect a necessary condition but this is not enough; we must build real societies of law, that is, systems within which the central government and its components are subject to the law. The postulate of this approach is that the best way to consolidate the gains and prevent the risk of a return to authoritarian orders is to build up the capacities of the people to take control of their own destinies, bring citizenship to the control position, whereas others would have wished to move to this position the party or another institution. In Johannesburg, we will address the problems of local governments, as well as, and perhaps, most especially issues pertaining to the rights of the African people to enter the field of political action, which is no longer perceived as a delegation of their responsibilities to others but as shaping power of the multitude, to paraphrase Spinoza. On reflection, the choice of this new angle of attack, of this focus, proceeds less from a phenomenon of fashion, than a desire to contribute to the formation of a new social contract based on at least two underlying key ideas. Key ideas First, there is the idea according to which the vision, to borrow a term which is dear to the forecasters, is essential in development and, more generally, in any transformation process because it allows to keep the

• course. In troubled times, in times of turmoil, of economic and financial storms, in those times during which,

from time to time, History gives the impression of stuttering; there is a need to be aware of where one wishes to go in order to avoid falling under the spell of the sirens of the time. Today, more than ever, everyone acknowledges the unquestionable reality of the aphorism of Seneca according to which "there are no favorable winds for someone who does not know where he wishes to go."

18 The Africans are looking for a future but the one they are longing for is not necessarily the one that is programmed for them by those who consider that it is the past of others which should be their future, that History has come to its end with the triumph of the market economy and liberal democracy. The one that the Africans are longing for, if the consultations conducted within the framework of the Agenda 2063 have a meaning, fit in with a desire of Africa to be present at the "meeting of giving and receiving" and to take part in it with full responsibility and complete autonomy, and not as mere guests at a banquet in which their place would be, at best, the one that the scientific spirit usually reserves for the adjustment variables: negligible because it can be overlooked. Utopia, some would say; but a utopia that should be claimed because, as Don Helder Camara put it, "shared utopia falls within the scope of History." This is to arouse a desire for a future to serve the vision; it is what should be the focus of all who want to broaden the scope of democracy and it is by doing so that they will transform themselves and put down their coats of local authorities or their modest clothes of local stakeholders in order to be revived as pilgrims

• f the future with all the connotations of the term, in terms of faith, sacrifice and availability.

The second key idea is that the future does not come up alone: there is a need to create the conducive conditions for its birth. It is the role of the strategy to prepare for the transformation and the birth of the future at the lowest physical, economic, political and institutional cost. The planning authorities/ bodies, at the continental, national, regional and local levels have a key role to fulfill in this respect. However, it should be a new type of strategy. Not a strategy based on the idea, of course naive, that there is no alternative to an unavoidable globalization and Africa simply has to adjust, but a strategy which abandons the old fads and endorses the idea that the sole governance that is worthwhile is not the one of cake sharing but a governance of sharing. It is by erecting as foundation these two key ideas that the most solid and most durable transformations

• ccur in History. With his inimitable style, Mandela stated: "a vision without action is merely daydreaming;

an action without vision is a recipe for future nightmare. An action combined with a sustainable vision can change the world." These remarks made in 1996 are still topical. To conclude, let us say that Africities 7 should mark a deepening of the theme of – local democracy - whose defense and illustration have been spearheaded by UCLGA which is acknowledged as a champion or a cantor in this field. However, equally remarkable through the fidelity to this theme, Africities 7 should mark at the Johannesburg Summit a change in the way this issue is addressed, and materialize the choice of a different angle of attack: local governments at the service of a citizenship fulfilling its responsibilities. Fidelity and permanence, change and continuity will be addressed at the gathering of Johannesburg. They should be considered together most especially as at UCGLA there is no separation between the two notions, the conviction having been forged that "fidelity to oneself is in the movement,” to paraphrase Muhammad Iqbal. Alioune Sall Pret etori ria, 23 23 October er 2014