Spain Signs Landmark Agreement With NEPAD

Spain Signs Landmark Agreement With NEPAD

The Government of Spain and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), an African Union Programme, have signed a 5-year agreement worth 50 million Euros for the implementation of the NEPAD Spanish Fund for African Women Empowerment. The agreement was signed by Mr. Jose Manuel Albares, the Deputy Director of the Department of Cooperation for Sub-Saharan Africa at the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation (AECID) and Dr. Ibrahim Mayaki, the Chief Executive Officer of NEPAD Secretariat.

The signing ceremony was conducted during the meeting of the NEPAD Spanish Fund Steering Committee which was held in Madrid, Spain on 17th June 2009.

Under this agreement, according to a news release from the NEPAD secretariat, the government of Spain through the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation (AECID) will provide 10 million Euros every year for a period of 5 years to NEPAD Secretariat. This money will be used for the implementation of the NEPAD Spanish Fund for African Women Empowerment programme.

The NEPAD Spanish Fund for African Women Empowerment is an annual competitive fund that provides grants to various organisations for the implementation of activities that will lead to empowerment of women and promotion of gender equality in the Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2008, 46 women organisations across the continent have benefited from this programme.

This new agreement will focus on institutional strengthening, civil society empowerment and enterprise development (economic empowerment) for women.

With the signing of this agreement, the NEPAD Spanish Fund will shortly launch a call for proposal.