CPLP: Portugal seeks extension for EU-funded project to support rule of law

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CPLP: Portugal seeks extension for EU-funded project to support rule of law

6:55 CAT | 19 Nov 2021

File photo: Lusa

Portugal has requested a six-month extension of the European Union-funded Project to Support the Consolidation of the Rule of Law (PACED) in Portuguese-language countries in Africa (PALOPs) and East Timor, in order to implement a digital communication and training platform, it was announced on Tuesday.

The news came from Pedro Pessoa e Costa, Portugal’s ambassador in Luanda, at an international conference on the consolidation of the rule of law in PACED countries – all of them members of the Community of Portuguese-Language Countries (CPLP) – marking the final phase of a project funded by the EU and Camões – Instituto da Cooperação e da Língua, Portugal’s development and language institute.

“We still have work to do and it is with pride and a sense of responsibility that I have to inform you that we have already formalised a request to the European [Union] ambassador here in Angola for a final extension to the project, for another six months, fundamentally to implement the collaborative communication and training platform between justice bodies,” the diplomat said at the start of the conference, adding that the aim was to “boost efficiency and quality in the various dimensions of the project, namely in the area of training for magistrates and other professionals.”

In comments to Lusa, Pessoa e Costa argued that the entire international community benefits from PACED, which aims to prevent and combat corruption, money laundering and organised crime, especially drug trafficking, by improving human and institutional capacities.

In October 2014, the EU and Camões entered into an agreement for the implementation of PACED that was scheduled to last until December 2019, but which has since twice been extended.

PACED has an overall budget of €8.4 million, of which €7 million comes from the EU and the rest from Camões, with the funding going into some 90 activities, 38 training actions for trainers, preparation of three manuals available online and 12 forums for reflection and sharing of good practices.

The head of the EU delegation in Angola, Jeannette Seppen, told Lusa that the project should be extended, given the good results achieved so far. She stressed that justice would be a focus of the next EU financial package for development, now being prepared.

The Luanda conference included online speeches by Portugal’s minister of justice, Francisca Van Dunem, and its secretary of state for foreign affairs and cooperation, Francisco André, who noted Angola’s “tireless efforts” in this area and congratulated the country on the results achieved.

The meeting was being attended by senior officials from the justice system in Portugal, Angola, Mozambique, East Timor, Sao Tome and Principe and Guinea Bissau, as well as politicians from those countries.

The conference was organised in partnership with Angola’s Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Economy and Planning, as well as the National Bank of Angola, the Attorney-General’s Office and the Financial Information Unit.

Source: Lusa