Agenda

Background

French/United States Cooperation on the Promotion of Democracy in Africa

Human Rights, Democracy, and Good Governance

Donor Strategies to Assist Democratization

How to Structure International Assistance

Conclusion and Follow-Up

The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) sponsored a conference on “Democracy, Human Rights, and Good Governance in Africa: French, American, and African Perspectives,” in Washington, D.C., on June 3-4, 1998 at the offices of the Council on Foreign Relations. The conference sought to contribute to the improvement of understanding among the leaders and peoples of France, the United States, and countries in Africa about the ways in which democracy and the protection of human rights can best be promoted in Africa. NED, along with the French and American supporters of the conference, felt that the time was right to examine critically both U.S./French cooperation and the status of human rights, democracy, and governance work in Africa. A reassessment of donor strategies in assisting civil society in its challenge to promote democracy was also seen as overdue.

The conference on June 3 brought together over 130 leading African, French, and American government officials, representatives of pro-democracy and human rights groups, scholars, and experts. (See list of participants.) Sessions focused on national objectives and strategies, the role of state institutions, the role of civil society, and the ways in which to further French, American, and African cooperation to promote democracy in Africa. Presenters included representatives of policy-making and donor agencies as well as scholars and field practitioners in human rights and democratic governance from Africa, France, and the U.S. Questions and discussion were encouraged. The Reverend Jesse Jackson, the U.S. Department of State’s Special Envoy for Promotion of Democracy in Africa, gave an insightful luncheon address and shared the podium with two members of Congress with special interest in Africa, Representative Donald Payne (D-N.J.) and Representative Amo Houghton (R-N.Y.), both on the Africa Subcommittee of the House International Relations Committee. The following morning, June 4, a smaller, more intimate gathering of agenda participants and invited experts and policy makers discussed issues, questions, and recommendations that emerged from the June 3rd conference and focused on designing a forward looking strategy for African/French/U.S. cooperation to promote democracy in Africa.

This report summarizes—on a not-for-attribution basis—the presentations and comments made during the day-long conference as well as the follow-up roundtable discussion. While every effort has been made to portray accurately the range of opinions expressed, space and organizational considerations have required omissions and paraphrasing. This report was written by Steve McDonald, Consultant to Rd, who helped organize the conference and who has 30 years of experience in Africa working on development, human rights, and democracy issues. The report was edited by the staff of nRd Any errors in fact, interpretation, or omission should be attributed to the author and editors. The conference sponsors would like especially to thank Professor Gérard Conac, Visiting Fellow at the International Forum for Democratic Studies, who played a seminal role in the conception and organization of this conference.

The conference and this report were made possible in part by grants from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Marshall B. Coyne Foundation, Inc., to the National Endowment for Democracy. The Agence de la Francophonie also cooperated in helping to plan and arrange the conference. It also supported in large part the travel and per diem expenses of African participants from French-speaking African countries. The Embassy of France in Washington, D.C., also participated in planning and arranging the conference. Additional support came from the Association internationale des Parlementaires de langue française, Institut international d’Administration publique, Association internationale des Barreaux, and Centre d’Études juridiques et politiques du Monde africain (université de Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne). The statements or views expressed in this document do not necessarily reflect those of the National Endowment for Democracy, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Marshall B. Coyne Foundation, the Agence de la Francophonie, and the other supporters of this project. NED wishes to express its gratitude to the Council on Foreign Relations for graciously making its facilities available for the conference.