The Government of Antigua and Barbuda (GoAB) and the European Union (EU) have enjoyed over four decades of partnership since 1976, under the development cooperation framework of the Cotonou Agreement (2000 – 2020). African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Countries entered this Agreement with the EU, to facilitate the reduction and eventual eradication of poverty and contribute to the gradual integration of ACP states into the world economy.
As part of the implementation framework outlined in the Agreement, in 2002, the GoAB was supported by the European Commission (EC) in the establishment of an Office of the National Authorising Officer (ONAO); currently a department within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Agriculture, Trade and Barbuda Affairs. A core mandate of the ONAO is to function as the interlocutor for the implementation of all projects administered by the EU, particularly through the Delegation of the European Union to Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean Countries, the OECS and CARICOM/CARIFORUM. The Delegation has responsibility for regional programming of the European Development Fund (EDF), the main instrument for development aid to the ACP countries from 2000 – 2020.
The ONAO is therefore tasked, among other things, with oversight of the preparation and submission of programmes and projects for approval by the EU, and has responsibility for the coordinating, monitoring, evaluation and often implementation of projects and programmes funded through the EDF, to ensure achievement of agreed objectives.
Prior to the early 2000s, the ONAO coordinated interventions of the partnership framework which targeted human resource development, in line with Government’s policy at that time; to upgrade the country’s intellectual capital and comprehensively reform the education system. In the wake of the global financial crisis however, the Government’s priority sector for EU cooperation shifted, and the 10th and 11th iteration of the EDF focused on actions to strengthen Public Financial Management and Revenue Reform. In addition to the predetermined grant allocations provided through the EDF, the EU has demonstrated a commitment to also provide partner countries with emergency aid to address their national disaster response. Consequently, Antigua and Barbuda was able to benefit from funding in support of national recovery efforts on Barbuda, post Hurricane Irma.
Antigua and Barbuda’s cooperation with the EU includes the implementation of an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), signed in 2008. The EPA includes commitments on trade in services, investment, and trade-related issues such as competition policy, government procurement, intellectual property rights, and sustainable development aspects.
The development cooperation between the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and the EU has evolved to a new phase with the Post Cotonou Agreement, successor to the Cotonou Agreement. The EDF is now replaced by the Neighbourhood Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI) – Global Europe, which in its first cycle, covers the period 2021-2027. The ONAO will continue to play an integral role in the new arrangement with the EU as Antigua and Barbuda’s focal point for programming through the NDICI.
Ambassador Dr. Clarence Henry
NATIONAL AUTHORISING OFFICER, TRADE COORDINATOR, HEAD OF EPA IMPLEMENTATION, AMBASSADOR TO THE CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY (CARICOM)
Barbara Williams
DEPUTY NATIONAL AUTHORISING OFFICER, EPA IMPLEMENTATION COORDINATOR
Juray Roberts
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT OFFICER
Ileathea Cabral
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND TRADE OFFICER
Jahmaal Frederick
research officer
