The 3rd edition of the Senegalese Social Forum, organized by Forum Social Senegalaise in collaboration with The Gambia Social Forum, ended last week in the Senegalese town of Kaolack.

The three-day forum which took place from the 27th-29th of November 2006 was aimed at bringing together civil society groups from the sub-region, particularly The Gambia and Senegal, to discuss concrete resolutions to influence African governments not to sign the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with the European Union come 2008.

The forum also witnessed the launching of the Senegambian Social Forum which brought together The Gambia and Senegal under the same platform where concrete resolutions are expected to be agreed upon and forwarded for the discussions to be held during the World Social Forum in Nairobi, Kenya, come January 2007. The Senegambian Social Forum has as its main aim the discouraging of their governments from signing the Economic Partnership Agreements in their current forms.

Other pertinent issues including HIV/AIDS and malaria, agriculture and food sovereignty, regional integration and economic injustice were also discussed.

In her opening remarks at the social forum, Mrs. Sirra Ndow, chairperson of the Gambia Social Forum, said it is historic for The Gambia and Senegal to form a union towards regional integration.

She added that as they are bound by the principles of the World Social Forum to have a West African Social Forum, then they believe that The Gambia and Senegal can join and come with concrete resolutions of discouraging their governments from signing the EPAs in their current form.

“We want to continue this momentum so that come January 2007, civil society groups will be well equipped to influence their governments not to sign the EPAs,” Mrs. Ndow added.

For his part, Mr. Amadou Faal, Chairman Worldview The Gambia and member of the screening committee of the Gambia Social Forum, said the World Social Forum in 2007, being the first time to be held in Africa, will offer unique opportunities for Africans to make a very strong presence to stop their governments from signing the EPAs in their current form.

He revealed that after detailed studies made by some African countries, after signing the EPAs, most African countries involved will experience reduction in custom revenues because this will have to remove all custom duties between African and European countries. According to Mr. Amadou Taal, studies have also shown that in most countries, particularly The Gambia, a reduction of about 20% in customs revenues will be experienced. Mr. Taal added that The Gambia as a small country that depends largely on agriculture, tourism and imports, reducing the revenue from imports by 20% will deprive her of a substantial chunk of money which should have been used in the health or education sectors. “We are therefore saying no to the Economic Partnership Agreements,” he concluded.