11 May 2010: During a visit to the Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the EU expressed an interest in forging a deeper partnership with UNECA on various development issues, including climate change and land ownership in Africa.

Responding to this expression of interest by the EU delegation led by Andris Piebalgs, EU Commissioner for Development, Abdoulie Janneh, UNECA Executive Secretary, noted that the EU continued to be one of the largest supporters of development in Africa, particularly in terms of the resources invested on the continent. He said although UNECA is interested in deepening its partnership with the EU on climate change and land ownership, it would also be interested in forging new partnerships on governance, women’s rights, regional integration, trade and other areas of shared values, including the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), statistics and statistical development. Janneh also urged the EU to get involved in developing the capacity of African countries to generate credible statistics to promote evidence-based development and growth. [UNECA Press Release]