Commission For Africa Research Articles

Seminar on Urgent Administrative Problems of African Governments

This seminar was held in accordance with a resolution of the third session of the Economic Commission for Africa, which sponsored it jointly with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations; it was the first U.N. activity in the field of public administration in Africa. The participants included representatives from 17 African countries, and from the following specialised organisations: F.A.O., I.C.A.O., I.L.O., W.H.O., E.C.A., and the International Union of Local Authorities.

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) with its headquarters at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, was established in 1958 under resolution 67aA (XXV) of the Economic and Social Council. It is one of the four regional commissions of the United Nations, the other three, which were established much earlier, being the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) with headquarters in Geneva, the Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) with Bangkok, Thailand, as its headquarters and the Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLA) at Santiago de Chili. The establishment of these regional commissions was a result of the need and desirability to decentralize United Nations activities, not only on a functional but also on a geographical basis.

African Meeting on Commodity Stabilisation

The purpose of this meeting, convened by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (E.C.A.), was to consider the position and prospects of Africa's major agricultural export commodities and to examine possible national and international measures for commodity stabilisation. Over 50 representatives attended from 17 African countries; the chairman was Mr O. I. Afe of Nigeria, and the vice-chairman was M Medoune Fall of Senegal.

Economic and Social Council

The resumed 34th session of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), comprising the 1237th–1241st meetings, was held on December 18—20, 1962, under the presidency of Mr. Jerzy Michalowski (Poland). The major substantive issue discussed by the Council during this session was the report of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), which was considered at the 1239th meeting. In this connection, the Council had before it four draft resolutions: 1) recommending the expulsion of Portugal from ECA; 2) calling for the suspension of South Africa from ECA; 3) requesting ECA to reconsider its recommendation concerning the status of Spain, the United Kingdom, and France in the Commission; and 4) taking note of ECA's report and endorsing the program of work and priorities contained therein.

Aids and Obstacles to Political Stability in Mid-Africa

The emergence of twenty-three independent nations in mid-Africa is a major event of the twentieth cen tury. The attitude of United States foreign policy toward them is that we want for the Africans what they want for themselves. Four major regional groupings have appeared in mid-Africa: the Union Africaine et Malgache, the Casablanca group, the East African Common Services Organization, and the Lagos group. These groupings overlap and may appear confused, but they are responsive to African needs. There is a body of common interest at all levels and a feeling of the need for co-operation to develop Africa. Substantial co-operation has been achieved in economic and technological development and in cultural relations. Movements which are Pan-African in scope are underway. So far, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the Commission for Technical Co operation in Africa South of the Sahara are the agencies in which virtually all mid-African nations have been most active. All the nations and groupings are fiercely proud of maintaining their purely African personality. They realize, at the same time, their dependence not only on each other but also on outside assistance, especially in the form of capital and ex pertise, to accomplish their plans and purposes. Mid-Africa affords us excellent opportunities to revitalize our dedication to the American revolutionary heritage and democratic tradi tion.—Ed.

Economic and Social Council

The resumed 26th session of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) was held in New York on October 23 and December 10 and 11, 1958, under the presidency of Mr. Davidson (Canada). A draft resolution by which ECOSOC would decide to enable the International Atomic Energy Agency to become a member of the Technical Assistance Board and to participate in the Expanded Program of Technical Assistance was adopted unanimously at the 1045th meeting. The Council elected the members of the Governing Council of the Special Fund: elected as members representing the economically more advanced countries were Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States; and representing the less-developed countries were Argentina, Chile, Ghana, India, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, the United Arab Republic, and Yugoslavia. Brazil was elected as a member of the Technical Assistance Committee to fill the vacancy resulting from the election of Venezuela to ECOSOC. At its 1046th meeting the Council elected the following seven members of the Council Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations for 1959: China, Costa Rica, France, the Netherlands, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The Council unanimously confirmed the names of persons nominated by governments to represent them on the functional commissions of ECOSOC. The delegate of France announced that his country had been unable to take advantage of the extended time-limit for the submission of lists of the territories it wished to be admitted as associate members of the Economic Commission for Africa. The Council unanimously adopted a resolution designed to make the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the Specialized Agencies applicable to the Intergovernmental Maritime Consultative Organization.

The South‐West Africa commission

The South‐West Africa commission

THE WORK OF THE EAST AFRICA COMMISSION

Journal Article THE WORK OF THE EAST AFRICA COMMISSION Get access African Affairs, Volume XXIV, Issue XCV, April 1925, Pages 165–177, https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a100129 Published: 01 April 1925