NAIROBI, KENYA 10-13 MAY 2004

DECISIONS OF THE
POST-MUMBAI MEETING

At the World Social Forum, held in India, African participants expressed the desire to organise a post-Mumbai meeting in order to evaluate the African Social Forum process since its inception in 2000. The purpose of the said meeting, which took place in Nairobi, Kenya, from 10-13 May 2004, was to :

- Evaluate the African Social Forum process from its commencement in 2000 to date.

- Prepare the third African Social Forum process 2004-2005

- Launch the discussions on the organisation of the World Social Forum in Africa in 2007.

The meeting was attended by 32 organisations and movements from the following countries : : Kenya, Senegal, Guinea, Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Ethiopia, Somalia, Egypt, Uganda, Niger, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Morocco, Tanzania.

Participants reaffirmed their attachment to the African Social Forum as a space open to all the components of the African Social Movement, based on commitment, voluntary action and diversity. They welcomed the International Council’s decision to organise the World Social Forum in Africa in 2007. They considered the decision as a challenge to be taken up as well as a contribution to the strengthening of the continent’s social movement and its involvement in various actions undertaken at international level against liberalism and war.

Participants undertook to consider the holding of the World Social Forum in Africa as a priority action. In this regard, they pledged to contribute in the development of a common vision, and implement appropriate mobilisation strategies.

After the presentation of the various sub-regional, national and thematic initiatives already taken or planned within the framework of the African Social Forum process (1), the meeting took note of the expansion and strengthening of the Forum.

Pursuant to the conclusions of the Addis Ababa Forum and the Charter of values and principles governing the African Social Forum, the participants to the Nairobi meeting decided to :

1- Establish the Regional Council of the African Social Forum, as was decided in Addis Ababa in 2003. The Council shall serve as the Forum’s discussion and decision-making space. It shall include organisations which have taken national, sub-regional and thematic initiatives, members of the African Social Forum’s organising committee as well as social movements organised at continental level and representatives of the key African stakes. Participation to the Regional Council will be based on compliance with the World Social Forum and African Social Forum charters. The Council will be formally set up during a meeting scheduled in Cairo in July 2004. The movements attending the Council session will be responsible for their participation costs.

2- Organise the next African Social Forum (2004-2005) in Lusaka, Zambia, between 10 and 20 December 2004. Representative movements and grassroots groups will be invited to the Forum. Most of the activities will be organised by the movements themselves as well as by the organising committee of the Southern African sub-region and the African Social Forum Secretariat.

3- Continue to broaden the African Social Forum at global, national, sub-regional and thematic levels, by facilitating the integration of grassroots groups and social movements, and supporting initiatives taken across the continent.

4- Maintain the current Secretariat and strengthen it to ensure that it fully plays its Forum facilitation role. An additional person should be recruited within the secretariat. Participants defined the relations which should exist between the secretariat and the Regional Council. The secretariat is answerable to the Council to which it will periodically report about the implementation of tasks assigned to it.

5- Strengthen communication within the Forum by setting up a website, perpetuating the paper dubbed « African Flame » launched in Mumbai, and ensuring the wide dissemination of information.

6- Strive for the establishment of a solidarity fund to sponsor participation to the African Council and the African Social Forum.

7- Consolidate relations with the Brazilian and Indian committees of the World Social Forum in order to strengthen south/south relations and learn from their experiences in the organisation of the World Social Forum.

8- Consolidate working and solidarity relations with the various components of the African Diaspora.

Besides, the Nairobi meeting informed participants about the last decisions taken by the international council to encourage the participation of minority groups. It hailed the initiative to set up a solidarity mechanism. Participants undertook to fully play their role in this World Social Forum body.

At the end of the meeting, participants took part in the Kenyan Social Forum Day, organised on 13 May, under the aegis of the national organising committee.

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Sub-Regional Forum organised in 2003 : Southern Africa, (Lusaka, Zambia, 2003)

National Forum organised in 2003-2004 : Senegal, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Morocco, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Guinea, Niger, Mali, Sudan, Somalia

Planned sub-regional Forums : East Africa, 2004 ; Northern Africa, 2005 ; West Africa : 2005.

National Forums planned for 2004-2005 : Ethiopia, Mozambique, Uganda, Morocco (2nd edition), Senegal (2nd edition), Benin, Tanzania, Niger (2nd edition), Egypt, Algeria.