Many Nigerians including clerics, rights activists, and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have queried the move behind the decision of the Nigerian government to sign the controversial Samoa Agreement which promotes LGBTQ rights.
The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, confirmed that Nigeria had signed the agreement at a reception organised by the European Union (EU) in Abuja on July 1.
It was gathered that Nigeria had signed the deal to get financial assistance to finance infrastructural projects across the country, however, the move has garnered opposition from citizens who think that as a condition for getting the funds, the Samoa Agreement has some clauses that “compel” underdeveloped and developing nations to support the agitations by Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) community.
The European Union and its Member States and countries from Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific signed a new partnership agreement on November 15 in Apia, Samoa. This agreement called the ‘Samoa Agreement’, sets out how they will work together for the next 20 years, replacing the old Cotonou Agreement.
These agreements started with the Lomé Agreement 1975 and the Cotonou Agreement 2000. They aim to create fair trade systems to reduce poverty and help African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries become more involved in the global economy.
The Samoa Agreement covers 79 countries: 47 in Africa, 16 in the Caribbean, 15 in the Pacific, and the Republic of Maldives. It focuses on six main areas: promoting democracy, equality between men and women, human rights, economic growth, sustainable development, dealing with issues like climate change, improving people’s lives, and peace and security.
This agreement has a general set of rules that apply to everyone involved. It also has three special plans for Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific that deal with the specific needs of each region.
The EU and the 79 ACP countries together have more than 2 billion people and a big say in the United Nations. The Samoa Agreement will start being used on January 1, 2024, once it is approved by the European Parliament and all EU countries and by at least two-thirds of the ACP countries.
The European Council agreed to the Samoa Agreement on November 21. They also promised to work with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean to achieve the goals of the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This includes things like improving health and education for all people and making sure everyone has equal rights, including those related to sexual orientation and gender identity. They also want to improve how the world is managed, especially how money and other important things are shared, to make it fairer and more effective.
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