This series of events has been organized on the Pécs-Budapest axis since 2010 by Ádám Szesztay, Head of the Department of Strategic Planning at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The so-called Africa Day consultation had two special features. On one hand, besides the staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, participants from the civil sector and experts; there were participants dealing with African issues from several other ministries present, such as from the Ministry of Rural Development and the Ministry of Administration and Justice. It was clear from the exposé of the representatives of the two ministries that the Ministry of Rural Development would like to cooperate in the field of technology as well as research in the field of agriculture. On the other hand, at the International Department of the Ministry of Administration and Justice they are working out suggestions for cooperation between African countries and Hungary in the field of economy and R&D.
One of the guests of the consultation, Gábor Harangozó, MP, Head of the ‘Africa Circle’ of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, outlined the interests and latitude of the organization. Mr. Harangozó said if Hungary wants to open towards Africa, we will need to take steps in the fields of diplomatic, developmental, civil and political relations at the same time. According to the former EU representative, relations of the EU with Africa should be made significantly tighter. The EU is committed to do so and it is important that Hungary can take its fair share of this.
He also emphasized that the MPs in the Africa Circle are open to African issues; they are responsive on delegation level at almost any time as it has already been proved in the case of the Nigerian, Kenyan and Ugandan delegations.
They also discussed the new, globally open strategy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in which Africa plays a much more significant part than in any foreign strategies before. The question is how they can realize this strategy with different Africa-projects, professional cooperation and departmental political harmonization; since ‘every strategy is only worth the parts that have been realized from it’, said Ádám Szesztay, Head of the STRATEFO Department, chairman of the consultation. In the interest of this, they are planning to form Africa-expert workgroups and organize an Africa Forum after the successful Latin-American Forum, as well as to tighten African political partnership projects, for the success of which the Angola-Magyar László Project (starting 6 June 2012) can serve as another link, pointed out Hermina Ildikó Szilasi, Africa expert, member of AHU, main organizer of the project.