European Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, and the European Commission launched a public consultation on the future of the partnership between the European Union (EU) and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries after 2020, when the current EU-ACP Cotonou Agreement will expire.This consultation will run for the next 12 weeks.The Cotonou Agreement is the most comprehensive partnership agreement the EU has that governs its relationship with 78 developing countries in Africa, Caribbean and Pacific.It includes political, economic cooperation and trade dimensions as well as development cooperation which are in turn, linked to a financial instrument called the European Development Fund (EDF).Different stakeholders and interested parties are consulted on more than 40 questions, going far beyond development cooperation and trade issues.Questions like peace and security, the fight against terrorism and organized crime,Cheap Jerseys, sustainable and inclusive growth,Wholesale China Jerseys, migration, political cooperation and many others are on the agenda for consultation and reflection.High Representative / Vice-President of the European Commission,Cheap NFL Jerseys, Mogherini said, “The relationship between the EU and ACP countries has moved beyond development cooperation and trade over the last two decades.“So it’s time to assess our cooperation to identify new ways for our partnership on the common challenges and interests that we all share.”European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica, added, “By launching the public consultation,Wholesale NFL Jerseys, we are opening a debate to see on which issues a future partnership could focus on and how this could be turned into an effective vehicle to promote our common interest, given the so many challenges we are confronted with.”This consultation will be a major component of the analysis the Commission will carry out in 2016.It will assess the strengths of this Partnership Agreement as well as the possibilities for improvement.Relations between the EU and the ACP are long standing, dating back to 1975 and the first Lom? convention.The latter was a successor to the first Convention of Yaound? in 1963, binding the then European Economic Community and former colonies of some of its Member States.Successive partnership agreements have shaped the relationship up to the present time.The current EU – ACP Partnership Agreement was signed on June 23, 2000 in Cotonou, Benin. Since then,Wholesale Authentic Jerseys, it has been the framework for the EU’s relations with 78 countries from Sub-Saharan Africa,China Jerseys, the Caribbean and the Pacific.It was revised in 2005 and 2010, in accordance with its provisions. It was concluded for a 20-year period and will expire on February 29, 2020.The Agreement is a legally binding instrument which establishes joint institutions and provides a framework for dialogue with each of its members.In addition to its political dimension and economic and trade cooperation dimension, the framework provides for development finance cooperation, attached to which is the European Development Fund (EDF).This is a multiannual intergovernmental fund composed of direct contributions from EU Member States, and is the only external aid instrument that does not fall directly under the EU budget.