{"id":19470,"date":"2024-07-26T10:34:14","date_gmt":"2024-07-26T09:34:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/?p=19470"},"modified":"2024-07-26T10:34:17","modified_gmt":"2024-07-26T09:34:17","slug":"false-south-africa-egypt-others-not-signatories-to-samoa-agreement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/false-south-africa-egypt-others-not-signatories-to-samoa-agreement\/","title":{"rendered":"False! South Africa, Egypt, others not signatories to Samoa Agreement"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Claim: An X account, Dr Toks<\/a> (@fimiletoks<\/a>), claimed that Egypt and North African countries have signed the Samoa Agreement, a bilateral agreement between the European Union and the Organisation of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS).<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Verdict: The claim is false. A check on the EU website<\/a> did not list Northern African countries among the Agreement’s signatories.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full Text<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A report<\/a> by Daily Trust Newspaper<\/a> claiming that the signing of the Samoa Agreement by the federal government would legalise LGBTQ in the country has caused rancour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report claimed that the agreement had some clauses that would require signatory countries to recognise the voices of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) to get access to aid and grants from the European Union (EU).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the report did not mention the specific clause, it relied on an article<\/a> by Sonnie Ekwowusi<\/a>, a Lagos State-based lawyer and Chairman of the Human and Constitutional Rights Committee of the African Bar Association (AfBA).  Being a conservative society, the response to the story was mixed<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the government explained<\/a> that the report is not true, as the agreement did not ask signatory countries to adopt LGBQT, those who believe the report urged the government to suspend the implementation of the agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The conversation on the report irked<\/a> the government which threatened to sue<\/a> Daily Trust. It went further to report the media organisation to an ombudsman<\/a>. However, the backlash the organisation received for not doing due diligence on the report, especially for not stating the clause,<\/a> led it to give a response in which it admitted<\/a> lapses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a bid to portray the agreement as not harmful to the religious and societal teachings of what gender means, an X account, Dr Toks, @fimiletoks<\/a>, claimed <\/a>the agreement was signed by North African countries who also practice and follow the teachings of Islam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tweet<\/a> with 55 comments, 318 retweets and 639 likes stated, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll the N. African Arab nations are part of the Samoa agreement. Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Libya, Sudan, etc. Even the West and Central African countries with significant Muslim populations are also part of the agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He queried, \u201cIs Islam in Northern Nigeria different?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Olusegun Dada<\/a>, the special assistant to Nigeria\u2019s president on social media, also shared the same claim in a tweet<\/a> that he mentioned Egypt being a signatory to the agreement. A social media card<\/a>, produced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Media Centre<\/a> to educate Nigerians on the countries that have signed the agreement, also included Egypt, South Africa, and other North African countries on the list of the signatories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DUBAWA decided to investigate this claim because of its potential to misinform the public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brief on Samoa Agreement and the controversial clauses <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to the EU<\/a>, the Samoa Agreement<\/a> is a framework for EU relations with African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The agreement states how the EU will navigate its relationship with 79 countries, consisting of 48 African, 16 Caribbean and 15 Pacific countries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It added that the \u201cagreement aims to strengthen the capacity of the EU and the ACP countries to address global challenges together. It lays down common principles and covers the following six priority areas: democracy and human rights; sustainable economic growth and development; climate change; human and social development; peace and security; and migration and mobility.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the agreement, which was signed on November 15, 2023, shows 35 countries<\/a> withhold their signatures for further consultation and advice. This primarily stemmed from Articles 2.5 and 29.5 of the agreement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, as of July 2024, most countries that negotiated the agreement have signed it except Cuba and Equatorial Guinea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Article 2.5 stated, \u201cThe Parties shall systematically promote a gender perspective and ensure that gender equality is mainstreamed across all policies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Article 29.5 stated, \u201cThe Parties shall support universal access to sexual and reproductive health commodities and healthcare services, including for family planning, information, and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The articles did not explicitly mention LGBTQ, and different fact checks here<\/a>, here,<\/a> and here<\/a>, have indicated that the document does not have the word inserted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Verification<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A check on the European Council of the European Union’s website<\/a> did not include South Africa and North African countries among the countries with which the EU negotiated the agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to pages 8 to 14 of the agreement document<\/a>, Egypt, South Africa and other North African countries are not included as signatories. African countries that negotiated the Samoa deal are; <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Angola                         Benin Botswana<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Burkina Faso             Burundi Cabo Verde<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cameroon         Central African Republic Chad                       <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Comoros         Congo                       C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire<\/p>\n\n\n\n

D.R. Congo         Djibouti Equatorial Guinea    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eritrea         Eswatini         Ethiopia<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabon                         Gambia Ghana                        <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guinea         Guinea-Bissau       Kenya<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lesotho         Madagascar Malawi                        <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mali         Mauritania         Mauritius<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mozambique         Namibia Niger                       <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nigeria         Rwanda         Senegal<\/p>\n\n\n\n

S\u00e3o Tom\u00e9 and Pr\u00edncipe<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seychelles         Sierra Leone           Somalia          <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sudan                         Tanzania Togo                          <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uganda           Zambia           Zimbabwe<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Similarly, an infographic<\/a> that gives the timeline of when countries that negotiated the agreement <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signed the agreement, it did not include South Africa and North African countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While some Islamic countries are signatories to the Samoa agreement, countries in Northern  Africa and South Africa are not included in the list of signatories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This report is produced for the DUBAWA 2024 Kwame Karikari Fact-Checking Fellowship in partnership with the Daily Trust Newspaper to facilitate the ethos of truth in journalism and enhance media literacy in Nigeria.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Claim: An X account, Dr Toks (@fimiletoks), claimed that Egypt and North African countries have signed the Samoa Agreement, a bilateral agreement between the European Union and the Organisation of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS). Verdict: The claim is false. A check on the EU website did not list Northern African countries among the Agreement’s signatories. Full Text A report by Daily Trust Newspaper claiming that the signing of the Samoa Agreement by the federal government would legalise LGBTQ in the country has caused rancour. The report claimed that the agreement had some clauses that would require signatory countries to recognise the voices of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) to get access to aid and grants from the European Union (EU). While the report did not mention the specific clause, it relied on an article by Sonnie Ekwowusi, a Lagos State-based lawyer and Chairman of the Human and Constitutional Rights Committee of the African Bar Association (AfBA).  Being a conservative society, the response to the story was mixed. While the government explained that the report is not true, as the agreement did not ask signatory countries to adopt LGBQT, those who believe the report urged the government to suspend the implementation of the agreement. The conversation on the report irked the government which threatened to sue Daily Trust. It went further to report the media organisation to an ombudsman. However, the backlash the organisation received for not doing due diligence on the report, especially for not stating the clause, led it to give a response in which it admitted lapses. In a bid to portray the agreement as not harmful to the religious and societal teachings of what gender means, an X account, Dr Toks, @fimiletoks, claimed the agreement was signed by North African countries who also practice and follow the teachings of Islam. The tweet with 55 comments, 318 retweets and 639 likes stated,  \u201cAll the N. African Arab nations are part of the Samoa agreement. Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Libya, Sudan, etc. Even the West and Central African countries with significant Muslim populations are also part of the agreement.\u201d He queried, \u201cIs Islam in Northern Nigeria different?\u201d Olusegun Dada, the special assistant to Nigeria\u2019s president on social media, also shared the same claim in a tweet that he mentioned Egypt being a signatory to the agreement. A social media card, produced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Media Centre to educate Nigerians on the countries that have signed the agreement, also included Egypt, South Africa, and other North African countries on the list of the signatories. DUBAWA decided to investigate this claim because of its potential to misinform the public. Brief on Samoa Agreement and the controversial clauses  According to the EU, the Samoa Agreement is a framework for EU relations with African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries.  The agreement states how the EU will navigate its relationship with 79 countries, consisting of 48 African, 16 Caribbean and 15 Pacific countries.  It added that the \u201cagreement aims to strengthen the capacity of the EU and the ACP countries to address global challenges together. It lays down common principles and covers the following six priority areas: democracy and human rights; sustainable economic growth and development; climate change; human and social development; peace and security; and migration and mobility.\u201d However, the agreement, which was signed on November 15, 2023, shows 35 countries withhold their signatures for further consultation and advice. This primarily stemmed from Articles 2.5 and 29.5 of the agreement.  However, as of July 2024, most countries that negotiated the agreement have signed it except Cuba and Equatorial Guinea. Article 2.5 stated, \u201cThe Parties shall systematically promote a gender perspective and ensure that gender equality is mainstreamed across all policies.\u201d Article 29.5 stated, \u201cThe Parties shall support universal access to sexual and reproductive health commodities and healthcare services, including for family planning, information, and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes.\u201d The articles did not explicitly mention LGBTQ, and different fact checks here, here, and here, have indicated that the document does not have the word inserted. Verification A check on the European Council of the European Union’s website did not include South Africa and North African countries among the countries with which the EU negotiated the agreement. According to pages 8 to 14 of the agreement document, Egypt, South Africa and other North African countries are not included as signatories. African countries that negotiated the Samoa deal are;  Angola                         Benin Botswana Burkina Faso             Burundi Cabo Verde Cameroon         Central African Republic Chad                        Comoros         Congo                       C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire D.R. Congo         Djibouti Equatorial Guinea     Eritrea         Eswatini         Ethiopia Gabon                         Gambia Ghana                         Guinea         Guinea-Bissau       Kenya Lesotho         Madagascar Malawi                         Mali         Mauritania         Mauritius Mozambique         Namibia Niger                        Nigeria         Rwanda         Senegal S\u00e3o Tom\u00e9 and Pr\u00edncipe Seychelles         Sierra Leone           Somalia           Sudan                         Tanzania Togo                           Uganda           Zambia           Zimbabwe Similarly, an infographic that gives the timeline of when countries that negotiated the agreement  Signed the agreement, it did not include South Africa and North African countries. Conclusion While some Islamic countries are signatories to the Samoa agreement, countries in Northern  Africa and South Africa are not included in the list of signatories. This report is produced for the DUBAWA 2024 Kwame Karikari Fact-Checking Fellowship in partnership<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19471,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"hannibal_claim_source":"","hannibal_source_label":"","hannibal_card_color":"blue","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":false,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"default","_twitter_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type":"default","_pinterest_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"default","_medium_share_type":"","_threads_share_type":"","_google_business_share_type":"","_bluesky_share_type":"","_mastodon_share_type":"","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[1571,3812,3815,123],"tags":[],"verdict":[],"ppma_author":[4129],"class_list":["post-19470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fact-check","category-headline","category-homepage","category-mainstream"],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8R6dE-542","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"authors":[{"term_id":4129,"user_id":0,"is_guest":1,"slug":"faruk-shuaibu","display_name":"Faruk Shuaibu","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&r=g","author_category":"","user_url":"","last_name":"","first_name":"","job_title":"","description":""}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/samoa-image.png?fit=1600%2C728&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19470"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19470\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19472,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19470\/revisions\/19472"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19470"},{"taxonomy":"verdict","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/verdict?post=19470"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=19470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}