Development Policy
Universal electricity access goal set to be missed, new report reveals
The international community is falling well short of providing the cash needed to ensure universal access to electricity by 2030, according to a report released Monday (12 November).
Mogherini: Europe and Africa can change global politics in a ‘revolutionary’ way
A new model of collaboration between the EU and Africa can change today’s dangerous turn of international relations, which have moved from “win-win” solutions and are now based on “zero-sum” games, EU's top diplomat Federica Mogherini said.
S&D chief: ‘Political suicide’ for Europe to ignore Africa
Europe has to tackle the root causes of migration and better manage population flows by investing in people rather than walls, Udo Bullmann told EURACTIV.com in an interview.
A new EU-Africa partnership
A new EU-Africa partnership is needed in order to tackle common challenges and fight for sustainable development without leaving anyone behind, according to EU Socialists and Democrats.
EU lowers its ambitions on African migration control
EU leaders asked the Commission in June to study ways to set up “regional disembarkation platforms” in North African countries, for migrants rescued by European vessels in the Mediterranean. But the demand didn't last long and the EU seems to have quietly lowered its ambitions on migration-control deals with North Africa.
Pakistan charity crackdown spreads uncertainty among aid groups
Foreign aid groups are being forced out of Pakistan, where the need for their services remains immense, in a move analysts say is fuelled by suspicions of foreign spying.
Merkel looks to Africa to cement her legacy undermined by migration crisis
German Chancellor Angela Merkel pledged on Tuesday (30 November) a new development fund to tackle unemployment in Africa, a problem spurring the mass migration that has shaped her long premiership as it nears its end.
Decentralised cooperation gets results: the PLATFORMA coalition is there to prove it!
Discover concrete examples of what city-to-city and region-to-region development cooperation can bring to cities and regions from the EU and partner countries.
EU is as comfortable as China with the African thugs and dictators
The EU has long frowned at China’s action in Africa for not requiring respect for human rights as a condition for aid and thus promoting a Chinese-inspired authoritarian Africa. But in recent years the EU is not better, writes Fabian Wagner.
A wind of change in the Horn of Africa will reach Europe’s shores
The "summer of love" breaking out on the Horn of Africa represents a new reality for the region – and one that will be felt in Europe, writes Faisal Al Yafai.
Migration control still trumps African ‘partnership of equals’
Less than a month after Jean-Claude Juncker’s State of the Union talked of the need for a ‘partnership of equals’ between Africa and the European Union, migration control was once again the main prism through which the EU views Africa...
EU development aid fell in 2017, reveals new report
EU aid spending fell for the first time in 5 years in 2017, according to the CONCORD AidWatch Report 2018 published on Wednesday (17 October).
EU budget must support ambitious new Africa partnership
The next seven year EU budget must be ambitious enough to support an ambitious new partnership with Africa, argue a group of senior former EU ministers.
Decentralised cooperation: building bridges for local-to-local development beyond 2020
Decentralised cooperation has been a pillar in international development for the past 10 years but stakeholders fear the new EU long-term budget might threaten the role of local authorities in the field.
To implement the SDGs, the EU needs to be consistent
Good news for all the supporters of development policies: city-to-city development cooperation will remain at the heart of the EU’s external action. And localising the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a priority supported by the European Union, writes Frédéric Vallier.
UK to ramp up private sector development role after Brexit, says minister
The UK will keep to its 0.7% aid spending commitment but plans to dramatically scale up its private sector investment in poor countries, its development minister Penny Mordant said on Tuesday (9 October).
‘Europe has turned its back on Africa’, say leaders
European paranoia about Chinese dominance on the African continent was one of the underlying themes at the Financial Times’ Africa summit this week.
Decentralised cooperation: what future for local to local EU’s development policy after 2020?
Decentralised cooperation has allowed to better adapt EU’s cooperation policies to the needs of the people in the field. However, with the new negotiations on the Multiannual Financial Framework, the role of local authorities in cooperation policies might be at stake.
Mimica: Decentralised cooperation will remain at heart of EU’s external action
With negotiations on the next EU long-term budget about to start, Commissioner Neven Mimica defended the European commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals and praised the role local authorities play in international cooperation in an interview with EURACTIV.com.
Venture capital with a difference: targeting Africa’s ‘missing middle’
The 'missing middle' of the financial services spectrum in much of sub-Saharan Africa means that start-ups are unable to find the investment they need to grow. But venture capital firms are looking at companies that target the low-income mass market.
EU considers trade sanctions on Myanmar over Rohingya crisis
The European Union is considering trade sanctions on Myanmar over the Rohingya crisis, potentially stripping the country of tariff-free access to the world’s largest trading bloc, three EU officials said.
An African solution to the global tech talent shortage
‘Eat, sleep, code, repeat,’ is the mantra in Andela’s Nairobi campus, home to a network of Africa's brightest coders. Taking the inspiration for its name from the late South African President Nelson Mandela, Andela invests in Africa’s software engineers.
ACP-EU negotiations: Taking the road to prosperity together
Talks on a new agreement between the ACP and the EU will only bear fruit if both parties take the road to prosperity together, writes the ACP's chief negotiator, Robert Dussey, on the post-Cotonou talks.