Brussels, 24/06/2013 (Agence Europe) - European and Latin American civil society networks point to the increasing role of financial institutions and the European private sector.
A study published by the NGOs Alop, Aprodev, Cifca, Eurodad and Grup Sur on 20 June questions the positive impact of the cooperation policy currently conducted between the EU and Latin America on the reduction of poverty and inequalities. As well as stopping bilateral cooperation with 11 countries from the region, cooperation policy relies on greater participation from the private sector as a development player and on increased use of non-traditional aid modalities - such as the Latin American Investment Facility (LAIF), which combines grants and loans, the NGOs state. “The main goal of the publication (…) is to reflect on the impact of mixing profitability and solidarity logics. This risks setting the principles of financial profitability and economic growth development objectives, which are the reduction of poverty in a framework of effective realisation of human rights”, the five NGOs state, expressing concern at the lack of transparency around a mechanism such as LAIF. “This alluring concept, which intends to achieve impacts in terms of poverty reduction while promoting mechanisms of green investment, introduces highly financialised modalities and the participation of the private sector, which would guarantee a high leverage of the invested funds”, they add, deploring the lack of participation from civil society and the lack of transparency of the mechanisms so far promoted. Their concerns are expressed both by ecology NGOs and by MEPs from various political colours in the European Parliament - Gay Mitchel (EPP, Ireland), Ska Keller (Greens/EFA, Germany), Thijs Berman (S&D, Netherlands) and Charles Goerens (ALDE, Luxembourg). (EH/transl.fl)