Brussels, 17/10/2013 (Agence Europe) - By 2015 the EU has collectively pledged to allocate 0.7% of its GNI to development. The latest report by CONCORD, the European network of development NGOs, reveals, however, that, in 2012, EU public aid for development was €36 billion short of the target figure. The CONCORD AidWatch report was published on 17 October to coincide with the International Day for Eradication of Poverty.
In 2012, the EU27 delivered €50.6 billion (0.39% of EU GNI, a 4% drop on the previous year) - the lowest level since 2007, with AidWatch projections showing that total aid is expected to remain almost stagnant at approximately 0.43% of GNI by 2013-2014, far from the 0.7% objective. Worse, according to AidWatch, the €50.6 billion figure was inflated with real public aid for development - the aid that actually reaches developing countries and not counting cancelled debt and costs of refugees in the donor countries - coming in at €45 billion, 0.35% of EU GNI.
“Some countries such as Belgium are making development aid their prime budget cuts”, said Wiske jult from the Belgian NGO platform 11.11.11. “Genuine aid has to reach those who need it the most rather than being used to pay off interest on debt”, stated Natalia Alonso, the head of Oxfam's EU office.
Several countries have significantly increased their aid, the largest relative increases being in Latvia (17%), Luxembourg (14%), Poland (14%), Austria (8%), Lithuania (8%) and the United Kingdom (7%). Those who have already reached the 0.7% target are Denmark (0.8%), Luxembourg (1%) and Sweden (0.99%). The United Kingdom will join them at 0.7% in 2013. (AN/transl.fl)