Brussels, 05/11/2013 (Agence Europe) - During a visit to the Sahel region with Ban Ki-moon, the president of the African Union, Dlamini Zuma and the chairmen of multilateral financial institutions (see EUROPE 10956), European Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs announced on Tuesday 5 November support for Mali totalling €615 million for 2014 to 2020. This aid, which still requires formal approval from Parliament and the Council, underlines the European Union's determination to maintain its support for building peace and economic and social development in Mali. This support is part of the €5 billion of aid allocated by the European Union for the Sahel (Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania and Senegal) for the same period.
The aid package will be funded out of the 11th European development fund (EDF) and will focus on government reform, food security, education and the construction of a road linking Gao and Kidal to the Algerian border, in line with the priorities drawn up by the Malian authorities in their Plan for the Sustainable Recovery of Mali 2013-2014. This plan was presented to the international community in Brussels on 15 May last, at the international donors' conference for economic recovery and democracy in Mali. The €615 million comes on top of the sums pledged by the EU (€523 million over the next two years out of a total donors' commitment of around €3,250,000,000).
Commissioner Piebalgs stated that, “since the political and military crisis of 2012, we have seen the Malian Government's determination to overcome instability in order to concentrate on the country's development. The restoration of security is a vital condition for sustainable development in the region. We stand by the Malian authorities in their efforts to implement poverty reduction programmes”.
Under the 10th EDF, which covers the 2008-2013 period, Mali has benefited from an allocation that has been raised from an initial €533 million to nearly €728 million. To this amount must be added €34 million in thematic instruments and €55 million for regional cooperation. €54 million has also been allocated in 2013 as humanitarian aid through ECHO (the Commission's humanitarian aid service). ECHO is in the process of raising its contribution to the food aid operations of the World Food Programme (WFP) from €5 million to €10 million. This measure is designed to assist 674,000 people affected by the current humanitarian crisis, principally by distributing food. (AN/transl.fl)