Development policy in accordance with the new EU consensus in this area and, in particular, the promotion of digital technology in this strand of EU external policy will be at the heart of the informal meeting of EU ministers with responsibility for development convened by the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the EU in Tallinn on Monday 11 September. Encouraging the use of digital solutions and technologies in development cooperation is one of the priorities of this Presidency and champion of digital technology.
Estonian Foreign Affairs Minister Sven Misker and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini will take part in the discussions.
Digital for development. Ministers will discuss the most effective ways to make this priority of development cooperation policy a reality. As a priority, it is not new but it will certainly grow in importance, in line with the Digital4Development strategy presented by the Commission in May to consolidate EU action to support the sustainable development of developing countries, particularly in Africa (see EUROPE 11782).
Resilience in practice. Ministers will debate how to make the humanitarian-development nexus more operational, following on from the conclusions adopted by the Council of the EU in May of this year and the EU strategy on resilience presented in June (see EUROPE 11803).
The meeting will begin with a working lunch over which will be discussed the engagement of the EU and its member states with more advanced developing countries, including middle-income countries, to develop new partnerships based on strategic engagement. The new framework document, European Consensus for Development, defines the priorities and principles that will guide European development policy from 7 June until 2020 (see EUROPE 11803 and 11800). At dinner, the European fund for sustainable development (EFSD), a pillar of the EU’s external investment plan seeking to address the root causes of migration from Africa and the countries of the EU’s neighbourhood, will be on the agenda (see EUROPE 11825). (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)