The Development Ministers of the EU27, meeting in Brussels on 19 November, discussed how development and humanitarian aid can contribute to addressing global and regional challenges and how to coordinate with the United States.
On the sidelines at the session, they had an exchange of views with Samantha Power, the administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, USAID.
The ministers had previously been briefed by the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and the Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, on the EU’s response to the crises in Ethiopia, Afghanistan and Sudan.
According to Mr Borrell, who spoke via video message after the meeting, “our combined leadership is really needed, more than ever, to face the challenges of development in the world. We have agreed to work together to end the Covid-19 pandemic everywhere and for everyone”.
He recalled the EU and US goal of helping to vaccinate 70% of the world’s population by the UN General Assembly in September 2022, in line with their Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations (see EUROPE 12797/17).
Although Europe is, according to the WHO, the epicentre of the epidemic, with a surge in infections, the High Representative said that the ministers had discussed the “shocking gap” between the EU, which is more than 70% vaccinated, the rest of the world, at “about 40%, and Africa at 6%, for example”.
“We need to increase our joint support for Covax and provide vaccines to the world”, he stressed, saying it was time to speed up the delivery of doses.
Italian Minister Marina Sereni welcomed this signal for multilateralism and increased global cooperation. We need to “create synergies to be more effective on the ground”, whether for accelerating global immunisation, climate issues, the Horn of Africa, or Afghanistan.
She noted the convergence between EU ministers and Samantha Power on the need to strengthen the effectiveness of Covax, to secure an immediate cessation of hostilities in Ethiopia, and to support African Union mediation. She also cited the importance of addressing the lack of cash and access to basic services for the Afghan people.
“Development aid, humanitarian aid is an excellent instrument to tackle jointly some common challenges like climate change, migration, inequality, human rights, and the Covid-19 pandemic“, said Slovak Minister Ingrid Brockova, whose country has been cooperating with USAID since 2018 on joint projects in Moldova, North Macedonia, Georgia and Serbia.
The Ministers also adopted conclusions on the EU’s ‘water diplomacy’ - a step forward that the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU has been keen on and which Stanislav Raščan welcomed (see separate news item). (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)