On the morning of Tuesday 18 February, members of the European Parliament’s Committee on Development (DEVE) discussed external aid financing requirements ahead of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), taking place in Seville from 30 June to 3 July 2025.
The rapporteur, Charles Goerens (Renew Europe, Luxembourg), who was responsible for drafting a motion for a European Parliament resolution ahead of the conference, criticised the lack of consistency on the part of the EU Member States and the European Commission in implementing the commitments made at the previous conference, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in July 2015.
The MEP cited, among other things, the reluctance of some EU countries to devote 0.7% of gross national income to official development assistance (ODA). “No sooner had two Member States returned from Addis Ababa than they announced cuts in their ODA (...) In Seville, we have every interest in asserting ourselves as leaders in ODA, especially after the failures of American aid”, he declared.
He added: “The Member States need to do some soul-searching and say clearly what they want to announce, and then keep their promises”.
Represented in the House, the European Commission on Tuesday reaffirmed its intention to maintain the 0.7% target, but stressed the need to introduce a discussion on the “impact” of financing as part of the Seville conference.
A number of MEPs, from both the left and right of the Chamber, welcomed Mr Goerens’ draft text, although they also indicated their intention to make a number of changes.
See the draft report: https://aeur.eu/f/fkr (Original version in French by Bernard Denuit)