Brussels, 24/05/2005 (Agence Europe) - Against all expectations, the development ministers of the EU managed, individually and collectively, to reach agreement in Brussels on Tuesday on a substantial increase in their official development aid (ODA) by 2010, as a new interim stage on the way to 0.7% of Community GDP by 2015. This new commitment, which spreads the efforts equally whilst taking account of the specific nature of the new Member States, which are newcomers to ODA, is equivalent to no less than 20 billion EUR extra that the EU will be making available each year to help the poorest countries on the planet, or an additional contribution of 49 EUR per European citizen. All the Member States, including the least favourable ones like Germany, Italy, Portugal and Poland, were able to go along with the Presidency's compromise, which was no mean feat. It took two attempts to agree: over dinner on Monday evening, then again in the formal session on Tuesday. Germany, Italy and Portugal, however, minuted individual statements referring to their budgetary constraints and obligations under the Stability Pact, which they feel they will not be able to respect due to this additional expenditure. Even so, the agreement is an unlooked-for success, which the Luxembourg President, Jean-Louis Schiltz, and Development Commissioner Louis Michel welcomed wholeheartedly, due to the prospects this opens up for the UN Summit on the revision of the Millennium Development Objectives (in New York this September).
“The Member States reached an agreement in a new threshold for the new ODA by 2010 and 2015. As of last year, the EU said that it wanted to play a lead role in New York. Today's agreement is a major contribution to this. It shows that the EU does not just make empty promises; it keeps its word. On the basis of the commitments made at the Barcelona Summit and in Monterrey in March 2002, we are on the way to achieving the objective of 0.39% of GDP this year [a year earlier than scheduled: Ed]. We have just made a new commitment to bring this average to 0.56% in 2010. This is an important breakthrough in terms of international solidarity”, said Jean-Louis Schiltz. Specifying that the Fifteen had committed to a threshold of 0.51% of 2010 and of 0.7% in 2015, Mr Schiltz, whose country has already reached this ultimate objective, added: “this is the first time that we have set a clear date for this 0.7%, which has been under discussion for so many years”. The new Member States, on the other hand, will go for 0.17% and 0.33% in 2010 and 2015 respectively. “This is the most important step forward since the millennium declaration was adopted in 2000”, concluded Mr Schiltz, thanking the delegations for the “constructive spirit” they had shown, and Louis Michel's “unfailing support and collaboration”. In answer to the press, the President swept away the idea that the agreement could be unravelled by the Ecofin Council in June. “This is a Council decision, a firm and definitive decision which will go to the June European Council. The Heads of State and Government are highly committed to it. There is every reason to believe that it will be adopted”. On the declarations of the three Member States annexed to the conclusions, he feels that they are there to state that there are difficulties, but in no way change “the commitment they have taken”. Louis Michel welcomed the fact that all the elements of the Commission's proposal had found their way into the Council agreement, including the figures. “The Commission set the principle of an interim objective to keep the pressure up. 0.56% for all, 0.51% for the old and 0.17% for the new, it's all there. And the text is stronger than in Barcelona [Summit of Heads of State and Government: ED] because the old Member States are firmly committed instead of just doing their best”. He stressed that by committing to an additional 20 billion EUR every year, the European Union was taking its place as the “genuine world leader for development policy, before New York”, which the Commission is delighted about. He thanked the old Member States, because “it has not been easy for some of them to cross the line, given their budgetary constraints”, and also the new Member States, “who understood why it was so important to get on the inside of the new dynamics”.
The text for the agreement stipulates that the older Member States each make a commitment to reach the 0.51% of their GDP by 2010 (for those who are still not there) “in the context of their budgetary allocations procedures” and that the new Member States, whose current contribution is minimal, they should try their best to reach 0.17% by the same date, which would allow the EU to increase the average level of its ODA in 2010 to 0.56% of its GDP. The agreement also contained the commitment from older Member States to undertake to achieve 0.7% in 2015, which attained by the champions (the four Member States that are already achieving this level) and to keep to this level and for the new Member States to reach a level of 0.33% in 2015. The Council's conclusions mention the intention of some Member States to introduce a voluntary solidarity contribution on airline tickets (proposed by Xavier Darcos from France) and explain that at least half of the ODA surplus will be allocated to Africa in keeping with the wishes of the Commission, which is bringing particular attention to the continent where it is now established that it will not achieve the 2015 millennium goals.
Ten Member States determined display political determination through symbolic gesture
In reply to the invitation by the NGO coalition (including Oxfam International), the ten EU development ministers singed on Tuesday morning in a backdrop to the session with Commissioner Louis Michel and Jean-Louis Schiltz (as Luxembourg minister of development cooperation) a white banner to demonstrate their commitment and determination through this symbolic political gesture addressed to the public. Four Member States have already achieved an ODA level of 0.7% of their GDP: Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden and Luxembourg. Five Member States have set out a national timetable for reaching this level by 2012 (France, Spain, United Kingdom, Belgium and Finland). Germany, which was not invited by the NGOs, as it is considered as being responsible for the failure of the discussions, caused some surprise by showing its support for the initiative.