Partnership with the United Nations: development assistance and humanitarian aid

SUMMARY OF:

Communication (COM(2001) 231 final) — Building an effective partnership with the United Nations in the fields of Development and Humanitarian Affairs

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE COMMUNICATION?

• To strengthen the partnership between the European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) in the fields of development and humanitarian affairs.
• A particular aim of the partnership is the implementation the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which in 2016 were replaced by the Sustainable Development Goals.

KEY POINTS

• The partnership between the EU and UN is based upon the shared aim of reaching the most vulnerable populations in crises around the world and alleviating their suffering.
• While humanitarian aid and development cooperation projects carried out by the UN are directly coordinated with the relevant European Commission services (DG European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations and DG International Cooperation and Development — EuropeAid) respectively, EuropeAid is responsible for the overall coordination of the relations between the UN and the European Commission.
• The Financial and Administrative Framework Agreement (FAFA), which was last revised in 2014, lays down the legal rules applicable to all agreements between the EU and the UN agencies. The EU and UN can adapt their approach to cooperation through:
  • drawing up per-country multiannual programming instruments of European external policy;
  • creating a new EU Financial Regulation to permit greater flexibility in terms of participating in UN activities;
  • reforming the FAFA between the EU and the UN concerning the financial management, control and audit of UN programmes and projects;
  • increasing representation and defence of EU policy priorities within the UN through multilateral governance.
• This communication lays down 2 core principles for strengthening cooperation between the EU and UN:
  • the division of labour between the EU, UN agencies and their partners depending on their competencies; and
  • targeting development activities on reducing poverty.
• The communication also suggests that the EU supports UN partner organisations that correspond with EU policy priorities, whilst coordinating multiannual funding from different donors and fighting fraud.

BACKGROUND

The EU (when EU countries’ contributions are also taken into account) contributes the largest proportion of funding to the UN’s budget. Together, the EU and the UN conduct joint actions at global level. Their cooperation extends to the majority of the areas covered by the EU’s external policy and to all of the areas covered by the Charter of the UN (peace, security, human rights, economic and social affairs, development, humanitarian aid and trade policy).

MAIN DOCUMENT

Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament — Building an effective partnership with the United Nations in the fields of Development and Humanitarian Affairs (COM(2001) 231 final, 2.5.2001)

last update 06.12.2016