—

having regard to its decision on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the eighth, ninth, tenth and eleventh European Development Funds for the financial year 2021,

—

having regard to Rule 99 and the third indent of Rule 100 of, and Annex V to, its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Development,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A9-0114/2023),

A.

whereas Union development cooperation, as referred to in Articles 208 to 210 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), operates in a global context, defined by United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (Agenda 2030) and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);

B.

whereas the Union has cooperative relations with a large number of developing countries, the main objective being to promote economic, social and environmental development, with the primary aim of reducing and eradicating poverty in the long-term by providing beneficiary countries with development aid and technical assistance;

C.

Whereas the objective of Union development cooperation is to uphold and promote the Union’s values and interests worldwide in order to pursue the objectives and principles of its external action, as laid down in Article 3(5) and Articles 8 and 21 of the Treaty on European Union;

D.

whereas, from 1959 and until 2020, the European Development Funds (EDFs) provided development cooperation aid to the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries and overseas countries and territories (OCTs); whereas the framework governing the Union’s relation with the ACP countries and OCTs was a partnership agreement signed in Cotonou (‘the Cotonou Agreement’) on 23 June 2000 for a period of 20 years, later extended to 30 June 2022;

E.

whereas the eleventh EDF has reached its final stage as its sunset clause came into effect on 31 December 2020 and, as from 2021, the EDF programmes have been included in the Union’s multiannual financial framework (MFF); whereas, however, specific contracts for existing financing agreements will still be signed until 31 December 2023;

F.

whereas, for the 2021–2027 MFF, development cooperation aid to ACP countries has been incorporated in the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe (‘NDICI-Global Europe’) and development cooperation aid into the OCTs has been incorporated into the Decision on the Overseas Association, including Greenland (1);

G.

whereas the eighth, ninth, tenth and eleventh EDFs were not incorporated into the Union general budget and continue to be implemented and reported on separately until their closure;

H.

whereas the EDFs are managed almost entirely by the Commission’s Directorate-General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA) (2) with a small proportion (0,25 %) of the 2021 EDF expenditure being managed by the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations;

I.

whereas development cooperation is evolving from a more traditional concentration on the social sectors towards a stronger emphasis on mutual interests, including on investment, trade and the development of high value added economic sectors , sustainable development, education and gender equality;

J.

whereas structural changes are needed in the agricultural sector of developing partner countries, particularly by empowering local small-scale farmers, assisting them in the use of new agricultural technologies, implementing modern water management methods and facilitating market access;

K.

whereas by means of a Team Europe approach (3), the Union works together with the Member States in the field, with local beneficiaries and with the other donors to bring a tangible impact and transformation change in the partner countries; recalls that budget support must correspond to the needs of partner countries as well as the Union key policies; recalls that it is also necessary to measure the performance of programmes and their impact in partner countries and civilian populations;

L.

whereas development cooperation is a shared competence between the Member States and the Union, and Article 208 TFEU specifically states that ‘[t]he Union’s development cooperation policy and that of the Member States complement and reinforce each other.’;

M.

whereas the Union and the Member States can undertake joint actions and should inform each other about actions being undertaken in the field of development cooperation;

N.

whereas sustainability is crucial for achieving the set goals and results and, in particular, the long-term impact of development aid;

O.

whereas traditionally the implementation of the EDF, and development in general, take place in risky, complex and fast-evolving environments, aggravated in 2021 by the COVID-19 pandemic and the unstable political situation experienced by some of the Union’s partner countries, hampering implementation of the EDF and respective audit activities;

P.

whereas the ever-growing gap between the funds needed and those available to respond to the deepening climate, hunger, debt, humanitarian and other crises is generating a growing disparity between industrialised and less-developed nations and increasing poverty levels for the first time in decades;

Q.

whereas, notwithstanding the previous statement, fostering transparency, accountability, human rights due diligence and fighting corruption and fraud are key for the success of the Union’s budget support operations;

R.

whereas humanitarian and development aid is an expression of a de facto global solidarity, enshrined in the Treaties and at the core of the Union’s values;