Development Cooperation: strategies, policies and practical cooperation

1
Development Co-operation strategies,
policies and practical cooperation

• Marje Sotnik
• Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• 21/08/2006

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Overview

• Development co-operation definitions, history,
  policies
• Development co-operation of the European Union
• Development co-operation of Estonia

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Definitions

• Development co-operation
• Regional co-operation
• Civilian missions

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Definitions

• Developing country defined by OECD DAC
  http//www.oecd.org/dataoecd/43/51/35832713.pdf
• Development co-operation efforts by
• developed and developing countries to bring
• people out of poverty and so reduce how
• much developing country relies on overseas aid.
  Many different things can contribute to
• development which reduces poverty, such as
• settling conflicts, increasing trade and
• improving health and education.

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Definitions

• Humanitarian assistance to assist in case of
  natural or manmade disasters
• ODA (Official Development Assistance) - aid to
  developing countries
• OA (Official Aid) aid to transition
  countries, not in use anymore!

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Developing countries (1)

• Term from 1950-ties
• No common definition
• Main criteria GNI per capita
• OECD DAC list
• World Bank GNI per capita
• UN Human development index

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Developing countries
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(No Transcript)
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Developing countries (2)

• Low living standard/poverty
• Poor health of the population
• Poor access to education
• High unemployment
• Fast population growth
• High urbanisation
• Importance of agriculture

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Developing countries (3)

• Lack of capital and investments
• Weak foreign trade, dependance on one article
  (f.e. coffee, textiles)
• High external debt
• Political and economic instability
• Colonial past

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Attention needed

• Sub-Saharan Africa
• Landlocked developing countries
• Small developing island states
• Least developed countries

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Reasons of development co-operation

• Traditional approaches
• Political
• Economic
• Moral
• Historical
• Foreign policy instrument

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Multilateral dimension

• UN
• World Bank
• IMF
• Regional development banks

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Problems of developing countries

• Many different assistance programs, difficult to
  administer
• Important
• - Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers
• Donor harmonisation
• Donor co-ordination
• Corruption, no results achieved

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Millennium Development Goals

• http//www.developmenteducation.ie/issues/mdg.php
  powerpoint

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Assistance

• Via multilateral institutions appr. 30 (WB, IMF,
  regional dev. banks, UN)
• Bilateral assistance programs of donor countries
  appr. 67 (bigger donors in OECD/DAC, 22
  countries biggest are Japan, USA, Germany, UK
  and France)
• NGOd appr. 3 (CARE, OXFAM, Red Cross)

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• EU development co-operation

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Structure

• Directorate General for Development
• - policy planning
• - Relations with 77 ACP countries and 20 OCTs
• Executive branch
• - Humanitarian Office (ECHO)
• - EuropeAid

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Main goals

• Poverty reduction
• Democratisation
• Rule of Law
• Good governance
• Protection of Human Rights

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Geographical overview

• Focus on ACP countries
• Cotonou Agreement
• - Valid for 20 years
• - Financial protocol renewed every 5 years
• - Funding via EDF (European Development Fund)
• Neighbourhood policy RELEX Directorate

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Financing

• EU Memberstates average level of ODA - 0.39 of
  GNI
• European Commission gives over 10 of the total
  int. Development financing
• European Commission gives 30 of the total
  humanitarian assistance

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Some statistics

• 2004 OECD/DAC
• Average 0,25, EU 0,36 of GNI
• (1991-92 EU 0,44)
• USA 0,16 , Japan 0,19
• EU top DK 0.84, NL 0,74, SWE 0,77, LUX 0,85
• Norway 0,87
• Estonia 2005 0,08

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Estonian development cooperation

• Started in 1997
• Budget allocations since 1998
• ODA amounting to 0,08 of GNI in 2005
• (according to OECD/DAC statistics)
• Legal framework Decision of the Parliament on
  Principles of Development Co-operation, January
  2003 Decision of the Government The Strategy of
  Estonian Development Co-operation and
  Humanitarian Aid 2006 2010, May 2006

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Principles

• Based on OECD principles and EU policies
• Absence of division btw foreign and development
  policies
• Value-added approach contribute in sharing
  experience in transition process
• NGOs partners in implementation
• Trilateral co-operation important

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Principles

• Priority countries
• Georgia
• Ukraine
• Moldova
• Afghanistan

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Principles

• Priority sectors
• Good governance and democratisation
• Education
• Economic development and trade liberalisation
• Environment
• Horizontal issue
• Information and Communication Technologies

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Administrative Capacity

• Development Co-operation Division in MFA since
  September 2001, 5 officials
• January 2004 - a Development Co-operation post in
  Estonian Permanent Representation to the EU
• Inter-Ministerial Committee analyzing projects
• Foreign minister decides

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Partnerships

• Participation in EU policy increased a) access
  to information and b) workload
• UN and other multilaterals
• Other bilateral donors building capacity and
  creating added value
• Nationally NGOs are developing to be a
  considerable partner

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Partnership with NGO-s

• Estonian Development Cooperation Roundtable,
  autumn 2002
• Preparation of Principles of Estonian Development
  Co-operation and Strategy
• 10 NGO partners implementing projects
• app. 50 of all bilateral projects implemented by
  NGOs (2005)
• Sectors environment, indigenous people, NGO
  capacity building, humanitarian aid etc

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Partnership with NGO-s

• Project Rational and efficient use of water and
  energy resources in Central-Asia, carried out in
  Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan (Peipsi Centre for
  Trans-boundary Co-operation)
• Project to support capacity building of the Kola
  Saamis organisations in Murmansk, Russia
  (Estonian Fund for Nature)

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Estonian assistance

• Projects
• Voluntary contributions
• Humanitarian assistance
• Awareness raising

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Future Challenges

• Awareness rising in all sectors of society
• Policy formulation, incl. introducing calls for
  proposals
• Participation in the EU Development Policy
• Increasing the financial means
• Improving co-operation within MFA and with other
  governmental institutions

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Useful links

• www.vm.ee (Development Co-operation)
• www.terveilm.net (NGO Roundtable)
• www.un.org (UN MDGs)
• www.oecd.org/dac (OECD DAC)
• http//europa.eu.int/comm/development/index_en.htm
  (EC Development Co-operation Directorate)
• www.worldbank.org (World Bank)

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Thank you!