Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-11-17-Speech-4-160"
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"en.20051117.19.4-160"2
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"Mr President, Mr Wijkman, ladies and gentlemen, I think Europe has demonstrated its aspirations this year. It has proved that it is capable of carrying some weight in the world. It has done better than others in assuming its responsibility towards the developing countries.
Thirdly, the importance of equality between men and women. In this connection, I would like to inform you that the Commission has proposed including Parliament’s text among the guiding principles of the statement.
Fourthly, it takes a rights-based approach. I believe the Commission’s proposal of including human rights and governance as complementary objectives to poverty reduction meets Parliament’s request perfectly.
Fifthly, all the priorities mentioned in the resolution are covered by the Community’s fields of action: the prevention and treatment of Aids and other diseases, reproductive health, gender equality, adjustment to climate change, trade for development, conflict prevention, good governance, preventing corruption and promoting decent work, which includes preventing child labour.
Finally, we are very pleased that Parliament is open to a move towards budgetary support, because that will enable us to be effective and to develop countries’ capacities. In this way, we can help to improve the management of public finance and support institutions, including national parliaments. Those institutions must play their part fully and act as budget guardians. At the same time, I am convinced that this is a powerful way of initiating and fostering political dialogue with our partners. I therefore thank Parliament, which with this resolution is making a significant contribution to more effective action for development and laying the foundations for close collaboration between us in the future.
As you know, in May the European Union gave some strong commitments to make its aid more effective and its development policies more coherent. In June, the European Union decided to double development aid between 2004 and 2010 so as to reach the target of 0.7% of gross national income by 2015. I would nevertheless point out that this commitment means an increase of EUR 20 billion a year by 2010 and EUR 46 billion a year in 2015. In September, the European Union’s intensive preparatory work made the UN World Summit a milestone, a key point in the quest for a more balanced multilateralism and a more just world order. I think we can say without any conceit that without the European Union that summit might well have ended in hopeless failure. There, too, the European Union made all the difference.
There is obviously still plenty of room for improvement, however. If Europe wants to carry more weight, it must do more and make a qualitative leap in the way we work together. That is why in July we put forward the proposal for a European consensus on development, a proposal I have presented and discussed in this House on several occasions. The interinstitutional debate that followed this document’s adoption by the Commission shows the diversity and wealth of opinion on the European Union’s role in the world. It is also an enlightening debate and one about which I feel strongly. I cannot deny, however, that some of the arguments being put forward by major players trouble me. Some give the impression that we have to decide between a Community development policy and the policies of the Member States, between those who would like to centralise development policy at European level and those who believe solely in bilateral cooperation.
That, ladies and gentlemen, is not the issue. Europe as a whole today has more than 20 000 diplomats, three times more than the United States; is it acceptable for it to frequently take second place in political planning? When Europe is responsible for virtually 60% of development aid, is it today acceptable for it always to dispense that aid through 26 different programming documents and implement it using 26 different procedures?
I believe the answer is no, it is not acceptable. Europe’s influence and effectiveness must be on a par with its resources, and that is precisely why I have suggested to the Member States and the European Parliament a common platform for the European Union as a whole, a platform that will bring together its values, its aims, its principles and its field of action and will apply to the European Union as a whole. This platform, the European consensus, would be an essential step towards more coordinated, more complementary and more resolute action by the European Union.
What is it all about? We, Parliament, the Council and the Commission, share the same values, the founding values of the European Union. We share one paramount objective: the eradication of poverty wherever it is found. We share an international agenda: the Millennium Development Goals and the Millennium Declaration. We share principles of partnership: shared responsibility between industrialised and developing countries, the appropriation of poverty-reduction strategies by the partner countries, the involvement of civil society and non-state players. We share the principles of aid effectiveness: concentration rather than fragmentation of efforts, coherence of policy, coordination and division of labour between donors, the harmonisation of our procedures, alignment with the partner countries’ strategies.
The motion for a resolution presented by Mr Wijkman today is remarkable. It highlights the key positive elements of the Commission’s communication and makes a constructive contribution to improving the consensus; it was a great help to us in our tripartite discussions and I thank him for it. I congratulate him and your Parliament, too, on the exceptional quality of this contribution. I would like to give you a brief summary of the points of the resolution, which I support unreservedly, the points that form the basis of our consensus.
Firstly, a clear reference to the statement on development policy in the regulation that will govern the financial instrument for development cooperation. I have no doubt that this response will strengthen the very status of the statement.
Secondly, the analysis of poverty as a multidimensional phenomenon requiring a range of responses and a balance between the socio-economic and environmental pillars of sustainable development."@en1
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