28/04/2014
Javier Sota is a researcher at the Centre for Development Cooperation Studies (CECOD)
On 14 April, the Foreign Affairs Ministers of the European Union, gathered in Luxembourg, gave the green light to designate 2015 as the European Year for Development. Since 1957, the EU’s cooperation policy has been increasingly broadened until reaching more than 130 developing countries. Currently, the EU, together with its Member States, constitutes the largest giver of Official Aid—56,500 million euros in 2013, more than half of the world total—. The EU is also the leading humanitarian aid donor and, only in 2011, assisted more than 150 million people in 80 countries.
However, the current crisis in Ukraine has shown the complete lack of speed and efficiency of the European Union’s external action. Professor José María de Areilza recalled it recently (ABC, 13-4-2014) when he said that “the pending subject of the European Union throughout the last twenty years has not yet been passed, this is, to become a global actor that will defend its interests in the outside world”.
This reality raises some questions: can the development policy become a good instrument for deepening and advancing the EU’s external action? Can cooperation provide international presence to the EU in a new global context? After all, we cannot deny that Europe’s Brand—based on values such as democracy, human rights, peace, cooperation, sustainable growth and solidarity—is appealing for many people outside our borders.
Anyone who approaches the most recent international scene will have to admit that things are changing a lot and very fast. Only two small remarks. First of all, we are facing a more multipolar world, where the growth of emerging countries—such as China, India or Brazil—is translated into more leverage at regional and global level, whilst the relative weight of Western countries is diminished. Second, there has been a significant increase in the international presence of social groups and individuals, who often act regardless of the States’ interests and who, thanks to technological improvements, play an increasingly prominent role in international relations.
Also, if we have a look at the evolution of the Elcano Global Presence Index of the last years, we will see how, following the end of the Cold War, the importance of military presence has been reduced, whilst the economic and “soft” presence have increasingly gained more weight. Said “soft” presence, nowadays even more important that economic presence, would include elements such as science and technology, culture, tourism, the labour market and development cooperation.
Therefore, at a time when Europeans should ask ourselves more about what unites us and what we want to achieve together, development cooperation represents one of Europe’s Brand great assets, and it is also the area that emotionally links us the most to out partner countries. 2015, as the European Year for Development, gives us a good opportunity to continue moving forward toward a genuine feeling of belonging to Europe and to raise awareness on the importance of cooperation and its contribution to a fairer and more caring world. It is important because we have a moral and political duty, but also—and we should not forget it—because it is in our own interest.