The Council adopted conclusions on EU development aid targets, in the form of its annual report to the European Council. The report analyses trends with regard to commitments and delivery on the EU’s official development assistance (ODA).
The ODA is a major source of finance for least developed countries and fragile states which particularly lack the domestic capacity to raise finance from other sources.
The Council notes that the EU and its member states have maintained their position as largest ODA provider, accounting for almost 57% of the total ODA to developing countries from members of the OECD’s development assistance committee.
In 2018, EU ODA reached EUR 74.4 billion, representing 0.47% of EU gross national income. This total was EUR 731 million lower than in 2017, when the ratio was also higher, at 0.50%. In this context, the Council is increasingly concerned by the negative trend of EU collective ODA, which has decreased for the second year in a row, and regrets the deepening gap towards reaching the collective target to provide 0.7% of GNI as ODA. The Council reaffirms its political leadership and commitment to development aid, and recalls the EU and its member states’ individual and collective ODA commitments, as laid down in the new European Consensus on development.
Read and download the Annual report 2019 to the European Council on EU development aid targets
Original source: European Council
Published on 16 May 2019
