On discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2023, Section III – Commission, executive agencies and the ninth, tenth and eleventh European Development Funds

PA_NonLegDec

OPINION

The Committee on Development calls on the Committee on Budgetary Control, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following into its motion for a resolution:

1. Is very concerned by the increasing number of crises worldwide, the rise in inequalities, extreme poverty and hunger, exacerbated by the repercussions of the ongoing war of Russia against Ukraine on the global food crisis, the situation in the Middle east, and the humanitarian crisis in Africa, and the increasingly frequent and severe consequences of climate change, all of which disproportionately affect the most vulnerable populations and have halted or even reverted progress regarding the sustainable development goals (SDGs), with the SDG financing gap increasing to currently more than 4 trillion USD; is concerned about the growing financial gap between the need for humanitarian aid and available funding;

2. Recalls that the current political instability worldwide is unlikely to diminish, underscoring the need for the EU to secure sufficient funding and maintain flexibility to adapt and respond to emerging crises; emphasizes that while Member States are increasingly reducing their allocations to development and humanitarian policies, this trend hampers effective responses to escalating humanitarian and development challenges; considers that although investments in infrastructure and digitalization will be essential, sustainable development cannot be achieved without adequately addressing the root causes of current global turbulences—such as poverty, climate change and inequality—through appropriate funding;

3. Against this background and worldwide tightening budgets for development, stresses that it is of utmost importance to use EU funds for development as transparently, effectively and efficiently as possible, strictly following established rules and procedures; recalls that the EU can only effectively support developing countries in addressing their immediate needs and long-term structural challenges through a balanced and coherent set of policies, underpinned by ambitious and predictable funding; expresses concern about the continuously high error rate found by the ECA for MFF heading 6 ‘Neighbourhood and the world‘ and for the 9th, 10th and 11th EDF for the audit year 2023; urges the Commission to take further steps to reduce this error rate and to strengthen support for local actors to improve compliance with established procedures; suggests that the Commission adopt innovative measures, including increased reliance on third-party monitoring, result-oriented reviews, and digital tools, to enhance oversight; recommends a more efficient collaboration with implementing partners, particularly international organisations and local actors, to ensure effective spending and concrete results, adhering to EU financial regulations and reporting standards; recommends the implementation of stricter preventive measures, such as robust ex-ante controls and targeted training for partners, and the establishment of feedback mechanisms to address risks promptly;

4. Welcomes that a number of earlier recommendations of ECA were implemented, but notes that errors, not adequately reflected, in transactions managed by pillar-assessed organisations, such as international organisations and financial institutions, indicate that their reports are not free from errors, and that an earlier recommendation to ensure that international organisations provide the ECA with complete, unlimited and timely access to documents for carrying out its audit work, is only partly implemented; whilst recognising the Commission’s efforts in this regard, asks the Commission to improve transparency, accountability, effectiveness and efficiency of its actions in cooperation with the organisations concerned, and to address the continued delays in access to documentation and with the aim to achieving tangible results; further highlights the need to address challenges in tackling the root causes of migration and forced displacement in North Africa and the Horn of Africa; emphasises in this context the importance of fostering equal partnerships in development cooperation, grounded in mutual respect and shared responsibilities;

5. Given the ongoing battle for narratives in most regions of the world, insists that implementing partners comply with visibility rules;

6. While recognising the Global Gateway strategy as a concerted EU response to global challenges, reiterates that actions bringing together public and private investment must always be guided by the legal framework as provided by the NDICI Regulation, the Agenda 2030, and the needs of partner countries, as communicated by way of an honest dialogue at eye level; is concerned about inconsistencies surrounding Global Gateway programmes; calls, therefore, for improved transparency, democratic accountability, robust monitoring and evaluation mechanisms in Global Gateway and Team Europe initiatives; calls for a centralised, publicly accessible platform, regularly updated, to detail Global Gateway projects, including their objectives, funding sources, implementing partners, and expected outcomes; is concerned about recent media reports that in some years Chinese firms won a greater share of EIB-funded contract value than EU companies; calls on the Commission to ensure a level playing field by actively engaging with the EIB and intensifying efforts to enhance the participation of European companies in these initiatives; recommends the adoption of procurement practices that prioritise the best price/quality ratio over the lowest price as an award criterion;

7. Welcomes the positive examples provided by the ECA on effective controls implemented by the Commission; regrets, however, in that context, that the ECA found that EU Delegations do not always have enough budget to conduct sufficient field visits for monitoring the implementation of project activities and the achievement of intended results; calls for sufficient budgetary means to conduct such field visits for better monitoring of project implementation and for achieving the intended objectives on the ground that genuinely benefits local populations, aligns with SDGs, and respects human rights and environmental standards; expresses deep concern over the potential financial cuts affecting EU Delegations in more than 30 countries, which would significantly undermine these Delegations' ability to effectively oversee the implementation of development cooperation projects, while also diminishing the EU's presence, visibility, and collaborative engagement with key partners worldwide, leaving space for rival powers to exploit the resulting gaps in diplomatic and developmental engagement;

8. Is concerned about the findings of the European Court of Auditors (ECA) Special Report 17/2024 on the EU Trust Fund for Africa, such as that the monitoring and reporting system lacks accuracy and that the adherence of these actions to ODA principles cannot be ensured or that, despite an innovative approach to identifying human rights risks in a difficult environment, these risks were not comprehensively addressed; encourages the Commission to strengthen the involvement of the EP and transparency of the EU Trust Fund (EUTF) and calls for further alignment of ad hoc instruments with existing as well as future EU initiatives, such as the Global Gateway;

9. Highlights the Commission's commitment, as outlined in its political guidelines, to enhancing engagement with civil society organisations and recalls that Article 11(2) of the Treaty on European Union requires the institutions to maintain an open, transparent and regular dialogue with representative associations and civil society; stresses that access to structural funding is a prerequisite to ensure public participation; considers, therefore, that the independence of civil society organisations should be safeguarded and advocacy activities should remain eligible in the relevant EU-funding programmes, including through the NDICI-GE Regulation; calls on the Commission to guarantee adequate and sustained funding for NGOs and civil society organisations active in development cooperation and humanitarian aid, including advocacy, across all its budgetary guidance; stresses that discontinuing funding for all NGO activities would significantly weaken civil society's voice in public debates and pose a substantial reputational risk for the Commission;

10. Welcomes ECA’s special report 18/2024 on EU financial support for health systems in selected partner countries (Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zimbabwe) and underlines in particular the findings on the sustainability of health systems and maintenance of equipment delivered, to ensure that EU involvement has a lasting effect; points out that the lessons learnt must be extrapolated and systematically applied to other global challenges, particularly in the areas of education, climate change, and food security, and focus on addressing inequalities and ensuring long-term sustainability; encourages the ECA to continue to provide in-depth special reports relevant to international partnerships and development aid, ensuring accountability and transparency, on a regular basis;

11. Expresses profound concern regarding the paucity of information on results achieved and operational performance of the External Action Guarantee; urges the Commission to substantially improve data collection and analytical processes concerning the impact of guaranteed operations; points to the findings of the European Court of Auditors Opinion (ECA) 03/2024 showing a lack of evidence of the EFSD+’s contribution to overarching development objectives as stipulated by Article 42(5) of the NDICI-Global Europe Regulation, as well as concerns regarding the mobilisation of investments by the EAG and the estimates of the Commission in terms of how much private sector investments can be mobilised by EFSD+; calls for evidence of the volume of EFSD+ funding allocated and contractualised in these countries, and for transparency on how the quota of allocations to LDCs is respected within allocations of the regional MIPs; in line with recommendations in ECA’s Opinion 03/2024; calls on the Commission to respect ECA’s recommendations calling for a comprehensive assessment of the EAG; calls on the Commission to implement ECA’s recommendations to increase the overall transparency and accountability of the EAG, calls upon the Commission to publish comprehensively all requisite information on the EFSD+ website and within the NDICI-Global Europe annual report, in strict alignment with the principles of open and accountable governance that the European Union advocates globally.

12. Underlines once more the necessity to achieve the NDICI-GE spending targets for climate objectives, biodiversity, human development and gender;

13. Highlights the critical democratic oversight role of the European Parliament in scrutinising development funds; recalls Parliament's consistent advocacy for increased resources in international partnerships and global climate action; demands enhanced Commission engagement with Parliamentary priorities;

14. Expresses significant concern over the recent 2 billion euro reduction in development programmes within the mid-term budgetary revision; urges the Commission to develop robust mitigation strategies to preserve the European Union's international development commitments;

15. Recognises the imperative for adequate funding to support the European Parliament's development policy oversight; advocates for the allocation of appropriate budgetary resources to ensure comprehensive scrutiny of development expenditure and impact, including strategic resourcing of the DEVE committee secretariat;

16. Stresses again the important role of local NGOs and partners in service delivery and support to local communities; underlines the importance of enhancing their capacity to manage and implement actions financed by the EU and to improve their access to Union funding.

ANNEX: ENTITIES OR PERSONS FROM WHOM THE RAPPORTEUR HAS RECEIVED INPUT

The rapporteur for the opinion declares under his exclusive responsibility that he did not receive input from any entity or person to be mentioned in this Annex pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure.

INFORMATION ON ADOPTION BY THE COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

Date adopted

18.2.2025

Result of final vote

+:

–:

0:

16

3

1

Members present for the final vote

Abir Al-Sahlani, Hildegard Bentele, Robert Biedroń, Rosa Estaràs Ferragut, Niels Geuking, Charles Goerens, György Hölvényi, Murielle Laurent, Reinhold Lopatka, Isabella Lövin, Thierry Mariani, Liudas Mažylis, Ana Miranda Paz, Tiago Moreira de Sá, Leire Pajín, Kristoffer Storm, Marco Tarquinio

Substitutes present for the final vote

Damien Carême, Ondřej Kolář, Cecilia Strada

FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL BY THE COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

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