Luxembourg's development cooperation - Annual report 2013

Ladies and gentlemen,

Dear friends of Luxembourg’s development cooperation,

2013 has been a special year for Luxembourg’s development cooperation, since three ministers have led the department in turn. I would like to thank my predecessors, Marie-Josée Jacobs and Marc Spautz, for their work.

Despite these changes, development cooperation and humanitarian aid policy has been implemented with a large degree of continuity. This demonstrates once again how Luxembourg’s commitment to development cooperation has become a matter of fact for political leaders.

The new government’s programme confirms our willingness to show solidarity with those who are most disadvantaged and to accept our international responsibility, with the aim of producing greater stability and prosperity in developing countries. Our financial commitment to release 1% of GNI for official development assistance has been clearly stated once more.

We now need to adapt our cooperation tools in order to best respond to the new challenges in development effectiveness in line with the Busan principles and conclusions and the first ministerial meeting of the Global Partnership in Mexico. An initial action plan for development effectiveness for the period 2014-20 is currently being prepared in my department.

I do not need to expand on these future pathways but will simply say that the past year has enabled us to make much progress and many significant changes.

For instance, regarding our relations with our partner countries I would like to highlight the launch in September of the new ICP III with Senegal. In this case, our intervention is wholly aligned with our partner’s strategies and introduces a major share of national implementation. In Mali, we have been able to resume more or less normal service under our interim strategy for the country. In Vietnam, the final ICP programmes are being formulated as part of our exit strategy for the country. In El Salvador, we are proud of supporting the new programme that the country has taken on in order to ensure more effective cooperation.

I would like to emphasise that our operational structures for humanitarian aid were strengthened in 2013. The humanitarian aid strategy was revised to incorporate the notion of resilience. Specific general conditions for NGOs active in the humanitarian field have been approved, in close cooperation with the NGOs concerned. This adjustment of rules and procedures also contains, as with the general terms and conditions for development NGOs, an improved incorporation of resilience in order to ensure continuity of the interventions. At the end of 2013, emergency.lu was required by the cluster to take emergency action in the Philippines following typhoon Haiyan and proved its effectiveness in the field under difficult conditions. 

As in the past, my department has continued in its regular dialogue with NGOs. Special meetings have been organised by both sides to inform each other of the positions and work in progress regarding the post-2015 agenda, including preparation for the special ministerial meeting in September in New York.

The subject of the post-2015 agenda has been at the heart of our discussions at all levels with UN agencies. In effect, we must ensure that all requirements are taken into consideration in the preparatory work with a view to creating a new development framework in 2015 and new sustainable development objectives to enable the eradication of poverty by 2030. 

This discussion on the post-2015 agenda should not make us forget that we still have over a year to increase our commitment in order to get as close as possible to or meet the Millennium Development Goals. The ministerial meeting in September in New York took stock of the progress already made and called upon governments to do more from now until the end of 2015.

Within the European Union, negotiations continued with a view to adopting the decision to make 2015 the European Year for Development. Latvia and Luxembourg will be responsible during their respective tenures of the presidency of the Council of the EU for developing a special programme for the year, in cooperation with the European Commission. As far as our coming presidency is concerned, discussions between the trio’s (Italy, Latvia and Luxembourg) partners on a joint programme have progressed well and will ensure that the three six-month periods will link together perfectly.

The political timetable in Luxembourg made it impossible for the conference on Luxembourg development cooperation to take place as scheduled in the autumn of 2013. It took place on 23 and 24 April 2014 and focused on the post-2015 agenda and the concept of resilience. I am particularly fond of this special opportunity for discussion and consultation with all cooperation players, an annual meeting, since nothing replaces direct exchange.

At this point, I must not forget to thank all those who have worked on Luxembourg development cooperation, especially the volunteers and staff of NGOs, who do a remarkable job, often under difficult security conditions. I have the highest regard for their professionalism and commitment and I have enjoyed being able to get to know them all better during my meetings and visits in the field.