While France seems to be in the process of getting back on track with regard to international solidarity, some ambiguities in the 2019 budget are a cause of concern for NGOs. EURACTIV France reports. Will France return to being among the best performers in the field of development assistance? As the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) delivered its report on French development policy between 2013 and 2018, the organisation welcomed the turnaround by the French government.

Scandinavian countries are the most committed national development actors, according to this year’s Commitment to Development Index, which measures not just aid levels, but also how well other policies foster sustainable development. Germany ranked third, making it the first time a G-7 country is placed in the top three in CDI’s 15-year history.

It’s been an eventful end to the summer in French development, as President Emmanuel Macron begins to push his vision for aid. Addressing ambassadors in Paris at the end of last month, Macron called for a new law to encapsulate his development agenda, saying he wanted to foster “solidarity investment” [“investissement solidaire”], including more partnerships with civil society, youth, business, and diasporas, and more money for ambassadors to support local initiatives.

Despite ambitious goals, France is struggling to get its development aid to the poorest countries as well as for gender-equality programmes, according to an assessment by the OECD. EURACTIV.fr reports. The OECD has examined French development aid. In a summary of its report, which will be available in September, the OECD’s development aid committee (CAD) highlights a number of successes but also points to weaknesses in France’s cooperation policy for the period 2013-2018.

Today, the Operational Committee of the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa has adopted a new set of 8 programmes and 4 riders worth €294 million for the Horn of Africa region. This new package complements 50 previously adopted actions amounting to €820.3 million for the Horn of Africa. Approved in seven packages in December 2015, April 2016, October 2016, December 2016, April 2017, December 2017 and February 2018, these actions all contribute to improving stability and addressing the root causes of irregular migration and forced displacement in the Horn of Africa region.

In response to the recent devastating floods in Kenya, the European Commission has provided €1.5 million in emergency humanitarian funding to assist the most affected families. The funding will help cover basic needs such as emergency shelter and basic household essentials, food and nutrition, drinking water and repair of damaged water and sanitation facilities as well as emergency health care and epidemics prevention.

In September 2015, the Member States of the United Nations approved a new global development framework, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, built around 17 Sustainable Development Goals, covering economic, social and environmental issues. The Addis Ababa Action Agenda (Addis Agenda) adopted in July 2015 which is an integral part of the 2030 Agenda. It provides a global framework for financing for development and sets a new paradigm for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through effective use of all financial flows as well as non-financial means of implementation, emphasising domestic action and sound policies.

Grenada and the European Union have signed an agreement for just under one million euros (EC$3.3M) to support the Government’s Public Financial Management PFM) reform agenda, in line with its Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy. PFM in general underpins fiscal and macro-economic stability, guides the allocation of public resources to national priorities, supports the efficient delivery of services, and makes possible the transparency and scrutiny of public funds. Some of the objectives under Grenada’s PFM action plan include the issue of transparency, good governance and oversight of the budget.

The European Union has agreed to provide Mozambique with 30 million euros (about 37 million US dollars) to support the campaign for improved nutrition over the next four years. The drive to combat chronic malnutrition is being undertaken by the Ministry of Health through the National Health Institute (INS). Geert Anckaert, the head of operations in the Economic Development and Governance section of the EU delegation in Maputo, announced the financing on Thursday, during the launch of a project to assess nutrition programmes and policies.

Ekaterina Zaharieva announced an EU EUR 15 million security package for southern part of the African continent. "The European Union has two major programmes in the pipeline for southern Africa within the European Development Fund: one is dedicated to peace and security, and the other one – to migration. I would like to announce that this week the EU approved a EUR 15 million package for the peace and security programme that hopefully we will be able to launch sooner rather than later."