Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-09-23-Speech-2-174"
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"en.20030923.5.2-174"2
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".
Mr President, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, honourable Members, recent years have already seen the common foreign policy become a priority in the Budget debates, and that will be the case in the 2004 Budget too.
As part of the development policy measures, new resources are being provided specifically for the integration of gender issues into the aid programmes. Overseas aid in particular involves support for many projects particularly targeting the – often dire – situation of women in poor countries and crisis-hit regions. This is described in the reports on the aid programmes.
The number of foreign policy areas in which the EU is involved in common action is reflected in its Budget. Together we have taken on responsibility for rebuilding Kosovo, and for bringing political stability to the Balkan States, and this is reflected in the Budget just as much as is support for the reconstruction work in Afghanistan. The 2004 Budget provides aid for the Balkans to the tune of some EUR 600 million and EUR 184 million for Afghanistan, which, together with other funds, means that the aid we are proposing for Afghanistan amounts to EUR 214 million. I might point out, by the way, that the European Union is doing all that it undertook to do at the donors’ conference in Tokyo.
I would also like to mention that the accusation referred to earlier to the effect that nothing happens for years after the European Union promises aid, is no longer accurate in such sweeping terms. It is here in the area of overseas aid that financial management reform has made a very positive and visible impact. This is one reason why the Commission greatly regrets the way in which the Council has cut the funding for the Commission’s delegations, which play an ever-greater part in implementing the Budget.
A major feature of the 2004 Budget will be the crisis in Iraq and the European Union’s aid for the people there. This year already, the European Union has allocated EUR 100 million from the Community Budget for humanitarian aid. Reference has already frequently been made in this House to the fact that, on 24 October, the donors’ conference on aid for the reconstruction of Iraq will be taking place. Commissioner Patten, who is today attending the UN General Assembly in New York, has made it clear to this House the great relevance of the budgetary constraints to effective aid in Iraq. An independent Trust Fund or a UN agency should guarantee that the aid given by the European Union is multilaterally applied.
Next week – on 1 October – the Commission will propose the amount that we intend to pledge at the donors’ conference, that being EUR 200 million. This proposal will provide for funds amounting to EUR 40 million to be mobilised this year, for the margin under heading 4 to be used next year and for the partial mobilisation of the flexibility reserve as well. That, then, will be our proposal for the donors’ conference for up to the end of 2004.
I believe that, in terms of its size, this promise of aid stands up well to comparison with the EUR 214 million for Afghanistan next year. Our promising EUR 200 million for Iraq has to be seen in context, in that Iraq is less populous than Afghanistan, which is a wretchedly poor country lacking access to income from oil reserves.
Let me also take this opportunity to thank the budgetary authority for approving the support grant for Turkey, estimated at EUR 250 million for next year, and to be paid from the funds for pre-accession strategies; I mention the amount for Turkey only in relation to our aid for Iraq. I believe that these things always have to be seen in comparative terms.
The Commission’s draft envisages a total of EUR 507 million for humanitarian aid. The Budget sets aside EUR 82 million for the fight against Aids, malaria and other communicable diseases, which have a catastrophic effect on many countries in Africa; this amount will also be used to fund our further donation to the Global Health Fund – that, too, will be the same amount as this year. The reason I mention this is that it figured prominently in this debate last year.
Let me announce right now that my fellow-Commissioner Mr Nielson and I will, in a few days’ time, be presenting a communication to the effect that, in future – from 2007 onwards, to be precise – resources for the European Development Fund will be incorporated into the normal Budget. Although the priority will still be the fight against poverty, the needs of the ACP States in particular require of us that we adopt a coherent policy approach. The simple fact is, though, that comparisons have revealed that the mechanism for implementing the ordinary Community Budget is much better than that for the European Development Fund."@en1
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