Victor Negrescu: Development cooperation in the EU

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Rating: 3.4/5 with 5 votes

Published Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at 13:05
by negrescuvictor Join PES activists in EU in the world (698 views and 1 comments)

The EU member nations invest several million euros into the development cooperation and education cooperation all over the world. The main countries that benefit from these are those facing transition to democracy and third world countries.

But does this work?

Actually, on some levels it works and on others is far from happening. For instance, these investments are good for the countries where they go, but unfortunately the lack of a true EU common foreign policy and strategy are deterring the effects that these funds could have in those societies. For instance, the new European member countries have to invest several millions euros into the cooperation projects but the lack of information, mostly on the citizens’ level, creates several problem like how and in which direction they should invest these funds.

Romania for instance is financing with around 30 millions euros per year projects involving these kinds of cooperation projects. The countries which benefit from these funds, thanks to the NGO’s which have developed their activity there, are countries from the region like Moldavia, Georgia, Ukraine, Serbia … Shouldn’t we think at a common policy on the EU international cooperation? Shouldn’t we try to build up a common cooperation strategy that is in the benefit of all the European countries and NGO’s and most of all in the benefit of the countries that we try to help? Shouldn’t we promote the EU values through these funds, like solidarity, diversity or tolerance?

The answers to these questions aren’t going to come as soon as that but is up to us as socialists and social democrats from Europe to try to build up “common” interest.

Tags: blogger of the week, development, solidarity

Comments

1. Problem with common policy by kim Join PES activists on Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at 15:18

Common policy and espacially common foreign policy is always been a problem in Europe.

To my opinion Europe must take his responsibility in the world. To do that we must work on our common foreing policy. We must take this away fron the intergouvermentalist pillar and take it to the supranational one. Then Europe can make dissions faster and take his responsibility.

If you see that there are cooperations like discrived above and read that they don't work because of the problems with common policy than we as socialist must speak up.

As socialists we must defent the "common" interest

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