The EU-Africa partnership has ebbed and flowed over the years, with the period since 2020 being particularly dynamic. With the Covid-19 pandemic, the response to the war in Ukraine and the subsequent energy crisis in Europe, cleavages have been unearthed in the partnership.
Three concurrent crises — climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine — have combined to worsen food insecurity and malnutrition around the globe. Extreme climate events are becoming more frequent and severe, magnifying the already higher food prices caused by agricultural supply chain disruptions precipitated first by the pandemic and now by geopolitical turbulence. The Rome Based Agencies are called to provide concrete and effective responses to these multi-crises. This report is the result of an Open Consultation Forum organised with IFAD running candidates in June 2022.
There are three main actors in the Italian development cooperation system: (i) the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (referred to by its Italian acronym, MAECI), (ii) the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS, from the Italian acronym) and (iii) Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), a prominent Italian investment bank.
The Spanish system for international development cooperation consists of a web of official institutions, at different administrative levels, as well as non- governmental organisations, such as Coordinadora de ONGD (the NGO platform), and consultation bodies like the development cooperation council (Consejo de Cooperación para el Desarrollo). The system’s structure and complexity partly explain the coordination challenges detailed in this case study.
British International Investment (BII) is the United Kingdom’s development finance institution (DFI). It is entirely owned by the UK government and its single shareholder is the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), represented by the Secretary of State for FCDO. The relationship between FCDO and BII has evolved over time and continues to evolve. Over the last few years, there has been a growing appreciation within the UK government of the value of BII as an important channel to achieve not only UK development objectives but also to contribute to geopolitical objectives such as promoting Global Britain. The result has been a rising profile of BII towards achieving broader UK government policy objectives.
In France, blending operations are implemented by the public development bank (PDB) Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the development finance institution (DFI) Proparco. Proparco has gained a larger role in recent years, reflecting a growing recognition of the need to mobilise private investment. Proparco is part of the AFD Group and in charge of all development operations with the private sector. Its latest capital increase dates back to 2020, bringing its share capital to €984 million. AFD is France’s main implementation agency.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has longstanding experience in coordinating and working with donors. The EBRD relationship with donors takes different forms, such as co-financing (e.g., grant support, concessional finance and guarantees), technical assistance and policy dialogues. The focus ranges from strategic considerations to more concrete actions. The relationship can be materialised through donor facilities, such as the Green Climate Fund, or through EBRD-established multi-donor funds, agreements with bilateral donor countries, such as the United States, Switzerland and Japan, or collaborations with the European Union (EU), for example, involving the European Commission and several EU member states.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) cooperates with the European Union (EU), its member states and their development agencies at both the strategic and operational levels. In terms of governance, the EU member states, as shareholders, are members of the EIB Board and of the Advisory Group consulted on the Bank’s outside-EU activities.
