Mutually beneficial partnerships: changing attitudes towards development cooperation

As part of its DRIVE Impact Initiative, Friends of Europe launched its second Working Group Meetings on 22 and 23 October 2024. Held online, these Meetings served as a crucial step in developing the draft policy recommendations resulting from the discussions at the first round of meetings, focusing on more detailed strategies to reform the world of development cooperation.

Each Working Group dived into the following topics:

• Working Group 1 – Rebalancing partnerships and redefining community engagement
• Working Group 2 – Optimising social impact in partnerships
• Working Group 3 – Long-term solutions to natural resource management
• Working Group 4 – “Trade and investment”

This second round of Working Group Meetings provided a platform for participants to elaborate on these areas, creating more actionable and refined policy recommendations that will contribute to reshaping global investment practices.

Discussions also addressed the impact of recent development aid cuts, the appointment of a new College of EU Commissioners, and Mario Draghi’s report emphasising on boosting EU competitiveness. The Draghi report highlights the need for the EU to adopt a more strategic and competitive stance on the global stage, moving away from the traditional aid model and focusing instead on development cooperation as a form of investment. This shift in approach would position the EU not merely as a donor but as a partner in driving sustainable economic growth, encouraging innovation and building resilient infrastructures. By reframing development aid as investment, the EU can strengthen its soft power, creating long-term partnerships supporting mutual prosperity and solidifying its global leadership in digitalisation, sustainability and governance reform.

Along with Friends of Europe’s 10 Policy Choices for a Renewed Social Contract, this Initiative sets the course for a more inclusive and resilient future. Building on these Policy Choices, the DRIVE Working Groups will contribute to reforming EU institutions to improve coherence (Policy Choice 5), engaging the private sector for social good (Policy Choice 7), reconciling competitiveness and social protection (Policy Choice 8) and enhancing the EU’s soft power (Policy Choice 9).

The Meetings featured a diverse network of participants, including academics, civil society actors, policymakers, private sector representatives, development sector experts and EU officials.

Related content:

• Initiative | DRIVE Impact Initiative
• Event |From an aid to an investment mindset: rebalancing partnerships for economic and social impact?
• Insight | Repairing the EU-ASEAN disconnect in trade relations

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