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Debate
Staying the course
Considering strengths and interests
Towards a consistent, multilateral policy
No to dubious funding
8-9/2005 |
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CDU/CSU
Considering strengths and interests
Envisioning enhanced development efficiency as the key goal, we as Christian Democrats aim to reform national and international development policy. Strengthening the self-help potential of people and societies as well as implementing good governance are crucial for development success. Therefore it is necessary to focus on key sectors such as state building and administration, education and vocational training, rural development, protection of natural resources and physical infrastructure. It is also important to create an efficient private sector by safe-guarding the rule of law, private property, freedom of contract and access to capital, especially for the poor.
From our point of view, the objectives of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, increasing efficiency, streamlining structures, improving coordination and the division of work, are the key challenges for international development policy. In addition, it is neccessary to reform the international trade regime in a development-oriented way and to focus more specifically on the Millennium Goals.
Our bilateral cooperation has earned a good international reputation. The calibre of German development organisations, both governmental and non-governmental, is an advantage for which we are often envied. The efficiency of German bilateral cooperation can, nonetheless, be further enhanced by greater regional and sectoral concentration. To serve current needs, the structures, the division of tasks as well as the particular responsibilities are no longer optimally defined. Therefore, we need to refocus our agencies, enhance political control and coordination and establish a clear division of work between the Development Ministry and the implementing organisations. To achieve a coherent development policy an overhaul of our development institutions is the order of the day.
Comparative advantages in particular fields of development cooperation and the efficiency in implementation should be the key criteria for the division of work between bi- and multilateral development cooperation. We see advantages in multilateral cooperation whenever we are dealing with supra-national tasks or striving to back economic reforms independently and competently. However, multilateral institutions often operate in an uncoordinated and inefficient way. More than 30 UN institutions are involved in development cooperation. As the debt relief by multilateral banks reveals, these bodies also need some review. The EU Commission has become the 26th bilateral donor within the EU. This contradicts the principle of subsidiarity – on top of reducing efficiency. We therefore believe that a considerable improvement of the international division of work is necessary. This includes simplifying the UN system and reforming the EU’s development approach completely.
We believe in tailor made support to development programmes, thus fostering – rather than undermining – partners´ initiative and sense of responsibility. Therefore, grants and loans should both serve as funding mechanisms to varying degrees, depending on the indebtedness and economic situation of the country concerned. Grants should be given where there is good governance and where programmes seem too risky to be funded by way of credit.
To achieve our partners’ and our own well understood medium and long term interests and mutual benefits for both sides a high degree of professional competence is absolutely essential – not least in the context of international dialogue. The British government acknowledged this and, five years ago, took development policy away from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, creating a new department. In the same sense, we want to strengthen Germany’s Development Ministry and turn it into the key body not only for development coopera-tion but also for development oriented cooperation in business and science.
Dr. Christian Ruck
is development spokesperson for the CDU/CSU group (Christian Democratic Union/
Christian Social Union) in the outgoing Bundestag.
christian.ruck@bundestag.de
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