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 Meeting in Brussels on 26 and 27 May, the General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) adopted a number of conclusions ahead of the upcoming European Council in June; key topics included the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the negotiation and implementation of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), the rights of the child and the humanitarian crisis in Burma/Myanmar.
The Council agreed that 2008 was "a crucial year for development and the achievement of the MDGs". The Council conclusions included statements that the EU "strongly reaffirms its commitment to achieve a collective ODA target of 0.56% GNI by 2010 and 0.7% GNI by 2015" and that the EU would "undertake radical reforms to improve aid effectiveness". On the EPAs, the GAERC reaffirmed "its commitment to the ongoing process of negotiation, conclusion and implementation of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPAs) as being development instruments" whilst "acknowledging concerns expressed by ACP partners and the existence of, in some cases, problematic issues still outstanding in the negotiation". The Council stated that ACP countries and regions who so wished "could draw, if appropriate, on provisions agreed by others in their EPA negotiation." On gender justice, the Council stressed the importance of gender mainstreaming and called for reinforcement of efforts in the implementation of UNSCR 1325 and relevant EU documents. The Council also recalled its invitation to Member States to nominate more female candidates for CFSP/ESDP senior management positions. The Council also discussed the rights of the child in the context of development policy, and stressed that these must be promoted and protected through specific actions as well as effective mainstreaming throughout all programmes. Sources: |
