A week late, the Council of Ministers on Wednesday approved the three-year program of Austrian development policy for 2022 to 2024. For the first time, the resources for the migration issue are linked to conditionality. If cooperation with affected countries deteriorates, “changes in funding” are possible, it said.
However, Peter Huber, head of the Department of Development at the State Department, does not want to be seen as a threat. “It’s not a must, it’s an option,” he recently explained in a conversation with journalists. At the same time, he pointed out that Austria cooperates well with its geographical partners. The partnership is important to achieve success and improve people’s livelihoods.
“More Money Than Ever”
According to Huber, “more money than ever before is available for humanitarian aid and development cooperation”. According to the three-year plan, bilateral funds for development cooperation (DC) will increase by EUR 12 million to EUR 137 million and humanitarian aid from the Foreign Disaster Fund (AKF) will increase by EUR 20 million to EUR 77.5 million.
The priority regions remain Sub-Saharan Africa, South-East Europe, the South Caucasus and the Palestinian Territories. In Bhutan, the cooperation office will cease its activities at the end of 2023.
Clearly missed the UN target of 0.7 percent
The quota for official development cooperation (ODA – Official Development Assistance) will remain far from the target of 0.7 percent in the future. Last year, the ODA ratio was 0.31 percent of gross national income (GNI). The UN sustainability target of 0.7 percent of GNI is still being pursued. The turquoise-green government program speaks of a “gradual increase in development funds towards 0.7%”. The direction is therefore good, but the goal will not be achieved with the plan that has now been decided by the planned end of the current legislature.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
