1.
2015 European Year
for Development

2.
Designated as the European Year for Development, 2015 is shaping
up to be a decisive year for EU development cooperation and
humanitarian aid.
Each month, an array of events, activities and media campaigns will
shed light on a fundamental aspect of the EU’s work in developing
countries.
Here are the 12 development themes and challenges that are slated
to be at the heart of European debate and decision-making in 2015.

3.
January: Europe in the world
Although a draft 2015 budget has been agreed upon in December, snowballing debts from past years threaten
to undermine EU aid disbursements in the upcoming year. To preserve its stature as the world’s most generous
donor, the incoming Juncker commission will have to come up with a plan to sustainably reduce the backlog of
bills without having to drastically reduce the aid budget.

4.
February: Education
Already the largest donor to the Global Partnership for Education, the EU’s commitment to education is set to
continue in 2015 — a welcome move given declining global aid flows for education.

5.
March: Women and girls
Over the past decade, the EU has been increasingly active in promoting gender equality in its development
cooperation and humanitarian aid — but a gap between policy and practice persists. The Juncker leadership
will have to spur renewed momentum for women’s and girls’ rights.

6.
April: Health
A long-standing focal sector of EU development aid, health has reemerged as a top priority for the
28-member bloc since the recent Ebola outbreak in West Africa. In the next 12 months, many expect the EU to
adopt a more comprehensive approach to health systems strengthening, with a special emphasis on projects
linking health, sanitation and the environment.

7.
May: Peace and security
As the scale and complexity of global crises continue to grow, the EU’s new High Representative for Foreign
Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini will face mounting pressure to ensure better integration of the
EU’s external action and development policies by further cultivating the security-development nexus.

8.
June: Sustainable green growth, decent jobs and businesses
In the past couple of years, the EU has increasingly signaled its changed attitude and relationship toward
private sector involvement in its development and humanitarian aid efforts — a trend that many expect the
current commission to elaborate and refine.

9.
July: Children and youth
Recent years have seen Brussels fail to live up to its commitments to children — many action plans have yet to
be implemented — but hopes are high that the incoming EU executive will soon adopt a holistic human rights
framework and specific policies on children’s rights.

10.
August: Humanitarian aid
Determined to uphold its stature as the world’s biggest humanitarian aid donor, the new EU leadership
promised to continue providing assistance to those in need by ensuring that ongoing, protracted or forgotten
crisis do no slip off the international community’s agenda.

11.
September: Demography and migration
Even though migration is one of the most pressing issues facing the EU, its collective response to the crisis
remains largely inept. The coming year will need to see enhanced political dialogue between Brussels and the
various countries from which migrants and asylum seekers originate.

12.
October: Food security
In spite of high-level political pledges, food security is a key area in which the EU’s commitment to policy
coherence will be put to the test. The bloc’s efforts in the sector are still hampered by its internal policies on
agriculture, biofuels, finance and trade.

13.
November: Sustainable development and climate action
In the lead-up to major global agreements on climate change and a development agenda to replace the
Millennium Development Goals, the Juncker team will have to demonstrate its ability to play a catalytic role in
building international consensus and bridging the gap between developing and developed countries.

14.
December: Human rights and governance
Cited as an overarching objective of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2014-2020, the promotion of human
rights and good governance is expected to remain a cornerstone of EU development aid throughout 2015.

15.
Read our full analysis on the European Year for Development on
Devex.com.
All photos from the European Commission