SUMMARY

Commitment to development

In the Finance Act for 2007, the Danish Government will allocate approximately a further DKK 800 million in development assistance compared to the Finance Act for 2006. With the increasing level of Danish development assistance also follows greater international responsibility. The Danish Government will take action in areas where the need is greatest. In this regard, the challenges of sustainable development are far and away greatest in Africa, which is therefore at the heart of the Government’s development policy priorities. The Government will increase the assistance to Africa in the coming years – which will take place through a long-term effort aimed at supporting the African countries’ own will and determination to combat poverty and secure a better future. Furthermore, Denmark will strengthen its involvement in relation to the Arab world. The focal point of the Government’s development policy will be to contribute actively to the fulfilment of the UN Millennium Development Goals.

In 2007, the Government will assign particular priority to three focus areas:

Good governance – a fundamental prerequisite for development

Good governance and respect for human rights are the keys to development. Without good governance, other development initiatives and efforts will have only limited impact. The

Government will step up its efforts to ensure good governance in the world’s poorest countries. A strategy will be formulated for promoting good governance, which will be followed up by a series of new initiatives. In total, activities aimed at promoting good governance and democracy will be implemented in the Danish programme countries amounting to approximately DKK 500 million. As an integral part of the Danish efforts, the Government will continue its targeted efforts to fight corruption. The Danish development policy is based on a zero-tolerance principle for all forms of misuse of Danish development funds.

Women – a driving force for development

Danish development assistance should actively contribute to strengthening women’s rights – in working, political and family life. In all major bilateral development assistance programmes launched in 2007, the Government will place particular focus on improving the situation of women. Focus will be placed on strengthening women’s rights and opportunities to generate economic growth as well as participate actively in the resolution of conflicts. In 2007, the Government will earmark DKK 140 million to strengthening the role of women in Africa – and through a number of measures strengthen the focus on women in the concrete implementation of the Danish development policy. In all major Danish development assistance programmes in the future, an obligatory analysis will be conducted of how the planned activities promote the situation and conditions of women.

HIV/AIDS – focus on Africa and vulnerable groups

The spread of HIV/AIDS represents a serious threat to sustainable development – especially in Africa. The Danish Government will double the level of assistance targeted at combating HIV/AIDS over the next four years to an amount equaling DKK 1 billion in 2010. In 2007, commitments will be made to implement new activities amounting to DKK 300 million. The intensified efforts will be directed at building the capacity of the health sectors in African countries, in order to enable them to tackle the HIV/AIDS epidemic and other health problems more effectively. Particular focus will be placed on vulnerable groups such as women and orphans. The strengthening of measures to combat HIV/AIDS will take the form of both bilateral and multilateral initiatives. The Government will maintain the significant annual Danish contribution of DKK 140 million allocated to the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis.