PRIORITIES OF THE DANISH GOVERNMENT FOR DANISH DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

Overview of the Development Assistance Budget 2009-2013

Colophon

Title:
PRIORITIES OF THE DANISH GOVERNMENT FOR DANISH DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

Subtitle:
Overview of the Development Assistance Budget 2009-2013

Summary:

In this publication the Government presents its priorities for Danish development assistance 2009-2013. The priorities follow the priorities for development assistance set out in A World for All in August 2007, at the same time as the assistance is being further developed by a series of new, concrete initiatives.

The government calls for increased development assistance in 2009, in accordance with the Government Platform from November 2007. An amount totaling DKK 15.2 billion will be set aside in 2009 to development assistance, equivalent to 0.82 per cent of GNI.

The aim is to support the efforts of the developing countries to combat poverty, benefit from globalization and achieve a better future. At the same time, the government will organize the assistance to cater for current opportunities and challenges. This includes the rising food prices just as the climate changes to a large extent are a development challenge.

The increase in Danish development assistance will in particular be to the benefit of Africa, and it is the aim that two thirds of Denmark's bilateral assistance should be given to the continent. The development assistance is increased to i.a. Afghanistan, gender equality and women's rights and opportunities, the fight against HIV/AIDS and to refugees and internally displaced persons in regions of origin. The special budgetary allocation reserved for climate change initiatives is doubled to DKK 200 million and also the humanitarian engagement will receive extra funding. Finally the Government calls for a reprioritisation of the multilateral assistance in the years to come in order to strengthen the strategic relevance of the multilateral cooperation.

Publisher:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, Danida

Responsible institution:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, Danida

Author:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, Danida

Other contributors:
Electronic edition: Schultz Grafisk, Design: Pressto Kommunikation and one2one, Print: Silkeborg Bogtryk, Denmark, Photos (from left): Anthony J. Decapite/AP, Jørgen Schytte, Miriam Dalsgaard/Polfoto and Klavs Holsting

Language:
English

URL:
http://www.netpublikationer.dk/um/9010/index.htm

ISBN:
978-87-7087-009-2

Digital ISBN:
978-87-7087-010-8

Version:
1.0

Version/edition:
27-08-2008

Publication standard nr.:
2.0

Data formats:
html,htm,jpg,gif,pdf,css,js

Publisher category:
statslig

Key subjects:
Development assistance, Africa, The Africa Commission, Afghanistan, Multilateral cooperation, Bilateral cooperation, Climate changes, Human Rights, Gender equality, Good governance, Regions of origin, Refugees, Humanitarian assistance, HIV/AIDS, UN Millen

Copyright:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, Danida

Notes and other information:
(This edition closed for contributions July 2008)

Table Of Contents

Value based development policy

Increased development assistance that makes a difference

Continuation and consolidation of the priorities of the development policy

Appendix 1: New Sector Programmes and Other Major Programmes in 2009

Appendix 2: Account Section 06.3. - Government Expenditure Proposals - Finance Act 2009


The Danish government here presents its priorities for Danish development assistance 2009-2013.

Value based development policy

Promoting Danish values and interests in a globalised world requires an active international engagement. The development policy is an essential part of this.

Denmark’s favorable situation gives us a special obligation to promote freedom, peace and progress in the world. We have a responsibility to contribute to better opportunities for development and to combat the extreme poverty in many developing countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. At the same time, we have a clear self interest in the consolidation of open, democratic and economically sustainable societies in those developing countries that can and will cooperate for a better and safer world.

Increased development assistance that makes a difference

The government calls for increased development assistance in 2009, in accordance with the Government Platform from november 2007. An amount totaling DKK 15.3 billion will be set aside in 2009 to development assistance, equivalent to 0.82 per cent of Gni. Compared to 2008, this means approximately DKK 750 million more to the benefit of the world’s poorest.

The government wants a development assistance that makes a difference. Therefore we maintain the long-term initiatives as the core of development cooperation, based on a mutually binding cooperation with the programme countries and the most important multilateral organizations. The aim is to support the efforts of the developing countries to combat poverty, benefit from globalization and achieve a better future.

At the same time, the government will organize the assistance to cater for current opportunities and challenges. This includes the rising food prices, which will be sought handled with both long-term contribution to, among others, the international fund for agricultural Development and additional humanitarian actions to address its immediate consequences. Furthermore, new initiatives worth more than DKK 1 billion will be launched in the commercial and agricultural area in the programme countries. The Government will work for coherence across policy areas – foreign policy, development policy, trade, climate, etc. – in order to help address the international implications of the rise in food prices in the best way possible.

Continuation and consolidation of the priorities of the development policy

The government will continue and consolidate its current development policy line.

The government will strengthen the assistance to Africa further. The increase in Danish development assistance will in particular be to the benefit of Africa, and it is the aim that two thirds of Denmark’s bilateral assistance should be given to the continent. Focus is on growth and economic development, particularly for the youth. Ensuring better living conditions for young people in Africa is imperative in order to, among other things, make better use of the potential of Africa, to fight illegal immigration to Europe and to prevent fundamentalism. Ensuring women’s rights and opportunities are also key issues in this respect. The Africa Commission, which the government established in April 2008, must tackle such issues and will, in the summer of 2009, put forward recommendations for a more efficient Danish and international development cooperation. An un-allocated reserve of DKK 200 million is set aside in 2009 to ensure an immediate follow-up on the recommendations of The Africa commission. The long-term follow-up will take place in the following years.

The cooperation with Asia and Latin America is maintained, but it will be adjusted continuously in the light of current developments. With the new Afghanistan-strategy 2008-2012, the government has prepared the ground for a doubling of the development assistance from DKK 200 million DKK to 400 million from 2009 onwards. In addition to this, support is given through Danish NGO’s and extra-ordinary humanitarian contributions. Afghanistan is thus markedly the largest country of cooperation outside Africa. The phasing out of Vietnam as a programme country is accelerated as a consequence of the country’s rapidly growing economy. Assistance to Nicaragua is downgraded, as the country’s reform process is still very slow.

To a great extent, the climate changes are a development challenge. Despite the fact that the poorest countries bear the least responsibility for man-made climate changes, these countries are hit the hardest. The government proposes, within a growing economic frame for development assistance, to increase the climate initiatives, and therefore the special budgetary allocation for climate change initiatives is doubled to DKK 200 million in 2009. As established in the Government Platform this allocation must not least assist the poorest countries in the fight to reduce and adapt to the man-made climate changes. In addition, efforts will continue to climate proof all direct development assistance and to concentrate the bilateral environmental development assistance to larger, focused programmes with a focus on climate and sustainable administration of natural resources, including forest, as a prerequisite to ensure resilience to climate changes.

The government is continuing Denmark’s high profile in regard to the un millennium Development Goal number 3 about gender equality and women’s rights and opportunities with a focus on economic growth. Women make up half of the workforce, and only when their rights and opportunities are ensured, societies as a whole can change for the better. It is a matter of values. But it is also a matter of sound and healthy economy. Therefore, development assistance to gender equality and women’s rights and opportunities will be doubled from DKK 200 million in 2008 to DKK 400 million in 2010. In addition, a special initiative for women’s rights and opportunities in Liberia worth DKK 100 million will be launched.

The government continues its strong engagement in democracy and human rights. Over the special budgetary allocation reserved for democracy and human rights, worth DKK 170 million per year, support is given to the construction of effective democratic state-institutions, to the improvement of the state of the law and the promotion of respect for human rights in developing countries that are not programme countries, including, for instance, Myanmar. All in all, this focus area is one of the largest in Danish development assistance.

The government strengthens Denmark’s contribution to promote peace and freedom and to fight poverty in fragile states. The enhanced assistance to Afghanistan is an example of this. At the same time, the strategic economic grant for stabilization and conflict prevention in developing countries is increased to DKK 250 million per year. Depending on the development, the economic grant will be used, for instance, to initiatives in Zimbabwe and Sudan. In order to strengthen and consolidate the reconstruction efforts in Iraq an extra sum of DKK 100 million is allocated in 2009-2010.

The fight against HIV/AIDS is high on the list of priorities and is strengthened again in 2009. It is expected to total approximately DKK 900 million in 2009.

Development assistance in regions of origin will be increased to DKK 335 million per year. Assistance to Afghan and Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons will be strengthened.

Denmark’s solid humanitarian engagement will have extra funds injected, including to address the effects of rising food prices. NGO development assistance will be increased as a consequence of the revised civil society strategy. In light of, among other things, the high Danish profile on key development issues, including the Africa commission and the campaign for gender equality and women’s rights, the government has decided to increase the budgetary allocation for public information activities.

The government will strengthen the strategic relevance of the multilateral development cooperation. To that end, an analysis of the multilateral cooperation has been prepared, and it points to a number of overall principles that can help to strengthen the Danish Multilateral engagement. There is particularly a need for a more systematic and less automatic approach to the Danish contributions, based on specific assessments of aid effectiveness and strategic relevance, and fewer but larger contributions to gain further Danish influence through greater division of labour in the multilateral system. As a result of the analysis, the government will make a gradual reprioritisation of the multilateral assistance over the next five years, totaling approximately DKK 2.5 billion.

Appendix 1 shows that there will be launched new sector programmes and other major programmes for approximately DKK 4 billion in 2009.

Appendix 2 provides a detailed overview of the government’s priorities of how to spend the development assistance in the next five years 2009-2013.

Appendix 1: New Sector Programmes and Other Major Programmes in 2009

Appendix 2: Account Section 06.3. - Government Expenditure Proposals - Finance Act 2009

Development Assistance on the Finance Act Account 06.3

The Development Cooperation Frame outside the Finance Act Account 06.3 

* 2008 figures have been adjusted in relation to the finance act for 2008 in order to reflect that the neighbourhood Programme on the draft finance act for 2009 is listed in account 06.3 while on the budget for 2008 it is listed outside account 06.3.

** costs of development assistance to un peacekeeping operations is included in the finance act of 2008 under section 06.36.06.21. while on the Government expenditure Proposal for 2009 it is posted outside section 06.3

The Danish government here presents its priorities for Danish development assistance 2009-2013.

The government calls for increased development assistance in 2009, in accordance with the Government Platform from November 2007. An amount totaling DKK 15.3 billion will be set aside in 2009 to development assistance, equivalent to 0.82 per cent of GNI.

The long-term initiatives are maintained as the core of development cooperation, based on a mutually binding cooperation with the programme countries and the most important multilateral organizations. The aim is to support the efforts of the developing countries to combat poverty, benefit from globalization and achieve a better future. At the same time, the government will organize the assistance to cater for current opportunities and challenges. This includes the rising food prices just as the climate changes to a large extent are a development challenge

The government will continue and consolidate its current development policy line.

The government will strengthen the assistance to Africa further. The increase in Danish development assistance will in particular be to the benefit of Africa, and it is the aim that two thirds of Denmark’s bilateral assistance should be given to the continent. The development assistance is increased to i.a. Afghanistan, gender equality and women’s rights and opportunities, the fight against HIV/AIDS and to refugees and internally displaced persons in regions of origin. The special budgetary allocation reserved for climate change initiatives is doubled to DKK 200 million and also the humanitarian engagement will receive extra funding.

The government will strenghten the strategic role of the multilateral development cooperation and will make a gradual reprioritisation of the multilateral assistance over the next five years.