Both the European Union and African Union face a threshold year where key international deals need to be struck at four major summits on financing for development, sustainable development goals, climate change and trade for development. Are global leaders ready to reach wide-ranging agreements for the post-2015 world?
The European Year for Development coincides with the culmination of the post-2015 debate, but not by coincidence. The new EU Commission, led by Jean-Claude Juncker, must get off to a running start. Now, more than ever, Europe’s problems need global solutions and global problems need European action.
Can the African Union speak with one voice and work to make the SDGs a useful stepping stone for its own ambitious Agenda 2063? What are the top five challenges for Europe and Africa in 2015?
About the authors
James Mackie
James Mackie is a specialist on EU development policy with a career of some 30 years in international development cooperation. In January 2012, he was appointed as a senior adviser on EU development policy in the European Center for Development Policy Management. He is also a visiting professor at the international relations and diplomacy department of the College of Europe in Bruges.
Rhys Williams
Rhys Williams is communications officer at the European Center for Development Policy Management. He has a master's degree in global politics from the University of London, and a bachelor's in economics from Cardiff University. Previously, he was an analyst and communications assistant at Development Initiatives.
