A European Union development fund to reduce migrant crossings from Africa has been undermined by a failure to identify what works, missing reports of human rights violations, and exaggerated claims of success, auditors say.
Eight years after it began operating in 2016, the €5 billion ($5.6 billion) EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, or EUTF, is “still unable to say which approaches are the most efficient and effective at reducing irregular migration and forced displacement,” the European Court of Auditors has found.
It criticizes the European Commission for a focus on “outputs” such as the number of job courses provided, rather than “the outcome” — whether people secured work to dissuade them from attempting “the dangerous routes across the Mediterranean into Europe,” Bettina Jakobsen, the ECA member in charge of the audit, said.
About the author
Rob Merrick
Rob Merrick is the U.K. Correspondent for Devex, covering FCDO and British aid. He reported on all the key events in British politics of the past 25 years from Westminster, including the financial crash, the Brexit fallout, the "Partygate" scandal, and the departures of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. Rob has worked for The Independent and the Press Association and is a regular commentator on TV and radio. He can be reached at rob.merrick@devex.com.
