BRUSSELS — Three years after its launch, it is still too early to conclude “almost anything” about the European Commission’s attempt to use budget guarantees to prompt high-risk investments in lower-income countries, according to the author of a recent opinion by the European Court of Auditors.
The warning comes as the EU prepares to pump billions more into the scheme.
Hannu Takkula, the reporting member from ECA, an independent oversight body without legal powers, told Devex that “there are a lot of hopes and expectations” on the European Fund for Sustainable Development, of which the guarantees form a part. “But [will] they come through? We will see that after some time,” he said.