Two new appointees at the European Union’s development commission were grilled by lawmakers in Brussels before being confirmed as the bloc's next development and humanitarian aid commissioners — we bring you 10 flash points.
Also in today’s edition: We look at the push to end violence against children, what another Trump administration means for Africa’s health agenda, how climate is affecting health, and who are the donors in southern Europe.
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Development, diplomacy, drama
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Former Czech banker Jozef Síkela is set to become the EU’s development commissioner after a tough Q&A with the European Parliament, while Hadja Lahbib, Belgium’s foreign minister, is set to take on humanitarian aid. My colleague Rob Merrick provides us with some of the highlights from their hearings, which set the stage for their confirmation to take office for the next five years.
1. Czech-ing boxes on poverty: Síkela faced backlash before the hearings for suggesting development as a means for the EU to grab resources. After a bit of coaching, he assured the members of Parliament, or MEPs, that he’s all about the Sustainable Development Goals.
2. Old habits die hard: Despite his lofty goals, Síkela was most animated when discussing finance, promising to take the Global Gateway project “from startup to scale up.”
3. Business = aid: Dismissing criticism, Síkela argued that helping EU companies succeed abroad also helps the world’s poor, saying, “Development aid should be used as an oil” – to grease the wheels?
4. Marketing matters: To compete with “cheaper” Chinese offers, Síkela vowed to give EU aid the full package treatment, complete with better marketing.
5. A bit flex on gender rights: Síkela ruffled feathers by suggesting compromises on gender rights if partners resist, warning, “We will face religious obstacles.”
6. The EU won’t sink as low as China: Frequently referencing China’s “weaponized” loans, Síkela pledged that the EU would steer clear of such tactics.
7. Migrants and aid: On whether aid should be tied to migrant returns, Síkela dodged, warning that such conditions could backfire.
8. Rwanda’s rocky deal: Pressed on a controversial minerals deal with Rwanda, Síkela defended it as “good cooperation” but admitted he’d need to get up to speed on details.
9. Transparency? Maybe: MEPs demanded more information on Global Gateway projects. Síkela promised openness — within limits, to protect EU interests.
10. Humanitarian aid takes a back seat: Lahbib’s new portfolio now includes EU equality issues and internal disaster response. She vowed to push for 0.07% of national income for humanitarian aid but sidestepped questions on how to assist countries unlikely to draw private investment.
Read: 10 things we learned when MEPs grilled the EU's new aid chiefs (Pro)
Background reading: Are the proposed new EU aid leaders a good fit for the job? (Pro)
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Urgent call for action
An astonishing 1 billion children — that’s nearly half their number worldwide — experience violence, according to the World Health Organization. The United Nations has big plans to put an end to “abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence” against children by 2030 as part of its Sustainable Development Goals.
But, as Gabriella Jóźwiak reports for Devex, progress has been grindingly slow. This week, Bogotá, Colombia, hosts the first Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children, a gathering of leaders and advocates determined to speed things up.
Co-organized by Colombia, Sweden, WHO, UNICEF, and U.N. Special Representative Najat Maalla M’jid, the conference will tackle everything from corporal punishment to online bullying and sexual abuse. WHO’s Dr. Etienne Krug puts it bluntly: Stopping violence against children isn’t just about protecting human rights; it’s a public health priority. Children who suffer violence are at greater risk for anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and other health issues.
WHO has been working on this for years through its INSPIRE framework, a seven-step strategy focusing on family support, better legislation, and changing societal norms. Countries like India are already on board, implementing these strategies, but more teamwork is needed to make a real impact.
Leaders in Bogotá will push for solid, measurable commitments, including bans on corporal punishment. Youth advocates, supported by NGO Restless Development, kick off the first global youth-led movement against violence toward children. With over 120 countries represented, this conference could turn years of awareness into action that truly changes lives.
Read: Half of all children globally face violence. What can be done about it?
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Deadly weather, droughts, and disease
Climate change is taking a massive toll on health worldwide, warns the latest Lancet Countdown report. Deadly heat, floods, and droughts are on the rise, with heat-related deaths among people over 65 up 167% since the 1990s, and potential productivity losses hitting $835 billion in 2023.
Flooding has become a global crisis, with Spain experiencing its worst in decades, while droughts dry out half the world’s land annually. In places like Namibia and Zimbabwe, drought has pushed communities to hunt wildlife for food, and Amazonian villages face isolation and contaminated water.
Warmer temperatures are also helping mosquitoes spread diseases like dengue, and deforestation has erased 459 million hectares of trees since 2001, reducing nature’s ability to cool and support mental health, reports my colleague Jenny Lei Ravelo. The Lancet Countdown’s Marina Romanello claims governments and companies “fuel the fire of climate change” by subsidizing fossil fuels with $1.4 trillion, money that could shift to clean energy.
On a positive note, 10.5% of electricity used in 2021 came from renewable energy, with 13.7 million jobs in the sector, and fossil fuel-related deaths have dropped by 7%. The report urges countries to redirect fossil fuel subsidies to clean energy and prioritize health in climate planning. Adaptation is also critical, with Global Center on Adaptation CEO Patrick Verkooijen stressing, “We have to adapt or die.”
With the COP29 climate conference on the horizon, there’s hope that countries will finally commit to financing that addresses the urgent health impacts of climate change.
Read: New data reveals escalating health risks due to climate change
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Trump and Africa 2.0
With Donald Trump set to begin a second term as U.S. president, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Director-General Jean Kaseya is eager to reshape U.S.-Africa health ties. He’s ready to visit Washington to push for a “strategic and coordinated approach based on the plan that we have in Africa,” he tells my colleague Sara Jerving. He wants to move away from the project-by-project approach, he says.
Kaseya is also pressing the U.S. to follow through on President Joe Biden’s $500 million pledge for responding to mpox, fearing delays in the response will unfairly fall on Africa. Trust needs to be rebuilt, he emphasizes, warning that if those promised funds don’t materialize it could create a major issue between the U.S. and Africa.
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Southern Europe’s aid players
Southern Europe’s aid contributions may still be modest next to the U.S., but Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Croatia, and Malta have steadily grown their impact. Together, these nations disbursed $12 billion in development aid in 2022 — a 22% rise from 2021. Malta, for instance, nearly doubled its aid to $60 million from 2018 to 2022, while Croatia saw a 72% increase. Italy led the group with $6.6 billion in 2022 but has yet to meet the 0.7% ODA-to-GNI goal, reaching 0.33% that year, write my colleagues Miguel Antonio Tamonan and Alecsondra Kieren Si.
Spain’s contributions have grown too, rising from $2.8 billion in 2018 to $4.3 billion in 2022, supported by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, or AECID. Portugal’s aid remained stable through its agency, Camões, despite its lower 0.19% ODA-to-GNI ratio in 2023.
With both fresh momentum and a range of national priorities, these southern European donors are carving their place in the development landscape.
Read: How much do southern European donors spend on development aid? (Pro)
In other news
The chief executive of COP29, Elnur Soltanov, was caught on a secret recording seeking investment for Azerbaijan’s oil and gas projects, prompting criticism of undermining the climate conference’s focus. [BBC]
About 1 in 8 children around the world have been heavily affected by extreme climate events this year, causing them to become displaced and miss school, according to Save the Children. [EuroNews]
Somalia and the U.S. on Tuesday inked an agreement to cancel the African country’s $1.14 billion debt. [The Guardian]
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About the author
Helen Murphy
Helen is an award-winning journalist and Senior Editor at Devex, where she edits coverage on global development in the Americas. Based in Colombia, she previously covered war, politics, financial markets, and general news for Reuters, where she headed the bureau, and for Bloomberg in Colombia and Argentina, where she witnessed the financial meltdown. She started her career in London as a reporter for Euromoney Publications before moving to Hong Kong to work for a daily newspaper.
