European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica told Devex and other reporters on Tuesday that the proposal for a new European Consensus on International Development’s commitment to explore the links between security and development interests will maintain a “clear, red line” limiting how and when security and development will overlap.
Since the release of the consensus last week, civil society groups have raised concerns that the commission’s pledge to “explore the linkages between security and development” will mean the donor will divert some of its more than $156 billion in development funds toward bolstering security or even military capacity, specifically in how it relates to refugees and migration to Europe.*
The consensus compounded fears among aid professionals that the commission’s recent migration initiatives, including the Emergency Trust Fund for Africa and the External Action Service, function not as agents of poverty reduction but simply efforts to stem the flow of migrants from humanitarian crises in the Middle East and Africa.
About the author
Molly Andersmollyanders_dev
Molly Anders is a former U.K. correspondent for Devex. Based in London, she reports on development finance trends with a focus on British and European institutions. She is especially interested in evidence-based development and women’s economic empowerment, as well as innovative financing for the protection of migrants and refugees. Molly is a former Fulbright Scholar and studied Arabic in Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Morocco.
