Q&A: Manservisi on Brexit, budgets, and the EU Trust Fund for Africa

BRUSSELS — Ahead of the European Development Days in Brussels this week, Stefano Manservisi, director-general of the European Commission’s development department, walked Devex through the latest on the European Union’s 2021-27 budget negotiations, as the commission pushes for the bloc’s overseas spending to be streamlined into a single funding instrument — with potential consequences for U.K.-EU development cooperation after Brexit. He also talked about the fate of the EU Trust Fund for Africa, and his own plans to leave the commission after 36 years to “think, write, and be critical.” This conversation has been edited for length and clarity. EU member states are divided on the 2021-2027 aid budget, with some opposing the commission’s plan for a single funding instrument, which would combine the European Development Fund with spending for countries neighboring the EU. Does the commission have a Plan B? We have a big Plan A and therefore we don’t have a Plan B. The Plan B is not ours, it’s a possible decision on splitting [our proposal] to have [multiple] instruments as we have today. Therefore this is not a Plan B, this is a solution by default, which we will oppose until the end. If member states and the European Parliament decide to split and find unanimity to do it, then we will have to live with that … “We highly value what we do with DFID. But sorry, we cannot pretend that nothing happens. They decided [to leave the EU], they take the consequences.” --— Stefano Manservisi, director-general, European Commission’s development department Everybody understands: When [we] say if we have one legal basis it will make things a hell of a lot easier, they all agree. But then they say, yes, politically, the neighborhood … What did you make of Poland’s argument that the European Development Fund should be kept outside the EU budget to make it easier for the U.K. to contribute to EU development efforts after Brexit? This is an old argument, an old story. The EDF at present is intergovernmental so people believe that since it’s standing alone anybody can enter. It’s only partially true because it is intergovernmental among member states. So far it has never been intergovernmental between third countries. The financial regulations make it possible to have also third-country contributions to the budget of the EU [not just EDF], including its earmarking. So if the U.K. or Norway wants to put money into the EU normal budget, they can do it. U.K. NGOs are also coming to me. But we say “look, you have to go to London. It’s not our choice that you go out. So, therefore, talk to your government.” We are working in a legal framework, and the legal framework is that a third-country entity is eligible [to implement EU development assistance] in places where our aid is fully untied, meaning in highly-indebted least-developed countries. [For work in those countries] U.K. NGOs will keep being eligible, like the Americans. But for work from the EDF or in African, Caribbean, Pacific states, where the legal basis says EU or ACP entities [alone are eligible] — sorry, we are bound by the law. The same thing applies to work in middle-income countries. Now, if a third country is contributing, like for example Switzerland contributing to the EU Trust Fund for Africa, then Swiss entities are eligible for funding — but this is one of the rules of the trust fund. If the U.K. decides to contribute to the future budget as a third country, we can perfectly negotiate the same thing. We highly value what we do with DFID. But sorry, we cannot pretend that nothing happens. They decided [to leave the EU], they take the consequences. “Without further contribution from the member states, at the end of this year, with all the pipelines that we have, we will be at zero.” --— What can you tell us about the meeting of the board of the EU Trust Fund for Africa last Friday? We had a discussion and a presentation, facts and figures, on what we have been doing so far. In numbers, we’re speaking about thousands of people who were reintegrated, given an option to be trained, refugees who were supported, realization in terms of the capacity of the state. For example, biometrics in many countries of the Sahel … [and] training the border guard in human rights. Unanimously ... there was great satisfaction with what we have done because it has been faster than usual instruments, because it is possible to track what we are doing, and because the results are also there. Everybody was saying “now we have to work in order to keep this trust fund” etc. Then I explained that we should not make the confusion between a regulation [the single funding instrument, or NDICI, proposed by the commission], which will be the legal basis for spending, and a tool to implement this. I said that we will propose to keep the trust fund to also implement part of the NDICI resources, but we cannot do it now because ... the European Parliament [needs to also] give a positive opinion. Therefore we cannot do something now when there is no parliament [following elections last month] … Let’s conclude the negotiation on NDICI [first]. The second part of the discussion was about the future. And the future is a bit in contrast with this, because I explained that without further contribution from the member states, at the end of this year, with all the pipelines that we have, we will be at zero ... Obviously with this kind of music, when I say, “look since you said this, now you put [more] money [into the fund],” starting from Germany they say, “no I cannot do it, the commission should look at how to squeeze money out of this.” Sorry, we cannot squeeze anything because we are at the end of the [2014-2020 budgetary] period ... We’ll keep working in order to see what we can do in 2020 because everybody said it would be politically bad not to have any projects adopted in 2020. What are you going to do next, after the current commission ends on October 31? Take a bit of a rest. I will retire from the commission because I am 65. Thirty-six years, and it is coinciding with this commission [ending]. So I can be ready to stay a few months more, but it’s also time to turn the page. What am I planning to do? I don’t know frankly. I don’t want to start another equivalent work outside. I want to be more free to think, maybe to write, be critical etc. For sure I will dedicate a bit of sharing my experience through universities ... Maybe advising if I am requested here and there. And maybe taking a bit of time to go back to my hometown, Bologna, in order to maybe help, give my contribution of experience to shape the international activities of the town. I don’t know. Many things.