The European Union has triggered fears of further international aid cuts after drawing up plans to merge its funding tools for development and relief programs with its priority work to prepare new member countries.
The proposal would create “a single instrument” covering development spending, humanitarian aid, and assistance to neighboring nations seeking to join the bloc, according to a confidential document seen by Devex.
The move — prompted by the new European Commission’s desire to streamline its many funding streams — would sweep away the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument, or NDICI, and humanitarian aid instrument, or HUMA, both created in 2021.