2012/2063(INI)
EU 2011 report on policy coherence for development
EU 2011 report on policy coherence for development 2012/2063(INI)
Lead committee dossier: DEVE/7/09296
Legal basis: RoP 048
| AFET | AGRI | DEVE | EMPL | ENVI | FEMM | INTA | ITRE | JURI | LIBE | PECH | |
| Lead Rapporteur | SCHNIEBER-JASTRAM Birgit (EPP) | ||||||||||
| Opinion Rapporteur(s) | COSTELLO Emer (S&D) | FERREIRA João (GUE/NGL) |
Legal basis: RoP 048
Procedure completed
2012/2063(INI) EU 2011 report on policy coherence for development
Lead committee dossier: DEVE/7/09296
Legal Basis RoP 048
| Role | Committee | Rapporteur | Shadows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opinion | AFET | ||
| Opinion | AGRI | ||
| Lead | DEVE | SCHNIEBER-JASTRAM Birgit (EPP) | |
| Opinion | EMPL | COSTELLO Emer (S&D) | |
| Opinion | ENVI | ||
| Opinion | FEMM | ||
| Opinion | INTA | ||
| Opinion | ITRE | ||
| Opinion | JURI | ||
| Opinion | LIBE | ||
| Opinion | PECH | FERREIRA João (GUE/NGL) |
Legal Basis RoP 048
Subjects
Activites
- 2012/10/25 Text adopted by Parliament, single reading
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2012/10/25
Prev DG PRES
- DG {u'url': u'http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/', u'title': u'EuropeAid Development and Cooperation'}, PIEBALGS Andris
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2012/10/11
Committee report tabled for plenary, single reading
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A7-0302/2012
summary
The Committee on Development adopted the own-initiative report by Birgit SCHNIEBER-JASTRAM (EPP, DE) on the EU 2011 Report on Policy Coherence for Development. It welcomes the EU's efforts towards PCD, underlining that PCD is not only a legal obligation, but also a chance for the EU to establish equal and sustainable partnerships with developing countries that go beyond development cooperation. Members believe that PCD must be based on the recognition of the right of a country to define by democratic means its own policies, priorities and strategies to protect its populations' livelihoods in line with the UN International covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural rights. They insist that the questions regarding the economic, environmental and social impacts of policies inside and outside of the EU laid down in the 2009 Impact Assessments Guidelines must be answered in the Commission's impact assessments as well as in the impact assessments to be made by Parliament. The Commission should complete the impact assessments in advance of the corresponding policy proposal in order to ensure that civil society organisations (CSOs) and other relevant stakeholders can participate in the process. It welcomes the Commission's proposal to deepen cooperation with the European Parliament and national parliaments on PCD and proposes that these exchanges should come in the form of structured annual meetings, which include clear objectives along with task-monitoring activities with the goal of strengthening PCD in the EU. Furthermore, the report suggests making PCD a clear priority for the EEAS and the Delegations by further strengthening the EU's policy dialogue with CSOs, local parliaments and other stakeholders, by asking them to gather evidence on lack of either inconsistency or coherence, by improving the PCD references in programming documents and making them operational, and by developing a training programme for all new EEAS staff to ensure that they are able to understand and apply PCD. Adequate resources to fulfil this task must be allocated. Trade: Members take the view that the OECD guidelines for multi-national enterprises should become binding standards in EU investment treaties for business, ensuring that treaties include clauses on transparency and on the fight against illicit capital flows, along with full reporting on environmental and social issues by companies. They point out that investment agreements should improve the rights and duties of governments to regulate economic activities in sensitive policy areas such as the environment and foster decent work in the broader public interest and in the longer-term interest of future generations. Agricultural and Fisheries Policy: deploring that the share of EU Aid for Trade (AfT) to LDCs declined to 16 % in 2010 (EUR 1.7 billion, as against EUR 8.7 billion to non-LDCs) from 22 % in 2009, the committee calls on the Commission to: - inform Parliament about the annual and/or multi-annual share of the EDF funds spent as AfT; - promote, within the WTO, the suggestion of some donors to narrow the scope of the Aid for Trade Initiative in order to make it more focused on key elements of the trade and development nexus, in order to make it more effective and to secure donors' financing. Members repeat the need for independent assessments of the EU's agricultural and trade policies, paying special attention to impacts on local and smallholder producers, and building on evidence submitted by governments, farmers' organisations, civil society organisations and other stakeholders in developing countries which are EU trading partners. With regard to fisheries policies, stressing that Fisheries Partnership Agreements (FPA) payments should be compatible with development objectives and that the impacts of FPAs should be closely monitored by the EU, the committee takes the view that PCD should be reinforced by: a) making DG-MARE and DG-Development jointly responsible for FPAs, b) applying relevant principles outlined in the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fishing, EU commitments towards Policy Coherence for Development, and the EU-ACP Cotonou Agreement, c) incorporating human rights, anti-corruption and accountability obligations in all FPAs, and d) ensuring that FPAs are consistent with or contribute to the poverty reduction and human development objectives identified in the EU's Country and Regional Strategy Papers. Climate Change and Energy: the report calls for a systematic climate change risk assessment of all aspects of EU's policy planning and decision making, including trade, agriculture, food security, etc., and it demands that the result of this assessment be used to formulate clear and coherent country and regional strategy papers, as well as development programmes and projects. It also calls on the Commission to report on the social sustainability of biofuels by the end of 2012 and to consult with affected communities and local NGOs beforehand. Members States are urged to allocate a significant share of the auctioning revenues from the European Emissions Trading System (ETS) to climate change-related activities in developing countries from 2013 onwards. Security: the committee stresses the following: - the publication of the Councils Thirteenth Annual Report on control of exports of military technology and equipment raised questions about the reliability and usability of the data provided; - the relevance of the EU's pledges for democracy and human rights and for conditions such as those enshrined in the "more for more" approach concerning the EU's immediate Neighbourhood policy can only be assured when no other policy area, and when no interaction with partner countries, counteract initiatives undertaken to strengthen human rights, human security and democracy in partner countries. Migration: noting that 'brain drain' can cause serious problems in developing countries, especially in the health sector, the report asks the Commission to monitor the effects of the Blue Card system on developing countries and promote the application of the "WHO Code of practice" regarding the international recruitment of health personnel to both the public and the private sectors. Members also note that mobility partnerships must be consistent with the international human rights legal framework, and they ask the EU to prevent conditionality in development aid relating to migration reduction, in both bilateral and multilateral negotiations by the EU and its Member States. They want Article 13 of the ACP-EU Agreement to include the principles of circular migration and the granting circular visas. Whilst the article emphasises respect for human rights, the scope of these principles is seriously compromised by bilateral readmission agreements with transit countries which, taken together, amount to an externalisation by Europe of the management of migration, and which do not guarantee respect for the rights of migrants and may result in 'cascade' readmissions that jeopardise their safety and their lives. Other issues: Members discuss a wide variety of issues, including: (i) the overall framework of good governance and respect for human rights, (ii) the division of responsibilities between the EEAS and DEVCO, (iii) the concept of "EU actorness", (iv) the need to ensure that social provisions enshrined in EU trade agreements are implemented; (v) the importance of establishing PCD focal points in developing countries to improve information exchanges, (vi) the importance of taking account of the situation of women, not simply as a vulnerable section of the population, but also as active facilitators of development policies. Lastly, Members reiterate that the creation of a Standing Rapporteur for PCD from the ACP countries in the context of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly would facilitate the coordination with, and work of, the EP's Standing Rapporteur on PCD and the relevant department of the Commission and Council, and would help to eliminate obstacles to PCD within developing countries themselves.
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A7-0302/2012
summary
- 2012/09/18 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
- 2012/08/28 Amendments tabled in committee
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2012/07/20
Deadline Amendments
- 2012/06/22 Committee draft report
- 2012/04/20 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
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2012/04/12
EP officialisation
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2011/12/15
Date
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2011/12/15
Non-legislative basic document
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SEC(2011)1627
summary
PURPOSE: to present the 2011 Report on Policy Coherence for Development (PCD). CONTENT: since 2005, Policy Coherence for Development (PCD) has become a permanent and significant pillar of the EU effort to enhance the impact of external assistance and to better tailor and weight the external effects of EU non-development policies in our partner countries. This is the third biennial report on PCD progress prepared by the Commission. It aims to report on: progress made by the EU and its Member States in making their policies more coherent with development cooperation objectives, focusing on those sectors identified as priority challenges for the PCD exercise ; recent activities to ensure better monitoring and implementation of the PCD process, and the main lessons learned and challenges ahead.
- DG {u'url': u'http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/', u'title': u'EuropeAid Development and Cooperation'}, PIEBALGS Andris
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SEC(2011)1627
summary
Documents
- Non-legislative basic document published: SEC(2011)1627
- Committee draft report: PE492.611
- Amendments tabled in committee: PE494.579
- Committee report tabled for plenary, single reading: A7-0302/2012
- Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T7-0399/2012
Votes
A7-0302/2012 - Birgit Schnieber-Jastram - Résolution
2012/10/25
| Position | Total | ALDE | ECR | EFD | GUE/NGL | NI | PPE | S&D | Verts/ALE | correctional |
| For | 561 | 72 | 30 | 7 | 17 | 4 | 223 | 169 | 39 | 2 |
| Against | 47 | 2 | 3 | 16 | 1 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Abstain | 51 | 4 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
A7-0302/2012 - Birgit Schnieber-Jastram - Resolution
2012/10/25
| Position | Total | ALDE | ECR | EFD | GUE/NGL | NI | PPE | S&D | Verts/ALE | correctional |
| For | 561 | 72 | 30 | 7 | 17 | 4 | 223 | 169 | 39 | 2 |
| Against | 47 | 2 | 3 | 16 | 1 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Abstain | 51 | 4 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| Amendments | Dossier |
| 213 |
2012/2063(INI) EU 2011 report on policy coherence for development
2012/06/25
EMPL
9 amendments...
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Calls on the Commission to including binding provisions on social standards and on the objectives of full and productive employment, including for women and young people, decent work, respect for workers‘ rights, and gender equality in all EU trade agreement
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Calls on the Commission to including binding provisions on social standards and on the objectives of full and productive employment,
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Calls on the Commission to including binding provisions on social standards and on the objectives of full and productive employment, including for women and young people, decent work, respect for workers‘ rights, including for migrant workers, and gender equality in all EU trade agreement;
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 a (new) 3 a. Stresses the need to support and spread collective bargaining as a tool for reducing labour market inequalities, ensuring decent work and wages, preventing social dumping, undeclared work and ensuring fair competition;
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 b (new) 3 b. Underlines the necessity to respect the conditions of work contracts and the work performed by young people and women should not represent any type of exploitation including sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery;
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 4 4. Underlines the importance of binding corporate social responsibility obligations, and of encouraging employers to apply social standards which are more ambitious than current statutory provisions, including the possibility to develop and obtain a designation such as a social label; calls on the Commission to support the Member States in carefully monitoring the implementation, and ensuring the legal enforcement, of these obligations;
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Stresses the importance of establishing Policy Coherence for Development (PCD) focal points also in developing countries to improve information exchanges, inter alia on issues beyond EU competences, such as the socially-inclusive use of resource rents or taxation and remittances; calls on the Commission to mainstream social policy in the work of the EEAS; believes it is essential also for middle-income countries to commit an increasing proportion of their revenue to social purposes, notably by developing taxation systems and social protection;
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 5 5. Stresses the importance of establishing Policy Coherence for Development (PCD) focal points also in developing countries to improve information exchanges, inter alia on issues beyond EU competences, such as the socially-inclusive use of resource rents or taxation and remittances; and of the impacts of so called 'brain drain' on countries of origin; calls on the Commission to mainstream social policy in the work of the EEAS;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 8 8. Calls on the Commission to engage in social dialogue with non-EU labour organisations and trade unions about the implementation of social standards in their respective countries, and to ensure more adequate technical assistance for the implementation of social and fiscal policy.
source: PE-492.627
2012/07/18
PECH
62 amendments...
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph -1 (new) -1. Maintains that the Union’s development policy should be carried out within the framework of the obligation agreed in the United Nations and other organisations and competent international bodies and that the contribution of fishing to development should be made within the framework of the principles and objectives of the Union’s external action and should contribute towards the main aim of Union development policy, which is to reduce and ultimately eradicate poverty in developing countries;
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph -1 a (new) -1a. The Union shall contribute to development in the sphere of fishery by supporting the principle of surplus fishing stocks and other rules laid down in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the application of the FAO Guidelines for responsible fisheries and the FAO Compliance Agreement on the conservation and management of fisheries resources at global level;
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. States that maternal death rates are disproportionately high in developing countries; notes with concern that African women are 175 times more likely to die in childbirth than women in the developed regions of the world1
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph -1 b (new) -1b. Emphasises that the objectives of fisheries policy must be carried out transparently and coherently with other Union objectives and that their impact on development must be planned, measured, assessed and regularly and systematically subjected to democratic control;
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. States that maternal death rates are disproportionately high in developing countries; notes with concern that African women are 175 times more likely to die in childbirth than women in the developed regions of the world1 ; stresses that accessible, affordable, adequate and high- quality emergency obstetric care is vital in order to reduce maternal death rates; emphasises that developing countries need increased numbers of qualified healthcare professionals to attend to women in labour and states the need for women to be informed about
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph -1 c (new) -1c. Advocates ensuring full coherence with and building synergies between the design, development, monitoring and evaluation of Community development cooperation policy and that of sectoral policies, particularly those with the greatest impact on development such as trade, agricultural and fisheries policies, bearing in mind that the greatest part of the value of world catch is fished in the waters of developing countries, that the majority of catches in ACP waters are made by foreign vessels and that fishing is the source of over one quarter of the protein intake of people in developing countries;
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. States that maternal death rates are disproportionately high in developing countries; notes with concern that African women are 175 times more likely to die in childbirth than women in the developed regions of the world; stresses that accessible, affordable, adequate and high- quality emergency obstetric care is vital in order to reduce maternal death rates; emphasises that developing countries need increased numbers of qualified healthcare professionals to attend to women in labour and states the need for women to be informed about the sexual and reproductive health services they can access and about the risk of HIV/AIDS;
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph -1 d (new) -1d. Clearly states that fisheries cooperation agreements and the fisheries- related aspects of development cooperation agreements and EU commercial agreements should contribute towards making fishing a socially, economically and environmentally sustainable activity for the EU and its partners;
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 1. States that maternal death rates are disproportionately high in developing countries; notes with concern that African women are 175 times more likely to die in childbirth than women in the developed regions of the world1 ; stresses that accessible, affordable, adequate and high- quality emergency obstetric care is vital in order to reduce maternal death rates; emphasises that developing countries need increased numbers of qualified healthcare professionals to attend to women in labour and states the need for women to be informed about
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 1 1. Regrets that a substantial proportion of the objectives of the Fisheries Partnership Agreements have not been achieved; regrets in particular the poor results attained in the fields of scientific and technological cooperation and support for the sustainable development of the fishing industry (and allied industries) in developing countries; these aspects will be improved through coherent policies and governance of international fishery activity;
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 a (new) 1a. Points out that women all over the world are working and fighting for the dignity of their status and for equal rights; urges the Commission and Parliament to recognise that women perform social roles central to their own development and social well-being, and that equality between women and men determines a people’s level of economic and political development; and calls on them, proceeding from that recognition, to give priority to gender issues by making these a core aim of all EU activities and programmes; notes that women are unquestionably entitled to full citizenship, which has to go hand in hand with the right to work, are undeniably investing great efforts in the areas of schooling and the acquisition of skills, and have also shown themselves to be fit to hold public and political office; warns, however, those facts notwithstanding, that inequalities between men and women have in reality been increasing, for instance in terms of entitlement to jobs with rights, and that the principle of equal pay for equal work, along with other principles, is continuing to be challenged;
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 1 a (new) 1a. Stresses that the EU must ensure that the current reform of the Common Fisheries Policy is mainstreamed with the EU commitment towards developing countries to support the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals as well as the basic human right to food as recognised in the Universal Declaration of Human Right.
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion Paragraph -1 (new) -1. Welcomes the European Commission's active work both at the policy level and through its different funding instruments and Budget support in order to enhance its commitments to foster women's empowerment, particularly by seeking to integrate the priorities and needs of women in all key coherence policies for development;
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 2 2. Notes that, in general, Fisheries Partnership Agreements have basically served to transfer funds to developing countries in exchange for exploitation of their fisheries resources
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 a (new) 1a. Emphasises the need to maintain reliable statistical data and record the causes of maternal deaths according to the ICD Maternal Mortality coding, of the WHO, which can guide countries and help them to improve the attribution and estimation of the causes;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 2 a (new) 2a. Calls on the Commission to ensure that its external action in general, and Fisheries Partnership Agreements in particular, promote good governance and transparency and create the conditions for developing third countries to base their fisheries policies on the same guidelines and sustainability standards as the common fisheries policy, including the adoption of decisions based on scientific reports and impact studies and the drafting of multiannual plans allowing exploitation proportionate to the maximum sustainable yield of stocks; special support for small scale fishing and aquaculture activities and the communities which depend on them; promotion of selective fishing, adaptation of fleet capacity to resources and more responsible fishing practices; gradual reduction and ultimate elimination of discards and efforts to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing; improvements to safety and welfare conditions at work, protection of biodiversity and the environment and measures to combat climate change; product quality and better marketing, and promotion of research and innovation to increase the sustainability of activities in the sphere of fishery, aquaculture and associated industries;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 a (new) 1a. Reaffirms its declaration A (2010) 21584 of the ACP-EU Parliamentary Assembly;
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 3 3.
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 a (new) 1a. Reaffirms its declaration A (2010) 21584 of the ACP-EU Parliamentary Assembly;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 3 a (new) 3a. Firmly maintains that, in their relations with third countries and their actions within international organisations, the Union and its Member States shall contribute to building the capacities of societies and governments of developing countries to draft, implement and control sustainable fisheries policies which increase their food security and contribute to their development;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 a (new) Notes that climate change disproportionately affects women, both in health terms, as more women die as a result of natural disasters, and in terms of economic, migratory and social pressures, due to the discrimination and gendered social roles which still characterise our societies; consequently, one of the main criteria for the success of PCD must be the mainstreaming of cross-cutting gender-related issues, so as both to ensure that sexual equality is not ignored when the various policies are formulated and implemented and to prevent those policies as a whole from having a counter- productive impact on equality between men and women;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 4 4. Advocates the joint formulation of models with objectives, actions and indicators with the aim of monitoring the use of the funds more effectively in a spirit of partnership; stresses that this monitoring must include the adoption of corrective procedures, to be agreed with the third country, whenever a deviation of one of the parties from the objectives is observed;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 a (new) 1a. Calls for Policy Coherence for Development to favour a participative approach that promotes the empowerment and self-determination of local people and, first of all, of women;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 4 a (new) 4a. Welcomes the example of transparency that the EU has set in a global context by publishing the conditions of its Fisheries Partnerships Agreements; urges the Commission to continue its openness by ensuring that the evaluations of these agreements are also publically available, respecting the principles of the Aarhus convention, for the purpose of local parliaments, civil society and other stakeholders to effectively scrutinise the implementation and impact of the agreements;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 b (new) 1b. Reaffirms the importance of taking account of the situation of women, not simply as a vulnerable section of the population, but also as active facilitators of development policies; notes, in this context, that women are responsible for 80% of farming in Africa, even if it is still rare for them to have the possibility of owning the land they cultivate; calls, therefore, not only for agricultural and fisheries policies to be integrated into PCD because of their impact on development, but also for them to be assessed in terms of their differential impact on women and men respectively;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 5 5. Draws attention to the importance of the existence of transparent, up-to-date scientific data on fish stocks, on all fisheries agreements including those of the EU and on total fishing effort in each country’s waters; considers that scientific assessment should precede the signature of agreements or at least that the agreements should contribute to the examination of data;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 b (new) 1b. Stresses the importance of taking account of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable social groups, notably women and girls, and paying particular attention to them to avoid any further increase in inequality; experience has shown that ‘neutral’ measures entrench the existing power structure and it is essential to take positive, informed, systematic action in the form of measures that improve the situation of women, so as to ensure that such measures benefit the most disadvantaged;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 6 6. Draws attention to the problem of illegal, unregistered and undeclared (IUU) fishing; recalls that many vessels do not duly report their catches and are not inspected, the data supplied by vessels are not checked and the species caught are not clearly identified; considers that the
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 c (new) 1c. Stresses that the policy of promoting equality between men and women should not only be the subject of a specific budget heading in the context of development policies but should also be regarded as a cross-cutting issue, since every policy that has an impact on society affects women and men differently, given the persistence of gendered roles in society and the fact that PCD offers a practical means of preventing negative externalities from adversely affecting equality between men and women;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 6 6. Draws attention to the problem of illegal, unregistered and undeclared (IUU) fishing; recalls that many vessels do not duly report their catches and are not inspected, the data supplied by vessels are not checked and the species caught are not clearly identified; considers that the EU can and must make a more effective contribution towards overcoming these problems; urges the Commission, in all its international relations, to support the principle of flag State responsibility which underlies international law and is fundamental to an efficient implementation of the IUU regulation;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 c (new) 1c. Notes that the unequal relationship between the sexes is the first stumbling block to be overcome by measures to improve the living conditions of people (women and men) in developing countries and women’s access to participative development;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 6 6. Draws attention to the problem of illegal, unregistered and undeclared (IUU) fishing; recalls that many vessels do not duly report their catches and are not inspected, the data supplied by vessels are not checked and the species caught are not clearly identified; considers that the EU can and must make a more effective contribution towards overcoming these problems and regrets the lack of consistency and transparency when monitoring agreements;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 d (new) 1d. Stresses the importance of including women, and civil society organisations working on behalf of women’s rights and equality between women and men, from the moment that development policies are formulated, particularly by providing training on the subject of gender-related issues in the European External Action Service and EU delegations in third countries; stresses that such training must both raise general awareness of issues relating to gender and equality between women and men and also propose practical and country-specific approaches to influencing the social mores which are an obstacle to equality by using the various means at the EU’s disposal including, in particular, PCD;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion Section 1 – paragraph 7 a (new) 7a. Emphasises that fisheries cooperation is able to directly benefit the 150 million people on our planet who rely on fishing and fishery related activities for their livelihood.
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 d (new) 1d. Stresses the need for CPD to incorporate a global approach which extends beyond the family and microsocial level and takes gender relations into account; this cross-cutting approach to gender issues needs to be incorporated in every development project and every analysis of a society; the approach must apply not only to all sectors but also in all political, economic, social, environmental, cultural and other fields; such an approach, which systematically takes account of the situation and role of women and gender relations in a society, is more comprehensive, humanistic and democratic than an approach which sets women apart; it avoids marginalising women in ‘women’s projects’ or projects which add to women’s workloads or responsibilities without increasing their power or control over the benefits generated by the projects in question;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 e (new) 1e. Affirms that, while the success of development policies and, consequently, of PCD cannot be measured solely by general indicators which have already demonstrated their limitations, such as trends in GDP per inhabitant, other indicators, such as those relating to equality between men and women, should be able to provide a fuller picture of the overall effect of development policies; data, broken down by gender, must therefore be collected on the spot in order to evaluate and enhance the impact of PCD;
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 e (new) 1e. Stresses the role of women in leveraging development policies by participating in the formulation and implementation of such policies, thereby ensuring that political and economic negotiations take women’s interests into account and creating a virtuous circle in which women are the driving force behind development policies which, in turn, set up the structures whereby women can be empowered; highlights the importance of supporting civil society organisations and groups which take on the task of promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment;
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 f (new) 1f. Notes that women play an essential part in development, since, in their role as mothers and carers for children and other dependent members of the family, they assume responsibility for the family’s general well-being; for example, women play a crucial role in the field of nutrition and food security, particularly in the context of subsistance farming;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 g (new) 1g. Stresses that the situation of women is, in many cases, deteriorating more than that of men both in relative and absolute terms; there has been an increase in poverty over the last twenty years or so, which has primarily affected women;
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 1 h (new) 1h. Stresses that, although the important role played by women in development policies and development cooperation is very widely recognised, the statistics and quantitative data which specifically relate to women are still inadequate and fail to meet the objective of reporting the situation of women in developing countries, particularly in fields such as health, education, prevention and meeting basic needs; care must be taken to ensure, therefore, that in all PCD objectives, analyses, documents and assessments the quantitative data is broken down by gender, and gender-specific indicators are included, in order to take account of women’s real living conditions;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2.
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Reaffirms that girl children have equal status under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and calls on EU delegations in developing countries to work with the governments of those countries to ensure that girl children enjoy their rights without discrimination, inter alia by requiring the immediate registration of all children after birth, granting girls and boys equal entitlement to education and schooling and ending the unethical and discriminatory practices of prenatal sex selection, abortion of female foetuses, female infanticide, early forced marriage, female genital mutilation and child prostitution; reaffirms its resolution of 5 July 2012 on the forced abortion scandal in China (2012/2712(RSP))1; __________________ 1 P7_TA(2012)0301
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Reaffirms that girl children have equal status under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and calls on EU delegations in developing countries to work with the governments of those countries to ensure that girl children enjoy their rights without discrimination, inter alia by requiring the immediate registration of all children after birth, granting girls and boys equal entitlement to education and schooling and ending the unethical and discriminatory practices of prenatal sex selection, abortion of female foetuses, female infanticide, early forced marriage, female genital mutilation and prostitution, especially child prostitution and sex tourism;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Reaffirms that girl children have equal status under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and calls on EU delegations in developing countries to work with the governments of those countries to ensure that girl children enjoy their rights without discrimination, inter alia by requiring the immediate registration of all children after birth, granting girls and boys equal entitlement to education and schooling and ending the unethical and discriminatory practices of prenatal sex selection, abortion of female foetuses, female infanticide, early forced marriage, female genital mutilation and child prostitution; reaffirms its resolution of 5 July 2012 on the forced abortion scandal in China (2012/2712(RSP))1; __________________ 1 P7_TA(2012)0301
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 2. Reaffirms that girl children have equal status under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and calls on EU delegations in developing countries and developing countries of the EU to work with the governments of those countries to ensure that girl children enjoy their rights without discrimination, inter alia by requiring the immediate registration of all children after birth, granting girls and boys equal entitlement to education and schooling and ending the unethical and discriminatory practices of prenatal sex selection, abortion of female foetuses, female infanticide, early forced marriage, female genital mutilation
Amendment 30 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 a (new) 2a. Stresses the need for respect of the right of the girl children to express an opinion and to be heard on matters affecting their health and human dignity, emphasizing that the best interest of the child must be the first concern; highlights the need of all children and the girl children in particular, to be brought up in a family environment of peace, dignity, tolerance, freedom, non-discrimination, gender equality and solidarity; calls for the strict implementation of the Declaration of Geneva for children and of the Beijing Declaration on women;
Amendment 31 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 a (new) 2a. reminds that EU and Member States must take into account the rights and duties of the parents, legal guardians, or other individuals legally responsible for the child when dealing with the rights of the child within the development assistance; calls the competent institutions to pay special attention to the relationships between parents and children, for example through programmes containing concrete measures specifically tailored to national requirements, seeking to provide maximum and optimum assistance for parents or guardians in the fulfilment of their parental duties in order to prevent family breakdown, children mistreatment and placement in social care as a result of serious poverty or ensure that such a measure is envisaged only as a very last resort;
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 a (new) 2a. reminds that EU and Member States must take into account the rights and duties of the parents, legal guardians, or other individuals legally responsible for the child when dealing with the rights of the child within the development assistance; calls the competent institutions to pay special attention to the relationships between parents and children, for example through programmes containing concrete measures specifically tailored to national requirements, seeking to provide maximum and optimum assistance for parents or guardians in the fulfilment of their parental duties in order to prevent family breakdown, children mistreatment and placement in social care as a result of serious poverty or ensure that such a measure is envisaged only as a very last resort;
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 2 b (new) 2b. In implementing the specific Cairo International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) prohibition on coercion or compulsion in sexual and reproductive health matters1, with regard to the legally binding international human rights instruments, the EU acquis communautaire and the Union policy competencies in this matter, Union assistance should not be provided to any authority, organisation or programme which promotes, supports or participates in the management of any action which involves such human rights abuses as coercive abortion, forced sterilisation of women and men, determining foetal sex resulting in pre natal sex selection or infanticide, especially where such actions apply their priorities though psychological, social, economic or legal pressure. The Commission should present a report on the implementation of the Union's external assistance covering this programme; __________________ 1 A/CONF.171/13, Report of the ICPD, 18 Oct 1994, § 7.24
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Expresses concern about widespread gender-based violence, especially sexual violence and feminicide, in developing countries; states that
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Expresses great concern about widespread gender-based violence, especially sexual violence, exploitation and feminicide, in the world and within developing countries
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Expresses concern about widespread gender-based violence, especially sexual violence
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 3. Expresses concern about widespread gender-based violence, especially sexual violence and feminicide, in developing countries; states that
Amendment 39 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 a (new) 3a. Points out that women are frequently discriminated against in terms of recognition of their struggles for peace and that extreme suffering is inflicted on women as such in countries at war; maintains that actions of this kind, including the rape of girls by soldiers, forced prostitution, forced impregnation of women, sexual slavery, rape and sexual harassment, and consensual abduction (by means of seduction), are crimes which must not be ignored and that the EU must treat them as fundamental problems to be taken into account;
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 a (new) 3a. Reaffirms the importance of co- financing as facilitating principle that motivates grant beneficiaries to higher accountability and contribution to development effectiveness, and improves cooperation of all stakeholders recommended by Istanbul principles1 ; in this respect, recommends that financial contribution in operating grants from the EU budget to one beneficiary in one calendar year should not exceed 50% of the overall annual budget of that beneficiary; __________________ 1 See Istanbul Principles, as agreed at the Open Forum’s Global Assembly in Istanbul, September 28 -30, 2010
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 a (new) 3a. Pays particular attention to gender education of both sexes, starting from an early school stage, so as to gradually change societal attitudes and stereotypes towards parity of men and women;
Amendment 42 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 a (new) 3a. The assistance measures shall take into account the specific features of crisis or urgency situations and countries or situations where there is a serious lack of fundamental freedoms, where human security is most at risk or where human rights organisations and defenders operate under the most difficult conditions. Particular attention should be paid to situations in which women are being exposed to physical and psychological violence;
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 b (new) 3b. Stresses the importance of promoting women's human rights and mainstreaming gender equality in the civil, political, social, economic and cultural spheres and in the national legislation;
Amendment 44 #
Draft opinion Paragraph 3 c (new) 3c. Underlines the importance of strengthening women's role in promoting human rights and democratic reform, in supporting conflict prevention and in consolidating political participation and representation;
source: PE-492.943
2012/08/28
DEVE
142 amendments...
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution Citation 2 a (new) - having regard to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity from 1992 and the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants,
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution Citation 4 a (new) - having regard to the Commission Staff Working Paper entitled "The EU –- a global partner for development speeding up progress towards the Millennium Development Goals" (SEC (2008)434),
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution Citation 13 a (new) - having regard to the EU Accountability Report 2012 on Review of progress of the EU and its Member States Financing for Development of 9 July 2012,
Amendment 4 #
Motion for a resolution Citation 16 a (new) - having regard to Declaration A (2010) 21584 of 28 September 2010 of the 21st session of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly,
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A A. whereas Article 208 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union establishes the reduction and, in the long term, the eradication of poverty, as defined in the European Consensus on Development, as the primary objective of EU development policy and whereas the Union shall take account of the objectives of development cooperation in the policies that it implements which are likely to affect developing countries;
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A a (new) A a. recalling the European Union's commitment to ensure policy coherence for development, in accordance with the conclusions of the European Council in 2005, recently reaffirmed in its conclusions on PCD;
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A b (new) A b. whereas there are clear inconsistencies in the EU's trade, agriculture, fisheries, climate, intellectual property rights, migration, finance, arms and raw materials policies which affect development goals; and whereas PCD can contribute to poverty reduction by finding fundamental synergies among EU Policies;
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A c (new) A c. whereas the new development policy framework presented in the Agenda for Change aims for policy coherence not only within the Union but also with regards to the Union and its Member States by advocating joint-programming and emphasising the role of the EU as coordinator, convener and policy maker;
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A d (new) A d. whereas the financial contributions paid by the EU within the framework of the Fisheries Partnership Agreements (FPAs) have not helped to consolidate partner countries' fisheries policies and the slow payment and underuse of the assistance provided;
Amendment 10 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A e (new) A e. whereas a post-2015 international framework for development cooperation has the potential to play a catalytic role in addressing important development and other global challenges and could help to fulfil individuals' rights and needs;
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A f (new) A f. whereas, despite the improvements, direct or indirect EU subsidies for European agricultural products continue to have a negative effect on food security and the development of a viable agricultural sector in developing countries;
Amendment 12 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A g (new) A g. whereas the EU is committed to reaching the UN target of 0.7% of gross national income (GNI) in official development assistance (ODA) by 2015;
Amendment 13 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A h (new) A h. whereas the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued a judgement in November 2008 whereby the European Investment Bank (EIB) operations in developing countries must prioritise development over any economic or political objective;
Amendment 14 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A i (new) A i. whereas a large number of studies have shown that there are between US $850 billion and US $1 trillion per year of illicit financial flows out of developing countries, which severely hinders the fiscal revenue of developing countries and consequently their self-development capacities;
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A j (new) A j. whereas the Agenda for Change (COM (2011) 637) in its aim to increase the impact of EU development assistance reiterates that the objectives of development, democracy, human rights, good governance and security are intertwined;
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A k (new) A k. whereas public procurement accounts for 19% of world GDP, or almost 40 times the amount provided by the EU and the Member States in ODA; whereas, as such, it has huge potential to be a tool of implementing sustainable government policies both in the EU and in its ODA recipient countries;
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A l (new) A l. whereas malnutrition kills an estimated 2.6 million children each year and, if unchecked, will put almost half a billion children at risk of permanent damage in the next 15 years; whereas about one-third of the pre-school age children in the world currently suffer from underweight (too little weight for their age) or stunting (too short for their age); whereas malnutrition costs countries between 2-4 % of their GDP, and an individual up to 11% of its lifetime earnings, while, at the same time, tested, cost-effective interventions in nutrition exist and would represent a sound investment;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A m (new) A m. whereas, by 2030, the demand for energy and water is expected to rise by 40% and by 50% for food and whereas population growth, together with a rising middle class in emerging and developing nations, will put huge pressure on natural resources - especially water, energy and land - and on the environment;
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A n (new) A n. whereas the concepts of human development and human security share four fundamental perspectives: they are people-centred, they are multi- dimensional, they have broad views on human fulfilment in the long-term and they address chronic poverty1; __________________ 1 Sen, Amartya: Why Human Security? Text presented at the "International Symposium on Human Security" in Tokyo, 28 July, 2000.
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A o (new) A o. whereas the external dimension of the two new DG Home Affairs funds and the Migration and Asylum component of the new Global Public Goods and Challenges Thematic Programme of the DCI cover, as anticipated in the declared priorities, similar thematic areas although from different perspectives;
Amendment 21 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A p (new) A p. whereas health aid appears to exemplify many of the challenges for aid effectiveness, including: the complexity of the aid architecture, common lack of alignment with country priorities, dominance of donor preferences and the presence of actors that tend to work outside the aid effectiveness framework;
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A q (new) A q. whereas clinical trials that are no longer accepted by Western European ethics committees are approved by the local ethics committees in countries such as India, China, Argentina and Russia; whereas, in particular, the ethical principles which are of utmost importance for developing countries, as reflected in the Declaration of Helsinki, are ignored by companies and regulatory authorities2; __________________ 2 Clinical trials in developing countries: how to protect people against unethical practices? European Parliament, Directorate-General for External Policies of the Union, Study.
Amendment 23 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A r (new) A r. whereas culture is, in all its dimensions, a fundamental component of sustainable development because it is, through tangible and intangible heritage, creative industries and various forms of artistic expressions, a powerful contributor to economic development, social stability and environmental protection;
Amendment 24 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A t (new) A t. whereas studies show that if women are educated and can earn and control income, a number of good results follow: maternal and infant mortality declines, women and child health and nutrition improve, agricultural productivity rises, climate change can be mitigated, population growth slows, economies expand and cycles of poverty are broken3, __________________ 3 Isobel Coleman: The Global Glass Ceiling Why Empowering Women Is Good for Business, in: Foreign Affairs, Vol 89, May/June 2010, p 13-20; UNFPA: State of World Population 2009, Facing a changing world: women, population and climate
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A u (new) A u. whereas information and communication technologies (ICT) have the potential to help mitigating climate change not only by reducing their own share of greenhouse gas emissions but also by using them to reduce emissions in other sectors and to address systemic change and rebound effects, e.g. by dematerialisation and online delivery, transport and travel substitution, monitoring and management applications, greater energy efficiency in production and use and product stewardship and recycling;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A v (new) A v. whereas the 2007 DAC Peer Review of European Communities noted that 'good understanding of the appropriateness of budget support in the local context is important';
Amendment 27 #
Motion for a resolution Recital A v (new) A v. whereas education can play a pivotal role not only in environmental sustainability, health and economic growth and the achievement of the MDGs in general but also in peace-building; whereas, perhaps more than any other sector, education can provide the highly visible early peace dividends on which the survival of peace agreements may depend if education systems are inclusive and geared towards fostering attitudes conducive to mutual understanding, tolerance and respect, thereby making societies less susceptible to violent conflict;
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 1 1. Welcomes the EU's efforts towards PCD; underlines that PCD is not only a legal obligation, but that designing accountable, transparent, human-rights- based, and inclusive policies is a chance for the EU to establish equal and sustainable partnerships with developing countries that go beyond development cooperation; also stresses that PCD- aligned policies give governments and societies of developing countries the chance and the responsibility to generate successes on their own;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 1 a (new) 1 a. Considers that all EU policy areas having an external impact must be designed to support developing countries' sustainable needs in order to fight poverty, guarantee decent income and livelihood as well as the fulfilment of basic human rights, including social, economic and environmental rights;
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 1 b (new) 1 b. Believes that Policy Coherence for Development must be based on the recognition of the right of a country or a region to democratically define its own policies, priorities and strategies to protect their populations' livelihoods in line with the UN International covenant on Economic, social and Cultural rights;
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 1 c (new) 1 c. Invites the European Ombudsman and the Commission to work together in order to ensure the availability of an effective complaints mechanism against incoherencies in the EU's development policy using the UNDP Human Development criteria as a standard against which concrete measures and actions can be evaluated;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 2 2. Stresses that PCD is not merely a technical issue, but primarily a political responsibility and that the European Parliament, as co-legislator and as a democratically elected institution, has a key responsibility for translating the commitments into concrete policies and insists that the upcoming initiative on corporate social responsibility reflects the obligations towards PCD and moves towards binding CSR standards;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 a (new) 3 a. Recalls that any new political orientation in the context of the 11th EDF emanating from the Agenda for Change must be compatible with the spirit and the letter of the Cotonou Agreement;
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 a (new) 3 a. Stresses that transparency in all areas is instrumental in achieving PCD as it can not only prevent unintended incoherence but is also effective where there are clashes of interest;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 a (new) 3 a. Calls on the Member States and their national parliaments to promote PCD through a specific working programme with binding timetables, in order to improve the European PCD work programme; calls for the introduction of structured annual meetings between representatives of national parliaments of EU Member States and the European Parliament to ensure consistency in the spending of development aid;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 b (new) 3 b. Points to the importance of knowledge building and expertise with regard to the complex issue of PCD; therefore asks the Commission to ensure that provisions are made to focus some DG Research programmes on issues relevant to PCD; also recommends the elaboration and promotion of a strategy on development research in order to engage with DG Research and other research DGs, as well as other relevant bodies external to the Commission, e.g. the OECD or the World Bank;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 c (new) 3 c. Insists that the questions regarding the economic, environmental and social impacts of policies inside and outside of the EU laid down in the Impact Assessments Guidelines from 2009 are answered in the Commission's Impact Assessments as well as in the Impact Assessments to be made by the European Parliament; also asks the Commission to complete the Impact Assessments in advance of the corresponding policy proposal in order to ensure that CSOs and other relevant stakeholders can participate in the process thereby also creating an added value in terms of capacity;
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 d (new) 3 d. Underlines that the Impact Assessment Board of the Commission and a similar institution to be set up by the Parliament need adequate expertise in development policies in order to live up to their responsibility to verify the quality of Impacts Assessments in terms of PCD;
Amendment 39 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 e (new) 3 e. Suggests that a reference to PCD be included in reviews and ex-post evaluations of EU policies if adequate; takes the view that any evaluation exercise of programmes carried out under the EDF or DCI should include an assessment of its consequences for PCD;
Amendment 40 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 f (new) 3 f. Welcomes the inclusion of specific PCD commitments in the Danish Presidency's work programme and asks the next Presidencies to follow up on that example;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 g (new) 3 g. Welcomes the Commission's third biennial report on PCD 2011, but agrees with the Council on the need to include an independent assessment of progress, including qualitative and quantitative consequences and costs of policy incoherence in future reports; suggests that future reports should also include a comprehensive overview of PCD-related results of the country-level dialogues, in order to make the voices of citizens of developing countries heard;
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 3 h (new) 3 h. Calls on the Member States and their national parliaments to promote PCD through a specific working programme with binding timetables, in order to improve the European PCD work programme;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 4 4. Agrees with the Commission that in the preparation of the next rolling PCD Work Programme, a wider discussion with the European External Action Service (EEAS) and Member States and all relevant stakeholders, for example NGOs and CSOs, is needed; agrees that fewer indicators, together with more precise and better monitoring, can lead to a more operational framework and easier monitoring;
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 5 5. Asks the High Representative
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 6 6. Suggests
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 7 a (new) 7 a. Recalls the paramount importance of Article 12 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement and the obligation for the Commission to regularly inform the Secretariat of the ACP Group of planned proposals which might affect the interests of the ACP States; further calls on the Commission to inform the European Parliament when such procedures are undertaken;
Amendment 47 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 7 a (new) 7 a. Welcomes the Commission's proposal to deepen the cooperation with the European Parliament and national parliaments on Policy Coherence for Development by engaging in more exchanges with them on the subject and by accompanying them in acquiring specific analytical capacity to contribute to promoting PCD in the EU; proposes that these exchanges between national parliaments, the European Parliament and the Commission should come in the form of structured annual meetings which include clear objectives along with task monitoring activities with the goal of strengthening PCD in the EU;
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 7 a (new) 7 a. Considers that public procurement should be effectively used to achieve the overall EU objectives of sustainable development and therefore that the future public procurement Directives should enable sustainability criteria to be integrated throughout the procurement process;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 8 a (new) 8 a. Welcomes that the Commission's Communication on "Trade, Growth and Development: Tailoring Trade and Investment Policy for Those Countries Most in Need" commits to support small producers and fair, organic and ethical trade initiatives but regrets the lack of commitment to mainstream Fair Trade principles across EU policies;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 9 9. Regrets that GDP per capita is made the sole eligibility criterion for the GSP scheme, as this could run counter to the EU's development objectives; recalls its resolution of 8 June 2011 on "GDP and beyond - Measuring progress in a changing world"1, which makes reference to Human Development Index; __________________ 1 P7_TA(2011)0264
Amendment 51 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 10. Recalls the inconsistencies produced in the context of European Partnership Agreements, namely: (a) that some countries are urged to sign an agreement before its exact terms are agreed, (b) that the introduction by the Commission of the so called "Singapore issues" (foreign investment, competition policy, government procurement and trade facilitation) as an area of discussions went far beyond the obligations vis-à-vis the WTO and has seriously hindered the negotiations process, (c) that developing countries are denied the policy space to protect infant industries by means of import/export restrictions, (
Amendment 52 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 10. Recalls the inconsistencies produced in the context of European Partnership Agreements, namely: (a) that some countries are urged to sign an agreement before its exact terms are
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 a (new) 10 a. Recalls the importance of ensuring that investment treaties include clauses on transparency and the fight against illicit capital flows and provisions that emphasize the host government's right to regulate on sensitive policy areas such as the environment and decent work;
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 a (new) 10 a. Takes the view that the OECD guidelines for multi-national enterprises should become binding standards in EU investment treaties for business and industry and that such treaties should ensure full reporting on environmental and social issues by the companies; also points out that such treaties should improve the rights and duties of governments to regulate economic activities and actors in the broader public interest and longer-term interest of future generations;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 b (new) 10 b. Deplores that the share of EU Aid for Trade (Aft) to LDCs declined to 16% in 2010 (EUR 1.7 billion against EUR 8.7 billion to non-LDCs), compared to 22% in 20091; calls on the Commission to inform the European Parliament about the annual and/or multi annual share of the EDF funds spend as AfT; __________________ 1 UE accountability report 2012 on Financing for Development of 9 July 2012
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 b (new) 10 b. Proposes that the Commission create new momentum for Sustainable Public Procurement at the international level and that the resulting framework of the revision of the public procurement Directives should give contracting authorities the policy space to make informed pro-development procurement choices;
Amendment 57 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 c (new) 10 c. Calls on the Commission to actively promote within the WTO the suggestion of some donors to narrow the scope of the Aid for Trade Initiative in order to make it more monitorable, efficient and focused on key elements of the trade and development nexus, in order to make it more effective and thus address suspicion and secure donors' financing;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 c (new) 10 c. Draws attention to the publication of a revised IPR Strategy vis-à-vis third countries which should, from a development point of view, ensure adequate access to medicines and provide effective incentives for pharmaceutical research by making use of TRIPs flexibilities in appropriate cases, such as health emergencies, and by making it compatible with the parallel agenda for "affordable access to medicine"; also stresses that the link to the food security agenda is very important in this context, e.g. to ensure the protection of plant varieties and acknowledge the importance of diverse agricultural systems and traditional seed supply systems;
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 d (new) 10 d. Acknowledges that the monitoring and evaluation framework of the Aid for Trade Initiative, both at European and global level, has reached its limits and cannot be meaningfully expanded; therefore calls on the Commission and Member States to support of creating an independent body able to undertake AfT impact evaluation, that may be hosted at the World Bank, which is developing expertise in this area;
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 d (new) 10 d. Proposes the implementation of preferential trade rules that enhance green agricultural technology transfers in the WTO and in bilateral trade agreements with developing countries;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 e (new) 10 e. Welcomes the creation of a focal point on fair trade within the sustainable development team in Directorate-General for Trade in 2010 to coordinate fair trade- related activities which are an important example of how EU trade and development policy can be made more coherent and mutually supportive;
Amendment 62 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 e (new) 10 e. Points out that fair trade between the EU and developing countries entails paying a fair price for the resources and agricultural products of the developing countries, i.e. a price which reflects the internal and external costs, while guaranteeing ILO's core labour standards for working conditions as well as international standards on environmental protection;
Amendment 63 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 f (new) 10 f. Reiterates its call to effectively address the problem of conflict minerals and other resources related to conflict in developing countries that have resulted in the death and displacement of millions of people;
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 f (new) 10 f. Is of the view that current bilateral Free Trade negotiations and agreements with developing countries contain commitments which circumscribe the right of these countries to choose their own development strategies, including regulatory reforms to develop their agriculture and industry without being exposed to unfair competition; believes that developing countries should protect their economy and proceed to selective market openings, as was the case in Europe;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 g (new) 10 g. Asks the Commission to further integrate internationally agreed labour and environmental standards into instruments like the EPAs and FTAs;
Amendment 66 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 g (new) 10 g. Believes that the OECD guidelines for multi-national enterprises should become binding standards in EU investment treaties for business and industry; investment treaties should ensure full reporting on environmental and social issues by companies; investment agreements should improve the rights and duties of governments to regulate economic activities and actors in the broader public interest and longer- term interest of future generations;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 10 h (new) 10 h. Deplores the fact that the mode and the procedure of negotiation for the Anti- Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) particularly penalized developing countries as they did not have the opportunity to give equal input to the agreement text they are supposed to adhere to;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 11 11. Welcomes the fact that the relevance of smallholder farming for combating hunger is recognised by the EU and that adaptation measures are priorities in the food security agenda; underlines that support for women smallholder farmers is especially relevant;
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 12. Reiterates that development concerns should be built into the entire process of decision making on the EU's agricultural policy and calls for the establishment of flanking measures similar to the sugar- protocol accompanying measures (SPAM), if necessary;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 a (new) 12 a. Repeats its call for regular and independent assessments and evaluations of the EU's agricultural and trade policies, paying special attention to impacts on local and smallholder producers and building on evidence submitted by governments, farmers' organisations, civil society organisations and other stakeholders in developing countries which are EU trading partners;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 a (new) 12 a. Solicits attention to emphasise the overall framework of good governance and respect for human rights and its catalytic role for development in partner countries in all policy dialogues, irrespective of the five core issues identified for PCD assessment purposes;
Amendment 72 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 b (new) 12 b. Proposes to complement the concept of 'aid effectiveness' with the concept of 'development effectiveness' as the latter is more suitable to measure PCD and more convenient for deepening the dialogue with BRICS countries in the field of development policy;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 c (new) 12 c. Draws attention to the cross-cutting nature of good governance programmes in developing countries and encourages further efforts in this regard by the Commission; also draws attention to the need for better global governance in the current period of multiple crises which is instrumental in order to achieve global development; regrets the limited progress made at the UN's Rio+20 conference in this regard;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 d (new) 12 d. Supports the Commission's proposal to create a comprehensive overview of the costs of policies that are not aligned with PCD and of the benefits, or win-win situations created by PCD-aligned policies that can be used for further awareness- raising and training and as a basis for discussion with the European citizens and other affected stakeholders in order to overcome misconceptions which are still prevalent as regards the costs and benefits of PCD; such an analysis would be especially helpful in the fields of migration, where the EU should stress the linkages between migration and development policies and provide constant information to its people on the benefits of these linkages, and sustainable energy;
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 e (new) 12 e. Calls on the Commission and the Council to develop a long-term, cross- sectoral European strategy for development education, awareness-raising and active global citizenship;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 12 f (new) 12 f. Calls on the Member States to develop or strengthen national development education strategies;
Amendment 77 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 13. Urges the EU to strengthen EU-ACP supply chains and to support the strengthening of supply chains within the ACP countries themselves as both markets have developed in mutual dependence; suggests fostering the use of modern market management instruments in developing countries, such as transparency provisions, capacity building, technical regulations, or support with regard to contract negotiation, e.g. in the context of the Joint EU-Africa Strategy;
Amendment 78 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 a (new) 13 a. Repeats its call for regular and independent assessments and evaluations of the EU's agricultural and trade policies, paying special attention to impacts on local and smallholder producers and building on evidence submitted by governments, farmers' organisations, civil society organisations and other stakeholders in developing countries which are EU trading partners;
Amendment 79 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 b (new) 13 b. Proposes to set up transnational twinning partnership between Natura 2000 areas and similar agricultural ecological management areas in developing countries with the aim of a) exchanging know-how on management of such areas by local authorities, local leaders and local farming communities to ensure that future management is sustainable, both ecologically and economically, and practicable, b) building capacity through twinning of the economic viability of business chains in these areas to contribute to sustainable food security in these areas, c) implementing research to assist in the protection of agricultural diversity and biodiversity to assure the long-term survival of valuable and threatened species and habitat; also proposes the establishment of a transnational twinning centre for learning and development of know-how between Natura 2000 areas and similar areas in third countries;
Amendment 80 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 c (new) 13 c. Points out that delayed or opaque information on changes in standards applied to agricultural products by the EU create new barriers for developing countries; stresses that timely information on such changes or the application of alternative equivalent standards to imports is essential for developing countries in order to facilitate long-term planning and competitiveness on the basis of quality;
Amendment 81 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 d (new) 13 d. Points out that the ongoing initiative on Markets for Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) can make a valuable contribution to the fulfilment of the overarching objectives of the Union's development cooperation by including strict position limits, a strict limitation on exemptions from MiFID, and by strengthening the powers for regulators to intervene in specific products or activities;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 e (new) 13 e. Calls on the Commission to develop an integrated approach to nutrition and to set up a dedicated trust fund to address the problem of malnutrition in developing countries and to mobilize the necessary resources to deliver the basic interventions that could prevent the vast majority of malnutrition, especially in the critical 1,000-day window between conception and age 2, which include encouraging optimum feeding and caring practices such as breastfeeding to avoid contaminated water, proper introduction of varied foods for infants, fortification of basic staples and vitamin supplementation; believes that such a trust fund would enable the leveraging and pooling of resources from Commission and Member States, and possibly other donors, and would enable better visibility of EU action in saving lives;
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 13 f (new) 13 f. Deplores the fact that only approximately 418 million or around 3.4% of the total Commission development aid budget of EUR 12 billion per year is currently allocated to direct nutrition intervention; believes that efforts to tackle malnutrition must be multi-disciplinary and engage multiple stakeholders in line with national priorities of affected countries;
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 14. Considers that the size of the EU market for fish and the geographical range of activities by EU-flagged and EU-owned vessels impose a high level of responsibility on the Union for ensuring that
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 a (new) 14 a. Stresses the need for FPA payments to third countries to be compatible with development objectives;
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 a (new) 14 a. Reiterates that, in order to improve PCD, the negotiations of fisheries agreements (FPA) must be based on the contracting country's priorities for the suitable development of its fishing sector and its country as a whole and that the impacts of FPAs should be closely monitored by the EU;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 b (new) 14 b. Recalls that EU-access to fish stocks in third countries should not in any way be a condition for development assistance to countries that are eligible to EU development aid;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 b (new) 14 b. Takes the view that policy coherence for development should be reinforced (a) by making DG-MARE and DG- Development jointly responsible for FPAs, (b) by applying relevant principles outlined in the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fishing, EU commitments towards Policy Coherence for Development, and the EU-ACP Cotonou Agreement, (c) by incorporating human rights, anti-corruption and accountability obligations in all FPAs and (d) by ensuring that FPAs are consistent with or contribute to the poverty reduction and human development objectives identified in the EU's Country and Regional Strategy Papers;
Amendment 89 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 c (new) 14 c. Stresses that any access to fisheries resources in third countries' waters must respect not only Article 62 of UNCLOS regarding surplus stocks but also Articles 69 and 70 on the rights of land-locked and geographically disadvantaged States within the region, taking into account the nutritional and socioeconomic needs of local populations;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 c (new) 14 c. Proposes that, in line with the 2006 UN General Assembly resolution on Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs), the Commission should be given an unequivocal negotiating mandate for all RFMOs for promoting marine conservation and sustainable fisheries;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 14 d (new) 14 d. Considers that any system of attributing fishing opportunities to countries within Regional Fisheries Managements Organisations (RFMOs) must include the legitimate rights and aspirations of developing States to develop their own fisheries; insists that the EU oppose the introduction of Transferable Fishing Concessions schemes in RFMOs, since they would jeopardise the livelihood and well being of dependent communities of developing countries;
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 15 a (new) 15 a. Stresses that an investment in education for sustainable development, including combating climate change, is an area where development aid can achieve multiple objectives at once, especially when women are targeted;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 15 a (new) 15 a. Believes that the challenges posed by climate change must be addressed through structural reforms and calls for a systematic climate change risk assessment into all aspects of EU's policy planning and decision making including trade, agriculture, food security, etc., and demands that the result of this assessment be used to formulate clear and coherent country and regional strategy papers, as well as development programmes and projects;
Amendment 94 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 15 b (new) 15 b. Calls for specific attention to be devoted to the special needs of smallholder agriculture and livestock farmers facing the consequences of climate change in any policy and agreements entailing possible reduction of, or constraints in the access to, resources for food production, such as land, water, mobility, among others;
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 15 c (new) 15 c. Repeats its call on the Commission and the Member States to collect country- specific and gender-disaggregated data when planning, implementing and evaluating climate change policies, programmes and projects, in order effectively to assess and address the differing effects of climate change on each gender and to produce a guide on adapting to climate change, outlining policies that can protect women and empower them to cope with the effects of climate change;
Amendment 96 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 15 d (new) 15 d. Regrets that the Outcome Document of the UN Rio+20 conference lacks the commitment on resource conservation, climate change adaptation and mitigation, and economic sustainability that the EU had called for; nevertheless, urges the EU to remain closely involved in defining the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and making them operational by 2015;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 16 16. Welcomes the
Amendment 98 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 16 a (new) 16 a. Suggests that the EU should work closely with the private sector and particularly European companies and investors that operate in developing countries to promote investment, innovative approaches and high standards of corporate practice in the inclusive and sustainable use of water, energy and land; also suggests that the emphasis on sustainable energy and agriculture in the 'Agenda for Change' should be complemented with interventions in the area of water;
Amendment 99 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 17 17. Calls on the European Commission to
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 17 a (new) 17 a. Underlines the importance of guaranteeing that imported bioenergy is produced on the basis of acceptable working environments and employment standards and respecting local communities;
Amendment 101 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 17 b (new) 17 b. Encourages the further development of second and third generation bioenergy from biomass by-products, wastes and residues;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 18. Asks the Commission to reconsider the 10% target in the Renewable Energies Directive for biofuels from renewable sources by 2020, unless strict sustainability criteria are applied;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 a (new) 18 a. Proposes that the issue of PCD be included in any programme on education in sustainable development;
Amendment 104 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 b (new) 18 b. Reiterates that, in the interest of transparency and accountability, the EEAS and DEVCO should monitor how the division of responsibilities agreed between the Commission and the EEAS works in practice and improve it in ways that avoid overlaps and ensure synergies;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 c (new) 18 c. Refers to the fact that the EEAS has put forward the concept of "EU Actorness" in order to increase the visibility of EU actions; takes the view that this makes PCD even more important, as every negative impact will be associated even more closely with the EU; also urges the Commission to make sure that this concept does not contradict other objectives of development policy as formulated by the EU, especially the objectives of ownership and policy space for developing countries;
Amendment 106 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 d (new) 18 d. Suggests that, in line with the Cotonou Agreement and the reference document on 'Engaging Non-State Actors in New Aid Modalities'4, the EU delegations should undertake a comprehensive mapping of NGOs, CSOs and local authorities relevant for their work in the respective country, especially of local and community-based organizations; __________________ 4 Tools and Methods Series / Reference document no 12: Engaging Non-State Actors in New Aid Modalities for Better Development Outcomes and Governance.
Amendment 107 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 e (new) 18 e. Reiterates that the creation of a Standing Rapporteur for PCD from the ACP countries in the context of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly would facilitate the coordination with and work of the EP's Standing Rapporteur on PCD and the relevant department of the Commission and Council and would help to eliminate obstacles to PCD within developing countries themselves;
Amendment 108 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 f (new) 18 f. Recalls that, in its June 2011 Communication on the Multi-Annual Financial Framework, the Commission had proposed extending the powers of scrutiny of the EDF to the EP; regrets that this proposal does not feature in the legislative proposal for the 11th EDF;
Amendment 109 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 g (new) 18 g. Underlines that a post-2015 international framework for development cooperation should go beyond a traditional interpretation of development cooperation to provide a more comprehensive approach to poverty eradication and sustainable development, leveraging policy coherence for development as an important mechanism and promoting rights-based approaches; points out that such a framework should go beyond the current concept of public action and aid and should involve all countries (developed, developing, emerging) and all actors (traditional and new donors, developing and developed country governments and local authorities, the private sector, NGOs, social partners, etc.) in a coherent and inclusive process;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 h (new) 18 h. Urges the Members States to allocate a significant share of the auctioning revenues from the European Emissions Trading System (ETS) to climate change-related activities in developing countries from 2013 onwards;
Amendment 111 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 18 i (new) 18 i. Considers that the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is not sufficiently adapted to communities and rural organizations in developing countries as the thresholds posed by its methodologies and costs are too high;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 a (new) 20 a. Draws attention to the EU's pledges for democracy and human rights and conditions such as those enshrined in the "more for more" approach concerning the EU's immediate Neighbourhood policy; stresses that heir relevance can only be assured when no other policy area or interactions with partner countries counteract initiatives undertaken to strengthen human rights, human security and democracy in partner countries;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 b (new) 20 b. Recalls the fact that arms exports are an inter-governmental issue, while development is, in part, a Community competence; suggests that the division of responsibilities between Commission and Council be clearly defined in this regard;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 d (new) 20 d. Concludes that deciding whether to approve arms exports to developing countries in relation to the "sustainable development" criterion, i.e. Criterion 8 of the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, can be difficult, given that other policy considerations can override its application; recommends that Member States provide a full statement of the methodology used in relation to this Criterion;
Amendment 115 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 e (new) 20 e. Acknowledges the interdependence of development, democracy, human rights, good governance and security, which any discussion on PCD has to take into account;
Amendment 116 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 20 f (new) 20 f. Reiterates that it is inconsistent with development objectives when security initiatives are merely about a State's safety, safeguarding EU investments and access to raw materials rather than the protection of people; takes the view that the concepts of human security and development should therefore be considered as essential in the security- development nexus, as they are centred on the individual;
Amendment 117 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 21 21. Points out that coordination among peace-building, humanitarian aid and development activities in post-conflict situations should be improved in accordance with the
Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 22 22. Emphasises that with the Council Working Group on Conventional Arms Exports being the main committee responsible for the EU's Code of Conduct on Arms Exports it is imperative that development objectives are taken into account in this forum; further calls on the Council to make the European Code of Conduct on Arms Exports legally binding;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 23 23. Stresses that
Amendment 120 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 23 a (new) 23 a. Underlines that it has to be guaranteed that Mobility Partnerships are consistent with the international Human Rights legal framework; asks the EU to eliminate conditionality in development aid relating to migration reduction, in both bilateral and multilateral negotiations by the EU and its Member States;
Amendment 121 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 23 b (new) 23 b. Calls on the EU to strengthen the partnership principle in the future Asylum and Migration Fund by making it mandatory for relevant state authorities and bodies to include CSOs and migrant organisations in the preparation, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the multi-annual programmes;
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 23 c (new) 23 c. Insists that the external dimension strand in the Asylum and Migration Fund is fully coherent with the external aid instruments and EU development objectives; proposes that safeguards be put in place to prevent Member States from using this strand of funding merely to curb migration from developing countries;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 23 d (new) 23 d. Supports a migrant-centred and human rights based approach to EU migration policy with the view to enable the EU Member States and partner countries to respect, protect and fulfil the human rights of all migrants and enable migrants to claim their rights throughout the migration journey; emphasizes that human rights-based and migrant-centred approaches will help to properly analyse the root causes of forced migration notably conflicts, climate change, unemployment and poverty and ensure that the EU offers adequate responses to these, in line with PCD;
Amendment 124 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 25 a (new) 25 a. Calls on the Commission and the ACP countries, in the ongoing revision of the ACP-EU Agreement, to include in Article 13 the principles of circular migration and its facilitation by granting circular visas; stresses that the article in question emphasises respect for human rights and equitable treatment of nationals of ACP countries but that the scope of these principles is seriously compromised by bilateral readmission agreements with transit countries in a context of externalisation by Europe of the management of migration, which do not guarantee respect for the rights of migrants and which may result in 'cascade' readmissions which jeopardise their safety and their lives;
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 25 a (new) 25 a. Stresses the need to support specific health initiatives, especially at local and regional level, to strength public health systems and help countries develop and implement sound, evidence-based national health policies in priority areas (e.g., public health care systems for women, in particular primary, maternal, gynaecological and obstetric health care as defined by the World Health Organisation, access to family planning including fertility awareness-based methods) whilst ensuring that its funding of specific initiatives does not breach the remarks set out in Section III, Title 21 of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2012;
Amendment 126 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 25 b (new) 25 b. The EU reaffirms the importance of co-financing of non governmental organisations as facilitating principle that motivates grant beneficiaries to higher accountability and contribution to development effectiveness and improves cooperation of all stakeholders recommended by the Istanbul principles1; therefore, and in respect to the non- governmental character of applicants, the rate of overall EU assistance for operating costs provided to each funded private or public body, authority or programme shall not exceed 50 % of the applicant's overall annual budget of the grant year; __________________ 1 Istanbul Principles, as agreed at the Open Forum’s Global Assembly in Istanbul, September 28 -30, 2010
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 i (new) 26 i. Asks the Commission to consider scaling up its support for culture-related programmes or cooperation projects with partners from developing countries due to their cross-cutting nature regarding the EU's development objectives;
Amendment 129 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 j (new) 26 j. Highlights that planning for the provision of basic services, such as primary education, needs to focus more forcefully on those specific characteristics of particularly marginalized groups which make provision more difficult and limit the ability of the groups to take advantage of what is available;
Amendment 130 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 k (new) 26 k. Underlines the urgent need to change the humanitarian mindset and recognize the vital role of education, especially of education during conflict- related emergencies and in the aftermath of conflicts; regrets that education is still one of the most underfunded areas of humanitarian aid;
Amendment 131 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 l (new) 26 l. Asks the Commission to consider the cross-cutting nature of ICTs in development policies, especially the positive influence they can have on the education system, and stresses that intellectual property rights, technology transfer and local capacity-building require particular attention in that context;
Amendment 132 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 m (new) 26 m. Points out that true banking transactions (m-banking) should be distinguished from basic money transfers (m-payments) and that the need to regulate international money transactions (e.g. to prevent money laundering or terrorism financing) by promoting the use of mobiles for affordable access to money for the poor must be reconciled; suggests that collecting existing best practices would be a useful way to share knowledge and address those challenges;
Amendment 133 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 n (new) 26 n. Regrets that budget support arrangements are still characterized by a lack of citizen and parliamentarian oversight of agreements, their implementation, and their monitoring;
Amendment 134 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 o (new) 26 o. Reiterates that, while budget support should be in line with promoting democratic governance, strengthening developing countries' own economic resources, fight against corruption and accountability of public spending, it should essentially focus on poverty reduction;
Amendment 135 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 a (new) 26 a. Reiterates that the EU's efforts to secure access to raw materials from developing countries must not undermine local development and poverty eradication but support developing countries in translating their mineral wealth into real development; also stresses that the EU should support good governance, value addition processes and financial transparency of governments and commercial undertakings so that local mining sectors can act as a catalyst for development;
Amendment 136 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 b (new) 26 b. Stresses that financial transparency is essential for supporting revenue mobilisation and combating tax evasion; insists that the current reform of the EU Accounting and Transparency Directives should include a requirement for listed and large private extractive and timber companies to disclose payments they make to governments on a project-by-project basis and with reporting thresholds that reflect the materiality of payments from the perspective of poor communities;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 c (new) 26 c. Welcomes the eight areas of action for the years 2011-2014 chosen by the Commission in its proposal for a new policy on corporate social responsibility; underlines the importance of binding corporate social responsibility obligations and of encouraging employers to apply social standards which are more ambitious than current statutory provisions, including the possibility to develop and obtain a designation such as a social label; calls on the Commission to support the Member States in carefully monitoring the implementation, and ensuring the legal enforcement, of these obligations;
Amendment 138 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 d (new) 26 d. Takes the view that, while there is a limit to what donor aid can achieve in terms of strengthening domestic accountability, some forms of aid can make a difference, from 'doing no harm' to actually strengthening existing domestic accountability systems, e.g. by involving local CSOs and parliaments of developing countries in the context of sector wide approaches (SWAp);
Amendment 139 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 e (new) 26 e. Regrets that global health funding and interventions are skewed toward high-visibility events, such as the Asian tsunami, as well as toward a few high- profile infectious diseases (such as HIV/AIDS) while non-communicable diseases account for 63% of all deaths worldwide and injuries account for 17% of the global burden of morbidity and while women and children die because of the failure to deliver basic care during pregnancy, childbirth and infancy;
Amendment 140 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 f (new) 26 f. Stresses that in line with its responsibility to protect the rights of clinical trials subjects in developing countries and to protect the health of EU citizens, the European Parliament can use its right to initiate investigations; also proposes the monitoring of the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) on certain issues, e.g. checking what actions the EMEA undertakes to clarify the practical application of ethical standards to clinical trials and making sure EMEA is putting efforts into harmonising the application of ethical standards by the responsible authorities;
Amendment 141 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 g (new) 26 g. Asks the Commission to support local civil society groups, particularly women's groups and those that have a agenda sensitive to women, through accessible funding and capacity-building in order for them to be able to fulfil their role as effective development actors and custodians of peace and good government, especially in the context of situations of fragility;
Amendment 142 #
Motion for a resolution Paragraph 26 h (new) 26 h. Welcomes the EU plan of Action on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in Development and encourages monitoring and implementation of gender mainstreaming in EU funded projects at country level; calls on the EU High Representative to take all necessary measures in order to provide adequate and effective training to EU delegation staff members regarding a gender-sensitive approach to peace keeping, conflict-prevention and peace- building;
source: PE-494.579
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