The Financing and Adjustment of EU Development Cooperation: Implications for Poland

Development cooperation is one of the major external relations tools for the EU. The Union will remain among the top providers of aid in the world, with a budget for external assistance in the new financial perspective amounting almost €80 billion. As the global context of aid is changing, the EU will focus mostly on the eradication of poverty in its development policy, but will place more emphasis on protecting the environment and support for democracy. This converges broadly with Polish principles of foreign aid, and provides an opportunity for further expansion and strengthening of Poland’s development cooperation system.