The Spanish Presidency of the EU believes it necessary to conduct a thorough examination with a view to the upcoming United Nations summit on the Millennium Development Goals on 10 September.

The current economic and financial crisis is affecting the living conditions of many people around the world: it has disproportionally affected developing countries, threatening the social advances of recent years and further delaying the success of the Millennium Goals. It has also affected, in more direct way, developed countries, by limiting tax margins that could be used to support increased international aid.

The crisis has also led to a full review of the entire system of development co-operation, when the international community is seeking a more effective concerted action.

The Government of Spain has therefore set a goal for this international conference, to be held in Madrid on June 9th and 10th, to review:

• The potential role of development co-operation in times of crisis
• How to expand the mechanisms for financing development in the context of a new financial architecture
• The reform of the co-operation system and its governance
• How to make development aid more effective
• The best way forward towards achieving the Millenium Development Goals by 2015.
• The conference should adopt a series of recommendations to be submitted for debate at the European Council of 17 June, in order to forge a joint position for the EU at the United Nations summit.
• To rationalise the use of resources

Opening the conference, Spain’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, stressed the need to rationalise the use of resources. He said that in times of crisis ‘it is particularly difficult’ to accept the annual cost of the lack of efficiency in the European Union, which in the area of development cooperation stands at between 1.5 and 3 billion euros. Recently, the Commission adopted 12 points towards a more effective global aid.

The minister recalled that the crisis has left 84 million more people in poverty and last year, for the first time in the history of mankind, the number of people living with hunger rose to over 1 billion. It is remarkable that the EU is celebrating along 2010 the European Year against Poverty and Social Exclusion.

The EU remains the most generous global donor, providing over half of global aid. The conference should adopt a report of recommendation to be submitted to the European Council of June 17 in order to forge a common EU position on the United Nations summit.