As the world's largest donor in terms of development aid, the European Union has carried out an intensive work during 2011. According to the EuropeAid Annual Report 2012, the largest economic envelope during this period was devoted to projects in the field of social infrastructures, education, water, government and other development activities with civil society.

The EuropeAid Annual Report 2012 on the European Community's Development and External Assistance Policies and their Implementation gives an overview of the main actions carried out by the EU over 2011. The document stresses the fact that 2011 was a year highliy market by the need to give response to new challenges and to provide new solutions for existing ones.

One of the events which marked year 2011 was the series of people-led movements that took place in the Mediterranean neighbourhood and shaped the Arab Spring movement. After the first humanitarian aid and civil protection actions, the European Union launched the Support for Partnership Reform and Inclusive Growth Programme SPRING to strengthen its support in the southern Mediterranean.

Among other actions, the European Union also deployed actions in order to fight against hunger in the Horn of Africa by providing additional funding for Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia. Among the EuropeAid activities throughout the year, the report also addresses the important support provided to neighbouring countries in Eastern Europe which have become important partners and a magnet for new opportunities. In Latin America, the Madrid Summit held in May 2010 highlighted the strengthening of political relations with the area, a relationship which has also been reinforced with countries from the Caribbean. Further steps on the relation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have also been taken through programs such as the successful SWITCH Asia program that has financed a series of small projects throughout the area.

As regard to the development of future projects in development aid, the new Agenda for Change identifies two key blocks of aid that will take further action on some of the projects already in place during year 2011. These two blocks that will focus the projects funded by EuropeAid are first the defence of human rights, democracy and governance and, second, the promotion of inclusive and sustainable growth. The report also underlines the new Agenda approach towards aid deployed in some countries, especially those which are now donors themselves, which will receive less or no aid and will be offered alternative forms of cooperation.