The annual European Neighbourhood Policy reports demonstrate the clear benefits that the European Union has developed in areas like transport, energy, environment and climate change, research, health and education.

For five years, the European Union has been delivering more trade, more aid, more people-to-people contacts and far deeper co-operation between the EU and its neighbours on the whole range of their economic, political and sectoral reforms. This has been backed up with an increase in the current Financial Framework by 32% and will reach over EUR 2 billion annually in 2013.

The Neighbourhood Investment Facility (NIF) Trust Fund was opened by the European Investment Bank  in order to receive Member States bilateral contributions for the funding of infrastructure projects to the Union's East and South.

"The European Neighbourhood Policy is a success story with many examples of concrete achievements on the ground,” commented Catherine Ashton, Vice-President of the Commission and High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. "But there is a lot more we can and should do to make our part of the world more secure, more stable and more prosperous. In that way, European and Mediterranean countries need to help each other face the economic crisis.

Štefan Füle, Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, added: “Further strengthening the ENP is no less than an investment in the EU’s own stability and prosperity — and this must be reflected in our offer to our partners. The European Neighbourhood Policy aims at increasing common stability, prosperity and security.

On the basis of a joint Action Plan, the EU supports partner countries in implementing their reforms to improve their standards of democracy and human rights, to increase their access to the EU's single market, to improve the environment and to step up their co-operation with the EU on issues like climate change, energy, transport or migration.