OECD Development Co-operation Peer Reviews: European Union 2018

Annex A. Progress in implementing the 2012 DAC peer review recommendations

Strategic orientations

 

2012 recommendations	Progress in implementation
The EU institutions need to continue efforts to build a common EU strategic vision with member states, using the proposed Agenda for Change to meet their commitment to reduce poverty.	Fully Implemented
To influence the next financial framework so that it supports the EU’s strategic priorities, the Commission and EEAS should: 1. Finish or update strategies, action plans or guidance, especially those addressing security and transition, private sector development and mainstreaming the environment. 2. Strengthen efforts to communicate results to increase transparency and make the public more aware of what the development co-operation programme has achieved.	Partially implemented

Development beyond aid

 

2012 recommendations	Progress in implementation
To give PCD sufficient weight in EU decision making, the Council of the EU should forge political will and reinforce existing mechanisms.	Partially implemented
To get the most out of PCD mechanisms and strengthen the evidence needed to inform decision making, the Commission and EEAS should: 1. Strengthen knowledge management, making more use of internal and external capacity. 2. Develop and implement a strategy on development research which would include producing evidence on policy coherence for development. 3. Together with the Council and Parliament, improve awareness and training for officials to deal with policy coherence for development, at headquarters and in delegations.	Partially implemented

Aid volumes, channels and allocations

 

2012 recommendations	Progress in implementation
To confirm their strong role in development co-operation and to help meet the EU collective 0.7% ODA/GNI target, the EU institutions should: 1. Review and update the roadmap to meet the EU targets. 2. Analyse and share with member states the benefits to be expected from meeting the target levels of ODA.	Partially implemented
To support their strategic orientations, the EU institutions should: 1. Develop sound exit strategies in countries where they plan to phase out, taking into account division of labour and thinking further on how to engage on global public goods. 2. Be even more strategic in their engagement with multilateral organisations, building on synergies to have the greatest impact and being transparent about their engagement and streamlined in their financial and administrative arrangements.	Not implemented

Organisation and management

 

2012 recommendations	Progress in implementation
In order to maximise the opportunities and manage the risks associated with the recent organisational changes, the EU institutions should: 1. 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. This should accompany more streamlined processes. 2. Make knowledge management a corporate priority, invest further in staff expertise, offer career incentives for specialising and make more effective use of contract agents.	Partially implemented
Building on progress already made, the EU institutions can further simplify and modernise their development co-operation by: 1. Reducing the number of budget lines and continuing aligning rules for implementation of the Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI) and the EDF. 2. Further streamlining approval procedures, particularly for small-scale activities or annual action plans where multi-year plans have already been approved. 3. Involving delegations more closely in designing regional and thematic programmes to make aid flows more predictable and ensure they are able to build a coherent programme at country level.	Partially implemented
The European Commission should increase the focus on results and enhance wider learning.	Partially implemented

Aid effectiveness and results

 

2012 Recommendations	Progress in implementation
To realise their ambition to play a strong EU-wide role in promoting more effective development co-operation, the EU institutions should: 1. Focus on implementing the EU code of conduct; demonstrate to politicians and practitioners the benefits of moving towards joint programming; and work with member states to identify and address obstacles at headquarters and at country level. 2. Seek to bring harmony with and among member states’ approaches in challenging areas such as conditionality in budget support; measuring development results; and aligning programming cycles with partner countries’ cycles.	Partially implemented
To consolidate progress in making development co-operation more effective, the EU institutions should now: 1. Examine ways to make EU project approaches more effective, timely and flexible and to increase use of programmatic approaches; both approaches will continue to be needed given the range of contexts in which the EU operates. 2. Implement the strategy for reforming technical co-operation and review how EDF cells, which support National Authorising Officers, could be better integrated into national administrations and contribute more to broad state capacity development.	Fully implemented

Humanitarian assistance

 

Recommendations 2012	Progress in implementation
To implement the EU Consensus on Humanitarian Assistance, ECHO should help member states to share policy guidance and learning and to plan complementary responses and advocacy messages.	Fully implemented
To translate political will for building resilience and for improving support to recovery and transition environments into effective programming, ECHO, EuropeAid and EEAS should: 1. Develop joint planning and analytical frameworks for fragile contexts and disaster risk reduction and provide operational guidance for working across the Commission on these issues. 2. Increase the flexibility and timeliness of relevant financial instruments, and commit to providing appropriately skilled human resources to delegations and field offices in high disaster risk and recovery/transition environments.	Partially implemented
To reduce the compliance burden on partners and staff, ECHO should: 1. Reduce the barriers to strategic partnerships with the humanitarian community by speeding up partner project approvals, aligning audit and liquidation procedures, and only requiring NGO consortia in areas where they add clear value. 2. Consider a differentiated approach to monitoring compliance, matching monitoring to the risk profile of each grant. 3. Establish a rapid response mechanism for key partners.	Not implemented

Figure A.1. The European Union’s implementation of 2012 peer review recommendations