Poverty reduction and job creation in developing countries: the way forward European Parliament resolution of 21 September 2010 on poverty reduction and job creation in developing countries: the way forward (2009/2171(INI))
Date: 2010-09-21
Institutions: Committee on Development, Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, European Parliament
Subjects: developing countries, development aid, development policy, job creation, poverty








CE2012050EN.01003701.xml










21.2.2012   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


CE 50/37





Tuesday 21 September 2010Poverty reduction and job creation in developing countries: the way forward
P7_TA(2010)0327
European Parliament resolution of 21 September 2010 on poverty reduction and job creation in developing countries: the way forward (2009/2171(INI))
2012/C 50 E/05

The European Parliament,






—


having regard to the United Nations Millennium Declaration of 8 September 2000, which sets out the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) as criteria collectively established by the international community for the elimination of poverty,










—


having regard to the commitments on aid volume, aid to Sub-Saharan Africa, and aid quality made by the G8 at the 2005 Gleneagles Summit,










—


having regard to the Paris Declaration on aid effectiveness of 2 March 2005 and the conclusions of the high-level forum which met in Accra between 2 and 4 September 2008 concerning the follow-up to that Declaration,










—


having regard to the Commission Communication entitled ‘EU aid: delivering more, better and faster’ (COM(2006)0087),










—


having regard to the UN report ‘Rethinking Poverty: Report on the World Social Situation 2010’,










—


having regard to the annual reports by the Secretary-General of the United Nations on the implementation of the Millennium Declaration,










—


having regard to the joint statement by the Council and the representatives of the governments of the Member States meeting within the Council, the European Parliament and the Commission on European Union Development Policy: ‘The European Consensus’ (1), signed on 20 December 2005,










—


having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 establishing a financing instrument for development cooperation (2) (the ‘Development Cooperation Instrument’ (DCI)),










—


having regard to the Abuja Declaration by African Heads of State and Government on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and other related Infectious Diseases of 27 April 2001,










—


having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1889/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 on establishing a financing instrument for the promotion of democracy and human rights worldwide (3),










—


having regard to the Council Conclusions of 21 June 2007‘Promoting Employment through EU Development Cooperation’,










—


having regard to the Commission Communication entitled ‘The European Union's role in promoting human rights and democratisation in third countries’ (COM(2001)0252),










—


having regard to the Commission Communication entitled ‘Education and training in the context of poverty reduction in developing countries’ (COM(2002)0116),










—


having regard to the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly resolution of 3 December 2009 on global governance and the reform of international institutions,










—


having regard to the ILO Decent Work Agenda and to the ILO Global Jobs Pact, adopted by global consensus on 19 June 2009 at the International Labour Conference,










—


having regard to the ILO report entitled ‘World of Work Report 2009: The Global Jobs Crisis and Beyond’, published in December 2009,










—


having regard to its resolution of 24 March 2009 on MDG contracts (4),










—


having regard to its resolution of 6 April 2006 on aid effectiveness and corruption in developing countries (5),










—


having regard to its resolution of 23 May 2007 on promoting decent work for all (6),










—


having regard to its resolution of 12 March 2009 on an approach to EC development assistance to health services in sub-Saharan Africa (7),










—


having regard to the current reforms of the Common Agriculture Policy and the Common Fisheries Policy,










—


having regard to Rule 48 of its Rules of Procedure,










—


having regard to the report of the Committee on Development and the opinion of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A7-0192/2010),










A.


whereas strong and sustainable economic growth within a stable, business-friendly environment helps create wealth and jobs and is therefore the surest and most sustainable route out of poverty,










B.


whereas a secure, corruption-free legal environment is essential for business to flourish,










C.


whereas EU15 states are committed to spending 0,7 % of their GNI on ODA by 2015; whereas current ODA levels are around 0,4 %,










D.


whereas poverty reduction and policy coherence for development are now EU Treaty obligations,










E.


whereas developing countries should be supported in their desire to achieve maximum added value in their own countries, which calls for an industrial development strategy that must nevertheless continue to be compatible with sustainable development requirements, with particular reference to conservation of the environment,










F.


whereas both EU donors and developing country governments are failing to meet their spending benchmarks for health and education,










G.


whereas the developing world faces an urgent shortage of qualified health personnel; whereas the lack of qualified health personnel in developed countries constitutes one of the factors which aggravates the fragile health system in developing countries, and whereas many skilled workers, in health and other sectors, are not returning home to benefit their own communities, due to a number of reasons,










H.


whereas the recent food-price crisis highlighted the ongoing importance of agriculture and food security for poor countries,










I.


whereas 90 % of EU citizens are in favour of development cooperation, although the downturn threatens to weaken this support,










J.


whereas the G20 has promised to crack down on tax havens,










K.


whereas tax evasion and illicit capital flights from developing countries represent several times the value of development aid,










L.


whereas remittances represent more capital inflows for developing countries than ODA,










M.


whereas 2,7 billion people currently have no access to credit,










N.


whereas, to reduce poverty, it is necessary not only to generate employment but to create quality jobs,










O.


whereas the poorest countries are severely underrepresented in international institutions and global fora,










P.


whereas social protection systems have been proven as powerful instruments for poverty reduction and social cohesion and the majority of the global population has no adequate social protection coverage,






Challenges for developing countries



On the economy







1.


Urges governments in developing countries to diversify their economy through the development of their manufacturing sector and to avoid overburdening businesses – especially SMEs, motors of jobs and growth – with excessive red tape;










2.


Calls on all developing countries to sign up to the ILO’s Decent Work Agenda and the UN Social Protection Floor initiative in order to guarantee satisfactory labour standards, high levels of comprehensive social protection coverage that reaches the poorest and most marginalised groups, genuine social dialogue and, in particular, involvement in the Employment Intensive Investment Programme;










3.


Underlines the importance of signing up to and implementing the various ILO conventions on international labour standards and recommends employing the provisions of the ILO resolution ‘Recovering from the crisis: A Global Jobs Pact’;










4.


Calls for the implementation of the right to freedom from forced labour and especially from child labour without exception, as without education children are condemned to a life in poverty;










5.


Calls for particular emphasis to be placed on combating child labour, with a view to creating jobs for adults instead and enabling children to receive a suitable education;










6.


Urges governments to prioritise action to help meet basic social needs and to promote the protection of children and vulnerable women who have been severely affected by the crisis, as well as young people at risk, unqualified, migrant and low-paid workers, rural workers and differently-abled persons;










7.


Recalls that small and micro enterprises, especially in the agricultural sector, need adequate financing to preserve existing jobs and create new ones; encourages developing countries to promote saving and credit access, via micro-credit, micro-insurance and innovative credit agents, such as rural post offices or m-banking;










8.


Calls on the EU to recognise the contribution of the social economy (e.g. cooperatives) to job creation and the promotion of decent work in developing countries, and to include the social economy in EU development programmes and cooperation strategies;










9.


Invites developing countries to extend land ownership among the poor and dispossessed, for instance by giving squatters in shanty towns the titles to the land they live on;










10.


Encourages developing countries to diversify their economies to the maximum, so as no longer to be exclusively dependent on a very limited number of products, particularly agricultural products for export;










11.


Reminds developing countries to respect local traditions of common land use for agriculture in order to facilitate and to protect existing small farming;










12.


Calls on the developing countries to treat the development of the agricultural sector and of food security as a priority when drawing up Country Strategy Papers and National Indicative Programmes;










13.


Recalls that governance is included in the idea of a ‘just state’, that is, a state which guarantees democracy and civil rights and – at the same time as performing its executive functions such as ensuring access to justice, health care, education and administrative services – promotes and protects human rights and fundamental freedoms;





On citizenship and governance







14.


Calls on all developing countries to sign the UN Convention against Corruption urgently and to implement its provisions effectively; also urges EU Member States, and EU companies, to respect the UN Convention;










15.


Believes that EU Member States should act as role models for developing countries in terms of budgetary discipline, tax collection and good governance;










16.


Believes that anti-corruption action should also target the private sector, as well as enhancing international cooperation, for instance through information exchange and asset-recovery programmes;










17.


Urges all developing countries to foster independent parliaments, able to contribute effectively to deepening democracy by freely exercising their legislative, budgetary and scrutiny functions; at the same time, draws attention to the enormous importance of a judicial system which operates independently and is properly developed;










18.


Encourages governments in developing countries to maximise involvement by civil society organisations in formulating and monitoring public policy;










19.


Stresses that the social partners play an important role in economic development and can strengthen social cohesion, and consequently that the setting-up and consolidation of the relevant representative organisations should be encouraged;










20.


Calls for the implementation of the freedom of association for trade unions and the right to bargain collectively without exemption in order to enforce, improve and defend decent work conditions;










21.


Exhorts all states which have introduced laws restricting the freedom of civil society organisations to repeal such legislation;










22.


Calls for the implementation of the right to freedom from discrimination, i.e. the right to work and be treated equally regardless of gender, ethnic origin, age, disability or sexual orientation, as a core principle in the fight against poverty;










23.


Calls for the legal and social position of women to be significantly strengthened so as to prevent discrimination and make use of women’s potential contribution to economic and social development;










24.


Supports developing countries in their efforts to strengthen and deepen regional integration, through free-trade areas, regional economic communities, regional development banks, etc.;






Shared challenges








25.


Reiterates its call for developing countries’ national budgets and EU development aid to allocate at least 20 % of their spending to health and basic education;










26.


Calls for a rethinking of privatisation policies, especially concerning utilities like water, sanitation and services of general interest, and for the social role of states in development governance, including the role of state-owned enterprises as employers and social service providers, to be reconsidered;










27.


Draws attention to the crucial role of social protection systems as mentioned in the ILO Global Jobs Pact and the United Nations Social Protection Floor Initiative; calls, therefore, for a stronger emphasis on social protection systems to prevent increased poverty and address social hardship, while helping to stabilise the economy and maintain and promote employability;










28.


Asks for free and full access for all to educational systems, i.e. basic and higher as well as vocational education, so that the local population can become qualified skilled workers;










29.


Insists that both donor and developing countries have to fulfil their commitments to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015;










30.


Supports measures, such as salary subsidies and job and training opportunities, that encourage local scientists as well as other skilled workers to remain and practise within their communities and that strengthen medical systems which are accessible for everybody;










31.


Supports the creation of new job positions within the developing countries;










32.


Supports measures that invest in and build up public services in general in order to create jobs and strengthen state capacities, facilities and social cohesion as mentioned in the UN Report ‘Rethinking poverty’;










33.


Calls for more emphasis to be placed on practical healthcare and awareness raising among the population about the merits of medical treatments, e.g. distributing blood analysers and training local people to use them;










34.


Highlights that the development of human resources is indispensable in all development strategies and crucial to job creation; calls on the EU and developing countries to analyse employment needs and the labour market, make forecasts and anticipate the major challenges involved in adapting vocational training to employment;










35.


Believes all development strategies should pay special attention to the most vulnerable and marginalised, especially women, children, older people and people with disabilities;










36.


Considers it indispensable to meet basic needs, and therefore assigns particularly high priority to measures promoting food security and access to drinking water;










37.


Highlights the problem of child labour and recognizes that it is one of the major obstacles to achieving universal primary education completion and reducing poverty and hampers the healthy upbringing and necessary education of these children; thus calls for the promotion of inter-agency coordination and alignment in education aid and child labour policy through strengthening existing mechanisms, including the Global Task Force for Child Labour and Education; finally, calls on the international community, all states concerned and the EU to commit themselves to doing their utmost to eradicate child labour as a matter of urgency and dedicated action;










38.


Points out the importance of gender equality for the economic success of states, and calls therefore for greater efforts to also ensure gender equality in the economy;










39.


Insists that donors and partner countries should ensure that agriculture, particularly smallholder farming and small and medium-sized eco-friendly agro-industries, move up the development agenda;










40.


Emphasises that small farming based on decentralised, green and sustainable means of production facilitates job creation and sustainable development, since per hectare they employ more people than large farms, with the farmers and employees spending pro rata more on employment-intensive rural non-farm products;










41.


Calls for jobs and employment creation to be given more effective support by coordinating employment and macro-economic policies, bearing in mind that the latter should not be restricted to controlling inflation and trade and fiscal deficits but also focus on the stability of real output, incomes and employment;










42.


Supports investment in ‘green jobs’ and in green industry, for example by developing renewable energy and energy efficiency systems in poor countries, including solar power for the benefit of local communities, as a way to provide sustainable sources of energy and, at the same time, to create jobs while protecting the environment;










43.


Calls for an increase in equal access to, and opportunities for, skills development, quality training and education; calls for improvements to be made as regards access to credit (including micro-finance) to encourage job creation;










44.


Looks forward to increased cooperation between Parliament and its regional counterparts in developing countries;










45.


Stresses the importance of promoting alternative indicators to GDP to measure social progress in developing countries, particularly in light of the suggestions made by the Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress chaired by Joseph Stiglitz;










46.


Calls for responses to the global economic crisis to be devised by country and region and to include the measures mentioned in the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) policy instrument ‘A Global Jobs Pact’ in order to facilitate investment in employment-intensive and environment-friendly sectors and social protection systems;






Challenges for donors



On aid







47.


Urges all rich countries, especially EU states, to keep their spending promises as regards aid, i.e. at least 0,7 % of GNI by 2015;










48.


Calls for a common definition of poverty among the Member States to identify the relevant working fields and the beneficiaries entitled to EU development aid;










49.


Believes that policy coherence can bring fruitful results in terms of job creation in developing countries; calls therefore for a change in EU external polices as these have a direct impact on developing countries’ economies and should be designed to support their sustainable needs in order to fight poverty, guarantee a decent income and livelihood and fulfil basic human rights, including social and economic rights and environmental protection;










50.


Calls for substantial additional funding in order to combat the effects of climate change and the global economic crisis in developing countries;










51.


Calls for basic education and public health to form the basis of development policies and insists that the current situation cannot justify any reduction in national spending and international aid to these sectors;










52.


Calls on the EU to honour its aid-for-trade commitments;










53.


Emphasises that the EU has to revise its subsidy policies, especially in the agricultural sector and in line with the needs of small and medium farmers in the EU, in order to facilitate fair trade conditions regarding developing countries;










54.


Asks all donors, once again, to adhere more faithfully to the aid effectiveness agenda, especially as regards donor coordination and accountability;










55.


Insists that the Commission make sure that the external dimension of the current reform of the Common Fisheries Policies will be mainstreamed with EU development policy as these are directly linked to the livelihood of the population in developing countries;










56.


Emphasises that the fisheries sector in many countries is crucial for employment and food security and therefore all developing countries should be eligible for EU sector support to develop their own sustainable fisheries industry, research, control and enforcement to combat Illegal Unreported and Unregulated fisheries, independent of any fisheries access agreement with the European Union;










57.


Underlines that EU sector support to the fisheries industry in third countries is aimed at equipping harbours in these countries with the proper infrastructure to facilitate the local landing and processing of fish in order to create new jobs; calls on the Commission to monitor and verify that these goals are achieved, and to provide financial and technical support to improve the ability of the third country to monitor fishing activities in its waters and to apprehend vessels seen to be committing infractions;










58.


Insists that the EU should simplify its aid architecture and related procedures;










59.


Calls for reinforced development policy coordination between the Commission and the EU Member States to prevent different policy actions having a negative impact on the achievement of the MDGs;










60.


Expects that, since policy coherence for development is now a Treaty requirement, EU policies in areas such as farming, trade, migration and fisheries will not in any way undermine development efforts; intends to monitor closely how the EU fulfils this obligation;










61.


Invites donors to invest intelligently in development education for their citizens;










62.


Encourages donor countries to use this crisis to further explore existing possibilities in terms of additional and innovative sources of financing for development and to identify new ones to allow developing countries to diversify their sources of revenue and implement effective, concrete and operational spending programmes;










63.


Calls on the Commission and the EU Member States to promote sustainable enterprises with decent jobs creation as a specific sector of development cooperation in line with the 2005 European Consensus on Development, and to foster its integration in more traditional sectors of development cooperation such as infrastructure, rural development, governance and trade-related assistance;





On new sources of funding







64.


Urges G20 nations to carry through on pledges to stamp out tax havens, to tighten up supervision of financial markets and to usher in tax information exchange; furthermore, the G20 should instruct the International Accounting Standards Board to adopt a new standard that includes country-by-country reporting;










65.


Calls on the G20 and EU states to take steps to make remittances cheaper and easier;










66.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to enhance public financial support to small and micro enterprises and farmers in the developing countries, including the informal sector, as called for in the ILO Global Jobs Pact, in order to combat poverty and unemployment;





On capacity building and global governance







67.


Urges the EU to target its aid towards promoting capacity building in areas that will directly benefit the partner countries’ economic fabric and create jobs, i.e. developing their productive capacity, building efficient tax systems, fighting corruption, strengthening institutions and civil society, facilitating access to microcredit and other sources of finance, etc.;










68.


Calls for all EU development policies with an impact on job creation and poverty reduction to focus on measures which require governments, civil society, companies, foundations and local communities to achieve the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015;










69.


Calls on the EU to target its aid also towards building up social protection systems in developing countries as an important and effective means to reduce poverty;










70.


Calls for priority to be given to education, follow-up assistance to school-leavers, vocational training, technology education, skills training, lifelong learning, access to finance, setting up high-quality training courses which improve the prospects of those who take them, health and safety, and encouraging entrepreneurial initiative schemes primarily for small and micro enterprises to create a sustainable workforce, thereby focusing especially on young, elderly, disabled and displaced people, women and any other marginalised groups;










71.


Believes that the EU should take account of human rights and governance criteria when drawing up trade agreements with developing countries and should not hesitate to apply sanctions when states fail to respect their governance obligations; recalls that conditionality criteria apply to both the European Development Fund (EDF) and the Financing Instrument for Development Cooperation (DCI);










72.


Asks the EU authorities to ensure scrupulous respect for the principle of conditionality, as stipulated in the Cotonou Agreement;










73.


Emphasises that the same conditionality criteria apply to the provision of support under both the European Development Fund (EDF) and the Financing Instrument for Development Cooperation (DCI);










74.


Calls on the Commission to promote appropriate methods and timetables for monitoring the production chains of European undertakings operating abroad in order to verify the elimination of child labour and compliance with the labour standards promoted by ILO Conventions, and to promote access to education, which is a crucial factor in combating poverty;










75.


Urges the establishment of a reliable network for close relations among major governmental and non-governmental institutions and organisations dealing with poverty reduction in all developing countries in order to share views and experiences with EU assistance in formulation, implementation and monitoring;










76.


Supports the establishment of databases at national and EU levels in order to collect and compare basic data relevant to poverty in developing countries as a way of facilitating and increasing efforts towards poverty reduction;










77.


Stresses the need to strengthen existing coordination among international and regional organisation as an additional effort in providing technical support to the implementation and monitoring of an EU Action Plan on Poverty Alleviation;










78.


Notes the need to establish ‘Advisory Groups’ on specific issues as a concrete step and reliable way of providing technical support in order to implement the objectives set out in an EU Action Plan on Poverty Alleviation in developing countries;










79.


Accepts the use of budget support only where there are watertight guarantees that funds will reach their intended destination and satisfy their original purpose and where recipients fulfil human rights and democratic governance criteria; looks forward to more effective assessment and auditing of budget support to analyse if the intended goal is achieved and if governments in the recipient countries comply with the abovementioned criteria; calls on the Commission to establish an IT-based scoreboard under the scrutiny of the European Parliament to assess the efficiency of Community aid in the field of poverty reduction, education and job creation, with this scoreboard being based on the degree of compliance with the expected financial ratios and aims;










80.


Calls on the Commission to present to the European Parliament a coherent and credible proposal on EU post-election policy, which respects the free choice of the population in a given country, and fears that the current absence of a coherent post-election policy undermines the credibility of the EU Election Observation Missions;










81.


Supports more democratic representation of developing countries in global institutions;










82.


Invites the international financial institutions to review their loan policies in order to support democratic and sustainable economic development choices by developing countries;










83.


Calls on the EU and the G-20 to take concrete action to eradicate abuses of tax havens, tax evasion and illicit financial flights from developing countries and to promote these resources to be invested in developing countries;










84.


Calls for a new binding global financial agreement on the automatic disclosure by transnational corporate companies of the profits they made and the taxes they paid on a country-by-country basis;










85.


Calls on the EU to support the UN Social Floor Initiative to extend or implement sustainable social protection systems in developing countries by ensuring greater coherence in external relations policies and developing a Communication on Social Protection in development cooperation, as suggested in the Council Conclusions on Promoting Employment through EU Development Cooperation;






On education








86.


Agrees with the Commission that having a job is the best way to avoid poverty and social exclusion; believes that tackling the education gap in developing countries is one of the most effective strategies for breaking the cycle of poverty and unemployment;










87.


Welcomes the Education For All - Fast Track Initiative (FTI) and the Commission's support of it in principle; urges the Commission to clarify what funds it currently makes available to the countries covered by this initiative, and for which purposes, particularly in the field of:






—


early childhood care and learning,










—


free and compulsory primary education for all,










—


learning and life skills for young people and adults,










—


adult literacy,










—


gender equality,










—


quality of education;














88.


Urges the EU to introduce assistance programmes for parents in various fields where poverty leads to a lack of knowledge with regard to bringing up children to ensure that children in developing countries have real opportunities;










89.


Notes that the quality of mental and physical health is not just a question of education, training and new information technologies, but also of access to water, food and medicine, so the EU should pay more attention to clustering free teaching materials, free meals, free school buses and free examinations into comprehensive aid projects; deems it imperative to call for a clear interrelation between EU-funded school-based projects and food and health programmes in developing countries;










90.


Calls on the EU to concentrate its efforts on identifying branches where developing countries have a competitive advantage, whereby the establishment of work-based apprenticeships in these sectors shall be one of the main priorities of EU development aid;










91.


Calls on the EU to provide more education opportunities for developing-world students but to encourage them to return home after their studies to benefit their own communities;






Access to the market








92.


Points out that developing countries are advised that their products must compete in the open market while the same principle is often not applied to the developed world;










93.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to develop a coherent approach which respects the fundamentals of the free market and which guarantees reciprocity in the field of trade;










94.


Stresses that many developing countries, particularly with regard to the agricultural sector, are characterised by subsistence economies and these economies are often the only source of income and living;




*
* *






95.


Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments of the Member States and the ILO.






(1)  OJ C 46, 24.2.2006, p. 1.

(2)  OJ L 378, 27.12.2006, p. 41.

(3)  OJ L 386, 29.12.2006, p. 1.

(4)  OJ C 117 E, 6.5.2010, p. 15.

(5)  OJ C 293 E, 2.12.2006, p. 316.

(6)  OJ C 102 E, 24.4.2008, p. 321.

(7)  OJ C 87 E, 1.4.2010, p. 162.