REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL 2022 progress report on the European Financial Architecture for Development
Date: 2023-06-08
Institutions: Directorate-General for International Partnerships, European Commission
Subjects: EU financial instrument, EU growth strategy, European neighbourhood policy, activity report, development aid, development policy, economic development, financial aid, international cooperation, investment

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 8.6.2023  COM(2023) 299 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL 2022 progress report on the European Financial Architecture for Development   
 
 
Introduction  

The  present  document  is  the  Commission’s  second  progress  report  on  the  European 
financial  architecture  for  development  in  response  to  the  Council  Conclusions  on 
enhancing the European financial architecture for development, adopted on 14 June 2021 
(the  “Council  Conclusions”).  The  report  presents  the  activities  put  forward  by  the 
Commission  in  2022  to  implement  its  roadmap  (the  “Commission  Roadmap”)  for  an 
improved  European  financial  architecture  for  development  (EFAD),  adopted  on  24 
March 2022, together with the first progress report (1). Given its retrospective nature, it 
does not contain a strategic outlook component. However, it provides a valuable basis for 
reflections  on  the  way  forward.  The  report  focuses  on  the  actions  in  the  remit  of  the 
Commission in cooperation with the EU High Representative/Vice-President (HR/VP). 

1.  Context 

the  adoption  of 

Instrument-Global  Europe 

the  Neighbourhood,  Development  and  International 
Following 
Cooperation 
(NDICI-GE)  and  of  most  multiannual 
programming documents in 2021, 2022 constitutes the first year of full deployment of the 
new single EU framework for cooperation with partner countries (in addition to the 
Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance III). The new regulatory framework includes the 
European  Fund  for  Sustainable  Development  Plus  (EFSD+)  -  the  financial  arm  of 
NDICI-GE - which supports investments in third countries with sovereign, sub-sovereign 
and private-sector counterparts through blending operations and budgetary guarantees. 

Making use of this renewed set of tools, the Commission has enhanced efforts to make 
EFAD  more  coordinated,  inclusive,  visible  and  impactful,  in  line  with  the  Council 
Conclusions and in full coherence with the broader effort to promote the Team Europe 
approach (2). 

In  adherence  to  the  ‘Policy  First’  principle,  all  NDICI-GE  implementing  modalities, 
including  those  under  EFSD+,  have  been  put  at  the  service  of  the  Union’s  policy 
priorities  through  a  strong  policy  steer  at  all  levels:  from  the  design  of  multiannual 
programming  documents  and  the  definition  of  EFSD+  strategic  orientations,  to  policy 
dialogue at partner country level and the selection and design of individual initiatives and 
programmes.  

The Global Gateway strategy (3), launched in December 2021, has provided a new key 
overarching  dimension  guiding  the  alignment  of  investment  operations  in  the  external 
action sphere with EU policy priorities and interests.  Global Gateway covers both hard 

(1)  Commission's  roadmap  for  an  improved  European  financial  architecture  for  development  and  2021 

progress report COM(2022) 139 final 

(2)  The  “Team  Europe”  approach  draws  on  contributions  from  the  European  Union  and  combines 
resources  mobilised  by  EU  Member  States  and  financial  institutions,  while  respecting  the  EU 
competences  and  the  decision-making  procedures,  including  the  voting  rules,  established  by  the  EU 
Treaties.  The  Team  Europe  approach  relies  on  the  EU,  its  Member  States,  their  finance  institutions 
including national development banks and implementing agencies, as well as the EIB and the EBRD. 
It  is  also  implemented  in  EU  partner  countries,  including  through  EU  delegations,  to  facilitate  EU 
coordination on the ground. 

(3)  Joint Communication “The Global Gateway” JOIN(2021) 30 final 

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connectivity  and  the  enabling  environment,  regulatory  frameworks  and  norms  and 
standards. It aims at boosting smart, clean and secure links in the digital, climate, energy 
and transport sectors, and to strengthen education, research and health systems across the 
world. For countries covered under the Neighbourhood envelope and beneficiaries of the 
Instrument  for  Pre-Accession  Assistance  (IPA)  III,  the  Global  Gateway  strategy  is 
implemented through the regional Economic and Investment Plans (4). 

On  the  EU  side,  it  draws  on  a  set  of  financial  tools  in  the  EU  multi-annual  financial 
framework  2021-2027,  in  particular  NDICI-GE  and  the  Instrument  for  Pre-Accession 
Assistance  (IPA)  III,  but  also  the  Connecting  Europe  Facility,  Interreg,  InvestEU  and 
Horizon Europe - the EU research and innovation programme.  

Global  Gateway  investments  can  only  reach  the  foreseen  scale  and  create  tangible  and 
visible impact on the ground if supported collectively by the EU and the Member States 
in  a  Team  Europe  approach.  The  EU,  Member  States,  their  Development  Finance 
Institutions,  the  EIB,  the  EBRD  and  the  European  private  sector  need  to  be  mobilised. 
An enhanced and strong EFAD is therefore fundamental for the effective delivery of the 
Global Gateway Strategy. 

2.  Overview of progress in 2022  

The Commission Roadmap is organised around four work strands:  

i) 

ii) 
iii) 
iv) 

affirming  a  strong  EU  policy  steer  to  reinforce  the  coherence  of  financial 
institutions’  activities  with  EU  external  policy  objectives  so  as  to  maximise 
the  development  impact  of  EU  activities  in  third  countries  and  their 
alignment with EU strategic interests 
promoting enhanced coordination 
building a more inclusive financial architecture  
ensuring  increased  visibility  and  influence  for  EU  and  Member  States 
actions.  

Significant progress has been made in all four areas (as illustrated in detail in section 3).  

Strong EU policy steer  

The Commission ensures the management of the EFSD+ via the governance mechanism 
set  up  by  the  NDICI-GE,  which  is  articulated  on  the  EFSD+  Strategic  Board  and  the 
Regional Operational Boards (5). They steer the implementation of the EFSD+, both for 
blending operations and budgetary guarantees. 

(4)   Reference documents: Joint Communication “A new Agenda for the Mediterranean Reference to three 
EIPs”  and  accompanying  document  “Renewed  Partnership  with  the  Southern  Neighbourhood 
Economic  and  Investment  Plan  for  the  Southern  Neighbours”  (SWD(2021)  23  final);  Joint 
Communication  “Eastern  Partnership  policy  beyond  2020  Reinforcing  Resilience  -  an  Eastern 
Partnership that delivers for all” and accompanying document “Structured Consultation on the future 
of  the  Eastern  Partnership”  (SWD(2020)56  final);  Joint  Communication  “An  Economic  and 
Investment Plan for the Western Balkans” (COM (2020)641 final) 

(5)  The  EFSD+  Strategic  Board  is  composed  of  representatives  of  the  Commission  and  of  the  High 
Representative,  of  all  Member  States  and  of  the  EIB.  The  European  Parliament  has  observer  status. 
The  Operational  Boards  are  composed  of  representatives  of  the  Commission,  the  European  External 
Action Service, the Member States as voting members, and finance institutions as observers. 

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In adherence to the “policy first” principle, the Commission has been providing a solid 
policy  steer  for  all  EFSD+  operations,  ensuring  that  EFSD+  guarantees  and  blending 
operations  are  aligned  with  Global  Gateway  priorities,  and  that  its  flagships  are 
implemented, mainly through Team Europe Initiatives, resulting from priorities identified 
in the policy dialogues with partner countries.  

  As far as the open architecture is concerned, the orientations adopted by the EFSD+ 
Strategic  Board  in  November  2021  have  informed  the  choice  of  the  investment 
windows  and  the  subsequent  call  for  proposals  launched  in  2022.  This  innovative 
modality attracted strong interest from the financial institutions’ community as shown 
by  the  fact  that  the  call  was  over-subscribed  by  nearly  four  times.  The  proposed 
investments’ ability to contribute to NDICI-GE thematic and geographic priorities and 
targets,  as  well  as  to  deliver  on  Global  Gateway,  has  played  a  key  role  in  their 
selection. In December 2022, the first 40 proposals were greenlighted by the EFSD+ 
Operational Board for Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean and the 
Asia  Pacific  regions.  They  amount  to  a  total  of  up  to  EUR  6  billion  in  guarantee 
capacity  and  are  expected  to  generate  more  than  EUR  50  billion  in  investments 
covering  all  six  thematic  windows  from  Connectivity,  MSME,  Natural  Capital, 
Human  Development,  Sustainable  Finance  and  Sustainable  Cities,  which  reflect  key 
sectors of Global Gateway. Between December 2022 and January 2023 an additional 
3  proposals  exclusively  covering  the  Western  Balkans  and  12  proposals  covering  in 
majority  Enlargement  and  Neighbourhood  regions  were  approved  by  the  EFSD+ 
Operational Board.   

  Blending  operations  are  scrutinised  through  quality  assessment  internal  procedures 
as well as through peer review Technical Assessment Meetings (TAM) before they are 
submitted to the opinion of Member States in the relevant EFSD+ Operational Board. 

  As  to  the  EIB  exclusive  window  on  sovereign  lending,  the  relevant  guarantee 
agreement  signed in  May  2022 provides a EUR  26.7 billion guarantee to cover EIB 
sovereign  lending  in  Global  Gateway  priority  sectors  including  clean  energy,  green 
infrastructure  and  health.  It  foresees  cooperation  principles  for  overall  strategic 
coordination,  upstream  coordination  and  communication.  A  key  aspect  of  this 
strengthened  coordination  process  with  the  EIB  is  the  introduction  of  a  structured 
governance  mechanism  along  three  main  steps:  upstream  coordination (6)  with 
geographic teams on the pipeline of operations to be pursued, the procedure according 
to Article 19 of the EIB Statute (7) and an eligibility assessment.  

Enhanced coordination  

(6)  including admissibility test where applicable for sub-sovereign commercial operations. 

(7)  EIB's  consultation  of  the  Commission  on  investments  is  regulated  by  Article  19  of  the  EIB  Statute, 
which  is  annexed  to  the  Treaty  on  the  European  Union  and  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the 
European Union (Protocol No 5). In  particular, the relevant provisions of Article 19(2) set out:“[…] 
Applications  made  through  a  Member  State  shall  be  submitted  to  the  Commission  for  an  opinion. 
Applications made direct by an undertaking shall be submitted to the Member State concerned and  to 
the Commission. The Member State concerned and the Commission shall deliver their opinions within 
two months. If no reply is received within this period, the Bank may assume that there is no objection 
to the investment in question.” 

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Numerous initiatives aimed at further promoting partnerships and coordination among 
EFAD members have been pursued at headquarters and country level.   

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

The  European  development  financial  institutions  have  been  more  systematically 
integrated  into  policy  and  strategic  discussions,  as  well  as  into  the  design  and 
implementation  of  Global  Gateway  flagship  projects. The  participation  of  their 
representatives  in  the  meetings  of  the  EU  Directors-General  for  Development, 
alongside  Ministries  and  implementing  Agencies,  in  a  Team  Europe  approach, 
has been consolidated as standard practice throughout 2022, thus contributing to a 
common understanding of objectives and modalities.  

in 

role 

financial 

institutions  play  a  key 

Furthermore,  European 
the 
implementation of Team Europe Initiatives. They are involved in 144 out of 164 
TEIs.  Beyond  their  financial  contributions,  they  are  actively  participating  in 
policy  and  operational  discussions,  mobilising  European  expertise  and 
investments,  as  illustrated  for  example  by  the  Global  Gateway  partnership  with 
Namibia  on  Renewable  Hydrogen  and  Sustainable  Raw  Materials  Value  Chains 
or  by  the  Global  Gateway  partnership  with  Tajikistan  on  renewable  energy. 
Enhanced partnership among different EFAD members represent the backbone of 
these  initiatives,  built  on  hard  infrastructure  accompanied  by  a  broad  set  of 
flanking  measures  to  build  capacity,  promote  sectoral  reforms,  or  improve 
business climate.   

European  financial  institutions  and  implementing  agencies  have  taken  steps  to 
further increase their coordination and joint actions under different initiatives and 
arrangements.  Building  on  the  Enhanced  Partnership,  AECID,  AFD,  CDP  and 
KfW  launched  in  June  2022  the  coordination  platform  JEFIC  -  Joint  European 
Financiers  for  International  Cooperation-  with  the  aim  of  pooling  resources  and 
sharing  know-how.  The  intensification  of  exchanges  between  the  Practitioners 
Network, JEFIC and the EDFI Association throughout the year allowed to deepen 
mutual  understanding  and  to  explore  ways  to  enhance  coordination  between  the 
European technical cooperation and financial cooperation providers.  This has led 
to joint applications under the EFSD+ open architecture call for proposals.  

Facilitating  cooperation  among  European  actors  and  with  partner  countries  and 
enhancing  the  impact  and  the  visibility  of  EU  development  cooperation  are  the 
primary  objectives  of  the  Team  Europe  Partnerships  Portal  (TEPP),  a  digital 
platform  launched  in  June  2022  to  help  matching  partner  countries  needs  with 
offers of expertise and support by European actors (8).  

The role of  EU Delegations as  coordinators/focal  points to  facilitate upstream 
discussions  with  Member States, financial institutions and other stakeholders on 
the  ground  has  been  substantially  enhanced.  A  catalyser  effect  in  this  direction 
has been provided by the process of design and implementation of TEIs which led 
to reinforced cooperation with financial institutions on the ground and to a more 
coherent  integration  of  investments  within  the  overall  EU  response  in  a  given 
partner  country.  Dialogue  with  the  EIB  has  been  enhanced,  including  through 
regular contacts with EU Delegations in countries of operations. In addition, some 
EU Delegations  have  helped the EIB increase its local  presence by  hosting  EIB 
representations  (e.g.  the  EIB  regional  hub  Indonesia,  opened  in  2022  within  the 

(8)  https://team-europe-partners.network.europa.eu/home 

4 

 
 
                                                 
EU  Delegation  office  in  Jakarta).  In  line  with  the  overall  effort  to  increase  the 
visibility  of  EU  engagement  in  a  Team  Europe  approach,  multiannual  strategic 
communication and public diplomacy plans for EU Delegations across all regions 
have been developed.  

Building a more inclusive financial architecture  

Steps have been taken to increase inclusiveness. Several financial institutions submitted 
proposals for the first time under the EFSD+ open architecture call for proposals – some 
of  them  teaming  up  with  more  “experienced”  partners.  Five  new  financial  institutions 
received  methodological  advice  from  the  Commission  on  launching  their  pillar 
assessments procedure.   

Also,  a  number  of  initiatives  have  been  taken  to  enhance  the  coordination  of  different 
tools and instruments of the EU and its Member States. A feasibility study on options 
for an EU Export Credit Facility as well as a mapping of financial tools that support 
the  implementation  of  external  EU  policies  and  have  the  potential  to  strengthen  the 
global  competitiveness  of  EU  companies  have  been  conducted  in  2022.  The  findings 
pave  the  way  for  exploring  the  possibility  of  enhanced  coordination  among  the  EU 
Member States’ export credit agencies and the relevant European and national financial 
institutions for development.  

The  Global  Gateway  governance  set-up,  as  defined  in  November  2022,  promotes  a 
more  inclusive  European  financial  architecture.  Representatives  of  European  financial 
institutions such as the EIB, the EBRD and Member States’ national development banks 
are invited, on an ad hoc basis, to take part in the Global Gateway Board, alongside the 
President  of  the  European  Commission,  other  Commissioners  and  the  Member  States’ 
Ministers of Foreign Affairs, thus integrating the investment operations into the broader 
geopolitical considerations, which inform the strategic guidance of the initiative.  

The first Global  Gateway Board meeting took place on 11 December  2022, chaired 
by President von der Leyen, and with the participation of the HRVP, the Commissioner 
for  International  Partnerships  and  the  Commissioner  for  Neighbourhood  as  well  as 
representatives  from  the  European  Parliament,  the  Presidents  of  the  EIB  and  of  the 
EBRD as well as Member States’ Foreign Ministers representatives.   

The inclusive nature of the Global Gateway governance has been enhanced by the steps 
taken in 2022 to prepare the setting up of the Business Advisory Group, with the aim to 
engage in a structured way with the European private sector as integral part of the Global 
Gateway strategy and implementation. 

Implementing  Global  Gateway  in  a  Team  Europe  approach  is  based  on  a  strong 
process  of  coordination  in  Brussels,  in  Member  States,  and  in  partner  countries.  It 
requires a whole-of-Commission approach and a similar whole-of-government approach 
in Member States (all relevant Ministries, development agencies, development financial 
institutions,  export  credit  agencies)  alongside,  and  supporting,  the  private  sector.  EU 
Delegations,  Member  States  Embassies  and  Member  State  agencies,  their  development 
financing  institutions,  the  EIB  and  EBRD  are  at  the  centre  of  the  implementation  and 
have a crucial role in exchanging information on investments priorities and private sector 
views that inform strategic guidance.  

5 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Strategic  coherence  is  ensured  with  the  EFSD+  Strategic  Orientations  adopted  by  the 
EFSD+  Strategic  Board  which  contribute  to  Global  Gateway.  For  example,  the 
‘connectivity  window’  under  the  EFSD+  open  architecture  addresses  Global  Gateway 
sectors like Energy, Infrastructure and Digital. The alignment of the proposed investment 
operations  with  the  Global  Gateway  strategy  is  verified  by  the  EFSD+  Operational 
Board.  

Increased visibility and influence  

European  coordination  has  become  more  visible  and  influential.  In  line  with  the 
recommendation  to  further  coordinate  common  positions  in  multilateral  development 
institutions in order to speak with  a more coherent EU voice, suggested common Team 
Europe  messages  for  the  International  Monetary  Fund  and  World  Bank  Spring  and 
Annual Meetings have been developed with the Council for the first time in 2022.   

Engagement  on  the  ground  through  joint  missions  in  a  Team  Europe  approach  gained 
relevance in the course of 2022. The European financial institutions have been involved 
in joint missions, such as the joint Commission/EIB mission at COP27, two missions to 
Cabo  Verde  for  the  inauguration  of  Global  Gateway  flagship  initiatives  led  by  the 
Commission  with  the  involvement  of  Member  States  and  development  financial 
institutions, as well as in joint visibility events. 

Guidance  on  how  to  communicate  and  raise  visibility  has  been  shared  with  all  the  EU 
Delegations,  which  received  support  to  develop  multiannual  strategic  communication 
and  public  diplomacy  plans  reflecting  the  EU  priorities,  including  Global  Gateway. 
More than 70 plans were received and reviewed by the relevant Commission services in 
2022,  paving  the  way  to  further  work  to  support  the  visibility  of  the  Global  Gateway 
flagship initiatives. 

3.  Progress against the roadmap  

3.1 Specific actions resulting from NDICI-Global Europe  

Clearer policy direction and orientations  

Roadmap:  1)  The  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  the  HR/VP,  will  provide  a  clear 
policy direction in the programming documents and Economic and Investment Plans and 
ensure  that  all  EU  investment  actions  under  NDICI-Global  Europe  and  IPA  III  are 
aligned with the priorities set in the programming documents 

Progress report 2022 
In line with the “policy first” principle, a more comprehensive approach to programming 
has been adopted, encompassing EFSD+ operations alongside other modalities and types 
of intervention, including grants and policy dialogue.  
The  alignment  of  investment  operations  put  forward  by  European  and  Member  States 
financial  institutions  with  policy  priorities  and  programming  objectives  has  been 
systematically assessed by the relevant Commission services for new pipelines as well as 
for ongoing operations. 
All EFSD+ investment operations financed via blending and open architecture guarantees 
have  been  scrutinised  through  the  Commission’s  quality  assessment  internal  procedures 

6 

 
 
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
as  well  as  through  a  peer  review  Technical  Assessment  Meeting  (TAM)  before  the 
positive opinion by Member States in the relevant EFSD+ operational Board.  
This  ensured  compliance  with  programming  documents  (national  and  regional  Multi-
annual  Indicative Programmes), alignment with  Team  Europe  Initiatives,  Economic  and 
Investment Plans and with EU global policies such as the Global Gateway and the Green 
Deal, as well as mainstreaming of gender and environmental aspects. 
For  the  EIB  dedicated  window(s),  the  Commission  has  ensured  the  alignment  with 
programming, TEIs and policy priorities through an upstream coordination process based 
on regional/country pipeline review meetings held on a regular basis. 

Roadmap:  2)  The  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  the  HR/VP,  will  publish  all 
programming documents, so that policy priorities are clear for all the players taking part 
in the EU’s financial architecture for development 

Progress report 2022 
All programming documents adopted by the College have been published on the Europa 
website  right  after  adoption:  Global  Europe  -  Programming  (europa.eu).  All  adopted 
the  Neighbourhood  and 
annual  and  multi-annual  programming  documents  for 
Enlargement  countries  have  been  published  on 
the  website  of  DG  NEAR 
(https://neighbourhood-enlargement.ec.europa.eu/index_en).  
It  is  recalled  that  97  MIPs  with  EU  partner  countries  were  adopted  in  2021.  With  the 
comprehensive  programming  largely  completed,  an  additional  8  MIPs  were  adopted  in 
2022.  

Roadmap: 3) The Commission, in cooperation with the HR/VP, will ensure the EFSD+ 
Strategic  Board  supports  the  overall  coordination,  complementarity  and  coherence  of 
operations implemented under EFSD+ 

Progress report 2022 
Already  in  November  2021,  the  first  EFSD+  Strategic  Board  had  approved  a  set  of 
Strategic  Orientations  for  all  EFSD+  guarantees  and  blending  operations,  including  six 
thematic areas for investment windows. These six thematic areas were translated into six 
Investment  Window  Papers,  based  on  the  multiannual  programming  process.  These 
Investment  Window  Papers  were  approved  by  the  EFSD+  Operational  Boards  in  April 
2022  and  have  formed  the  basis  for  the  call  for  proposals  for  EFSD+  open  architecture 
guarantees and the Proposed Investment Programmes (PIPs) subsequently adopted during 
the  Operational  Boards  of  December  2022  and  January  2023  for  the  various  regions  of 
operations. 

Roadmap: 4) The Commission, in cooperation with the HR/VP, will continue providing 
incentives  to  encourage  specific  political  priorities  and  achieve  higher  impact,  e.g.  to 
ensure that investments are targeted to those regions, countries (including least developed 
countries  and  other  priority  regions/countries  as  appropriate),  thematic  priorities  (e.g. 
climate,  connectivity…)  or  groups  (e.g.  youth,  women,  migrants…)  that  are  a  political 
priority for the EU. 

7 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Progress report 2022 
The EFSD+ contributes  to the horizontal targets identified in the NDICI-GE Regulation 
(human  development,  climate  change,  migration,  gender,  ODA).  The  ability  of  the 
Proposed Investment Programmes (PIPs) to contribute to these thematic targets as well as 
to the geographic priorities described in the Investment Window Papers has constituted an 
important criterion for the selection of investment proposals  under the open architecture 
call. 
Guarantee  fee  discounts  for  financial  institutions  are  considered  for  projects  in  certain 
countries  (LDC,  fragile  context)  or  for  policy  objectives  (Gender,  Migration).  This 
incentivisation is also foreseen under EFSD+ open architecture guarantees. Furthermore, 
the Commission has provided a list of priority countries for each investment window to 
guide  the  pipeline  development  of  potential  implementing  partners  in  line  with  the 
respective country programming priorities.  

Team Europe initiatives and flagship initiatives and partnership portal 

Roadmap:  5)  The  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  the  HR/VP,  will  privilege  flagship 
and Team Europe Initiatives or proposals built on Team Europe approach (including e.g. 
consortia or investment platforms) 

Progress report 2022 
The  Team  Europe  approach  is  encouraged  through  pipeline  discussions  with  EFSD+ 
implementing  partners,  through  EFSD+  outreach  missions  and  it  represents  an  asset  for 
any blending application or PIP for which EFSD+ guarantee cover is requested. 
The call for proposals for EFSD+ outlines that each financial institution needs to show to 
which  TEI(s)  the  respective  investment  might  contribute:  “The  formulation  of  PIPs 
should therefore be in line and contribute to delivering on these flagships as well as other 
Team  Europe  Initiatives  with  transformative  impact.”  Consequently,  the  EFSD+  open 
architecture  application  form  included  an  excel  file  on  TEIs  in  which  applicants  had  to 
indicate  to  which  TEIs  the  investment  might  contribute.  Proposed  linkages  have  been 
verified by the Commission and will be further discussed while negotiating the guarantee 
agreements. 
For  the  dedicated  EIB  investment  windows:  EIB  has  been  invited  to  show  for  each 
proposed investment which TEI/flagship the investment might contribute. 
For  on-going  EFSD  investment  programmes,  financial  institutions  have  been  invited  to 
show TEI-linkages or to link-up their investments with TEIs. 
The  Commission  has  been  providing  support  to  the  EDFI  association  to  improve  its 
members  integration  in  Team  Europe  Initiatives  and  better  alignment  with  Global 
Gateway.  Work  has  been  conducted  to  assess  the  potential  of  TEIs  for  EDFI  members´ 
investments and to support the design of a joint guidance note on DFIs TEI-integration. 

Roadmap:  6)  The  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  the  HR/VP,  will  explore  the 
possibility  of  providing  incentives  under  the  EFSD+  to  promote  joint  proposals 
submitted by several financial institutions which have a common interest in achieving the 
set  policy  objectives,  particularly  including  those  of  smaller  size,  newcomers  or  those 
that are not pillar-assessed (as long as the lead institution is pillar-assessed); 

8 

 
 
 
 
 
Progress report 2022 
The Commission has been encouraging financial institutions to coordinate and team up to 
foster  an  inclusive  approach  and  integrate  development  financial  institutions  or 
development  agencies  from  all  Member  States.  Co-financing  arrangements  and 
knowledge sharing amongst financial institutions have been encouraged to facilitate joint 
proposals but also to enable new institutions to assume the lead role.  
Within the open architecture call for proposals, several joint proposals were submitted, in 
particular by the Association of European Development Finance Institutions through their 
dedicated  Management  Company  (EDFI  MC)  and  by  the  JEFIC  group  of  public 
development  banks  (AFD,  AECID,  CDP,  KfW)  who  also  have  agreed  mutual  reliance 
procedures. 
A  number  of  partners  applied  for  guarantees  for  the  first  time,  namely  Bank 
Gospodarstwa  Krajowego  (BGK),  Caribbean  Development  Bank  (CDB),  Cardano 
Development,  Climate  Fund  Managers  (CFM),  Finnfund,  Investeringsfonden  for 
Udviklingslande (IFU), UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF).  
Arrangements  between  financial  institutions  not  yet  pillar  assessed  and  experienced 
partners for the use of the guarantee have been facilitated. 
In order to increase inclusiveness, in May 2022 the Commission proposed, among several 
targeted adjustments to the Financial Regulation, to broaden the range of entities to which 
budget implementation tasks can be entrusted under indirect management. This proposal, 
reflected through new item (ix) in Article 62.1 (c), aims to facilitate the participation of 
entities like EDFI in the implementation of funds other than budgetary guarantees.  

Roadmap:  7)  The  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  the  HR/VP,  will  strengthen 
institution-building  tools  under  TAIEX  and  twinning  to  reinforce  capacity  building  in 
key areas of reform and alignment; 

Progress report 2022 
The  institution  building  instruments  TAIEX  and  Twinning  are  well  established  in  the 
countries  of  EU  enlargement  and  neighbourhood.  Over  600  TAIEX  events  take  place 
every  year  and  over  100  Twinning  are  ongoing.  The  implementation  of  TAIEX  and 
Twinning beyond enlargement and neighbourhood regions started in 2020. After the first 
projects started in  Zambia and Kyrgyzstan in 2021, in 2022  twinning projects started in 
Namibia,  Dominican  Republic,  Madagascar  and  Rwanda.  Projects  in  Malawi  and 
Tanzania  will  be  launched  soon.  With  the  lifting  of  COVID-19  travel  restrictions,  the 
number of TAIEX events in Sub Saharan Africa, Middle East, Asia and Pacific and Latin 
America  and  Caribbean  strongly  increased  from  mid-2022  onwards.  42  events  were 
implemented in 2022. Some projects target particularly areas related to EFAD, such as the 
twinning  projects  on  anti-corruption  and  public  audit  in  Zambia  and  TAIEX  events  on 
Green  Bonds  and  FinTech  in  Vietnam  and  anti-corruption  and  transparency  in  public 
procurement in Ecuador.  

Roadmap:  8)  The  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  the  HR/VP,  will  provide  increased 
transparency on Team Europe Initiatives; 

9 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Progress report 2022 
An  open-access  site  ("Team  Europe  Initiative  and  Joint  Programming  Tracker")  was 
launched  early  2022  to  allow  information  on  TEIs  to  be  shared  with  all  external 
audiences (9). 
Guidance  on  financial  tracking  of  disbursements  for  TEIs  was  developed.  The 
Commission  has  implemented  the  technical  prerequisites  for  this  in  its  internal  data 
system  (through  a  TEI  flag).  Member  States  are  in  the  process  of  doing  so  as  well. 
Coordination  with  global  public  data  sources  has  taken  place  so  that  these  sources  can 
show  financial  contributions  to  TEIs,  such  as  the  OECD-DAC  statistics  (through  the 
keyword  field  in  the  CRS)  and  the  standard  of  the  International  Aid  Transparency 
Initiative (ongoing work to establish a dedicated tag vocabulary). 

Roadmap:  9)  The  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  the  HR/VP,  will  launch  a 
partnerships portal  in  2022 to  facilitate the matching of demand from partner  countries 
with offer from European actors in terms of support. 

Progress report 2022 
The Team Europe Partnerships Portal (TEPP) was launched during the 15th edition of the 
European Development Days on 21-22 June 2022. After the online platform went live in 
April, the EDDs presented an opportunity to present it to stakeholders. Attendees included 
representatives  of  non-governmental  and  inter-governmental  organisations,  national 
development agencies, ministries and private sector companies. 
The Commission organised three webinars and one info point session in 2022 to further 
provide outreach on TEPP. The portal was also presented at the Council working groups 
(CODEV  and  RELEX)  and  at  the  European  Committee  of  the  Regions  -  the  EU's 
Assembly of Regional and Local Representatives. 

Towards greater mobilisation of private investments 

Roadmap:  10)  The  Commission  will  seek  to  leverage  additional  investments  thanks  to 
the blending opportunities and increased guarantee firepower of the EFSD+ and support 
efforts to scale up sustainability-related financial instruments in our partner countries; 

Progress report 2022 
The EFSD+ overall objective is to mobilise additional public and private investments. As 
part  of  the  application  and  screening  procedure  of  the  proposals,  the  economic  and 
financial  leverage  calculations  have  to  be  provided  along  with  sustainability  proofing. 
Dedicated sections in the application fiches for blending and guarantees have to be filled 
in for the Commission’s assessment.  
In particular, guarantees under the EFSD+ open architecture only cover additional private 
capital  crowded  in  by  the  respective  investment  programmes.  Investments  have  to  be 
secured by the financial  institutions’ own financial means. Consequently, every PIP has 
an enormous potential to leverage additional private financing. 
The EFSD+ open architecture call for proposals included the EFSD+ Sustainable Finance 
Window  (SFW)  as  one  of  the  six  EFSD+  Investment  Windows.  With  the  SFW,  the 

(9)  https://europa.eu/capacity4dev/tei-jp-tracker/ 

10 

 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Commission is  seeking to  support low- and middle-income countries in  scaling up their 
green bond markets under the Team Europe Global Green Bond Initiative. 
The new EFSD+ Results Measurement Framework (ref. measure n.15) includes indicators 
that will allow tracking both leverage and multiplier effect of EFSD+ operations. 

Roadmap: 11) The Commission will develop a comprehensive strategy aiming to support 
low-  and  middle-income  countries  to  accelerate  the  flow  of  domestic  and  international 
private  capital  towards  sustainable  investments  in  low-  and  middle-income  countries, 
benefitting from the support of a high-level expert group;  

Progress report 2022 
In  2022,  a  High-Level  Expert  Group  was  set  up  to  examine  the  challenges  and 
opportunities  related  to  scaling  up  sustainable  finance  in  LMICs.  Following  a  call  for 
applications,  20  members  and  20  observers  were  selected  bringing  together  high-level 
expertise from  across the world  and  across different  sectors  and domains.  In September 
2022,  the  HLEG  had  its  kick-off  meeting  where  the  scope  of  work  was  discussed  and 
three  different  sub-groups  were  established  to  look  at  investors’  perspective  and 
innovative  financial  instruments,  facilitating  pipelines  of  sustainable  projects,  and 
building  coherent  and  conducive  ecosystems  respectively.  Several  meetings  ensued, 
including two in 2022 (in November and December). 

Roadmap:  12)  The  Commission  will  explore  in  the  context  of  the  Global  Gateway 
strategy the possibility of establishing a European Export Credit Facility to complement 
the  existing  export  credit  arrangements  at  Member  State  level  and  increase  the  EU’s 
overall firepower in this area.  

Progress report 2022 
A feasibility study on options for the EU strategy for export credits, which includes also 
exploration of a European Export Credit Facility, is being carried out by an independent 
contractor.  
On a separate track, the Commission is exploring the possibility of enhanced coordination 
of  EU  and  Member  States’  external  financial  tools,  that  would  involve  both  the  export 
credit  agencies  of  EU  Member  States  and  the  relevant  European  and  national  financial 
institutions. A mapping exercise has been carried out (10).  
Both exercises are expected to be finalised in Q2 2023 and serve as the basis for further 
discussions with Member States. 

Improved legal framework and procedures to deliver more effectively  

Roadmap:  13)  The  Commission  will  establish  a  new  regulatory  framework  with  a 
coherent and simplified set of rules and procedures to facilitate support to investments 

(10)  SWD(2023) 96 final 

11 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Progress report 2022 
This was already achieved in June 2021 with the adoption of the  NDICI Global Europe 
Regulation including a dedicated chapter on the External Action Guarantee and EFSD+. 

Roadmap:  14)  The  Commission  will  establish  an  enhanced  risk  management  capacity 
(the  Guarantee  Technical  Assessment  Group  Plus,  GTAG+),  based  on  systems  and 
methodologies that are open and transparent for partner financial institutions 

Progress report 2022 
The Commission has: 

- 

further strengthened and consolidated the risk management unit by involving 
experts seconded from partner financial institutions and risk experts contracted 
by the Commission; 

-  defined the risk policy for the EFSD+, following exchanges with partner 

financial institutions and a positive opinion of the EFSD+ Operational Board on 
6 April 2022; 

-  operationalised the Guarantee Risk Expert Group (GREG) – an independent and 
inclusive group of risk experts established within the Risk Management Unit 
serving both DG INTPA and DG NEAR – and finalised 
secondment/appointment arrangements with six partner financial institutions; 
engaged with partner financial institutions and their risk departments to share 
best practice on credit risk management/methodologies and, in the context of the 
first call for proposals under the EFSD+ open architecture, to come to a shared 
understanding of the risk and financial features of the proposed guarantees 
(process ongoing). 

- 

Roadmap: 15) The Commission will monitor the milestones and results of its investment 
operations in accordance with its NDICI-Global Europe Performance Monitoring System 
(part of the broader NDICI-Global Europe monitoring and evaluation framework) and the 
IPA III Performance Framework. 

Progress report 2022 
The design criteria of EFSD+ interventions and their results/indicators have been revisited 
to  be  able  to  track  their  development  impact.  Commission  services  have  developed  an 
EFSD+  Results  Measurement  Framework  (EFSD+  ReMF)  to  facilitate  coherent  design, 
monitoring  and  reporting  on  operational  results  achieved  with  the  support  of  EFSD+ 
guarantees  and  blending  contributions.  Several  meetings  were  organised  during  2022  to 
consult  EFSD+  implementing  partners  on  the  novelties  of  the  EFSD+  ReMF.  
Commission  services  have  also  developed  new  templates  for  application  forms  for 
blending  and  guarantees  that  have  a  specific  part  dedicated  to  results.  The  new  EFSD+ 
ReMF has already been used in the context of the open architecture call for proposals. 

3.2 Measures to affirm a strong EU policy steer (additional actions) 

Speaking with one voice in multilateral finance institutions  

Roadmap:  16)  The  Commission  will  further  explore  opportunities  for  coordination 

12 

 
 
 
 
 
 
between  the  EU  and  its  Member  States  to  ensure  the  promotion  of  EU  values  and 
strategic  objectives,  as  well  as  the  building  of  common  positions  in  international  and 
multilateral  finance  institutions.  To  that  effect,  the  Commission  will  draw  on  existing 
experiences  of  coordination  with  European  Executive  Directors  at  the  International 
Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank Group (WBG) and the EBRD. 

Progress report 2022 
Extensive  coordination  with  the  EU  Executive  Directors  (EDs)  at  the  World  Bank, 
including through their annual visit to Brussels in May 2022 and regularly throughout the 
year on relevant topics (e.g. Ethiopia).  
In  2022  -  for  the  first  time  -  suggested  common  Team  Europe  messages  for  the  World 
Bank  and  IMF  Spring  and  Annual  Meetings  were  developed  in  the  CODEV  Council 
working  party.  Commission  representatives  also  participated  in  the  2022  annual  visit  of 
the IMF EU Executive Directors (EDs). Commission services provided regular inputs into 
the  EU  EDs  at  the  World  Bank  and  IMF  in  advance  of  board  discussions  on  relevant 
countries and topics. 

3.3 Measures to promote enhanced coordination (additional actions)  

Strengthened coordination at country and regional level  

Roadmap: 17) The Commission, in coordination with the HR/VP, will further strengthen 
the  role  of  EU  Delegations  as  coordinators/focal  points  in  order  to  facilitate  upstream 
discussions with Member States, their financing institutions and other stakeholders on the 
ground, and to reinforce cooperation at the national and regional level; 

Progress report 2022 
Coordination between EU Delegations (EUDs), Member States and financial institutions 
has significantly improved throughout 2022.  
The  Team  Europe  Initiatives  design  process  led  to  an  increased  dialogue  with  financial 
institutions  on  the  ground,  to  a  more  coherent  incorporation  of  investments  in  the  EU 
response and to the greater involvement of EUDs in the roll-out of investment operations.  
EUDs  have  further  increased  their  coordination  role  in  pulling  together  all  European 
actors  around  key  flagships/Team  Europe  Initiatives  and  ensured  in  particular  that  the 
investment  proposals  are  discussed  at  preliminary  stage  to  ensure  alignment  with 
flagships and TEIs.  
EUDs were actively involved in the screening of the PIPs received in the framework of 
the EFSD+ call for proposals under the open architecture. 
Three ad hoc trainings on EFSD+ in 2022 have been organised for staff in headquarters 
and in EUDs. 
In March 2022, the Commission,  in  cooperation with  the EDFI  association, organised  a 
workshop with EUDs in Kenya, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire to promote a better involvement 
of  financial  institutions  in  country  TEIs.  EFSD+  outreach  missions,  promoting  EFSD+ 
awareness and knowledge dissemination events, were organised in a number of countries 
in cooperation with EUDs throughout 2022. 

Roadmap:  18)  The  Commission,  in  coordination  with  the  HR/VP,  will  explore  the 

13 

 
 
 
 
 
possibility  of  establishing  technical  assistance  facilities,  implemented  by  different 
development finance institutions working jointly where possible, to support the design of 
bankable projects in developing countries and the creation of a conducive private sector 
environment; 

Progress report 2022 
The  Commission,  in  a  Team  Europe  approach  together  with  development  finance 
institutions  and  implementing  agencies  across  three  workshops  held  in  2022,  has  been 
working  to  set  up  a  Sustainable  Finance  Advisory  Hub  (the  “Hub”).  The  “Hub”  will 
offer  technical  assistance  on  sustainable  finance  across  three  pillars:  1)  sustainable 
finance  frameworks;  2)  issuing  green  bonds;  3)  other  sustainability-related  financial 
instruments. In doing so, the “Hub” will pool and coordinate EU expertise and resources 
to help low- and middle-income countries in scaling up sustainable finance. 

In  the  framework  of  EFSD+  blending  and  guarantees,  Technical  Assistance  is  to  be 
allocated on a case by  case basis. For the EFSD+ open architecture guarantee PIPs, TA 
contributions will be agreed as necessary in the guarantee agreements negotiations. 

Supporting  the  design  of  bankable  projects:  in  2022  the  Commission  and  the  Dutch 
Foreign  Ministry  established  a  working  group  on  pipeline  development  as  part  of  the 
Team  Europe  initiative  'Investing  in  Young  Businesses  in  Africa'  (TEI  IYBA).  The 
working  group's  purpose  is  to  facilitate  the  systematic  development  of  a  pipeline  of 
investment-ready  (or  'bankable')  projects  in  Africa  involving  young  businesses  and 
entrepreneurs,  with  a  high  development  impact,  for  international,  regional  or  local 
development finance institutions or investment funds to invest in. In 2022 the group met 
three  times  with  the  purpose  of  jointly  identifying  challenges  involved  when  seeking  to 
invest  in  businesses  at  the  pre-seed,  seed,  series  A  and  series  B  financing  stages.  To 
inform  the  group’s  work,  a  report  was  prepared  which  reflected  a  shared  vision  of  the 
challenges of developing a pipeline, based on a literature review and survey of ecosystem 
actors.   

Supporting the creation of a conducive private sector environment: as part of the TEI 
IYBA, another working group was established in late 2021 to guide the development of a 
new  EUR  23  million  programme  entitled  IYBA  SEED  (support  for  entrepreneurial 
ecosystem  development).  The  programme  seeks  to  strengthen  the  ecosystem  of 
organisations  that  support  entrepreneurs  and  early-stage  businesses.  Led  by  FR,  and 
involving BE, DE, NL and SK, the programme targets very early-stage businesses in five 
countries:  Benin,  Kenya,  Senegal,  South  Africa  and  Togo.  In  2022  the  working  group 
jointly devised a TEI IYBA strategy for developing entrepreneurship ecosystems. 

Roadmap:  19) The Commission, in coordination with  the HR/VP, will  organise regular 
coordination meetings at regional/sub-regional/country level with the participation of EU 
Delegations and relevant development finance institutions and headquarters/capitals; 

Progress report 2022 
Portfolio and pipeline review meetings with a regional focus took place on a regular basis 
throughout the  year and allowed exchanges among the Commission relevant geographic 
Units, EUDs and financial organisations on ongoing and planned interventions. 

14 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Roadmap:  20)  The  Commission,  in  coordination  with  the  HR/VP,  will  continue  to 
organise joint missions and country days in some regions 

Progress report 2022 
Engagement  on  the  ground  through  joint  missions  of  the  EU  and  its  Member  States  as 
well as financial institutions in a Team Europe approach gained relevance in 2022.  
A  series  of  "EFSD+  outreach  missions"  has  been  undertaken  in  Enlargement  and 
Neighbourhood  countries,  as  well  as  in  Sub  Saharan  Africa,  discussing  with  partner 
governments  and  implementing  partners  how  best  to  use  the  tools  of  EFSD+  for  the 
investment  priorities  and  flagship  initiatives  identified  in  the  respective  Economic  and 
Investment Plans. 

Extended dialogue and cooperation with non-European financial institutions  

Roadmap:  21)  The  Commission  will  hold  high-level  dialogues  with  international 
financial  institutions  beyond  the  EU  sphere,  such  as  the  Deep  Dive  dialogue  with  the 
World  Bank  Group,  or  other  high-level  meetings  with  or  the  International  Monetary 
Fund,  the  African  Development  Bank,  Asian  Development  Bank,  Inter-American 
Development Bank; 

Progress report 2022 
A number of senior management dialogues were held with the World Bank and the IMF 
in 2022. At the Annual Meetings, the Commissioner for International Partnerships led the 
delegation to Washington and met with a wide range of key interlocutors. Targeted policy 
dialogue with WBG and IMF was maintained all over the year through regular exchanges 
at management and technical level, including presentations to WBG management on EU 
support  to  Ukraine,  TEIs  and  Global  Gateway,  or  Ethiopia.  The  organisation  of  five 
technical  workshops  on  climate  change,  fragility,  gender  issues  and  financial  sector 
development  contributed  to  a  more  policy  oriented  dialogue  with  IMF.  Work  has 
continued  on  the  preparations  of  the  high-level  dialogues  with  WBG  and  IMF  that  are 
planned  for  Q2/Q3  2023.  The  Commission  has  also  identified  a  number  of  TEIs  which 
could provide opportunities of cooperation with several IFIs (especially the WB).  

Negotiations  with  Asian  Development  Bank  on  the  Financial  Framework  Partnership 
Agreement  (FFPA)  concluded  in  2022  preparing  the  ground  for  a  more  comprehensive 
strategic dialogue and cooperation. 

Roadmap:  22)  The  Commission  will  explore  potential  areas  of  cooperation  with  other 
international  development  finance  institutions  (e.g.  Nordic  Development  Fund,  Islamic 
Development Bank, Arab Coordination Group, among others). 

Progress report 2022 
The  Commission  has  continued  the  dialogue  with  other  financial  institutions,  beyond 
those  already  pillar  assessed,  including  the  Islamic  Development  Bank  and  the  Arab 
Coordination  Group.  It  held  a  successful  Arab-DAC  Dialogue  conference  on  15 

15 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
September  2022  which  confirmed  common  interests  and  objectives,  and  willingness  to 
reinforce our cooperation. Workshops were subsequently organised (with Saudi Fund for 
Development  and  ISDB) in  Q4 2022 to enhance  mutual  understanding and cooperation, 
and  a  first  exchange  took  place  between  representatives  of  the  Commission  and  of  the 
Arab Fund during the Annual Meetings.  

3.4 Measures to build a more inclusive financial architecture (additional actions) 

Ensuring inclusive discussions at all levels  

Roadmap: 23) The Commission will make sure strategic aspects related to the European 
financial  architecture  for  development  are  discussed  in  the  framework  of  the  EU 
Development Directors-General meetings which is an inclusive forum, as often as needed 
and  at  least  once  a  year  and  similarly  that  technical  issues  are  discussed  in  inclusive 
technical  meetings  (e.g.  simplification  of  application  forms  for  EFSD+  funding, 
cooperation  arrangements,  co-financing,  harmonised  strategies,  mutual  reliance  and 
recognition procedures, environmental, social and governance matters etc.). 

Progress report 2022 
The  European  development  financial  institutions  have  been  more  systematically 
integrated  into  policy  and  strategic  discussions  as  well  as  into  the  operationalisation  of 
Team Europe Initiatives and Global Gateway flagship projects. The participation of their 
representatives in the meetings of the EU Directors-General for Development, alongside 
Ministries  and  implementing  organisations,  in  a  Team  Europe  approach,  has  been 
consolidated as standard practice throughout 2022. Four meetings of the EU Development 
Directors-General  have  taken  place  in  2022  bringing  in  the  representatives  of  the 
European  financial 
the  European  multilateral  banks  and  European 
implementing  organisations  in  an  inclusive  manner.  Agendas  have  included  discussions 
on improving implementation and making the best use of financial tools. The April 2022 
meeting included an agenda item specifically dedicated to EFAD, following the adoption 
of the roadmap and first progress report.  
Seven  technical  meetings  have  been  organised  on  the  EFSD+  Results  Measurement 
Framework  and  the  new  application  fiche,  both  with  IFI  and  Member  States 
(complemented by bilateral ones). 
A  working  group  with  financial  institutions  on  mainstreaming  Gender  in  financial 
instruments and guarantees was set up by the Commission in 2022. 

institutions, 

Enhanced support on pillar assessments  

Roadmap:  24)  The  Commission  will  continue  assisting  and  providing  methodological 
advice to European financial institutions undergoing the pillar assessment process. 

Progress report 2022 
Throughout the year, the Commission (DG INTPA) provided methodological advice to 16 
European financial institutions undergoing complementary pillar assessments (for which 
15 were finalised) and 5 new applicant financial institutions, including through dedicated 
information meetings and eligibility checks for new applicants. 

16 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3.5 Measures to increase EU visibility and influence (additional actions)  

Enhancing communication efforts in a Team Europe approach  

Roadmap: 25) The Commission will explore the possibility of developing together with 
Member  States  and  DFIs  a  joint  reporting  framework  for  EU  and  Member  States’ 
development  finance  operations  across  the  world  on  a  yearly  basis,  so  as  to  present 
aggregate  consolidated  and  comparable  EU  and  Member  States  development  finance 
figures and achievements in support of strategic communication priorities;  

Progress report 2022  
The  Commission  is  exploring  options  for  financial  reporting  on  the  EU’s  strategic 
priorities  including  Global  Gateway  in  a  more  comprehensive  way.  This  includes 
encouraging  Member  States  and  financial  institutions  to  make  more  extensive  use  of 
existing  reporting  channels  such  as  the  OECD's  Creditor  Reporting  System  as  well  as 
Total Official Support for Sustainable Development (TOSSD), in particular with regard to 
Other Official Flows (OOFs) and private amounts mobilised. In addition, to cover short-
term and medium-term information and communication needs, the Commission has taken 
forward  internal  reflections  around  a  potential  ad-hoc  reporting  mechanism  for  data  not 
currently covered by the existing platforms. 

Roadmap:  26)  The  Commission  will  prepare  country  strategic  communication  plans  in 
partner  countries  bringing  together  strategic  communications  activities  and  public 
diplomacy  activities  to  build  long-term  network,  to  showcase  the  EU  values  and 
principles, as well as the scale and scope of European engagement to local audiences; 

Progress report 2022 
EU Delegations across  all regions have been supported to develop multiannual strategic 
communication  and  public  diplomacy  plans  reflecting  the  EU  priorities.  More  than  70 
Strategic Communication and Public Diplomacy plans have been reviewed in 2022.  
In  general,  the  Strategic  communication  components  gained  relevance  in  the  Annual 
Action  Plans.  Among  the  AAPs  approved  in  2022,  more  than  35  Cooperation 
Facilities/Strategic Communication were approved across all regions. 

Roadmap:  27)  The  Commission  will  provide  further  communication  guidance  and 
communication materials to the EU Delegations, Member States and European financial 
institutions  on  the  Team  Europe  approach  that  can  be  used  in  their  communication 
activities (e.g. EU and Member States success stories acting in a Team Europe approach 
illustrating  why  we  act  and  what  we  stand  for  (local  angle,  common  values,  human-
centred approach); 

Progress report 2022 
Information  sessions  have been organised with  EU Delegations on the new approach to 
strategic  communication  and  public  diplomacy  and  the  updated  2022  Guidelines  on 
Communicating  and  Raising  EU  Visibility.  Updates  on  rollout  of  Global  Gateway 
communication  and  joint  strategy  were  presented  to  EU  Member  States  in  the  RELEX 
Council  working  party  in  3  separate  meetings  in  2022.  The  strategic  approach  to 

17 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
communication  was  also  presented  to  European  DFI  and  the  Practitioners  Network  at 
technical  level,  and  has  been  reflected  in  the  revision  of  relevant  Financial  Framework 
Partnership Agreements (e.g. with the EBRD). 

Roadmap:  28)  The  Commission  will  coordinate  with  the  participating  EU  financial 
institutions and Member States the announcement of new operations in a Team Europe 
approach through news (press releases or social  media channels) and joint participation 
where  suitable  in  the  signature  ceremonies  of  the  operations  included  in  portfolios 
covered by the EFSD+ Guarantee; 

Progress report 2022  
Several  launch  events  and  press  releases  were  prepared  jointly  with  other  EU  financial 
institutions  and  Member  States,  including  in  the  context  of  high-profile  events  such  as 
COP27 

Roadmap:  29)  The  Commission  will  develop  a  clear  web  presence  for  all  EU-funded 
projects using blended finance, budgetary guarantees and technical assistance. 

the 

DG 

INTPA 

Progress report 2022 
In  2022  the  DG  INTPA  website  on  Europa  was  migrated  into  a  new  web  platform,  the 
Europa Web Publishing Platform (EWPP). Web content and the information architecture 
of 
The  new  approach  to  strategic  communication  and  public  diplomacy  in  relation  to  the 
web presence of EU-funded programmes foresees a rationalisation (quantity and content). 
EU-funded  programmes’  web  presences  will  be  hosted  on  the  Europa  platform  and  no 
created.  
new 
The new web presence will be succinct, more impactful, cost effective and more clearly 
linked to Global Gateway and other EU’s policy objectives. 

projects/programmes 

websites 

updated 

website 

related 

streamlined.   

were 

will 

and 

be 

to 

18