Government criticised for slow growth in development funding

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"Significant steps in the right direction, but the steps do not go far enough."
      This statement might summarise the message of a committee on development policy, which submitted its statement to Foreign Trade and Development Minister Paula Lehtomäki (Centre) on Thursday.
     
The sharpest criticism was prompted by the slow growth in funding for development cooperation. Finland has not come significantly closer to the goal of 0.7 per cent of GDP during the nearly four years that the government has been in power. This year development funding amounts to 0.43 per cent of GDP.
      The chairwoman of the group, Gunvor Kronman (Swed. People's Party), sees this as a disappointment. "For poor countries 0.7 per cent is important quantitatively, but this is also a question of credibility in the eyes of the international community. Our relationship has long been one of understanding, but in the past couple of years, patience has been wearing thin", she says.
      Lehtomäki concedes that progress toward the 0.7 per cent goal has been "painfully slow".
      However, she refuses to feel ashamed of the progress that has been made, noting that in monetary terms there has been considerable growth: whereas at the beginning of the government's term, annual spending on development aid was EUR 506.8 million, the figure is now EUR 750 million.
      "This argument will not hold under international comparison", notes Kronman.
     
The team, which was set up by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, saw as a significant step the consolidation of the position of development policy on the level of state administration. However, political policy issues need to be made visible on the practical level, says Kronman.
      The group proposes the establishment of a ministerial working group on global affairs. The task of the group would be to make sure that poor countries are taken into consideration in decisions with international ramifications.
      Thursday's statement is the third and last of the development policy committee. Its members include researchers, as well as representatives of political parties and civic groups.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Candidates in election debate support more development aid (14.2.2007)

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