Croatian Development Aid Platform: Looking Ahead Tihomir Popovic 25th April 2012

Croatian Histroy in the Context of Development Aid Croatia from aid recipient to donor Civil war and impact on development focus Regional specificities – ability to be a good example NATO membership – diffenent development ‘edge’ EU membership – new roles and visions

Current issues and situation Development vs humanitarian aid definition Ethical question of development aid and public support – raising awareness Bilateral vs multilateral aid – divided approx 50/50 Role of civil society organisations Regional focus also in line with some military missions eg Afghanistan and looking to focus on a particular state for sustainable impact Looking to achieve 0.36% GNI (approx 125mil EUR) – so far in 2010 approx 60mil, but likely to decrease Lack of transparency regarding what qualifies as ODA– e.g. exchange students, translation of documents? Need for a clear definition How do we ensure a sustainable development budget is a fundamental concern

Setting up a platform Early stages – coordination with MfA, and kick–off meeting New National Strategy for Development Cooperation due in 2014 Role of the platform: Build CSO capacity – relatively small number of CSO involved in dev aid Public awareness rising Encourage new CSOs Play a role in policy making – constructive dialogue and a ‘seat at the table’ Support in writing proposals and implementation Research Monitor expenditure of the develoment aid budget

International cooperation Close cooperation with other EU and regional platforms Coordination of developmental priorities and organsing joint projects Building ties with CSOs in recipient countries and focus on a long-term approach