Making the distinction between humanitarian and development aid

At present, with the refugee crises and the displacements of people in many countries, the humanitarian funding needs are exceptionally high. Several donor countries have markedly increased their contributions during the last few months. Among them, the European Commission and some EU countries, as well as the US, have shown leadership. They are again among the top contributors to humanitarian assistance.

The challenge is to finance the humanitarian response without cutting the aid development budgets. These should be seen as two different strands within the international cooperation finances. But the fact of the matter is that in several countries the humanitarian resources are generated these days by diverting development money to meet immediate requirements. The development assistance resources for 2016 will be seriously affected, if this trend is not reversed. 

EU meets on Brexit and clarifies nothing

There will be another EU summit here in Brussels tomorrow. This time the main course on the table should consist on the British future within the Union. 

UK Prime Minister Cameron wants the other European leaders to set the principles that will guide the bureaucrats’ work during the next couple of months as they will draft the response to Britain´s demands. He expects the leaders to be generous and therefore ready to support his views. Cameron thinks there is no way for his position not to be accepted. EU leaders want, in his opinion, to keep the UK in and will therefore cave in.

I think the leaders will indeed be soft on Cameron. Not because they agree with his exigencies. They actually think he is unreasonable. They will accept a softer line just because they are too distracted with their own national concerns and with other matters such as the common response to the refugee flows to be bothered at this stage by the British domestic politics.

And that´s a risk. In such matters the more you let the situation go undefined the greater the risk of later clashes. But this is the way the EU leaders do business at present. 

Human Development Report 2015

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has launched today its 2015 edition of the Human Development Report.

This is an annual compilation of data and indexes that has become during the last 25 years a major reference document to compare how each country of the world is doing in terms of addressing social and human progress.  Each edition contains also a state-of-the-art reflection about a critical dimension of human development. This year´s theme is about work. As it has been the case with past reflections, the texts included in the report do raise quite a number of innovative approaches to work, jobs and human dignity. 

Marine Le Pen tonight

The outcome of the French regional elections is now clear. I mean, it shows that the Front National (FN) of Marine Le Pen keeps attracting new supporters as time goes on. It will be, sooner or later, a major democratic challenge for France and a huge headache for Europe. We better be aware of that. And address, as we can, the issues that explain the FN´s political expansion. We should do it before it is too late. 

COP21: good news!

Laurent Fabius, the French Foreign Minister, has been an excellent chair of the Paris Climate Change Conference. Tonight´s global agreement on an action plan is in many ways due to his wise leadership of the COP21 meeting. As we celebrate the agreement that has been reached we should also recognise the work the minister has done during the last two weeks.

And this is good news for the world, for the future and also good news for the French government. François Hollande´s government has been a weak player on the European front. Today´s success brings a little bit of lustre to Hollande and his team. That´s important as the prestige of France is one of the key elements that contributes to a more balanced Europe. 

Human rights

We should remember and celebrate the day: Human Rights Day.

For many, in different corners of the world, human rights remain an unfulfilled aspiration. That´s their main concern.

Our responsibility is to denounce those regimes that deny the basic rights people are supposed to enjoy. And we should make it clear that a society that actively recognises the rights of its citizens is on the correct path towards development and peace. 

A giant called Angela

Time magazine has selected Angela Merkel as “person of the year”.

I fully agree. The Chancellor has shown leadership, particularly when the challenges Europe was confronted with gained a menacing dimension. In many ways, she kept the EU together. Her stature looked even greater when compared with the ones assumed by the other actors.

She is a woman in the midst of a number of political dwarfs. 

Our European problems and Cameron´s

There is very little time, these days, to think about David Cameron and his conditions for the UK to remain within the EU.

France and Marine Le Pen´s initial electoral victory are taking a lot of the attention span available. And there are good reasons for that. Le Pen´s race to power needs to be stopped. And the concerns of her voters must be responded to at the same time. These are two immense jobs. They concern not only the French but all those in the vicinity who believe in a united Europe.

Then, there is the fight against terrorism. The key issue is to devise approaches that could effectively prevent the radicalisation of some young Europeans. There is a lot of debate about the issue of radicalisation but not enough concrete ideas on how to tackle it. The competition for new ideas is open.

The immigration issue is still unresolved. That adds a very heavy burden to the European agenda. And the longer it takes the more complex it becomes. The first step here is to strengthen the Schengen external borders. But there are many other things that need to be dealt with, including the very serious challenge of integrating those who are already in. This task is now particularly complex in view of the current change of opinion about the massive presence of Muslim populations in the European space.

In the midst of these very critical issues the UK´s referendum looks very much like Cameron´s self-created problem. He will have to take the lead in sorting it out. He knows that his key financial masters want the UK to stay in the EU. He also understands he cannot deceive them. He has therefore to be smart and imaginative. What a challenge!

A day in life

I had planned that I would end today by saying thank you to a very good number of friends.

I still want to do it, as I am very touched by so many messages and calls I received throughout the day. It is a privilege to have some many friends in so many corners of the world. Well, after spending a full life on the road, what else could I expect?

But beyond the words of acknowledgment and gratitude, I have to place one or two of anxiety in view of the results in France.

The end of the day brought in the news about the National Front (FN) of Marine Le Pen and its big jump forward in the regional elections.

Radicalism is certainly not good for the future of France and also not good for the European common project. Le Pen´s electoral growth shows we have a real problem with a good number of citizens that feel discouraged and see the EU has a threat. This adds one more critical challenge to a list that has already some very dangerous lines on it. 

Brussels: life goes on

I walked the streets of central Brussels last night and was happy to see so many people enjoying the festive spirit of these days leading to Christmas. That´s how life in our part of the world is. That ´s normalcy. And that´s what I would like to see in other corners of the planet as well: people enjoying the freedom of being together in peace.