The European Parliament voted a resolution on "Increasing the effectiveness of development cooperation", ahead of the 2nd High-Level Meeting (HLM2) of the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation (GPEDC), in Nairobi on 28 November-1 December 2016.
The EP resolution also includes trade unions’ priorities regarding the participation of private in development cooperation. The resolution recognises that "the private sector is an important partner in achieving the SDGs and mobilising further resources for development; stresses that, given their increasing role in development cooperation, private-sector actors must align with development effectiveness principles and abide by the principles of corporate accountability throughout the whole lifecycle of projects; acknowledges the efforts of some private- sector actors to take on board human rights commitments, social inclusion and sustainability as core to their business models, and calls for the generalisation of this approach; points out the need for the private sector to respect the principles of international law and social and environmental standards, as well as the UN Global Compact on Human Rights, UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, ILO core labour standards and the UN Convention Against Corruption; calls on the Commission to ensure that companies operating from tax havens do not participate in ODA-financed projects; underlines in parallel the need for partner countries to foster an enabling environment for businesses, including transparent legal and regulatory systems".
On SDG16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions), it warns that "the development aid cannot effectively fulfil its purpose in the absence of peace, respect for human rights and the rule of law, an impartial, efficient and independent judicial system, internationally recognised social, environmental and labour standards and safeguards for the integrity of public institutions and office-holders, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels, and transparency and accountability".
Trade unions participate in the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation (GPEDC) and are members of its Steering Committee. A trade union delegation will participate in the Nairobi GPEDC HLM2.
