on the role of the non-governmental organizations in development cooperation

The European Parliament,

-having regard to the Commission's annual reports to the Council on cooperation with European non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in fields concerning developing countries, and in particular the report on the 1989 financial year,

-having regard to its resolution on cooperation between the European Community and the non-governmental organizations in the field of development cooperation,

-having regard to the results of the General Assemblies of the non-governmental development organizations and the Commission of the European Communities,

-having regard to the report of the Committee on Development and Cooperation (A3-0029/92),

A.whereas the NGOs pay a distinct and invaluable role in defining and implementing development policy, including that of the European Community,

1.Recognizes the major contribution made to development aid by cooperation between the NGOs and the Community and points out that this cooperation is generally working very well;

2.Welcomes the steady and significant increase in the percentage of the Community budget allocated to or implemented through the NGO's, which amounted to more than ECU 318 million in 1990; recognizes that this is entirely consistent with the need to step up and improve Community action in the area of development cooperation; points to the constant increase in the budget line for Community participation in projects carried out by the NGOs in the developing countries;

3.Regrets however that this budget line is still well below the needs expressed by the NGOs and recognized by the responsible Commission departments;

4.Considers that this budget line - for which the utilization rate is always very close to 100% - must continue to grow at a more sustained pace than has been the case to date if it is to satisfy the requirements of the NGOs, since a significant number of worthwhile projects cannot be supported owing to lack of funds;

5.Recognizes the specific nature of action by the NGOs in the developing countries (active involvement of the people, flexibility and autonomy of action, direct meeting of the basic requirements of the less-favoured, etc.) and in this respect approves and encourages the increasing emphasis on support by European NGOs for the financial, technical and institutional strengthening of the NGOs and other associations of the South as a means of increasing their autonomy and their role in their own society; believes that to this end European NGOs should continue to enhance their professionalism and effectiveness in order to become increasingly reliable partners of the associations of the South as well as the Community institutions;

6.Recognizes the innovative nature of action by the NGOs and their sensitivity to the cultural aspects of projects, their attention to issues such as sustainable development and the status and role of women, grass-roots democracy and the self-determination of peoples; recognizes also that they form a bridge between North and South with their projects to educate the North on development issues, based on the experience they have acquired through development aid projects in the South and their ability to mobilize the general public in the North on issues of solidarity with the South;

7.Recognizes the particular usefulness and effectiveness of projects carried out by the NGOs thanks to their targeted approach and their thorough understanding of the situation in the field, which add a complementary and original dimension which the public sector aid from the Community is unable to provide; emphasizes the absolutely invaluable contribution made by the NGOs, particularly in the following areas:

(a)implementing emergency aid schemes, particularly in the pre-emergency and post-emergency phases;

(b)distributing aid, especially food aid, in situations where the absence of the rule of law means that there are no adequate safeguards that the aid will be used properly;

(c)specific situations, such as the action programme for the victims of apartheid in South Africa;

8.Notes in general the successes achieved by the NGOs which, despite their often modest financial resources, are highly motivated by their moral conscience and idealism and achieve a high degree of professionalism, thus managing to operate even in emergencies or very difficult circumstances;

9.Points out that NGOs are accounting for an increasing share of the distribution of food aid, which amounted to ECU 127 million in 1989, or around 19% of total Community food aid;

10.Considers it vital, therefore, that, as well as their role in distributing emergency and food aid, the NGOs should continue to devote a substantial proportion of their work to sustainable and long-term development projects;

11.Stresses that one of the important priorities of the NGOs is to raise the European public's awareness of development issues; therefore calls on the Commission to provide greater financial support for schemes in the Member States to educate the European public about development and mobilize public opinion in Europe; considers it desirable to apply the 10% ceiling on the Community contribution to the co-funding of development education projects flexibly, taking account above all of the need to strengthen the link between such projects and projects carried out in the developing countries;

12.Recalls here the important role played by the NGOs in mobilizing additional financial resources for development, thanks to their links with the grass roots, since under the co-funding arrangements with the Community every ECU paid by the Commission results on average in a final investment of ECU 2.5;

13.Affirms that the primary value of action by the NGOs lies more in their ability to mobilize human resources, in both North and South, and at the same time their ability to achieve concrete results that have a positive impact on specific groups of poorer or less-favoured people;

14.Is firmly convinced that one the main functions of the NGOs which, even in the near future, is destined to become even more important and more valuable, is to contribute to the growth of society in the developing countries and thus participate in a broad process of democratization at grass roots level, thereby fostering the creation of NGO structures and networks and other groupings, particularly in rural areas in the developing countries (NGOs of the South);

15.Considers that the existing provisions of Chapter XII of the general conditions for co-financing should be extended and expanded to strengthen the activities and structures of the NGOs and other associations of the South; affirms the need to grant the NGOs and other associations of the South direct access to official Community development cooperation, for example, by using the openings available for decentralized cooperation under the Fourth Lomé Convention;

16.Underlines that, in accordance with the guidelines set out in the Commission communication to the Council and Parliament on human rights, democracy and development cooperation policy (SEC(91) 0061) and in the provisions of the Fourth Lomé Convention on decentralized cooperation and the provisions on Latin America and Asia now being adopted, direct cooperation between the Community and the NGOs and other associations of the South must be given priority with a view to contributing to the organization of social structures and the growth of political, economic and social democracy;

17.Supports the efforts to secure sufficient appropriations for item B7-5077 of the Community budget for 'decentralized cooperation' to allow some operations to be launched;

18.Deems it necessary, in view of the evolving situation in South Africa and the opinion expressed by prominent leaders from different sides of the political spectrum, to broaden the scope of EEC cooperation towards South Africa including support for programmes in the fields of housing, education, health etc., and to identify new channels thereto, not excluding existing ones where appropriate; to this end, expresses the wish that, among other things, links between the Community and existing partners should be maintained;

19.Points out that the need to preserve the independence and freedom of action of the NGOs must be reconciled with the need for their activities to tie in with the general framework for the conception and execution of the development policy defined and implemented by the Community; calls on the Commission to provide the necessary resources and coordination;

20.Takes the view that co-financing, like the other schemes involving cooperation with the Community, must cover the widest possible range of NGOs and that the preliminary administrative formalities should be kept to a strict minimum with more stringent controls on completion of projects; the main purpose of such checks should be to assess the effectiveness of projects; welcomes, in this context, the publication of an assessment of the education projects on development issues carried out in the EEC;

21.Calls on the Commission to draw up proposals to ensure clear, consistent and standardized procedures for participation by NGOs in the various types of Community action, including activities not involving DG VIII;

22.Considers that there should be no further delay in increasing the staff of the departments responsible for co-financing in DG VIII and at the same time ensuring that such staff are deployed effectively; also calls for every possibility of streamlining and rationalizing the relevant management mechanisms to be investigated;

23.Stresses the importance of ensuring throughout the Community that volunteer aid workers employed in the developing countries by the NGOs are given adequate social protection so that such considerations do not discourage those who might wish to become involved in this type of project; looks to the Commission to submit as soon as possible a report reviewing this whole question, as it was called upon to do in Council recommendation 85/308/EEC;

24.Considers the Community must play a greater role in coordinating projects and the deployment of the total resources available, in the Community and in its Member States, for development cooperation to ensure that the activities are better coordinated and more effective;

25.Welcomes the holding of regular annual meetings between its Committee on Development and Cooperation and the NGO Liaison Committee, which keep Parliament informed on the NGOs' views and main concerns and on the problems they face;

26.Considers that the competence of the NGOs of North and South and their knowledge of the real problems of the peoples could be turned to good account by the Community bodies, for instance by taking account of their opinions on matters affecting North/South relations (international economic and trade negotiations etc.), by involving them in meetings of the joint committees, etc.;

27.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, Council and the governments of the Member States.