HelpAge International welcomes the European Union's (EU) focus on poverty reduction in its development policy, and the innovative mechanisms of the EU-ACP Africa-Caribbean-Pacific Cooperation Agreement (Cotonu Agreement) for country-ownership and civil-society participation. We also welcome the attention that the European Commission (EC) gives to ageing issues in its humanitarian policy.

Within this framework of rights-based humanitarian policies and inclusive development, HelpAge International argues that only by ensuring all of the poor are targeted in development policy and programmes – in particular, older people, children, disabled people and women – can EU poverty-reduction targets be met.

European Union Development policy commitments

A number of EU policy commitments refer to targeting the most vulnerable, including older people, and ensuring equal access for all ages.

Several resolutions of the European Parliament and of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly call on the Commision, Council and Member States to make ageing a central issue, include older people, and recognise their contributions to development, particularly as carers and educators of orphans and vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS.

European Union humanitarian policy commitments

Programmes from the European Commission Humanitarian Office (ECHO) take the impartiality principle into account: "The Commission allocates the aid impartially, without discrimination as to race, ethnic origin, religion, sex, age, nationality or political affiliation."

HelpAge International has been an implementing partner of ECHO’s since 1983 and is a signatory to successive Framework Partnership Agreements, the latest of which was signed on 7 November 2003.

European Union development aid

The EU is the largest multilateral donor for developing countries. Fifty per cent of aid worldwide comes from the EU and its Member States combined. One-fifth of this aid is managed by the European Commission, making it the third largest donor in the world.

At a global level, the European Union has a key political and economic role, especially in areas such as trade and foreign policy.