They discussed human rights in the digital age and how to make digital technology work for human rights. Director O’Flaherty spoke on making digital technology work for freedom of expression and access to information. The dialogue brought up important issues to be addressed from a human rights perspective, including the digital divide and a stronger engagement with private companies.
Parliament and Council negotiators reached an agreement on the budget for 2021-27 earlier this year, but Poland and Hungary object to safeguards that would prevent EU money being used in member states that do not respect the rule of law. It is one of the topics that EU leaders are discussing during the summit in Brussels on 10-11 December.
Sassoli warned that any decisions by the Council would need to respect the spirit and letter of the compromise reached: “Parliament is not prepared to see the results we achieved called into question.”
The President called the current coronavirus crisis a “wake-up call”: “I strongly believe that multilateralism and coordinated efforts are the tools we need to take us out of the current crisis, increase the resilience of our health systems and improve pandemic preparedness and response.”
Speaking about the Green Deal, Sassoli stressed the importance of the strategy to create a sustainable Europe: “This is an historic opportunity and we have no time to lose. EU investment will be crucial in this regard, as EU citizens, towns and cities and companies are counting on us to take urgent action to combat the effects of the pandemic, generate a new form of well-being based on solidarity and create secure jobs.”
Turning to foreign policy, he said there was a need to send a credible signal to Turkey, including economic sanctions, to show that we stand by the territorial integrity of Cyprus: Turkey must realise that because of its actions the prospects of achieving a positive outcome are diminishing rapidly.”
Sassoli also touched on the ongoing talks between the EU and the UK: “An agreement would be a solid basis for our new partnership, but if none can be reached we will need to find new, albeit more limited, ways of working together.” He also said that if an agreement is reached, the Parliament would examine the text closely before voting on it.
The EIB joined a group of 11 multilateral development banks (MDBs) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today in launching a first-ever joint report on financing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The report is released at the end of a critical year, in which the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to reverse progress on the SDGs. In response, MDBs have collectively mobilized a global response package of $230 billion between 2020 and 2021 to reduce the impact of the pandemic, of which $75 billion will be directed to the world’s poorest countries before the end of 2020.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the relevance of the 17 SDGs as a road map for inclusive, sustainable, green, and resilient recovery. In responding to the crisis, countries and their development partners have an opportunity to refocus on the SDGs,” the joint report says.
EIB President Werner Hoyer said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the divisions, inequalities and the vulnerabilities that exist in our societies and across the globe when it comes to accessing healthcare and treatment, sanitation, digital connectivity and responding to climate change. The pandemic has derailed our efforts in meeting many SDGs. We must come back stronger and faster, working closely with our partners in national governments and with our fellow Multilateral Development Banks to make sure that SDG contributions are part of the recovery.”
The joint report highlights collective and individual MDBs efforts to support countries to achieve all 17 of the SDGs. It showcases examples of how their financing directly contributes to advancing SDGs that empower people, protect the planet, foster prosperity for all and develop sustainable quality infrastructure. The report also emphasizes the critical importance of MDBs partnerships to deliver financing, knowledge and capacity building support for the SDGs.
The EIB, after consultations with fellow MDBs and IFIs, has been developing a new mapping methodology for measuring and reporting on its SDG contributions. The approach enables the EIB to give a comprehensive account of its contribution to each of the SDGs, in financial terms as well as in terms of physical project outputs and outcomes. It also allows the bank to take into account a range of interactions and interlinkages amongst SDGs. This methodology is also meant to help the development of a principles-based, joint MDB approach to SDG reporting and underlies EIB’s contribution to this first joint report.
The report presents some of the EIB’s initiatives contributing to the SDGs, such as the EIB’s Group increased climate ambition, the SheInvest initiative to boost gender equality and women economic empowerment in Africa, the Clean Oceans Initiative launched jointly with AFD and KfW to prevent oceans pollution, as well as the EIB’s Climate Awareness Bonds and Sustainability Awareness Bonds. It also mentions some of the projects supported by the EIB such as the EU Malaria Fund, the Lower Usuthu Smalholder Irrigation Project in Eswatini and KULIMA promoting sustainable farming programme in Malawi.
The report concludes that MDBs must continue their efforts to invest in people and human capital, with a deeper focus on inclusion. They will step up their efforts to protect the planet, and promote green development and ambitious climate action reflecting the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. They must also work to strengthen resilience to shocks and stresses, in order to preserve prosperity and continue to promote sustainable infrastructure, including to foster digitization to support innovation and sustainability. They will continue to deepen their partnerships for the goals, including through knowledge sharing and common reporting on the SDGs.
“The MDBs are committed to working alongside all partner countries to help them emerge from this unprecedented crisis better positioned to achieve the SDGs.”
The 12 organizations partnering on the report are the African Development Bank Group, the Asian Development Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Council of Europe Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Investment Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank Group, , the International Monetary Fund, the Islamic Development Bank Group, the New Development Bank, and the World Bank Group (World Bank, IFC, MIGA).
To read the full report ‘Financing the Sustainable Development Goals’.
The Rockefeller Foundation and the European Investment Bank today announced the formation of a global coalition aimed at providing sustainable energy for one billion people within this decade. Organizations joining this call to action also include the African Development Bank, CDC the UK’s development finance institution, International Energy Agency, International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Today one in ten of the world’s people (800 million) lack access to electricity, including half the population of sub-Saharan Africa. Another 2.8 billion people lack access to electricity that is reliable enough to secure their livelihoods or power modern healthcare facilities and schools. The pandemic has only exacerbated the inequality of global energy access.
“In this era of unprecedented crises—including the coronavirus pandemic—we have a responsibility and remarkable opportunity to harness the power that can lead to a more equitable, safer world,” said Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation, “Our goal is ambitious yet achievable: to bring reliable and sustainable electricity, powered by renewable technologies, to a billion people by the decade’s end. Our success will empower millions of people to participate in a modern economy, growing economic opportunity for us all.”
European Investment Bank Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle, said: “The adverse impacts of climate change and environmental degradation, as well as the Covid-19 pandemic, are undermining the ability of countries to achieve sustainable development, and particularly the most vulnerable. Accelerating high-impact investments to improve access to clean energy is essential to address the climate crisis, fight poverty and improve public health. That’s why the European Investment Bank is very pleased to join forces with The Rockefeller Foundation and its “Green and Equitable Recovery Call to Action” as a platform to promote the energy transition across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, by unlocking public and private capital flows into distributed renewable energy systems. This great initiative is fully in line with the strategic priorities and orientations of EIB’s Energy Lending Policy and Climate Bank Roadmap”.
The EIB is a global leader providing technical and financial support for secure and affordable renewable energy investment. Between 2015 and 2019, the EIB provided more than €62 billion for renewable energy, energy efficiency and electricity grid projects worldwide.
Last year the EIB adopted a new and even more ambitious energy lending policy. This committed the EU Bank to phasing out financing of traditional fossil fuel energy projects, including natural gas, by the end of 2021.
Projects recently financed by the EIB include the provision of off grid solar energy in Uganda, helping to overcome barriers to 80% of Ugandans without access to electricity, access to green power in Senegal’s rural areas, and supporting Africa’s largest private sector investment, the Lake Turkana Wind Power, bringing clean and affordable renewable energy to millions of people in Kenya.
As founding members of this Coalition, the organizations commit to:
● Launch a global partnership to end energy poverty.
● Mobilize and coordinate concrete distributed renewal energy systems (DRE) roadmaps, involving technologies such as mini grids; grid-connected local generation and storage; renewable power solutions for industrial and commercial clusters; and stand-alone commercial appliances.
● Identify and support appropriate regulatory, policy, and financial regimes.
● Collaborate to enhance project development and new financing instruments to for DRE projects in underserved markets.
To support the coalition, The Rockefeller Foundation, SEforALL and RMI have launched a new website that provides fresh insight and data on distributed energy opportunities. Go to www.electrifyingeconomies.org
Read Rockefeller Foundation call to action for a green and equitable recovery
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation advances new frontiers of science, data, and innovation to solve global challenges related to health, food, power, and economic mobility. As a science-driven philanthropy focused on building collaborative relationships with partners and grantees, The Rockefeller Foundation seeks to inspire and foster large-scale human impact that promotes the well-being of humanity throughout the world by identifying and accelerating breakthrough solutions, ideas, and conversations.
For more information, sign up for our newsletter at rockefellerfoundation.org.
All documents included in the press kit, along with additional information, can be found on the European Parliament’s website.
European Parliament President David Sassoli will represent the European Parliament at the summit and:
– address the heads of state or government at 14:00
– hold a press conference at 14:30 on 10 December. More information here.
On 10 December, EU leaders will meet in Brussels to discuss further coordination on COVID-19, Multiannual financial framework and the Recovery fund, climate change, security, and external relations. On 11 December, the leaders will also meet for the Euro Summit.