On 3 October 2024, the Chair of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD DAC), Carsten Staur, arrived in Riga on his first visit to the Baltic States. He took part in an international conference dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the development cooperation of Latvia and co-hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Latvian Platform for Development Cooperation (LAPAS).
During meetings with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Central Finance and Contracts Agency and the Saeima, members of civil society and the private sector, Carsten Staur gained a broader insight into Latvia’s development cooperation system and welcomed Latvia’s initiative to join the DAC. The priorities of Latvia’s development cooperation policy were discussed, including support for the civilian population and reconstruction of Ukraine, as well as the role of the parliament, local governments and civil society in development cooperation policy. An insight was also provided into the governance of policy processes.
Latvia initiated the process of its accession to the DAC on 25 April 2024. Membership will mean an increase in the actual impact and international visibility, as well as broader opportunities for cooperation. This is an important step in highlighting Latvia’s foreign policy priorities, including support for Ukraine and other EU Eastern Partnership countries, at the international level. As a DAC member state, Latvia will be able not only to participate in decision-making and to promote cooperation with other DAC members in projects, coordination of positions and on other platforms, but also to improve its development cooperation policy system and raise its effectiveness through taking over the experience of OECD experts and member states.
Carsten Staur underlined that Latvia’s membership of the DAC was a strong political commitment to continued involvement in international development cooperation, expected to be part of the wider efforts of donors to seek solutions and invest in shaping the global agenda. For a smaller donor such as Latvia, this means a big leap; however, the country is prepared to take that step. The DAC, its member states and the OECD Secretariat will be important partners on the path forward.
A final decision on Latvia’s admission to the DAC is expected in the first quarter of 2025.
Background information
Development cooperation is the provision of assistance and expertise to partner countries with the aim of promoting the sustainable socio-economic development of those countries and their societies. Latvia’s development cooperation policy is based on the Development Cooperation Policy Guidelines for 2021–2027, which include both bilateral and multilateral cooperation objectives and projects. Geographical priorities for cooperation are the Eastern Partnership countries (especially Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova, as well as support for the civil society of Belarus), Central Asian countries (especially Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan), as well as African and least developed countries.
The OECD DAC is a leading international forum bringing together countries, development assistance providers, to discuss and decide on standards to promote aid effectiveness and sustainable development. Latvia has already been active in various DAC working groups and participates in the reporting of the official development assistance (ODA) statistics since 2002 thereby demonstrating its commitment to getting involved in the formulation of the development cooperation policy agenda and cooperation with other DAC countries.
About the conference: Baiba Braže at the development cooperation conference: Latvia once received assistance, now we are supporting partners in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Africa