Policy Updates

On May 28, 2024, German State Secretary Jochen Flasbarth became the first high-ranking German official to meet the new Senegalese government following President Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s election, where he discussed energy transition, local vaccine production, and creating jobs for the local youth population.

Flasbarth emphasized the long-standing partnership between Germany and Senegal, particularly in renewable energy, highlighting Senegal's peaceful governmental transition as a sign of its robust democracy.

Senegal's government expressed commitment to continuing its strong partnership with Germany, especially within the framework of the Just Energy Transition Partnership established in 2023. The partnership involves multiple international stakeholders and aims to enhance energy supply, reduce poverty, and create job opportunities, especially for young people. Flasbarth’s visit also addressed vocational training and support for small enterprises to generate new income opportunities.

The cooperation includes establishing a vaccine production facility in Diamniadio and creating an independent regulatory body for vaccine approval. The initiative aims to position Senegal as a key player in the West African public health sector by enhancing local medicine and vaccine supply capabilities.

On May 23-25, 2024, the G7 Ministers of Finance met at a summit in Stresa, Italy, where the ministers voiced support for contributions to the IDA, WHO, Gavi, and the Global Fund in the resulting communiqué.

The G7 ministers supported efforts towards a successful 21^st replenishment of the IDA by the end of 2024 through an ambitious policy and financing package. Notably, they did not give a concrete signal that the critical US$100 billion threshold requested by the World Bank will be crossed, nor any indication of the US$120 billion expected by African leaders.

The ministers reaffirmed their dedication to strengthening the governance and finance of the global health architecture and voiced support for refinancing processes of several GHIs, such as Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the WHO, and the Global Fund, and expressed support for the Pandemic Fund. The communiqué called on the donor community to coordinate efforts and increase investments in global health in line with their capacities to ensure sustainable funding and maximize the impact of available resources.

Following the summit, the C7 pointed out the G7's lack of ambition and financial commitment to international development, including climate adaptation. International civil society organizations criticized the lack of any reference to allocating SDRs to global solidarity.

On May 22, 2024, the BMZ At the OECD Forum on Responsible Mineral Supply Chains in Paris, the BMZ presented a position paper emphasizing the importance of ethical resource extraction practices and urged responsible resource extraction to prevent human rights abuses and environmental damage during the energy transition.

Parliamentary State Secretary Dr. Bärbel Kofler highlighted the ministry's commitment to ensuring that Germany's energy and transportation transition does not contribute to human rights violations or environmental degradation in resource-rich countries. The paper outlined how German development cooperation can help balance interests fairly with resource-producing nations in Latin America, Africa, and Asia.

Kofler stressed the prevalence of human rights abuses and environmental harm in mining activities, including child labor and water pollution. She emphasized that Germany and Europe’s energy transition must not come at the expense of communities and ecosystems in supplier countries. The paper advocated for stringent oversight of supply chains, as mandated by Germany's 2023 Supply Chain Act, which requires thorough tracking from mining to end product to uncover and address violations.

The OECD forum, established in 2011, serves as a key platform for international stakeholders from business, politics, and civil society to discuss responsible mineral supply chains. The OECD’s guidelines for due diligence in high-risk areas have become essential references for legislation and industry standards, promoting responsible practices globally.

On May 21, 2024, the BMZ and German Development Minister Svenja Schulze introduced updated guidelines for sustainable textile procurement, aiming to incorporate more rigorous ecological and social criteria.

Germany's new guidelines emphasized ecological and social criteria for public textile purchases, aiming to set a global standard for responsible procurement across various public sectors and aims to enhance responsible purchasing practices. The new standards are meant to ensure that textiles are produced without child labor or environmental damage.

The guidelines, developed by the BMZ in coordination with other ministries, are intended for use by all federal authorities and administrations. The updated guidelines offer practical advice on embedding human rights due diligence in public procurement, mirroring requirements in the private sector under Germany’s Supply Chain Act. The guidelines also introduce stricter ecological requirements, benefiting the predominantly female workforce in the textile industry.

The German government stated that it aims to leverage its significant purchasing power to promote global social and environmental standards by committing to procure at least 50% of all textiles according to these guidelines by 2026.

On May 17, 2024, Team Europe and Nepal announced an EUR65 million (US$70 million) partnership to increase electrical connectivity in rural areas surrounding Kathmandu.

Co-financed with an EUR25 million (US$27 million) loan from the EIB, EUR14 million (US$15 million) from the KfW, and EUR1 million (US$1 million) from the EU, the project will support infrastructure development linking Kathmandu and outlying municipalities.

The project also aims to increase access to electricity from renewable energies, including hydropower from the Trishuli river. In total, the river has to potential to provide up to 650 megawatts with capacity improvements from current projects.

On May 14-15, 2024, the C7 summit was held at the UN FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy, organized by the Italian Civil Society Coalition that led, coordinated, and moderated the C7 2024 process.

Approximately 400 global representatives took part in the event, as well as international decision-makers, including FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu, Italian G7 sherpa Ambassador Elisabetta Belloni, Cardinal, President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, Pope’s envoy for the Russian-Ukrainian conflict Matteo Maria Zuppi, and Director of the UN SDG Action Campaign Marina Ponti.

The official C7 communiqué that listed the international civil society recommendation to the G7’s Leaders around seven key issues was released at the event, which included:

• Economic justice and transformation;
• Climate, energy transformation, and environmental justice;
• Global health;
• Principled humanitarian assistance;
• Peace, common security, and nuclear disarmament;
• Human mobility and migration; and
• Food justice and food systems transformation.

On May 8, 2024, German Development Minister Svenja Schulze met with Jordanian Planning Minister Zeina Toukan and Water Minister Raed Abu Soud to strengthen cooperation on sustainable water supply projects, including a large-scale seawater desalination plant to address Jordan's acute water crisis.

Germany's contributions included an additional EUR15 million (US$16 million), raising its total support to EUR80 million (US$87 million). Additionally, Germany will cancel EUR25 million (US$27 million) of Jordan's debt, provided these funds are reinvested in the water infrastructure project. The partnership is slated to construct one of the world's largest seawater desalination plants and promoting resource-efficient agricultural irrigation. Jordan faces severe water shortages exacerbated by climate change and an influx of refugees.

Germany will support the desalination project, which will deliver water from the Red Sea to northern Jordan and Amman, primarily using renewable energy. The initiative is set to provide clean drinking water to around four million people by 2028.

The partnership also emphasizes resource-efficient irrigation to support Jordan's agriculture sector, which employs many refugees. Germany pledged a EUR200 million (US$217 million) loan to expand wastewater treatment facilities and improve irrigation systems, along with a EUR22 million (US$23 million) grant to ensure high-quality wastewater treatment.

On April 24, 2024, German Development Minister Svenja Schulze, speaking at the Petersberg Climate Dialogue, urged immediate global efforts in climate action, emphasizing the need for increased investment in mitigation measures and innovative financing mechanisms.

Schulze called for urgent climate action amid record heatwaves, storms, and rainfall, citing the urgent need to invest significantly more in climate mitigation. She highlighted successful initiatives such as World Bank reforms enabling an additional US$70 billion investment in climate action, and collaborations with non-traditional donors like the UAE in establishing the UN Loss and Damage Fund, emphasizing the necessity for innovative financing mechanisms to bridge the gap in climate investment. Schulze also endorsed the Brazilian G20 presidency's initiative to fairly tax billionaires worldwide to address the climate crisis.

On April 16, 2024, the BMZ published a strategy paper that emphasized the importance of preserving natural ecosystems and biodiversity while tackling climate change, highlighting the significance of international cooperation for sustainable development.

The BMZ underscored the critical role of intact ecosystems in providing essential services like clean air, water, food, and natural resources.

The strategy paper aligns with global initiatives such as the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the UN SDGs, emphasizing the need for collaborative efforts to address biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse, and resource scarcity. 15 out of the 17 most biologically diverse countries are low- or middle-income countries.

The paper outlined strategies to support partner countries in implementing sustainable resource management practices, biodiversity conservation measures, and ecosystem restoration projects. Additionally, it noted its aim to enhance global funding mechanisms and promote inclusive approaches to water management, sanitation, and hygiene. By prioritizing the protection of natural resources and fostering resilient communities, the BMZ called to drive transformative change towards sustainable development by 2030.

From February 16-18, 2024, the Munich Security Conference hosted global leaders to discuss pressing issues such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, alongside calls for increased global financial allocation for sustainable developing

The agenda and many side events were dominated by discussions surrounding the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.

Several statements from high-level individuals focused on the insufficiencies of the current global financial architecture. Among them was UN Secretary General António Guterres, who requested an additional allocation of US$500 billion annually to provide accessible, long-term financing for low- and middle-income nations to invest in achieving the SDGs.

Some CSOs took the opportunity to advocate for the 0.7% financing goal for ODA during the conference, which highlighted uncertainty following Germany's budget crisis, which began in late 2023. The One Campaign issued a statement advocating for the 0.7% target, signed by various influential figures of German politics, including former German President Horst Köhler, former Minister of Development Gerd Müller, and Chair of the Munich Security Conference Christoph Heusgen.

Sustainable food systems was another prominent topic at the conference. The WFP presented its new global Innovation Accelerator office during one of the side events of the conference. The Accelerator is slated to utilize innovation and technology to address food insecurity globally, according to the WFP.