Making up for broken promises, Flanders and Africa, and finding $4.2 trillion for SDGs
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Yesterday, the European Commission presented its flagship initiative to make European industries more competitive. The Competitiveness Compass – another Compass! – takes many of the recommendations of the Draghi report and proposes ways to improve economic growth on the continent. A key section of the proposal revolves around the need for simplification, which means a reduction in red tape to help companies focus on innovation. This effort is seen by many as rolling back on green legislation and the reporting requirements that are at the heart of the EU Green Deal: the flagship initiative of the previous Commission. During her press conference, Ursula von der Leyen went out of her way to explain how this simplification exercise will by no means reduce the EU’s environmental commitments. But these are troubling times for those who care about environmental protection and the fight against climate change, as political messages these days are veering in a different direction.
At ECDPM, we will stay the course and continue to work on climate issues and explore ways to make policies work better. In fact, we have selected the climate conference in Brazil in November – COP30 – as one of our three centre priorities for 2025. What are the chances for such an important milestone to deliver on its objectives at a time of open geopolitical hostility? In our latest brief, we look at the loss and damage fund launched at COP28. More than one year on, it is clear that “existing financing mechanisms are insufficient to address the challenges at the scale required”. While it is difficult to turn things around in the current political climate, we should not stop trying.
We also continue our work on ways to fill the funding gap to address the climate crisis. This week, we have a guest commentary on how pension funds’ investments in emerging markets could help. And we feature a LinkedIn article on the outcomes of our webinar on water, energy, food and ecosystems in cities, held last week.
Finally, a number of our Flemish colleagues were among the authors of a study that analysed existing partnerships, challenges and opportunities to strengthen the relationship between Flanders and Africa.?
All the best,
Virginia Mucchi, Head of outreach and impact at ECDPM
Editor’s pick
One year after the launch of the loss and damage fund at COP28, progress is stalling. Daniel Adeniyi delves into the challenges facing the fund and argues that the EU, as its main contributor, must address the 99% funding gap through higher contributions, innovative funding mechanisms and the political prioritisation of climate justice.
Highlights
Based on our recent webinar discussion, Hanne Knaepen argues that as climate risks and geopolitical tensions escalate, robust funding for the water-energy-food-ecosystem nexus is not just an environmental or developmental priority – it’s a strategic necessity for European security and global stability.
Watch the webinar recording here.
Emerging markets face a $4.2 trillion annual funding gap for the SDGs and climate goals. In this guest commentary, Sofía Vega Nú?ez explains how initiatives such as ILX target these markets and co-invest alongside multilateral development banks and development finance institutions on behalf of pension funds.
This study, conducted by HIVA-KU Leuven and ECDPM for the Flanders Chancellery and Foreign Office, explores how Flanders can develop sustainable and mutually beneficial relations with Africa in a dynamic world shaped by geopolitical changes. The study was launched earlier this week at a high-level event in Antwerp, featuring the Flemish minister-president.
The full study is currently available in Dutch, with an executive summary provided in English. An English version of the full study will be released soon.
Events
30 JANUARY
The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace is organising a hybrid event on priorities for the US administration and congress on strengthening economic relations with Africa.
31 JANUARY
ECDPM’s Melody Musoni will be speaking at a webinar on cross-border data flows in Africa, organised by the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology Law at Strathmore University.
See also our paper on cross-border data flows in Africa and our interactive tool on data policies in African countries.
3 FEBRUARY
EU leaders will discuss European defence during an informal meeting in Brussels.
3-4 FEBRUARY
An informal meeting of EU trade ministers will take place in Brussels.
3-11 FEBRUARY
The 156th session of the World Health Organization executive board meeting is taking place.
5-7 FEBRUARY
The 2025 Partnership Forum of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) will be held at the UN headquarters in New York.
Other news
ECDPM SOCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Melody Musoni argued that Africa should take charge of its own digital future, focusing on regional partnerships and integration…
…and why the rise of DeepSeek highlights the urgency to take AI governance seriously.
AI AND TECHNOLOGY
The AfCFTA offers youth entrepreneurs in Africa opportunities to expand market access, fintech innovation and digital economy growth (Mona Iddrisu, ACET)
The US is not just competing in AI but redefining the game, overshadowing Europe’s future in great power competition (Andrea Renda and Pierre-Alexandre Balland, CEPS)
领英推荐
AI holds potential for global growth and productivity, but the sector is challenged by increasing development costs and energy demands (Dambisa Moyo for Project Syndicate)
CLIMATE, ENERGY AND FOOD
How a new mechanism could mitigate currency risk to support Africa's energy transition (KPMG and AfDB)
What ecologically-friendly farming practices could look like in Africa (Rachel Wynberg for The Conversation)
Two decades on, Africa’s agricultural vision remains unfulfilled (Wafa Misrar for African Arguments)
Why investing in food systems is a safer bet than military spending (Máximo Torero Cullen for Devex)
How to make COP30 a climate turning point (Ana Toni for Project Syndicate)
GEOPOLITICS AND MULTILATERALISM
Amid rising great power rivalry, middle powers are forming flexible coalitions to safeguard interests and reinforce multipolarity, with 2025 as a key moment (Hung Q. Tran, PCNS)
Even in a world of deals where bargaining power matters most, middle powers have plenty of advantages (Anne-Marie Slaughter for Project Syndicate)
China continues to emphasise its status as ‘the world’s largest developing country’, yet this no longer describes reality (Stephan Klingebiel and Hangwei Li for Global Policy journal)
What is most striking about the 2025 edition of the World Economic Forum? (Carl Bildt, Arancha González Laya and Mark Leonard, ECFR podcast)
What is the Competitiveness Compass and what impact will it have on the EU’s economic future? (Giada Santana and Miriam Sáenz de Tejada with Charles Cohen, EURACTIV podcast)
The withdrawal of US foreign aid could exacerbate humanitarian crises and trigger political instability, jeopardising the EU’s own interests (Coline Le Piouff, ECFR)
What are conflict-related threats to EU interests in 2025? (‘Global Risks to the EU’, Veronica Anghel, EUI Robert Schuman Centre)
SECURITY
How do the EU’s security and defence partnerships with six countries in Europe and Asia compare? (Elena Lazarou with Panagiotis Politis Lamprou, EPRS)
France's decision to close its military bases in Africa will have significant strategic and political consequences (Thierry Vircoulon for The Conversation)
Africa deserves greater representation at the UN Security Council but needs a better plan to get there (David Thomas, African Business)
Whether a state emerges as a winner or loser from a military conflict is significantly determined by money (Jonathan Federle, Dominic Rohner and Moritz Schularick, IfW Kiel)
To get out of Sudan’s deepening conflict, mediators may need to present a notional picture of what the post-war dispensation could look like (International Crisis Group)
Tensions in the region escalated after M23 rebels claimed to capture Goma, resulting in the closure of the Congo-Rwanda border (Constantin Leclerc, Deutsche Welle)
GOVERNANCE
Peaceful elections in South Sudan require conflict prevention and effective dispute resolution (Nic Cheeseman, Luka Biong and Edmund Yakani, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung)
The struggle for political change is ongoing in Mozambique (Nádia Issufo, Deutsche Welle)
The military governments of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have withdrawn from the Economic Community of West African States (Al Jazeera)
Africa's 2024 political landscape reveals a mix of democratic progress and persistent governance challenges (Kevin Mofokeng, Democracy in Africa)
In 2024, elections heightened EU fears over the fragility of European democracies, shifting its focus (Richard Youngs et al., Carnegie Europe)
MIGRATION AND MOBILITY
The European Commission is fundamentally overhauling its payments to Tunisia after an investigation exposed abuses by EU-funded security forces (Mark Townsend, The Guardian)
What are the key milestones for implementation of the EU’s pact on migration and asylum? (Anja Radjenovic, EPRS)
The vision of a borderless Africa seeks unity and prosperity, but conflicts with governance realities (Tinashe Sithole for The Conversation)
Startups facilitating remittances for Africans abroad are rapidly expanding as transfers to sub-Saharan Africa reach new highs (Alexander Onukwue, Semafor)
ECONOMY AND FINANCE
Africa will be the second-fastest-growing global region in 2025, but poverty, climate change and weak governance fuel social frustration (Alex Vines, Chatham House)
As mining tensions rise in West Africa, East Africa is set to benefit (Alexis Akwagyiram, Semafor)
The popularity of Eurobonds among African nations masks underlying risks, with mounting debt threatening financial stability in the years ahead (Misheck Mutize, Democracy in Africa)
Southern-led multilateral development banks are rapidly expanding as key regional lenders, differing from institutions like the World Bank in governance and priorities (Chris Humphrey, ODI)
Recent policy shifts from the Trump administration highlight the pressing need for Africa to diversify and industrialise (Padmashree Gehl Sampath and Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka for LSE)
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