The Diplomat
The State Secretary for International Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, Eva Granados, presented the Spanish government’s development cooperation model within the framework of the negotiations for the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework 2028-2034.
Granados participated this Monday in Brussels in the EU Foreign Affairs Council in its Development configuration (EAFC-DES), as reported by the Ministry in a press release on Tuesday. Subsequently, the State Secretary presented the high-level event “A Renewed Spanish Cooperation for a Stronger Team Europe” at the Permanent Mission of Spain to the European Union.
At the ministerial meeting, chaired by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, Granados presented the renewed model of Spanish Cooperation and its contribution to the architecture of the future Global Europe instrument, within the framework of the negotiations for the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework 2028-2034. She defended Spain’s position in favor of values-based European cooperation, with the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals as an essential roadmap, and advocated for a Global Europe instrument that complements geopolitical ambition with a real impact on sustainable development.
At the subsequent high-level event, the State Secretary warned that both Global Gateway (a strategy launched in 2021 to mobilize public and private resources to support sustainable investments in key sectors worldwide, such as digital, energy, and transport) and Global Europe (the EU’s new external action instrument for the 2021-2027 period) must combine a geopolitical vision with a real impact on development, with the 2030 Agenda as the horizon and partner countries as key players.
The event was attended by senior European Union officials, including the Director-General for International Partnerships of the European Commission and the Director for the Americas of the European External Action Service, among others, and included the participation of the directors of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the International and Ibero-American Foundation for Administration and Public Policies (FIAP), and the Carolina Foundation.
The State Secretary emphasized that Spain is the fourth EU Member State in delegated cooperation management and that the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and the International Fund for Cooperation (FIAP) have managed more than €300 million in European funds between 2021 and 2023. She also highlighted the creation of the Spanish Sustainable Development Fund (FEDES), the financial instrument that allows for combining public and private resources to enhance the impact of Spanish cooperation in alignment with European mechanisms.
Granados further noted that, in a context of a 26 percent drop in global Official Development Assistance (ODA) by 2025 according to OECD data, Spain has increased its aid by 13 percent, which consolidates its position “as a reliable, committed, and strategic partner for the European Union’s cooperation architecture,” according to the press release.
