Policy recommendations

  • The European Union should allow ACP countries to maintain their sovereignty and policy space in relation to the appropriate use of their own natural resources. They should be able to use investment regulations, tariff barriers and export restrictions to promote equitable, local and sustainable economic development.
  • The European Commission through its development policy should stimulate resource-rich developing countries to implement their own industrial policies, to protect their infant industries by using legitimate barriers to trade, and by introducing environmental measures. This should allow resource-rich developing countries to move up the value chain, so that the added value to (semi) processed products will remain in the country of origin and would thus stimulate economic development.
  • Within its development budget the EU should allocate sufficient resources to the building of energy and environmental infrastructure to enable developing countries to stimulate economic development.
  • The EU should use its political and economic power to set clear rules in relation to the extraction of raw materials. Like suggested in the February 2011 RMI update an EU code of conduct for EU companies operating in third countries should be developed and measures should be taken to enforce such a code of conduct.
  • In order to provide for more transparency in the supply chain and to minimize the role of European companies in fuelling conflicts over resources, the EU should implement Country by Country reporting, following the US example of the Dodd Frank Act.
  • Within the EPA negotiations the EU should be more flexible as suggested in the RMI update and make sure developing countries can demonstrate the use of export taxes as a policy tool and therefore keep using them.
  • In all policy initiatives and actions elaborated on the basis of the strategy laid down in the Raw Materials Initiative that affect developing countries, DG Development should be closely involved, and ACP partner countries and civil society organisations should be consulted.

 

 

Case: Raw Materials Initiative

11-01-2012 MEP Aylward asks about sustainable trade and development

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) stated that a new international development architecture is needed to assist developing countries with their development of sustainable trade and development and to reverse their marginalisation. In our case study on the Raw Materials Initiative (RMI) we have shown that indeed trade in raw materials is often unfair and incoherent with development policies.

As Europe is heavily dependent on raw materials from Africa, a rather aggressive strategy has been set up to secure the access to third world raw material resources. For instance this strategy prevents developing countries governments to take measures to limit the access of foreign companies to their natural resources, and aims to control the outflow of these resources. Due to that, the EU blocks sustainable development and economic growth in these countries. As raw materials get exported straight away, developing countries dont get a chance to process their raw materials and by that means move up the value chain and diversify their economies. Moreover investment regulations, tariff barriers and export restrictions can help to promote equitable, local and sustainable economic development and should therefore not be prevented by EU trade policies.
In the light of the UNCTAD statement, MEP Liam Aylward (ALDE) asked the Commission what measures are in place to meet this call from the UNCTAD, especially focussing on raw materials. He suggested the protection of raw materials resources as a measure to promote sustainable development and economic growth, and asked if the Commission plans to establish measures to promote a responsible and sustainable consumption of raw materials. The suggestion made in this question corresponds with the policy recommendations that Fair Politics has made with regards to the RMI.

Fair Politics welcomes the question of MEP Aylward, as it encourages the Commission to make their raw materials policy coherent with the EU development policy and objectives and to support developing countries in developing their own economies and extractive industries in a sustainable way. We want to thank MEP Aylward for posing this question and we are looking forward to his next contribution to Policy Coherence for Development. Fair Politics grants MEP Liam Aylward one point in the monitor system towards the Fair Politician of the Year.

Monitor fair: ALDE


Parliamentary questions
19 September 2011 E-008216/2011

Question for written answer
to the Commission
Rule 117
Liam Aylward (ALDE)

Subject: Developing countries and raw materials

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) recently stated that there is a need to implement a New International Development Architecture (NIDA) to reverse the marginalisation of developing countries and assist in the development of sustainable trade and development within these countries.
UNCTAD suggests that developing countries need assistance in order to develop their productive capacities and promote economic growth and prosperity.
Does the Commission have measures in place to promote sustainable development and economic growth in developing countries, including the protection of raw material resources?
What measures are in place to combat inequitable trade practices concerning the development of foreign direct investment within these developing countries?
Does the Commission have any plans to establish measures to promote the consumption of raw materials in a responsible and sustainable manner?