New Laws Regarding Development Cooperation a Turning Point, says the Minister for Foreign Affairs

Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, says that the passing of new laws at the parliament regarding Iceland’s international development cooperation is a turning point since the resolution seals the aim of the government’s governance agreement that development cooperation is a new cornerstone in the Icelandic foreign policy. The minister says that development cooperation is a key issue in the international community and the prerequisite for security in the world, peace and justice. With the new laws, the parliament took a historical step to fulfil Iceland’s duties in the international community.

The laws embody radical reforms to the management of this field. The emphasis is put on an efficient, transparent and responsible management, a clear policy making, increased input by the parliament, which regularly approves development cooperation plans, and a special collaboration committee with representatives from non-governmental organisations, universities and industries to ensure that Iceland’s policy in this field will always be built on new and rich knowledge. 

The minister said in a press conference today that the new laws had created more flexibility in implementing development cooperation and that pushed Iceland’s development cooperation forward by many years. In the international field, strong and professional demands are made regarding development cooperation which Iceland will increasingly adopt, with a membership application to OECD’s development cooperation committee, among other things. 

The purpose of Iceland’s development cooperation is to support governments’ efforts in the developing countries to eradicate poverty and hunger and to promote economic and social development. The recipient country’s ownership is a key issue. Iceland’s emphasis regarding international development cooperation is equality, sustainable development, education, health care, peaceful colflict solutions and a sustainable use of resources, with emphasis on energy and fisheries.

In 2008, Iceland puts a little less than 4 billion Icelandic krónur (ISK) towards international development cooperation which constitutes 0.3% of the country’s GNI. To compare, Iceland’s contribution ten years ago was 0.07% of the country’s GNI.