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On 10 May in Brussels at the European Union Development Ministers session, the situation in Haiti, the establishment of the European External Action Service, the EU position for the UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG) review summit were discussed and ways for the EU to use its policy instruments to promote gender equality and to empower women were identified.

On 22 April, the European Commission launched its Spring Package for Development – a twelve-point EU action plan to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015. Among other goals, this EU action plan aims to enact national legislation for setting Official Development Assistance targets.

Lithuania highlights the fact that ambitions to increase financing should correspond to budget situations in the EU member states.

“Demonstration of undue ambition could reduce donor credibility, if the targets were difficult to achieve because of the economic downturn. Besides, it is necessary for the recipient countries themselves to make greater effort,” Director of the Development Cooperation and Democracy Promotion Department of Lithuania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Izolda Bričkovskienė said during the session.

Therefore, Lithuania especially welcomes the EU’s suggestion to assist in strengthening the capacities of developing countries for domestic revenue mobilisation through tax reforms and administration for sustainable development of the countries.

Lithuania welcomes the suggestion to increase financing of the EU assistance to Afghanistan. However, Lithuania stresses that donors should share the burden more evenly and should ensure an even distribution of resources throughout all the regions of the country.

At the session, the EU Development Ministers also discussed the EU Plan of Action on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in Development 2010-2015 that was suggested by the European Commission. Lithuania approves of the suggestions to integrate gender equality issues into the agenda of development policy dialogues systematically, because it is usual to encounter denial or an indifferent attitude towards these issues in the recipient countries.

“It is necessary for the recipient countries to understand the problem better, so that the situation of women’s rights could change in these countries effectively,” I.Bričkovskienė said.