The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation is responsible for deciding international development cooperation policy.

The Secretariat of State for International Cooperation (SECI) - which sits within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation - has the primary responsibility for Spanish aid policy and implementation. SECI also houses the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID).

AECID is the main implementing agency for bilateral assistance. The agency is undergoing a reform to increase its capacity for bilateral aid delivery. AECID is also responsible for the collaboration with other national and international organisations and Non-Government Organisations (NGO).

In 2009, the Spanish Council of Ministers adopted the ‘Third Master Plan of Spanish Development Cooperation for 2009-2012’, which aims at focusing on the effectiveness of development cooperation. This plan re-confirms the objective to reach 0.56% by 2010 and 0.7% by 2012. Spain commits to allocate at least 25% of its ODA to least-developed countries (LDCs) as an interim measure until 2015, after which it plans to set it at 15% of GDP.

Spain’s horizontal priorities are:

• Social inclusion and the fight against poverty
• Promotion of human rights and democratic governance
• Gender in development
• Environmental sustainability
• Respect towards cultural diversity

The thematic priorities of Spanish development assistance have an additional focus on rural development and the fight against hunger:

• Democratic governance, citizen participation
• Rural development and fight against hunger
• Education: Contribution to the right to universal, free, inclusive education
• Health: with special attention to the health of those living in poverty and vulnerable populations
• Water and Sanitation
• conomic growth and poverty reduction
• Sustainable environment, climate change and habitat
• Science, Technology and innovation
• Culture and development
• Gender equality
• Migration and development
• Peacemaking

Country strategy documents containing objectives, guidelines and principles increase the coordination and complementarity of Spanish development cooperation. They also facilitate aid allocations by achieving greater sectoral and geographical concentration.

Spain’s priority countries are divided into three categories:

Priority A countries: (including LDCs). Two thirds of all thematic funds will be channelled, funding a maximum of three sectors in each country. These countries include: Algeria, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Dominican, Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Ethiopia, Mali  (new country), Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Niger (new country), Philippines, Senegal, the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Vietnam, Western Sahara.

Priority B countries: (fragile states). Aid will focus on one sector. One fifth of Spanish ODA will be allocated. These countries include: Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Colombia, Congo, East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Conakry (new country), Iraq, Lebanon, and Sudan.

Priority C countries: for those middle income countries with consolidated development results. A maximum of 15% of Spanish ODA will be directed to these countries and selected mechanisms and instruments for aid delivery will be used: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Egypt, Jordan, Mexico, Namibia, Panama, Syria, Tunisia, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

Countries where Spain is no longer active include: China, São Tomé and Príncipe, South Africa and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In 2008 Spain was the 7th largest ODA donor globally, allocating € 4.701 million (0.45% of its GNI to ODA). Total bilateral aid for the health sector was €195 million. Total bilateral aid for sexual and reproductive health was €78 million.

AECID’s preferred bilateral instruments in the health sector are:

• Sector budget support
• Common funds/ donors baskets
• Projects/ Programmes through NGOs
• Projects/ Programmes
• Delegated cooperation
• South-South or Triangular cooperation
• Technical assistance

In 2008, multilateral ODA represented €1,323 million (30% of total ODA). Spanish multilateral ODA allocated to the health sector represented 60% of the total ODA.

In 2008 Spain gave €74 million to UNIFEM, €36 million to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and €10 million to UNAIDS. Furthermore, Spain became one of the most important donors of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM) allocating €97.6 million to the Fund. Spain has allocated €15 million to UNITAID and €4 million to IAVI since 2007.

Sexual and reproductive health has traditionally been funded bilaterally. In 2008 multilateral funding increased significantly. Total aid for SRHR was €179 million in 2008 of which €101 million was channelled multilaterally and €78 million bilaterally.

Spain is one of the OECD countries that channels most of its resources through NGOs. In 2008, €643 million was channelled through NGOs, which accounts for 13.5% of total ODA and 19.3% of total bilateral aid. This amount is more than double than the amount channelled through NGOs in 2005.

Three financial instruments exist for promoting the collaboration between NGOs and the Spanish development cooperation: Agreements and Projects. To accessing these, NGOs need to be registered and certified by AECID.¹ 

In addition, there is a Convocatoria abierta y permanente (Permanent Open Tender, CAP). CAP is the only instrument to which organisations from other countries (including developing countries) can directly apply.

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¹ For further information on certification processes see: http://www.aecid.es/web/es/ongd/calificadas/

 

 

Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional (AECI)

Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de Cooperación: Third Master Plan of Spanish Cooperation for Development (2009-2012).

Secretaría de Estado de Cooperación Internacional. Dirección General de Planificación y Evaluación de Políticas para el Desarrollo. Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de Cooperación: Seguimiento del PACI 2008.

Factsheet Spain, Countdown 2015 Europe.

Factsheet Millennium Campaign from End Poverty: What about Spain?

UNFPA report (2008)

The Global Fund pledges and contributions, April 2010 version.

Programma de cooperación al desarrollo en salud para Africa. VITA

Coordinadora de ONG para el Desarrollo. España