At the UN Conference on the funding of development, held in Monterrey (Mexico) from 18 to 22 March, the European position was outlined by the president of the Commission, Romano Prodi. The European Union pledges to allocate aid for development equivalent to 0.39% of the GDP of its member states by the year 2006 (a slight increase over the current 0.33%). The percentage will be further increased by 2015 to reach a ceiling of 0.70% of GDP, a figure equivalent to half the total of global aid. Belgium, alone among the countries of the EU, proposed, in vain, the total cancellation of the foreign debt of the poorest countries. In spite of differences in view, Monterrey saw an understanding between the EU and the USA concerning the need to eliminate protectionist and trade barriers and create a “new commercial pact” capable in the short term of giving work and development to over 300 million people.
