The European Year 2015 will be devoted to development, on this occasion, the European Union has implemented various measures with the aim of raising awareness on this issue.

The decision was taken at the instigation of the European Parliament and of the Council on April 2, 2014 with the motto “Our world, our dignity, our future.”

The main objective will be to inform citizens about the EU’s contribution to development, the year will seek to stimulate the active interest of European citizens for development cooperation, by making them aware of their responsibilities and opportunities offered to them to participate in the formulation of policies and their implementation.

Specific measures will be implemented, such as communication campaigns, conferences, events, initiatives, studies and surveys at European, national, regional and local level to convey important messages, disseminate information on development cooperation in the EU and call upon European citizens to participate and contribute actively. The Commission may identify other activities that contribute to the objectives of the European Year of development.

The European Commission proposes the themes of European Years, which must be approved by the Parliament (decision of April this year) and by the Council. The European Year of development is the first “European Year” dedicated to external actions of the EU. The EU is currently the world’s largest donor of development aid.

The policy of cooperation with developing countries dates back to 1957, when establishing the European Economic Community (EEC). For the period 2014 – 2020, Council and Parliament agreed on an amount of 66, 262 billion for the envelope “Europe in the World” and 30 506 billion (current prices) for the 11th European Development Fund (EDF).