Minister for International Development Heidi Hautala: The budget proposal presented by the Ministry of Finance is counter to the Government Programme

Press release 209/2011
23 August 2011

Yesterday the Ministry of Finance published its proposal for the State budget for the year 2012 and its proposal for the budget planning period of 2013–2015. According to the proposal, development cooperation appropriations for the year 2012 would be frozen at the level of the gross national income in 2011. Development cooperation appropriations proper for the years 2013–2014 would reflect the level in 2012. In practice this would mean an appreciable drop in the share of the gross national income allocated for development cooperation during the coming years. At the same time, Finland’s possibilities to participate in climate change financing for developing countries would be clearly weakened.

Minister for International Development Heidi Hautala considers the budget proposal counter to the Government Programme, where savings are envisaged only for the years 2013 and 2014.

“The Government Programme clearly states that Finland strives to achieve steady growth of development cooperation appropriations towards 0.7 per cent of the gross national income,” Minister Hautala says.

Minister Heidi Hautala emphasises that Finland has agreed to raise development cooperation appropriation to 0.7 per cent of gross national income on many occasions. We are also committed to supporting developing countries in reducing their emissions and adapting to climate change; the sums used for this, however, must not detract from poverty reduction.

“The trend proposed by the Ministry of Finance would be very detrimental to Finland’s international credibility. How can we expect others to keep to their commitments if we do not honour our own?”

Because there are many interdependencies in the world, development cooperation should be upheld in economically hard times as well, the Minister pointed out.

“Although poverty reduction is the primary goal of development cooperation, the results generated also come round to benefit us as a more stable global economy and as security.”

Additional information: Milma Kettunen, Press Attaché to Minister Heidi Hautala, mobile tel. +358 40 522 9869