Differentiation in ACP-EU Cooperation: Implications of the EU's Agenda for Change for the 11th EDF and Beyond

This paper presents an independent analysis aimed at promoting and informing the (ongoing) discussions on the application of the differentiation principle noted in the EU’s recently adopted Agenda for Change to ACP countries for the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) and beyond.

This paper analyses the European Union’s (EU) recent policy discussions of applying the principle of differentiation to development cooperation and on this basis reviews potential implications for the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group of countries in relation to the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) and beyond. It acknowledges that there is an ongoing debate on the desirability of differentiation from a development-effectiveness point of view. The paper itself does not enter into this debate, but instead takes the Cotonou Partnership Agreement as a starting point to examine the extent to which recent EU policy developments may influence the application of the differentiation principle described in this Agreement. The need for dialogue on this issue is emphasised throughout.

Read Discussion Paper 134