EU Development Cooperation under the Cyprus Presidency: How to Make a Difference?

The Republic of Cyprus holds the rotating EU Council Presidency in the second half of 2012. Against this background, this Briefing Note provides insights into the context and key challenges for EU development cooperation under the Cypriot Presidency. The note, produced at the request of the Cyprus NGO Support Centre, primarily targets Cypriot policy-makers, opinion-makers and civil society organisations. It provides them with a general overview of opportunities to engage on EU development cooperation in the context of the Cypriot Presidency. At the same time, it is a useful tool for informing others interested in the state of affairs of EU development cooperation in the second semester of 2012. The briefing note is based on a desk review and a select number of interviews with representatives of EU Member States, including the two most recent EU Presidencies of Poland and Denmark. The authors would like to thank the interviewees for sharing their valuable insights, while they take full responsibility of the content of this publication.