Securing lasting peace and promoting stability for a better tomorrow - Main contents
May is the European Year for Development month dedicated to peace and security
Another calendar page has been turned for the European Year for Development and in May we've been taking a closer look at peace and security. This field is crucial if we want to achieve sustainable development in different parts of the world - after all, peace and development go hand in hand.
Attending school, having access to clean drinking water or having a doctor in the neighbourhood is a dream for many who live in conflict affected areas. Unfortunately today there are approximately 1.5 billion people living in fragile and conflict-affected countries. Another worrying figure is that over 51 million people worldwide currently are refugees or displaced from their homes. This is the highest number since World War II.
Conflict and violence can have different root causes including injustice, inequality, ethnic tensions or extremism. Moreover, instability can result from state institutions being weak, failing to meet the basic needs of citizens and upholding human rights. Conflict and violence at a national scale weaken state structures and can reverse a country’s development progress by more than 20 years.
Insecurity and violent conflict are amongst the biggest obstacles to achieving development goals. As a group, fragile states have lagged behind other developing countries in making progress towards reaching the Millennium Development Goals. Only one in every three fragile states is expected to reach the goal of halving poverty by 2015 according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). On current trends, the goal of eradicating poverty and other development goals will remain beyond the reach of many fragile states, well into the future.
Quite often I have heard people ask why we are getting involved in fragile countries. For me the answer is crystal-clear. Peace and security have long been recognised as essential for development, and vice versa. Achieving a safer world is a matter of mutual interest; both for developing and developed countries. By addressing the problem at its very root, that is to put fragile countries back on the path towards development, we can better tackle threats like organised crime, radicalisation, illegal migration here in the EU etc.
Today the EU works with over 50 countries affected by conflict and fragility each year, helping over 120 million victims of conflict and disasters worldwide. Quite simply, I believe that peace and security are vital requirements to ensure progress and sustainable development; that's why we have chosen them as one of our 12 themes of focus for this important year.
You can find out more about projects in this area at: https://europa.eu/eyd2015/en/stories
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