Saving and improving Lives partnership between the UN and the EU in 2013

United Nations Secretary-General

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have been a remarkable global initiative. The MDG framework galvanized governments to make strong political commitments to reduce poverty in all its many manifestations. Thanks to wide-ranging global and national investments, substantial progress has been made in meeting many of the MDG targets, such as halving the number of people living in extreme poverty and increasing the proportion of people who have sustainable access to improved sources of water. However, as we approach the MDG deadline -- the end of 2015 -- urgent action is still needed to accelerate achievements.

The European Union has been a long-standing supporter of UN efforts towards reaching the MDGs. This report presents some of the results of our fruitful collaboration in 2013 in more than 110 countries. Together, we saved millions of lives when crises erupted; enabled people worldwide to claim and enjoy their rights; provided access to health and education for women and children; and addressed some of the fundamental challenges of our era, such as the impact of climate change.

I wish to express our appreciation to the European Union for its generous support of the United Nations in all areas of our work. Collectively, we achieved far more than our organizations could have done alone. I welcome the deepening of this partnership through the MDG Acceleration Framework. As we shape and implement an ambitious post-2015 global development agenda, the United Nations will continue to count on the contributions of the European Union in building lives of dignity for all across the world.

BAN Ki-moon

President of the European Commission

I am delighted to introduce this ninth report which sets out the main accomplishments in the cooperation undertaken between the European Commission and UN agencies, funds and programmes throughout the world in 2013.

The report shows how our joint work in the field continues to pay dividends; illustrates how the European Union and the United Nations have succeeded in creating added value from a partnership that covers a wide array of fields; and demonstrates how we are constantly striving to improve the lives of the most needed people across the developing world.

Together we have witnessed developing countries making significant progress towards meeting the MDGs. Together we have seen economies suffering from rising inequalities. Together we have observed the struggles and conflicts in several countries in transition. And together we have responded. Cooperating with the UN and drawing on its expertise is crucial to the EU’s role as a major development actor. In this sense I am very satisfied that our relationship goes even further. Our partnership for human rights, peace and development also extends to valuable policy dialogue and technical cooperation in a broad range of areas – from environmental sustainability, health and combating drugs and crime, to anti-terrorism, transport, and nuclear energy.

We share a forward-looking focus and a desire to respond to new and emerging challenges which require global answers and comprehensive actions. The EU remains committed to empowering developing countries to lift themselves out of poverty and we are keen to continue our cooperation with the UN in the years to come. Indeed, with 2015 just around the corner and global efforts to shape a post-2015 framework well underway, we have a great opportunity to make good on those aims and make sustainable development processes work for poverty reduction.

Finally we recognise that even successful partnerships like ours can always do better. That is why presenting our key achievements and giving significant visibility to our cooperation, the report provides a welcome spotlight on those areas in which we can do even more to help developing countries and their people.

José Manuel Durão Barroso

High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy

It's a great pleasure to introduce this report, which highlights key parts of the European Union's partnership with the United Nations.

The EU and UN cooperate across the world in pursuit of our objectives. Our work is built on shared attitudes and the principle that relations between states should be subject to the rule of law and based on universal values and mutual respect.

As a unique organization created through decades of negotiation and consensus, the EU believes in a multilateral approach to world affairs.

That is why we will continue to work closely with the UN to push for basic living standards and sustainable use of natural resources. Our work is guided by the desire to strengthen human rights, justice, equality, democracy and the rule of law. One particular strength of the EU's external action is our ability to use the full range of instruments and policies for conflict prevention and management, post-conflict transition and sustainable development. This ‘comprehensive approach’ fits well with the work of the UN.

Through the creation of the External Action Service, the EU has enhanced its diplomatic capabilities and become an even more effective partner for the United Nations. In February 2014, the Security Council welcomed the close cooperation between the UN and the EU, and urged us to strengthen further our partnership.

In doing just that, we will remain a steadfast partner of the United Nations in the years to come.

Catherine Ashton

United Nations Director in Brussels

The United Nations Team in Brussels is pleased to present the ninth Annual UN-EU Partnership report on the results of our collaboration with the European Union. The report represents in a concise and pictorial manner the width and the range of our joint actions across the world. Our partnership, as these annual publications demonstrate, continues to save and improve the lives of millions of people in the developing world every year.

For instance, in 2013, as the Syria conflict continued to intensify, we jointly provided vital support to those most impacted by the crisis, both within the country and in neighbouring countries. Working together, we also provided life-saving assistance to 12 million refugees across the world, and enabled the registration of over 233 million people so they could participate in elections held in 10 countries. These are just a few examples of where practical cooperation between the EU and the UN is making an impact where it counts most: in the lives of people.

The United Nations remains highly appreciative of the valuable support received from the European Union and the citizens of Europe. We look forward to further strengthening this collaboration in the years to come for the benefit of the most vulnerable people across the world.

Antonio Vigilante

EU Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response

2013 has seen an unprecedented number of mega-emergencies, from Syria to Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines and from the Central African Republic to South Sudan. Having to cope with multiple emergencies on a record scale, all happening at the same time, makes it even more important to work together to bring life-saving assistance to the affected men, women and children. The United Nations is in the front line of getting vital assistance to people, but also plays a central role in coordinating the international humanitarian response. The European Union, for its part, is the world's largest donor of relief assistance - in 2013, the European Commission alone contributed almost €577 million to the UN's humanitarian work. In an ever more fragile world, humanitarian needs will keep growing – but the resources available are unlikely to keep pace. This makes it more important than ever to have strong coordination, solid information from the field and common assessments – and on all of these, the UN's leadership is crucial. We also need to look beyond emergency response, at prevention, boosting preparedness and helping communities become more resilient – areas where partnership between the UN and the EU is starting to make a real difference on the ground.

Kristalina Georgieva

EU Commissioner for Development Cooperation

The UN is a strategic and relevant partner for the EU. Our long history of fruitful cooperation has seen us undertake some very successful development projects all over the world and engage together in policy dialogue on major development issues.

I’m pleased that our cooperation is going from strength to strength. Solid development partnerships like ours are exactly what the world needs – especially now, as the international community works together to shape a post-2015 framework. The EU believes that action to end poverty must go hand in hand with action on sustainability. To this end we have advocated a single, comprehensive and universal framework, pursued through a genuine global partnership bringing together all people, governments from all countries, international organisations, civil society and the private sector.

We highly value our partnership with the UN, founded on a shared vision of how development policies should be applied to generate prosperity and achieve a better life for the people in our partner countries. The EU is committed to pursuing its ongoing work with all UN partners, improving and building on our partnership wherever possible, so that we continue delivering efficient and effective development assistance worldwide.

Andris Piebalgs

EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy

EU-UN cooperation is essential to increase efficiency of the international response to complex crisis. This partnership has notably been crucial in the frame of the Syrian crisis, where the EU has been the world's main donor responding to the consequences of the crisis. UN agencies have been one of the main partners of the EU's attempts to mitigate the dramatic consequences of the crisis on the population in Syria and in the region. Apart from covering the basic humanitarian needs, this partnership has allowed to provide education to displaced Syrian children and has helped neighbouring countries and host communities coping with the enormous economic and social pressure resulting from the influx of refugees from Syria.

Štefan Füle