European Union Office

When a crises hits, be it an unfolding conflict or a natural disaster, humanitarian aid is a lifeline for people. The EU has a role to play in making sure that peoples’ needs come first, and that they receive live-saving aid and support as is their right.

The global food system is broken. It is unsustainable for people and planet. The combination of extreme inequality and poverty, human rights violations, conflict and the climate crisis has left hundreds of millions of people struggling to find their next meal. More recently, the sharp food price inflation accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have added fuel to the fire

The EU and EU countries must commit to a feminist foreign policy. This means an intersectional feminist approach which puts gender, racial, economic and climate justice at its heart, prioritizes decolonization and puts the voices of those who have historically been least represented, and are often most impacted, at the centre of policymaking. 

Civic space is at the heart of change. An open civic space enables people to come together, voice their needs, demand accountability, and fight for justice. However, around the world, governments are cracking down on people’s rights to freedom of peaceful assembly, association and expression, and the environment for civil society is shrinking. For the first time since 2004, there are more autocratic governments than democratic ones. 

In 2020, poverty increased for the first time in 25 years. Meanwhile the richest have become even richer. Inequality is skyrocketing with the world facing multiple crises such as the Ukraine war, the energy crisis and the aftermaths of the pandemic, yet some companies are recording their highest profits ever and the super-rich pocketed billions of euros, using tax loopholes to evade paying their fair share of tax.   

Reacting to the vote of the European Finance Ministers in favour of the 'enhanced cooperation procedure' for a financial transaction tax in eleven European countries, Nicolas Mombrial,