How Poland shaped the European development cooperation during its Presidency of the Council of the EU
01.07.2025
On 30 June 2025, Poland's six-month Presidency of the Council of the EU came to an end. During this period, Poland actively shaped the EU's policy in the field of development cooperation and humanitarian aid. What were the most important events and achievements of the six months of the Polish Presidency? Let's dive in.
Apart from chairing the work of three Working Parties: Working Party on Development Cooperation and International Partnerships (CODEV-PI), Working Party on Humanitarian Aid and Food Aid (COHAFA) and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Working Party, the Polish Presidency organised in Warsaw a number of events related to development cooperation and humanitarian aid: the informal meeting of EU Ministers of Development (10-11 February 2025), the informal joint meeting of CODEV-PI and COHAFA Working Parties (6-7 March 2025), and the informal meeting of EU Directors General for development cooperation and humanitarian aid (8-9 April, 2025).
The flagship event of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU was the fourth edition of the European Humanitarian Forum, organised jointly with the European Commission in Brussels on 19-20 May 2025. In terms of its scale – with over 2,300 participants – the event was one of the largest to be held during the Polish Presidency. Discussion over two days coved the issue of resilience and fragility and humanitarian diplomacy.
A significant success of the Polish Presidency was the adoption, during the Foreign Affairs Council/Development in Brussels on 26 May, of the Council conclusions ahead of the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, which took place in Seville from 30 June to 3 July 2025. Additionally, on 30 June 2025 the EU and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) issued a joint statement for the aforementioned conference, at the initiative of the Polish Presidency.
Poland consistently pursued its thematic priorities throughout the whole semester, emphasizing the importance of supporting partner counties in building resilience to emerging crises. The Presidency facilitated the process of developing “Council conclusions on strengthening resilience in partner countries through EU external action” which were adopted by the General Affairs Council on 18 July 2025.
The Polish Presidency also continued the EU’s efforts to deepen international partnerships to achieve the goals of the 2030 Agenda and other international commitments. Work continued on implementing the Samoa Agreement, including developing the EU’s position on the internal regulations of the joint EU-OACPS institutions and guidelines for partnership dialogue. Moreover, during the Polish Presidency, the Council adopted a series of decisions concerning the conclusion and implementation of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) and Sustainable Investment Facilitation Agreements (SIFA) with a number of partners.
An important part of the Presidency’s work in development and humanitarian areas consisted on facilitating discussions on the EU’s response to the current challenges, especially ongoing reforms of the UN humanitarian system, as well as emerging and ongoing humanitarian crises (including in Ukraine, Sudan, the Middle East, and eastern DRC). Support for Ukraine was regularly addressed in discussions on both development assistance and humanitarian aid.
