36 Amendments of Iskra MIHAYLOVA related to 2020/2118(INI)
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas humanitarian aid is severely underfunded, which makes it difficult to adequately address the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in developing countries, particularly those left furthest behind and those impacted by conflict;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas the economic and social effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have been felt most strongly in developing countries; whereas global extreme poverty is expected to rise in 2020 for the first time in over 20 years, leading to the sale of assets, increased borrowing and the use of savings by vulnerable individuals;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas short-term humanitarian aid must be combined with support for existing challenges such as security, poverty, peace, democracy and climate change, in order to strengthen long-term resilience;
Amendment 39 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly exacerbated the existing debt problems of developing countries, while also severely reducing global remittances and FDI;
Amendment 52 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas school closures due to the pandemic have deprived vulnerable children of school feeding and nutrition services that are essential to their health; whereas interruptions to education could have a lasting impact on the long-term prospects of many young people, in particular girls;
Amendment 62 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted the provision of routine immunisation programmes and other basic health services, which is putting lives at risk;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas the pandemic has highlighted the fragility of global supply chains and heightened the vulnerability of those developing countries that depend on them; whereas the pandemic presents an opportunity to develop more sustainable and resilient supply chains;
Amendment 80 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E b (new)
Recital E b (new)
Eb. whereas food insecurity and malnutrition are on the rise as a secondary effect of the pandemic;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the EU’s global response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which demonstrates its ambition to lead and show solidarity with all partner countries; points out, however, that current funds are essentially reallocated from other budget lines and that the challenge of aid front-loading has to be tackled; calls, therefore, for substantial new funds to be mobilised to assist developing countries worldwide in fighting the direct and indirect consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic; stresses that making safe vaccines, treatments, equipment and diagnostics available globally in a fast and affordable manner must be one of the first steps;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 2
Subheading 2
Humanitarian and development aid funding
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. IsWarns that the pandemic risks triggering a humanitarian crisis; is therefore deeply concerned about the underfunding of the EU humanitarian aid budget, given the additional humanitarian needs caused by the pandemic; calls for a clear distribution of the Solidarity and Emergency Aid Reserve (SEAR) envelope, which should aim to provide balanced coverage of its obligations as follows: neither internal nor external operations may be allocated more than 60 % of the annual amount of the reserve; on 1 October of each year, at least one quarter of the annual amount for ‘year n' must remain available to cover needs arising until the end of that year; as of 1 October, the remaining funds may be mobilised to cover needs arising until the end of that year;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Welcomes the recent political agreement on the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI); considers, nonetheless, that funding for development cooperation is insufficient to meaningfully contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals; notes the worrying trend towards shrinking official development assistance budgets in some developed countries at a time of exceptional need; is deeply concerned that this threatens to undo recent progress towards the 2030 agenda;
Amendment 115 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Encourages the Commission to adopt a flexible approach towards humanitarian and development policies in line with an integrated nexus approach, particularly regarding the financing and distribution of vaccines;
Amendment 120 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. UEmphasises that the pandemic is threatening food security in rural, urban and peri-urban settings; underlines that pastoral farming is an ecologically sound, local method of food production and is therefore part of a sustainable food system; considers it essential to support pastoralists by ensuring safe access to local markets during the pandemic in order to make sure that they are able to continue to provide protein-rich food to the local population, that their herds have access to water and grazing land and that mobile community one-health teams monitor the situation and carry out interventions in individual cases but also, where necessary, with a view to maintaining public health; calls for cash transfers and food aid for pastoralists, as well as feed aid for herds, as part of livelihood support in humanitarian aid, when this is needed;
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Considers that the process of economic recovery offers an opportunity to better integrate small farmers and producers into local and regional markets and to develop more sustainable livelihoods; emphasises the importance of technology and digitalisation in this regard, as a means of facilitating market knowledge and access and scaling up small businesses through tools such as mobile money applications;
Amendment 127 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 c (new)
Paragraph 4 c (new)
4c. Points out that, even in times of crisis, food production and distribution must be an absolute priority; considers that a balance must be struck between external sources of food, plants, seeds and fertilisers, while also supporting local and diversified agricultural production, and sharing knowledge about more resilient seeds; supports the boosting of regional trade, which presents significant opportunities for economic growth and diversification while also offering affordable food for consumers;
Amendment 133 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Emphasises the need to support the actions of the FAO and the WFP aimed at mitigating hunger and loss of livelihood and building up resilient food systems, such as those to set up a global data facility for the provision of swift information on humanitarian needs, to provide food production assistance and access to food, to organise cash transfers and in-kind food distribution, to stabilise food systems, and to ensure the functioning of local food markets, value chains and systems while focusing on smallholder farmers by implementing sanitary measures in order to prevent the transmission of COVID-19;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Recognises the crucial role of nutrition in strengthening resilience; calls for a more integrated approach towards preventing, diagnosing and treating hunger and malnutrition in both humanitarian and development responses, particularly among the countries most vulnerable to climate change;
Amendment 159 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Underlines that global extreme poverty is expected to rise dramatically in 2020 for the first time in over 20 years, with the COVID-19 pandemic compounding the forces of conflict, poor governance and climate change and having a particularly hard impact on informal and migrant workers (who represent one quarter of the global workforce), women and the tourism sector and Latin American and Caribbean economies; highlights, against the backdrop of this extreme crisis, the importance of universal social protection; asks the Commission to work outdesign strategies with partner countries for the economic recovery and, job creation and for improving social security systems, with a particular emphasis on harnessing the opportunities of the digital transition;
Amendment 167 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 5
Subheading 5
Refugees and displaced persons
Amendment 172 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Urges the Commission to address the specific needs of refugees, and displaced persons, who risk falling through the gaps when it comes to vaccine provision, while upholding the guiding principle of public health networks of leaving no-one behind and refraining from blocking front-line humanitarian workers from having direct contact with the migrants and refugeesose that they serve; stresses the absolute need for equal access to COVID-19 treatment and other health services and safety net programmes for all affected people, regardless of nationality, migrant/refugee legal status, origin, sex, gender identity or any other characteristic; emphasises that EU policies should seek to support access to employment, education and civic documentation, which will promote the ability of refugees to work towards self- reliance;
Amendment 185 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls for the revision of proposed or existing strategies with the aim of further strengthening health systems (including from private providers) in partner countries, in particular as regards preparedness for pandemics and the organisation and management of health systems, including the provision of universal healthcare, health monitoring and information, training of medical staff, diagnostic capacity and medicine supply (including disease surveillance), training, recruitment and retention of medical staff, diagnostic capacity and medicine supply; urges the EU to promote increased investment in health system strengthening;
Amendment 198 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Stresses the need to catch up on routine immunisation programmes as soon as possible and to provideensure that the provision of other basic health services is resumed; calls for adequate funding for initiatives such as Gavi, the vaccine Alliance, and CEPI, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations; is concerned about the outsourced, fragmented global vaccine governance system, which has led to competition for vaccines, diagnostics and treatments, rather than cooperation; urges the EU and Member States to lead calls for equal and affordable vaccine access worldwide based on the principle of global solidarity; calls on the Commission to ensure that the EU global response to the COVID-19 pandemic does not undermine EU funding for other vital health programmes, including the Minimum Initial Services Package for sexual and reproductive health and programmes targeting the health of women and pregnant women; urges all countries and the Commission to continue to support partner countries in provideing services related to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) as well as routine immunisation services, while ensuring the safety of communities and health workers;
Amendment 205 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Recalls the importance of implementing key lessons from previous health crises such as the Ebola epidemic; highlights in this regard the importance of working with community leaders to spread key public health messages and mobilise societies; underlines the critical role played by civil society organisations and national and international NGOs in delivering health services to the poorest communities; recognises that such organisations will be essential partners in distributing vaccines for COVID-19; calls on the EU to support the capacity- building of these organisations;
Amendment 215 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Supports the important work of the WHO and points out its central role as the leading and coordinating authority on the COVID-19 response, while recognising the need for its reform, including, but not limited to, the reform of the International Health Regulations, after the acute crisis has been managed;
Amendment 233 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Highlights the especially severe consequences of COVID-19 lockdowns and the collateral damage that has been suffered by women, girls and children, in particular the rise in gender-based violence, the increasing incidence of child marriage and female genital mutilation, but also the exposure of women to COVID-19 due to their disproportionately high representation in the global health workforce; calls for action to counterbalance the disproportionate care burden borne by women and any potential roll-backs in safety, health, emancipation, economic independence and empowerment, and education, through specific programmes such as the spotlight initiative and by re- focusing European support; calls for the meaningful participation of women in the decisions that impact their health and working lives; underlines the need to include the gender perspective in the EU’s COVID-19 response, to advocate for inclusive decision-making bodies and to collect sex- and age-disaggregated data for gender analysis;
Amendment 242 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Is concerned that, since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, many governments have used the emergency to justify placing restrictions on democratic processes and the civil space and to oppress minorities; draws attention to the growing negative impact of COVID-19 on all human rights, democracy and the rule of law and calls, therefore, for the strengthening of aid, political dialogue and support for institution-building in all these fields, with particular attention to human rights defenders, while recognising that a balance needs to be found between individual freedoms and saving lives;
Amendment 262 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Points out that the budgets of many developing countries were already out of balance before the crisis and that too little funding was allocated to crisis prevention, health systems and social protectionexperiencing significant levels of debt before the pandemic, thereby preventing adequate investments in crisis prevention, health systems and social protection; underlines the importance of addressing debt sustainability in partner countries as a priority; calls on the Commission to take new initiatives to tackle the problems of illicit financial flows, tax evasion and tax fraud in order to improve the tax bases of developing countries; calls, furthermore, for budget support to be directed towards basic services and resilience;
Amendment 277 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Underlines the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to unprecedented numbers of pupils missing out on months of schooling, constituting a major set-back to efforts in the education sector especially with regard to the education of women, girls’ and women’s educatidisplaced persons; urges governments to use school closures only as a measure of last resort in the fight against the pandemic; pressecalls for education to be kept asremain a spending priority in EU development policy and for due consideration to be given to the social function of schools; urges governments, in this context, to prioritise support for the most marginalised children and their families; recommends that EU countries share their approaches to keeping up teaching even in times of crisis and asks the EU and its Member States to exploit the potential of remote and digital learning in their international support programmes;
Amendment 286 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
Amendment 293 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Considers that the pandemic offers an opportunity to build back better and that the EU’s humanitarian and development policies should support this objective in partner countries; highlights in particular the need to support developing countries in unlocking progress in the digital economy in areas such as health, education and other public services; welcomes the launch of the Digital4Development (D4D) Hub in December 2020 and encourages the EU to make further investments in digitalisation efforts in partner countries, including by leveraging private sector investment;
Amendment 296 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 b (new)
Paragraph 16 b (new)
16b. Recalls that private sector investment could play an important role in contributing to economic recovery and the attainment of the SDGs, given the heightened needs generated by the pandemic; calls for the role of the private sector and blended finance to be further explored as part of recovery and resilience building efforts;
Amendment 299 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
Amendment 308 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
Amendment 321 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Underlines that implementation of the humanitarian-development-peace nexus has to be a priority in the programming of the NDICI in fragile countries; emphasises the importance of peace building for sustainable development, therefore calls for a renewed focus on addressing the root causes of conflict and instability around the world; calls on the Commission’s DG ECHO and DG DEVCO to implement complementary and flexible programmes suited to local contexts and local opportunities, whenever possible, in order to mutually reinforce the different aspects of the nexus;