At today’s meeting of the Development Cooperation Sub-Committee, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg gave a reminder that COVID-19 is acting as an accelerant for humanitarian crises in many places.
The developments over many years to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are at stake,
warned the Foreign Minister.
This crisis has highlighted the inequalities and fragilities within the international community.
The next major development policy task is to ensure early, fair and affordable access to COVID-19 vaccines for all countries of the world.
I see it as our duty to make a contribution here – because no-one is safe until everyone is safe,
said Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg.
I am therefore pleased that we are able to provide 2.4 million euros for vaccines for developing countries.
Specifically, support will be provided for the COVAX Advance Market Commitment, which ensures access to vaccines for a total of 92 developing countries.
Austrian Development Cooperation aims to provide sustainable aid on the ground. Not least, the local presence also includes the coordination offices of the Austrian Development Agency (ADA).
In this context, I am pleased to inform you that we will upgrade a fully functional coordination office for Austrian development policy in Yerevan in the first half of 2021,
announced Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg. Armenia has been one of Austria’s priority countries since 2011. Foreign Minister Schallenberg explains:
With this step, we are setting a deliberate example to make our commitment more visible in this long-suffering country and also throughout the South Caucasus.
Schallenberg describes the challenges ahead as “immense” and says that only by working together will it be possible to make a difference. Internationally, the Foreign Minister is counting on cooperation within the framework of the EU, the OSCE, the Council of Europe and the UN. “Nationally,
I am counting on our proven and trusted cooperation with Austrian NGOs, which implement Austrian development policy abroad with a great deal of expertise and commitment and carry out important information work at home,
concluded Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg in his statement to the Development Cooperation Sub-Committee.
