Policy Coherence for Development information

Policy coherence for development (PCD) is an approach and policy tool for integrating the economic, social, environmental and governance dimensions of sustainable development at all stages of domestic and international policy making. It is the aim of Policy Coherence for Development to make foreign relations to be as ecologically, economically and socially coherent as possible and thereby to make international co-operation for international development more effective.^[1]

Commitments on achieving greater policy coherence to promote development have also been promoted by the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (which has a specific department, Policy Coherence for Development Unit)^[2] as well as in the 2011 Busan Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation, the UN Millennium Declaration and the 2010 UN Millennium Development Goals Summit. In an era when development assistance is likely to come under more pressure, Policy Coherence for Development (PCD) should become more rather than less important, including in the post 2015 framework as is increasingly becoming recognised. An example of such recognition is the target of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 17 which aims to enhance policy coherence for sustainable development as part of the 2030 Agenda.^[3]

The origins of the concept go back to successful European NGO campaigns of the 1990s that put a spotlight on 'dumping' of European products in developing countries, and which in 1992 led to an article in the Treaty on European Community that required EU policy makers to take account of developing country interests when drawing up new policies. Depending on the translation, this Treaty article was referred to as promoting coherence (e.g. German version) or consistency (e.g. English version). Later that same decade the OECD added 'for development' so as to clarify that 'PCD' was about ensuring that policies do not harm and where possible contribute to international development objectives. Examples of PCD definitions clarifying this impact focus can be found in the 2005 European Consensus on Development and the 2008 outcome document of the UN MDG summit, both of which link to the MDGs.

Under the principles of Policy Coherence for Development (PCD) potential conflicts of objectives and interests between international co-operation and other sectoral policies of the various federal departments should be identified and resolved as far as possible. These may be in the following policy areas: Migration policy, agricultural policy, environmental policy, health policy, financial sector policy, security policy, education, research and cultural policy.^[1]

The concept of policy coherence for development (PCD) first emerged in discussions among international aid donors in the early 1990s. The term Policy Coherence for Development (PCD) originally emerged from the realisation that non-aid policies of donors affect developing countries and should not distract but rather be supportive of international development goals. The PCD concept initially emphasised the responsibility of developed countries to take into account the effect on developing countries when formulating domestic policies across different sectors (trade, finance, migration, security, technology, science). It thus originates from a north-south paradigm with responsibilities for better PCD placed on developed countries to the benefit of developing countries. As the concept evolved, PCD has been understood to go beyond a 'do no harm' approach, also with a requirement to seek synergies between development co-operation and other policies as well as to correct existing incoherencies. The debates taking place in the EU and the OECD on promoting PCD have also fostered the understanding that PCD should be enhanced at different levels. These were commonly referred to as internal, intra-governmental, inter-governmental, multilateral, multi stakeholder and developing country coherence.^[4]

PCD operates in a multi-polar global economy in which all countries are playing a role in driving global growth and enabling sustainable development. A rapidly changing global economic landscape means every country is facing more complex and interlinked economic, social and environmental challenges. A better understanding of the linkages of the emerging global trends and their implications is critical for countries as they craft strategies for sustainable development.^[5]