Greece has been a member of Development Assistance Committee/DAC of OECD since 1999 and during this year is going through the 4th Peer Review of its development co-operation policies and programmes. The last Peer Review took place seven years ago, in 2011.
Peer Reviews are compulsory for all DAC members and they aim to improve the quality and effectiveness of development co-operation policies and systems.
In this context, on 15 April 2018, Greece submitted to DAC/OECD its Memorandum on its Development Co-operation Policies and Programmes, for the period 2011-2017. Following this submission, the DAC’s Peer Review team, composed by members of the DAC Committee and Delegates from Austria and the Czech Republic visited Athens, during the period 11-15 June 2018, and had series of meetings with: the Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. G. Katrougalos, the Director General and staff members of Hellenic Aid and other directorates of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as with representatives from other Ministries, international organizations, the Representation of the European Commission in Greece, the General Inspector of Public Administration, the Court of Audit, academia and private sector and members of the “Standing Committee on National Defence and Foreign Affairs” of the Hellenic Parliament.
The final session of the 4th Peer Review, chaired by DAC’s Vice Chair, Mr. Darren Rogers, will take place in Paris, on 28 November 2018. The Greek delegation, headed by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. T. Quick, will consist of the Secretary General for Migration Policy Mr. I. Klapas, staff members of Hellenic Aid and of the Ministry of Migration Policy, as well as the Permanent Representative of Greece to the OECD, Ambassador R. Antonopoulou.
At the introduction of the meeting, the Head of the Greek delegation will present Greece’s main steps as regards its development co-operation policy in the future. Then, the Peer Review team’s main findings and recommendations will be presented and a relevant discussion will follow. A thematic discussion on “responding effectively to migration challenges” will also take place, focusing on Greece’s efforts during the migration crisis. The session will conclude with closing remarks from the Head of the Greek delegation.