International cooperation for the development of Andorra and the actors of Andorran cooperation

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs considers it essential to implement an international development cooperation policy rigorous and effective, with a real impact on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. For that reason, the Paris Declaration and the Accra Plan of Action also guide the Andorran cooperation.

The Master Plan for the Andorran cooperation establishes the sectorial and geographical priorities in this matter.

Strategic priorities

  • Education
  • Vulnerable people (children, women and people with disabilities)
  • Environment and fight against climate change

Geographical priorities

The Government of Andorra has established a list of prioritary countries with the aim of obtaining better results and a greater impact with the Andorran cooperation. To decide on these priorities, the Andorran government essentially took three criteria into account:

  • The situation of countries on internationally recognised lists, such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNPD), the United Nations’ list of Least Developed Countries, and the World Bank, thus giving priority to the countries that most need help.
  • Membership to International Organizations to which Andorra is part as the International Organization of La Francophonie, the Ibero-American Summit, the Council of Europe or the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
  • The bilateral relations with Andorra, particularly taking into account the inclusion of the lists of countries with which the Andorran society has historically collaborated in the area of development cooperation.

Geographical priorities of the Andorran government's development coooperation

Countries that are part of priority group 1

  • AFRICA:
    • Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Madagascar, Mali, Mozambique, the Central African Republic and Uganda.
  • ASIA:
    • Cambodia, the Philippines and Syria.
  • LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN:
    • Bolivia, Colombia, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
  • CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE:
    • Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Moldavia.

Countries that are part of priority group 2

  • AFRICA:
    • Benin, Burundi, Chad, Congo, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Morocco, Niger, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Rwanda and Togo.
  • ASIA:
    • Afghanistan and Nepal.
  • LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN:
    • El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.
  • CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE:
    • Armenia and Ukraine.

Countries that are part of priority group 3

  • Other countries that are part of International Organizations to which Andorra is part as the International Organization of La Francophonie, the Ibero-American Summit, the Council of Europe or the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
  • Other developing countries according to internationally recognized lists, such as the UNDP, the United Nations’ list of Least Developed Countries or the World Bank.

The actors of Andorran cooperation

Public administrations: Andorran government and “comuns” (town hall)

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the Department of Multilateral Affairs and Cooperation, has a budgetary entry assigned to cooperation which corresponds to 17,5% of the total ministry budget. The Department manages the budgetary execution with rigour, applying the criteria and following the priorities established in the master plan. The Department is also alert to emergency appeals and disasters that may occur anywhere in the world. It also coordinates the process of grants to civic organisations and channels part of its budget through bilateral agreements or by contributing to projects directly managed by international bodies.

In Andorra, the “comuns” (town halls) also participate in development cooperation projects, sometimes acting with international bodies in which they have an active presence.

Andorran civic and non-profit organisations

Andorran civic organisations are one of the main driving forces behind international development cooperation, both outside Andorra, carrying out projects, as well as within our country through actions to create awareness among the general public.

Some of these organisations combine their actions at a local scale, such as helping the least favoured sectors of Andorran society, with international actions that mobilise part of their resources for cooperation projects in developing countries.

In contrast, other organisations focus on development cooperation beyond Andorra or carry out education for development projects in Andorra.

Private companies

The private sector is growing in significance in development cooperation and large companies are increasingly giving more importance to this kind of action. It is clear that the private sector is yet another player from society and is increasingly taking on the role and the social responsibility that it holds. In fact, companies and semi-public organisations are becoming more active in the world of cooperation, whether by supplying goods or services, or through donations to associations or bodies.