Official Development Assistance of Austria after 2021

Ponomarenko Anatoly Petrovich ORCID: 0000-0001-8569-0933 PhD in History Associate Professor; Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences; Peoples' Friendship University of Russia 6 Miklukho-Maklaya str., Moscow, 117198, Russia ponomarenko-ap@rudn.ru

Babintseva Ekaterina Alekseevna ORCID: 0000-0002-1197-0892 PhD in History Associate Professor; Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences; Peoples' Friendship University of Russia 6 Miklukho-Maklaya str., Moscow, 117198, Russia babintseva-ea@rudn.ru

Introduction

As the name implies, Official development assistance (hereinafter-ODA) is an element of international policy to promote sustainable development and assistance to developing countries. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (hereinafter referred to as the OECD) is a platform for organizing such assistance from developed countries, all member countries of which are required to make an annual contribution linked to annual GDP. In the Republic of Austria, this area of foreign policy is actively supported by the Government and regulated by the Austrian Development Cooperation Program (hereinafter – APR, German. Österreichische Entwicklungszusammenarbeit). The program is aimed at supporting the development of a number of countries in Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe ^{[1, pp. 183-196]}. The implementation of ODA in Austria is financially implemented at the expense of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Austrian Development Bank, taxes of federal lands and municipalities. The OECD Development Assistance Committee accepts contributions from the State, evaluates their amount and makes recommendations on further steps in this area.

The purpose of the study is to identify the specifics and main priorities of Austria's policy in the framework of Official Development Assistance after the end of the Three-year Program 2019-2021.

The article used open materials from the Internet, namely regulatory and legislative documents and media reports.

Analysis and synthesis were chosen as research methods.

Austrian development assistance: facts and figures

The policy of international aid was an integral part of Austria's foreign policy even during the reign of Chancellor Bruno Kreisky in 1970-1983. In order to position Austria as a neutral country capable of promoting and supporting the interests of developing countries at the UN level ^{[2, p. 15]}. Before joining the EU, this policy was characterized as an ambitious aid policy, which was limited (due to insufficient budget and fragmented structure of total ODA) by individual projects carried out mainly by NGOs ^{[3, pp. 11-21]}. Therefore, development experts have ambiguously assessed Austria's accession to the EU ^{[4, p. 51]}.

Major international humanitarian NGOs (for example, the Red Cross, Caritas, CARE, etc.) have called for Austria's accession to the EU due to the possibility of access to European budget items and joint financing of projects and programs. In contrast, small NGOs were intimidated by the complex forms of applying for EU funds. The Development Assistance Committee (the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) is one of the key forums in which the main bilateral donors cooperate in order to increase the effectiveness of their common efforts to support sustainable development.) and the EU assessed the state of the APR as a whole negatively ^{[5, pp. 21-49]}.

After the accession of the Republic of Austria to the European Union in 1995, Brussels assumed that Vienna would become more actively involved in European ODA, as well as standardize its development assistance system in accordance with international (i.e. European) standards ^{[6, p. 19]}. At the same time, the term "Europeanization" began to be actively used in relation to Austria, which meant bringing the bureaucratic system of a neutral state to the models adopted in the EU ^{[7, pp. 41-43]}. However, despite the expectations of Brussels, for 27 years of being in the Union, Austria, although it took an active part in ODA activities, did not significantly increase the budget for these purposes. Due to the fact that there is no legally binding law on payments in favor of ODA, Austria has not yet reached the target of 0.7% of GDP that the OECD has set for the top 15 EU countries (OECD Peer Statistical Reviews on Development Cooperation for Austria. 2020. Access mode: https://www.oecd.org/austria/oecd-development-co-operation-peer-reviews-austria-2020-03b626d5-en.htm Date of application: 03/04/2024.). In addition, although Official Development Assistance primarily involves reducing poverty in the global South, Vienna fulfilled this mission rather formally, giving priority to assistance to the Balkan Peninsula and the Caucasus region in 2019-2021 within the framework of the APR ^{[8, pp. 205-208]}.

Austria's development policy is aimed at promoting life prospects in conditions of social and political stability, as well as sustainable development in accordance with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) until 2030. This is an integral part of Austria's foreign policy, and is considered one of the national priorities. The SDGs 2030, adopted by the international community in 2015, are a global benchmark for environmental and social security in the world with economic stability, which Austria supports in the interests of human well-being ^{[9, pp. 29-30]}.

To understand exactly what Austrian development assistance is, here are some facts from historiography and statistics. Since the start of the APR in 2004, six programs have been implemented (for 3 years each in the period from 2004-2021, more on them below), the budget of which has gradually increased from 323 to 1100 million dollars ^{[10, p. 127]}.

Among the geographical priorities of the APR at various times were Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and South America. According to data from the official website of the Austrian Development Agency. Access mode: https://www.entwicklung.at/en/themes/projects ?tx_mmcprojectlist_projectlist%5B%40widget_0%5D%5BcurrentPage%5D=1&tx_mmcprojectlist_projectlist%5Bcontroller%5D=Project&tx_mmcprojectlist_projectlist%5BcurrentPage%5D=219&tx_mmcprojectlist_projectlist%5BdemandListFilter%5D%5Bactive%5D=2&tx_mmcprojectlist_projectlist%5BdemandListFilter%5D%5Bcountry%5D=&tx_mmcprojectlist_projectlist%5BdemandListFilter%5D%5BsearchTerm%5D=&tx_mmcprojectlist_projectlist%5BdemandListFilter%5D%5Btopic%5D=&tx_mmcprojectlist_projectlist%5B__trustedProperties%5D=%7B%22demandListFilter%22%3A%7B%22searchTerm%22%3A1%2C%22country%22%3A1%2C%22topic%22%3A1%2C%22active%22%3A1%7D%7D78aaf3c7f06b04e1766c43f0bc4a03d5606ad34f&cHash=421dd02c3dd437d2902828124e1df7ea Accessed 04.03.2024.), over 4400 projects were implemented during this period, including:

· Creating prospects for women after their release from prison (Afghanistan);

· Creation of a center to help victims of the terrorist attack in Beslan (Russia);

· Support for the repatriation process in South Sudan (Sudan).

As for the legal framework, the APR is based on two documents. The first and fundamental is the Federal Law on Development Cooperation (German: Gesetz über Entwicklungszusammenarbeit, EZA–Gesetz), adopted in 2002 and has the current version from 2003. It contains a clear formulation of the development assistance policy: "Development cooperation includes any measures of the Federal Government aimed at promoting the sustainable economic and social development of developing countries or at preventing any damage to this development" (Entwicklungszammenarbeitsgesetz inklusive EZA-Gesetz-Novelle 2003. Access mode: https://web.archive.org/web/20160305210600/http://www.entwicklung.at/uploads/media/EZA_Gesetz_03.pdf / Date of request: 06/24/2023.). The law sets out three objectives of development policy:

1. Fighting poverty by promoting economic and social development;

2. Ensuring peace and security by promoting democracy, the rule of law, human rights and humane governance;

3. Conservation of the environment and protection of natural resources, which form the basis of sustainable development.

In addition, it also outlines the four principles of APR:

1. Taking into account the goals of the Governments and the population of the recipient countries;

2. Special attention to culture and the appropriate use of technology for each social environment;

3. Gender equality;

4. Meeting the needs of children and the disabled.

The second most important legal document of the APR is the Three-year Program of the Austrian Development Policy, which defines policy directions for all parties involved in the government, as well as the thematic and geographical focus of the bilateral activities of the APR program, which is consistent with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) until 2030 and sets priorities in a number of areas, including the economy, ecology, human rights, etc. (Dreijahresprogramm der österreichischen Entwicklungspolitik 2022 bis 2024. Access mode: https://www.bmeia.gv.at/fileadmin/user_upload/Zentrale/Aussenpolitik/Entwicklungszusammenarbeit/Dreijahresprogramm_der_oesterreichischen_Entwicklungspolitik_2022-2024.pdf / Date of request: 04/24/2024.).

As for the financial side of the issue, in order to be able to effectively and efficiently use the funds allocated for development and cooperation policies, clear strategic and geographical priorities are established. The strategic priorities are based on the requirements of the Federal Law on Development Cooperation, which prescribes principles applicable to all federal agencies. Geographical priorities are based on existing partnerships within the framework of ODA and at the same time take into account the geopolitical events and foreign policy interests of Austria ^{[11, pp. 180-191]}.

According to the OECD, Austria allocated 1.079 billion euros in ODA in 2019. This amounted to 0.27% of Austria's GNI – excluding inflation – which is 91.8 million euros more than in the previous year. Adjusted for both exchange rates and inflation, the APR growth rate was 7.4%. In 2018, Austria's ODA payments amounted to 0.26% of Austrian GNI.

Also, according to the OECD, Austria invested a total of 387.6 million euros in bilateral development assistance in 2019. Multilateral ODA flows amounted to 691.8 million euros compared to 578.5 million euros in 2018. The higher share of multilateral aid is mainly due to increased contributions to organizations such as the United Nations, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Global Environment Facility or the Green Climate Fund, as well as to EU institutions ^{[12, p. 376]}. The reduction in bilateral ODA from 409.1 million euros in 2018 to 387.6 million euros in 2019 was mainly due to reduced spending by donor countries on refugees and debt relief operations (OECD Peer Statistical Reviews on Development Cooperation for Austria. 2020. Access mode: https://www.oecd.org/austria/oecd-development-co-operation-peer-reviews-austria-2020-03b626d5-en.htm Date of application: 04.11.2023.). Cash in the amount of 112.6 million euros (including 92.73 million euros of operational funds from the Austrian Foreign Ministry) allowed Austria to increase the share of bilateral assistance from 23.6% in 2018 to 29.1% in 2019 (Austria's Official Development Assistance. Access mode: https://www.entwicklung.at Date of application: 04.04.2024.).

The three-year program of the Austrian Development Policy from 2022 to 2024.

To understand the current Austrian development assistance policy, it is necessary to consider and analyze the new Three-year Program introduced by the Council of Ministers in November 2022 after the logical completion of the previous 2019-2021 program.

A large number of subjects contribute to the APR: the federal government, parliament, federal lands, cities and municipalities, civil society, private companies and scientific institutions (Table 1).

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (officially the "Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs"), based on the priorities of Austria's foreign policy, develops and evaluates strategic directions for a consistent, targeted and effective development policy. At the same time, it acts as a coordinating body ensuring the effective use of Austrian development cooperation funds and services.

The Ministry of Finance – Austria is a shareholder in a number of international financial institutions (IFIs) operating at the global and regional levels, as well as some special funds whose shares are managed by the Ministry of Finance. In its institutional and programmatic cooperation with banks, funds and development institutions, the Ministry of Finance relies on the strategic guidelines for IFIs and follows the objectives of the Three-Year Program.

The Austrian Development Agency (AAR). Since 2004, the AAR has been responsible for the implementation of programs and projects and manages them on behalf of the Federal Government. In addition to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the AAR also supports other ministries in the operational implementation of their development policy projects. Federal lands and municipalities are also invited to cooperate with the AAR. In addition, the agency is a sought-after partner in the implementation of third-party financing, for example, from the European Commission. It cooperates with government agencies, civil society organizations, UN organizations and private companies. AAR's foreign offices ensure that their activities meet local needs and monitor the use of financial resources ^{[13, pp. 58-59]}.

The Austrian Development Bank acts on behalf of the Republic of Austria with a flexible approach to each recipient country. Supports sustainable private sector investments in developing countries through financing on terms close to market conditions and, on behalf of the Republic, through investments in companies and funds. All of the Bank's activities serve the main purpose of contributing to poverty reduction in developing and emerging economies by strengthening the private sector.

Civil society organizations. Civil society organizations within the country and in partner countries are an important pillar of development cooperation and the provision of humanitarian assistance. They reach the most disadvantaged people, contribute to the provision of basic social services, stimulate citizens' participation in the socio-political life of the country, assume control functions and promote human rights and the rule of law. Development education and communication in Austria contribute to understanding global linkages and the 2030 Agenda.

Other ministries. As part of a multi-pronged government approach, the Federal Chancellery and various ministries (such as the Interior Ministry, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism, the Ministry of Climate Protection, the Ministry of Education, and others) develop development policies in the spirit of the UN SDGs and work together to achieve the goals of the Three-Year Program. The coordination of the implementation of the UN SDGs is carried out jointly by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Federal Chancellery.

Federal lands and municipalities guarantee the implementation of the APR at the local level (Jandl G. Beginnt der Balkan noch immer in Wien? Betrachtungen zu 20 Jahren österreichischer Balkanpolitik im Rahmen der GASP der EU / G. Jandl. Vienna, 2015.).

Table 1

In 2021, the ODA ratio was 0.31 percent of gross national income (GNI). According to the three-year plan, bilateral development cooperation funds will increase by 12 million euros (to 137 million euros), and humanitarian assistance from the Disaster Relief Fund will increase by 20 million euros (to 77.5 million euros). However, the ODA target of 0.7% of GDP required by the OECD remains an unattainable goal ^{[14, p. 85]}.

The document is divided into 4 large chapters:

1. The Austrian Development Assistance Policy for 2022-2024.;

2. Priorities, main directions and measures of Austrian development cooperation for 2022-2024;

3. Implementation, monitoring and information;

4. The matrix of APR.

The most important chapters in our analysis are chapters 1 and 2, since it is in them that the entire future ODA of the state is most fully spelled out. Sections 3 and 4 will not be considered, as they are less significant (chapter 3 discusses the monitoring of the program and its financing, and chapter 4 consists of tables indicating the KPIs of specific departments).

Chapter 1, paragraph 1.1, "Global challenges and trends" describes the changed conditions of international politics that influenced APR. Of these, the coronavirus pandemic, climate change, as well as migration and refugees, whose number is estimated at 80 million over the past 20 years, are highlighted.

Of course, the most interesting innovation of the Three-Year Program was the item about the pandemic, which has no analogues in modern history. It is designed to combat the short- and medium-term effects of coronavirus.

According to the author, the goals of this policy direction are very symptomatic both for Austria and for Europe as a whole: risks to food security and gender equality have an equally important priority; in addition, this item actively promotes the idea of vaccination around the world (and, accordingly, the allocation of funds for this within the framework of the APR), and This is served under the good intention of "caring for the population" and following the objectives of the SDGs 2030. Given the low efficiency, the strikingly short development time and the lack of sane effects of existing vaccines, the real goals of financing vaccination in the framework of development assistance raise certain questions.

As for the fight against climate change, Vienna continues to follow in the EU's footsteps and strives to reduce CO2 emissions to zero while switching to green energy. Whether she will be able to do this is a rhetorical question, but within the framework of the Three–Year Program, the only thing that is planned to be done is to allocate funds to the UN Green Climate Fund. It can be stated that this point will be formally implemented.

Assistance to refugees, especially on the African continent, aims to create conditions in their home countries that will facilitate the return of such citizens to their homeland. There is a quite realistic and nationally oriented approach here: due to the fact that Austria is faced with the threat of a migration crisis ^{[15, pp. 167-176]}, it is in its own interests to reverse the flow of refugees and migrants, for which it is necessary to ensure an acceptable standard of living in the countries of origin. This paragraph seems to the author to be the only one that brings real benefit in paragraph 1.1.

In paragraph 1.2, "The UN Sustainable Development Goals and strategic Priorities of the APR", it is worth noting only that the APR is consistent with the UN SDGs 2030.

Paragraph 1.3 "Principles of the APR" is of interest from the point of view that it reveals the principles of Austrian policy in more detail and fully than in the Federal Law, including:

· On-the-ground assistance (i.e. solving specific problems of recipient countries, rather than financing abstract (unarticulated) tasks);

· Human rights (the absolute primacy of law);

· Partnership, responsibility and focus on results (transparency and honesty between APR participants);

· Prerequisites and "conditionality" (it. Konditionalität, a new term not previously used in APR, will be discussed in detail by the author below);

· Focus on digitalization;

· Policy coherence and statehood (despite the bulkiness and pathos of the name, the principle only emphasizes the need for coordinated work of all government departments).

Here the author concludes that the principles of the APR do not stand still and keep up with the times, which is unusual for bulky documents of this kind.

Paragraphs 1.4 and 1.5 list the agencies within Austria and international organizations that participate in ODA, therefore they do not require detailed consideration.

On the contrary, paragraph 1.6 "Geography of APR" is of increased interest, since the geographical priorities of ODA and APR were very different, as already indicated above. The Austrian Government preferred to send aid to those regions that it was historically and economically interested in, even if such assistance was needed by such countries to a lesser extent than by States in other parts of the world. The obligations under ODA were fulfilled by Vienna "for show" or were not fulfilled in general.

From this point of view, there have been some changes in the program, as the priority regions look like this:

· Africa with a focus on the least developed countries (LDCs) in the sub-Saharan region;

· Neighboring regions, in particular the Western Balkans and priority countries within the framework of the Eastern Partnership of the European Union,

· Crisis regions and unstable states.

If we talk about individual countries, the program highlights the following priorities (Table 2).

Table 2

Chapter 2 is perhaps the most important part of the program, as it demonstrates Vienna's specific plans for the APR through 2024.

Priority A, "Reducing poverty by promoting economic and social development", describes the specific measures that need to be taken to reduce poverty in recipient countries. They can be divided into basic ones (such as ensuring food security, improving the level of medicine and education) and more advanced ones (for example, private business development and digitalization). As noted above, Vienna seeks to direct migration flows back, which is done by investing in the countries of origin of refugees and migrants, and improving the standard of living in them. All this should remove the motivation of migrants to move to Europe in search of a better life. The author should state that this priority really has practical benefits, as it provides for specific measures: construction of infrastructure facilities, job creation, access to education, increasing GDP through the development of private entrepreneurship, etc. ^{[16, pp. 303-305]}.

The priority in "Ensuring human peace and security" focuses on two main topics. The first is humanitarian assistance and peace–building projects, including training courses on the destruction of weapons, protection of civilians, mediation in negotiations, etc. The second theme has a clear ideological connotation and involves measures to establish democracy, support inclusivity and the rights of "women and girls," among which mention is made, in particular, "changing deeply rooted social norms and practices that perpetuate inequality." Also in the paragraph, much attention is paid to the coronavirus pandemic as a factor in the deterioration of the already difficult situation in the recipient countries. According to the author, all these good intentions look like interference in the internal politics, culture and way of life of the "Third World" countries, especially given Vienna's desire for mass vaccination as part of the fight against coronavirus. At the same time, the allocation of financial resources within the framework of development assistance requires the recipient country to fulfill certain obligations (that is, in fact, the donor country, using its financial assistance as a pressure tool, intervenes in the internal policy of the recipient country within the framework of "soft power" to achieve its goals) ^{[17, pp. 161-165]}.

As for priority C "Conservation of the environment and protection of natural resources", there is a complete consolidation with the European environmental agenda – which is not surprising, since the positions of the Green Party in Germany and Austria are traditionally strong, and the societies of both countries are seriously concerned about climate change ^{[18, pp. 109-121]}. Priority C is of particular interest in the variety of topics covered, of which the following can be distinguished:

· Striving for carbon neutrality;

· Reducing energy consumption;

· Development of renewable energy sources;

· Inclusive urban development;

· Adaptation to climate change;

· Improving the efficiency of resource use.

Although the importance of the topics raised is not in doubt, many of these provisions can be called politicized (in particular, carbon neutrality), and certain measures are formal, since in some cases, instead of concrete actions to solve the problem, only "awareness raising", the adoption of a strategy, etc. are proposed after the adoption by the Council of Ministers of a new Three–year program "The Greens reported that for the first time, the Ministry of Climate Protection also has the appropriate funds to solve the identified problems. The Ministry of Climate Protection allocates more than 200 million euros to support global measures to combat the climate crisis until 2026. "It is encouraging that the Ministry of Climate Protection can now promote global climate protection measures at its own expense," said Michel Raymond, representative of the Green Party for Development Cooperation (Ministerrat beschloss drei-Jahres-Programm bei Entwicklungshilfe. Access mode: https://www.vienna.at/ministerrat-beschloss-drei-jahres-programm-bei-entwicklungshilfe/7748512 / Date of request: 06/24/2023.).

Separately, it is worth noting the innovation already mentioned at the beginning of the article of the Three-year Program of the Austrian Development Policy 2022-2024, the term Konditionalität. This concept, which can be translated into Russian as "Conditionality", means those requirements that the recipient country must fulfill (or must comply with) in order to receive financial assistance under the APR.

The reason for the introduction of conditionality was uncontrolled migration. In the program itself, this point is spelled out as smoothly and gently as possible, but in the phrases about "bilateral cooperation" and "synergy" it is not difficult to read the requirements for recipient countries: in case of deterioration of relations with the donor country, financial flows can be reduced, which to a certain extent can be called blackmail. On the other hand, Peter Huber, head of the development department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, believes that this point should not be perceived as a threat. "It's not necessary, it's just an option," he explained in an interview with reporters. At the same time, he noted that Austria cooperates well with partners from priority regions. According to him, "partnership is important for achieving success and improving people's lives" (Entwicklungshilfe: Ministerrat segnet Dreijahresprogram ab. Die Presse. Access mode: https://www.diepresse.com/6216048/entwicklungshilfe-ministerrat-segnet-dreijahresprogramm-ab/ Date of application: 06/24/2023.).

In view of the implementation of the SVO in Ukraine, it is worth noting separately the said state, which is mentioned in the document 8 times in the context of countries from neighboring regions in need of financial assistance. In addition to mentioning the conflict in the opening speech of the Foreign Minister, the document briefly and in general terms describes assistance within the framework of projects at the local level, but no more.

For clarity, we will provide some more statistics at the end of the article. In 2022, five Eastern European countries entered the top 10 recipient countries of Austrian aid, which once again demonstrates the importance of this region for Austria. The remaining recipients represent the Middle East and Africa ^{[19, pp. 7-24]}; it is worth noting the absence of representatives from South America and Southeast Asia (Table 3).

Table 3

In 2022, half of the APR was allocated to social infrastructure and services. Investments in this area accounted for 51% of bilateral ODA commitments ($383.3 million), with special attention paid to support for education ($197.9 million), health ($70.3 million), and water supply ($59.9 million). Economic assistance accounted for 8.2% of bilateral commitments ($61.6 million), focusing on banking and financial services ($27.4 million), energy ($27.1 million) and private business ($6.9 million). Bilateral humanitarian assistance amounted to $122.4 million (16.3% of bilateral ODA) (Table. 4) (OECD iLibrary. Access mode: https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/bd516a04-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/bd516a04-en / Date of request: 04.11.2023.).

Table 4

Conclusion

In general, the analysis of the new Three-year program of the Austrian Development Policy from 2022 to 2024 allows us to draw a number of conclusions.

Firstly, the basic principles of the APR, first mentioned in the Federal Law on Development Cooperation, were further developed in this program. This is a significant step forward, given that the law on development assistance has not changed since 2003, and such documents are always cumbersome. Thus, the policy document contains a reaction to changes in the world.

Secondly, it is impossible not to note a certain degree of politicization of some points of the program. Given that for many years the opinion prevailed in the Russian Federation that there is pluralism of opinions in Europe and the United States, respect for freedom of speech and no propaganda, and the media and politicians are as objective as possible, this conclusion may be sobering ^{[20, p. 78]}.

Thirdly, the APR is still a method of realizing Austria's national interests in the field of economics and promoting its ideology (especially in points related to climate and inclusivity), and not gratuitous assistance to countries in need. Vienna is almost openly blackmailing recipient countries by refusing to provide assistance if its demands (for example, on the return of migrants to their home countries) are not met. At the same time, these demands often have the character of interference in the internal politics of a "Third World" country under the pretext of developing "universal values".

In addition, Tropical Africa has become an innovation in the first place in terms of geographical priorities, although the Balkans, Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus continue to be on this list ^{[21, pp. 27-43]}. The reason for this turnaround, according to the author, is the increased migration flows from the African continent, which put pressure on the EU and cause concern in Austria.

As for the three basic priorities of the program, only the first of them (priority A) is free from ideological shackles and offers really necessary and useful measures to improve the economic situation of recipient countries. Priorities B and C, firstly, are more politicized, and secondly, some measures seem appropriate for European countries, but completely alien and ineffective for, for example, African states, for which the issue of physical survival is more acute than the reasonable use of resources or gender, sexual or other equality ^{[22, p. 300-301]}.

The former European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy, Austrian politician Johannes Hahn (who held this post in 2014-2019) summarized in 2015 that 20 years of Austrian membership in the EU is a success story. The author believes that this is true for intra-European, but not global, development assistance. As for cooperation on this issue, Austria has not established its own national approach and has not adopted a European one. Thus, it can be concluded that there is a small degree of "Europeanization" in Austria, when interaction with EU norms is formal and rarely goes beyond ^{[23, p. 248]}. This is due to the desire for profit: Austria only uses political rhetoric, without creating structures and without providing financial resources. This gives room for maneuver in the political arena and allows you not to impose too many obligations on yourself (Hahn J. Presseaussendung der Vertretung der EU-Kommission in Österreich. Access mode: http://www.ots.at/presseaussendung/OTS_20150101_OTS0029/20-jahre-eu-itgliedschaftoesterreichs-eine-erfolgsgeschichte-die-esdurch-aktives-engagement-fortzusetzen-und-zuvertiefen-gilt Date of application: 06/02/2024.).

Austrian politicians, having committed themselves to achieving the OECD target of financing ODA of 0.7% of GDP, have not created strong structures for its implementation. At the same time, Austria allocates much more money for European development instruments than for the APR budget and bilateral programs and projects. Without a proper national development program and meaningful ODA results, there is doubt that Austria will continue to be recognized as an important European donor country - whether in Europe, in partner countries or in the global South.

Let us emphasize once again: in the context of Austrian politics, the process of "Europeanization" of ODA was only superficial. Given the link between development policy and Austria's foreign policy goals, this conclusion is perhaps not so surprising ^{[24, pp. 125-144]}. The Austrian course in the field of development assistance lacks motivation to push it towards a more global direction, which is called for by EU legislation ^{[25, pp. 167-188]}. This fact indicates that Austria continues to give preference to its national interests. According to the author, this trend will continue in the near future, even despite the nomination of some African countries to the top of the list of geographical priorities.