Taking stock of the Roadmap process in upper middle income and upper income countries

In the Development Cooperation Instrument (the EU’s main aid funding stream for South Africa, Latin America and Asia), 16 middle-income countries are set to become ineligible for bilateral assistance, including higher middle-income countries. Despite their upper-middle-income status, South Africa and Cuba remain eligible for bilateral aid through DCI, in addition to Ecuador, Peru and Colombia. Both EDF and the DCI’s bilateral programs channel assistance mainly to governments of beneficiary countries in the form of budget support or programmed funding. To the relief of many CSOs, the more modest EU thematic aid programmes (the bulk of funding through civil society) have been spared further cuts.

This report provides a comparative analysis of the Roadmaps for EU Engagement with Civil Society from Upper Middle Income and Upper Income countries and demonstrates the particular role civil society has in strengthening democratic processes, providing services and promoting development in a wide variety of sectors.