EU Commission Hübner attends Commission on Growth and Development in New York

Commissioner Danuta Hübner was in New York for the third meeting of the Commission on Growth and Development on 10th and 11th April. This group, launched in April 2006 by Paul Wolfowitz, under the auspices of the World Bank, and chaired by Nobel Laureate Professor Michael Spence, is working over a two year period to deepen the understanding of economic growth for development and poverty reduction. It aims to highlight policy actions which are most likely to improve developing countries' growth experiences. Commissioner Hübner is one of the 21 practitioners from government, business and policy making who are members of the Commission on Growth and Development.

The meeting of the Growth Commission on 11th April was preceded by a workshop bringing together members of the Commission with academics and policy makers to look specifically at how the role of institutions, leadership and governance in growth and development is dealt with in theory and practice. While there is general recognition that these factors play an essential role in the growth process, there is less understanding of how they come about, how they evolve over time, and of the precise ways in which they influence the performance of the economy.

Commenting on the two days' meetings, Commissioner Hübner stated that "Leaders and policy makers have to develop strategies and make policy choices under conditions of uncertainty. This is often even truer for developing countries than it is for developed countries. A wide partnership involving stakeholders at national, regional and local level allows all relevant knowledge and expertise to be mobilised where it is most appropriate. This helps to reduce uncertainty and allows policy responses to be tailored to the specific needs of particular regions. These are major benefits of an approach to policy making which is based on multilevel governance". Commissioner Hübner stressed the importance attached to governance, decentralization and the involvement of local authorities in the EU's approach to development policy.

The next meeting of the Growth and Development Commission will take place in China in October. Further details on the members of the Commission and on its work can be found at www.growthcommission.org

Further information about European Regional Policy available at:
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.htm

| Top |

• Development Aid: EU Commission calls for more predictable and more effective aid (4/4/2007)
• Development Aid: EU Commission presents its results for 2006  (20/3/2007)
• "50 years of European Integration" - Keynote address by EU Commissioner Hübner (30/1/2007)