At the spring meeting of the Deutsche Kommission Justitia et Pax in Siegburg on 6 March 2026, Joachim von Braun gave a talk (in German) on the current state and future of international and German development cooperation from scientific perspectives.
Summary
- International and German development cooperation is undergoing a period of major change. After decades of significant achievements in reducing poverty and hunger and improving health and education, substantial budget cuts are now occurring, particularly in the United States, but also in Germany and other donor countries.
- These developments raise fundamental questions about the goals, legitimacy, and institutional architecture of development cooperation. Increasingly, development cooperation is being justified instrumentally – through security, migration, or trade interests – rather than as an expression of global solidarity and shared responsibility.
- Budget cuts necessitate prioritization, which must be strategic, evidence-based, and ethically grounded. Without clear priorities, there is a risk of declining effectiveness, further marginalization of the poorest populations, and decreasing public support.
- An overload of objectives – including within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals – has contributed to inefficiencies and fragmentation. For the period after 2030, a scientifically grounded agenda is needed, with clearly defined goals and logically aligned instruments, informed by robust theories of change. Stronger partnerships with knowledge systems and research actors in low- and middle-income countries would support this approach.
- Development cooperation should be ethically grounded in human rights and principles of solidarity. Improving the living conditions of marginalized people in both rural and urban areas should remain at its core. At the same time, the real perceptions of relative disadvantage that can undermine solidarity should be taken more seriously.
- A reorientation of German development cooperation should include a stronger focus on the poorest countries while continuing to support and strengthen multilateral institutions. At the same time, German development cooperation should respect and align with the strategic priorities of partner countries, for example in Africa through initiatives such as the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) and the Kampala Declaration 2025.
- Stronger societal anchoring and greater flexibility in a more complex international environment require a larger role for civil society organizations and the private sector in the implementation of development cooperation, along with increased support for these actors.
- A reorientation under tighter financial conditions could also have positive side effects if it leads to partnerships with greater local ownership, science-based priorities that incorporate indigenous and local knowledge, and development cooperation guided by ethics, justice, and solidarity.
A transcript of the talk can be accessed following this link (in German).