Who profits from the Global Gateway?
The report, "Who Profits from the Global Gateway? The EU's new strategy for development cooperation" attempts to answer the question: is the Global Gateway prioritising the EU's foreign policy goals and its own economic interests over positive development outcomes in its partner countries? This report builds on previous research and provides a timely and comprehensive analysis of the Global Gateway, including its financing, governance and latest projects. It analyses whether the projects rolled out so far - notably in energy and climate (including raw materials), digital and health sectors - correspond with the EU's development and external action principles, such as the eradication of poverty and inequality, protection of human rights and sustainable development.
It focuses on a detailed analysis of 40 projects falling under the Global Gateway (listed at Annex 3), many of which are categorised as Global Gateway ‘flagship’ projects (all listed at Annexes 1 & 2), covering different regions and sectors and chosen as illustrative examples. These projects were also chosen due to the availability of more detailed information and literature from external sources. In 25 of the 40 Global Gateway projects explored, at the time of writing, at least one European company benefited from the project. The companies benefitting include large companies such as Siemens, A.P. Moller Group, SUEZ and BioNTech. The presence of European companies in the majority of the analysed projects points to a high risk that the Global Gateway prioritises the promotion of opportunities for European businesses in the Global South over development objectives such as poverty reduction.