The Estonian Centre for International Development (ESTDEV) has received a high rating in the European Commission’s Pillar Assessment for the quality and effectiveness of its work. As a result, ESTDEV will now be able to independently manage European Union development cooperation funds, opening up new opportunities for Estonia to implement its international development priorities.
Until now, ESTDEV’s activities have been largely funded from the state budget, with projects also involving partners from other countries. From now on, Estonia will be able to apply for and directly use EU funds. This places ESTDEV on the same level as agencies such as Germany’s GIZ, France’s AFD and Belgium’s Enabel, with whom cooperation has already been excellent.
Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna described this as a significant and important recognition of Estonia’s development cooperation. “This hallmark confirms that Estonia’s development cooperation is both reliable and impactful,” Tsahkna said. “Ukraine remains and will continue to be our main focus country, but through ESTDEV we now have the possibility to expand our activities both there and elsewhere in the world. It demonstrates that a small country like Estonia has managed to make a visible mark on the international development cooperation landscape.”
The European Commission assessed ESTDEV’s working processes across eight areas: internal controls, accounting systems, public procurement, external audits, management of financial instruments, data protection and project management. ESTDEV met all the requirements, demonstrating its capability, transparency and compliance with the European Commission’s standards of quality and effectiveness.
ESTDEV is a foundation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, established in 2021. Its main task is to implement Estonia’s development cooperation projects in line with the ministry’s development cooperation strategy.
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