The Department for International Development of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary has recently published Hungary’s new donor profile, a brochure highlighting the results and achievements of our international development cooperation activities in 2018.
The main purpose of the brochure is to inform our partners of Hungary’s commitment and contribution to international efforts in the field of international development cooperation. Hungary believes that – through the right synthesis of international cooperation and modern, economically founded development strategies – it is possible to address the world’s most pressing needs and challenges. In line with international ambitions, Hungary is committed to eradicating poverty, achieving sustainable development and, in so doing, realising the convergence of often drastically different economies. Hungary’s IDC policy is therefore based on establishing long-lasting economic partnerships with developing countries (especially in Africa), driven by local demands.
As an expression of our commitment, since 2010, the Government of Hungary has pioneered a substantial, 150% increase in the amount of its Official Development Assistance (ODA). In 2018, Hungary’s ODA amounted to circa 285.2 million dollars as opposed to the 114 million dollars that it allocated to this cause in 2010. Expressed in terms of the ODA/GNI ratio, in 2018 Hungary increased its ODA to 0.21% as opposed to the 0.09% ratio in 2010, which is one of the largest recorded growths among donor countries.
In 2018, Hungary focused its development cooperation on Southeast Asia (38.83 million dollars), the Middle East (30.15 million dollars) and Africa (25.62 million dollars). In 2018, 26.1% of Hungary’s bilateral ODA was directed towards Least Developed Countries (LDCs), amounting to 28.8 million dollars; as such, Hungary allocated seven times more ODA to LDCs than it did so in 2017.