Conference: Changing Development Models: Looking Towards the 2028-2034 Multiannual Financial Framework and Exploring Prospects for EU-Asia Donor Cooperation

The Institute for Security and Development Policy (ISDP) and the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) will co-host the conference in Stockholm on December 2nd, 2026. 

The policy event adopts a structured half-day format, featuring one panel session open to the public and a closed-door roundtable with invited participants. 

Event Agenda: 

13:10–13:30 | Registration 

13:30–15:00 | Public panel (open to public) 

15:00–15:30 | Fika for all (complementary coffee and light snacks are provided) 

15:30–17:00 | Closed-door roundtable (only open for invited participants) 

Description:

International development cooperation is undergoing its most significant transformation in decades. The contraction of United States official development assistance, the expansion of China’s infrastructure-led engagement and the recasting of European development policy as investment under the Global Gateway initiative are moving European donors away from needs-based grants towards economic cooperation, blended finance and guarantees. This shift is closely tied to the competitiveness agenda that frames EU external action, yet, Member States enter it with very different capacities, priorities and degrees of field presence.  

In 2028 the new Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) will enter into force, establishing the budget of the European Union 2028-2034. Currently there are negotiations on how to add the Global Gateway Initiative to the budget. The new scope of how to implement the development budget requires the pre-established MFF to be revised. The revised MFF will likely be presented at the end of 2026 or early 2027. The extent of this revision will be a clear indication of the importance of the Global Gateway Initiative and its longevity.  

The implementation of this new development strategy is a particularly instructive case for Sweden. It has so far counted among Europe’s leading donors in both Africa and the Asia-Pacific, especially regarding digitality, while its own development cooperation model has been reoriented towards closer alignment with trade and economic objectives. While this direction may fluctuate with domestic changes, it illustrates how the roles of traditional development agencies and surrounding actors are being renegotiated within a broader ecosystem of trade, investment and technological cooperation.

The new approach of Global Gateway broadens the scope of development cooperation for Europe. The initiative aims to go from traditional development projects to cooperation between public and private funding, creating new opportunities. While the EU has long championed multilateral development cooperation pathways, the modalities of such cooperation, as well as that of regional and bilateral donor partnerships, are changing. A until this moment largely unexplored avenue is development cooperation with trusted Asian partners that hold complementary technological capabilities, even as European and Asian middle powers increasingly coordinate on technology and trade. Related to the subject the panel will include a discussion of the CEPS report “Prospects for EU–Asia donor partnerships in international development” examines how the EU and its Member States are reshaping development cooperation, with digital transformation as the central sector.