Inertia in the EU’s Humanitarian Aid Policy: An Unattainable Localized Funding?

This article focuses on the inability of the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO) to directly fund local partners in the field. Considering the growing international funding gap, the EU acknowledges the importance of collaborating with the latter. The ‘localization’ of the aid, understood as empowering local partners in affected countries to lead and deliver humanitarian aid, is depicted by the humanitarian sector as an answer to inefficient aid, offering a comprehensive response to increasingly complex crises. However, and mainly due to the difficulty to adopt such an approach, the EU fails to reform its incompatible legislative framework: the EU Council Regulation 1257/96 of 1996. Supported by an eclectic analytical framework, the article answers the following question: what explains the constraints the EU is facing in changing the latter? The analysis of fourteen semi-structured interviews explores the reasons behind the continuity in the EU’s decision-making process since 2016, although it committed otherwise. Two main explanations may be found: firstly, the EU, particularly the Commission, is reluctant to changes that would be detrimental for its DGs; secondly, tensions with international implementing partners hinders incentives for change. Additionally, the article discusses future considerations, should the EU launch legislative reforms. The article found that the current administrative burden is heavy, preventing small partners to collaborate with the EU, favouring important International Organizations (IOs) and International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs).