Prime Minister will open the European thematic year

Met dank overgenomen van Lets voorzitterschap Europese Unie 1e helft 2015 (Lets voorzitterschap) i, gepubliceerd op dinsdag 6 januari 2015.

On January 9, a day after the official launch event of Latvia's Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU), Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma will open the European thematic year with an address in the Latvian National Library. In 2015, the European thematic year is dedicated to development cooperation. Development cooperation is the provision of assistance to poor and less developed countries, by contributing to their long-term social and economic development while reducing poverty and ensuring peace in the world.

The objective of the event is to inform about the development cooperation policy of the EU and the Member States, and to promote public awareness of the importance of development cooperation, the benefits and contribution of the EU and Member States to sustainable development.

More than 250 high-level guests will attend the event - the EU development ministers, heads of international NGOs, high officials of the EU institutions, etc. It will be possible to follow the live stream of the event on the website of Latvia's Presidency: www.eu2015.lv, as well as to comment and ask questions on the social network twitter.com, using hashtag # EYD2015.

In 2015, the European thematic year for the first time will focus on the EU's foreign policy issues. It is important for the EU - the world's largest aid donor, to promote people's interest and raise awareness of the results achieved, as well as of the mutual benefits. In 2015, the development cooperation will be the focus of the global political agenda, because the current global framework for development co-operation - the UN Millennium Development Goals, is coming to an end.

The EU thematic year is being launched in Latvia - a Presiding country of the Council of the European Union, and it is organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the European Commission. The European thematic years have been taking place since 1983 to raise awareness, encourage discussions, as well as to change attitudes regarding a particular subject at European level. For example, the year 2013 was designated the European Year of Citizens, while the year 2012 - the European Year for Active Ageing.