The State Secretaries held a brief exchange of views on the main dossiers in this area, including the state of play of negotiations to reach a new agreement between the European Union and the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries, the so-called Post-Cotonou Agreement. They also discussed the launch of a new global financial instrument for the neighbourhood and development and international cooperation, NDICI - Global Europe, and mentioned the renewed European financial architecture for development. Part of the talks concentrated on global health and recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic and the related issue of vaccine distribution to partner countries.

State Secretary Raščan briefed his colleagues on the programme and priorities of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency in the field of development cooperation in the second half of this year. The programme will be directed towards a green recovery after the pandemic, with a focus on food security and global health. It will be based on two priorities: water as the main thematic priority and gender equality as a cross-cutting priority.