Policy Updates

On June 17, 2025, the French Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs published the second Strategic Investment Plan for Development for 2024–2027, defining priorities relating to French technical assistance actions in the areas of taxation and public financial management, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.

The plan's budget exceeds EUR60million (US$69 million) and aligns with the Presidential Council for International Partnerships, Interministerial Committees for International Cooperation and Development, a number of European and multilateral initiatives, and the EU Global Gateway program.

The plan's objectives were outlined as the aim to broaden the tax base by strengthening tax citizenship, integrating the informal economy, and innovating in digital and land taxation as well as modernize tax and customs administrations through digitalization, skills development, and combating illicit financial flows.

The plan funds bilateral projects via AFD and Expertise France as well as multilateral actions with IMF, WB, and OECD, with cross-cutting goals focusing on gender equality, green transition, and inclusive governance in vulnerable countries.

From June 16 to 18, 2025, AFD Group CEO Rémy Rioux visited Ukraine and Moldova, signalling AFD's strengthened commitment to Ukraine’s reconstruction and European integration ahead of the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome on July 10 and 11, 2025.

Rioux highlighted that in Odessa, AFD supports the REHAB 1 program, implemented by EF, to improve mental health and rehabilitation services for civilians and veterans. In Kyiv, Rioux and French officials met Ukrainian ministers and advisers to prioritize financing for reconstruction, decentralization, and European convergence.

In Lviv, Rioux signed AFD’s first Ukrainian grant, totaling EUR5million (US$6 million), with the mayor for urban mobility, improving access to the Unbroken rehabilitation center for over 150,000 displaced people. This project, supported by GIZ, the European Commission, and EBRD, paves the way for future direct loans to Lviv.

In Moldova, Rioux met Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean, Deputy Prime Minister Cristina Gherasimov, and Energy Minister Dorin Junghietu to confirm AFD as a leading bilateral partner and a key implementer in the European Growth Plan, which totals EUR1.9billion (US$2.2 billion) over 2025–2027. The INSPIREE program, AFD's first investment in Moldova and co-financed with the KfW, is planned to boost energy security by renovating public buildings.

From June 9-13, 2025, the 3^rd UN Ocean Conference was hosted in Nice, France, ending with over 170 countries adopting a joint declaration committing to urgent measures for ocean conservation and sustainable use.

The event featured 55 heads of state and government as well as upwards of 15,000 participants from civil society, business, and science. The Nice Ocean Action Plan, combining this declaration with voluntary pledges, was said to mark renewed global political will for marine protection.

Key commitments included:

• A European Commission pledge of EUR1 billion (US$1.1 billion) for ocean conservation;
• A pledge by French Polynesia to create the world’s largest marine protected area;
• A pledge by New Zealand of US$52 million for Pacific Ocean governance;
• A pledge by Italy of EUR6.5 million (US$7 million) to strengthen Coast Guard surveillance in marine protected areas and on oil platforms;
• A pledge by Spain to establish five new marine protected areas, aiming to safeguard 25% of its marine territory;
• A pledge by Germany of EUR100 million (US$115 million) for Baltic and North Sea munitions clearance;
• The launch of a Coral Bond for reef conservation by Indonesia, WB, and partners.

37 countries, led by Panama and Canada, launched the High Ambition Coalition for a Quiet Ocean, while Canada pledged US$9 million to the Ocean Risk and Resilience Alliance. UN agencies and global partners also launched a co-design process for One Ocean Finance to unlock billions in new financing from ocean-dependent industries and blue economy sectors.

Nineteen more states ratified the Marine Biodiversity Treaty, bringing total signatures to 136 and ratifications to 50 states, plus the EU. Ten more ratifications are needed for the Agreement to enter into force. The 4^th UN Ocean Conference, in 2028, will be co-hosted by Chile and the Republic of Korea.

On June 2, 2025, AFD signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Essam and Dalal Obaid Foundation, Louis Dreyfus Foundation, and Sawiris Foundation to pilot a climate-smart agriculture program benefiting smallholder farmers in Egypt’s Sohag and Minya governorates.

This collaboration aims to improve agricultural productivity and resilience through tailored financial tools, sustainable practices, and market access support. AFD will also contribute through technical assistance and impact evaluation, with a long-term goal of scaling the approach nationally.

On January 28, 2025, French President Emmanuel Macron committed EUR1 billion (US$1.1 billion) to Mission 300, an initiative that seeks to connect an additional 300 million people from sub-Saharan Africa to electricity by 2030 launched by the World Bank and the AfDB.

This commitment complements the EUR100 million (US$1.1 billion) allocation commitment made in May 2024, to support a transition to sustainable cooking methods by 2030.

On December 17, 2024, the WHO Academy in Lyon officially opened, marking a significant step in strengthening the skills and competencies of health professionals to achieve UHC and improve global access to quality healthcare services

The Academy will provide healthcare professionals worldwide with training in the latest medical advancements and help prepare for future health emergencies. The official opening was attended by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, French President Emmanuel Macron, the Director of Institut Pasteur, the Director of the Robert Koch Institute, and the President of the Lyon Metropole.

The new campus is in Lyon's Gerland biodistrict, surrounded by pharmaceutical companies and scientific institutions, such as the P4 laboratory and the International Agency for Research on Cancer. France has contributed EUR120 million (US$129 million) to the WHO Academy, and for its medium-term operations, the WHO plans to mobilize additional funding from member states, the private sector, and foundations.

On December 8, 2024, the French Treasury and the Zambian Ministry of Finance signed a bilateral agreement implementing a US$6 billion debt treatment for Zambia under the Common Framework in Lusaka.

This is the first bilateral agreement that implemented the multilateral MoU signed between Zambia and its official creditors in October 2023. The agreement restructures Zambia’s debt to France, supporting the country’s return to a sustainable debt structure in line with the objectives of the IMF-supported program.

The key parameters of the debt treatment were established at the Summit for a New Financial Pact in June 2023 in Paris by French Prime Minister Emmanuel Macron, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema, and Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang. The deal builds on France's ongoing support for Zambia. France provided EUR16 million in ODA over 2023–2024 to fund emergency food programs in response to droughts caused by the El Niño phenomenon.

This marks the first debt restructuring agreement negotiated under the Common Framework, which involves Paris Club creditors, non-Paris Club G20 members, and borrowing countries. As chair and secretariat of the Paris Club and co-chair of Zambia’s Official Creditors Committee, France played a central role in facilitating these negotiations.

On December 2, 2024, France announced an additional EUR50 million (US$60 million) for Gaza’s civilian population at the Cairo Ministerial Conference to Enhance the Humanitarian Response in Gaza.

France’s contribution will fund the humanitarian actions of UN agencies, NGOs, and direct French initiatives to address the humanitarian emergency. French Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot called on Israel to ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches Gaza.

In November 2023, French President Emmanuel Macron gathered key humanitarian actors, including the UN and NGOs, at the first international humanitarian conference in support of the civilian population of Gaza. France initially contributed EUR100 million (US$108 million). The second conference, held in December 2023, provided an update on the implementation of the financial commitments made in November 2023, and aimed to strengthen coordination between states, donors, UN agencies, and NGOs.

In 2024, Barrot announced an additional contribution from France of EUR100 million (US$108 million).

On November 19, 2024, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed to make ocean protection a strategic joint priority during Macron's trip to Brazil.

The statement emphasized that Brazil will host COP30 on climate in November 2025, which coincides with the 33^rd anniversary of the adoption of the UNFCCC and the 10^th anniversary of the adoption of the Paris Agreement.

France in turn is co-hosting, the next UNOC in June 2025, alongside Costa Rica. In response to the urgent ocean-related challenges, the UNOC is intended as a summit for action based on concrete commitments and a consolidated roadmap for progress. The conference will result in the adoption of the Action Plan for the Ocean.

In order to achieve SDG 14 and implement the 2030 Agenda, France and Brazil, as strategic partners, expressed their commitment to launch a global movement for the ocean and climate at the G20, in preparation for the 3^rd UNOC in France and COP30 in Belém. The objective is to develop a fair and sustainable blue economy enhancing the resilience of marine and coastal communities.

On November 11, 2024, sixty organizations and high-profile individuals signed an op-ed published in Le Monde regarding the cuts to ODA planned in the draft 2025 budget.

The article stated that in recent years France has shown leadership on international development by highlighting the commitments made by France towards international development. This included enshrining the 0.7% ODA target into law in 2021, initiatives such as President Jacques Chirac’s aviation levy, funding the global HIV/AIDS response in 2005, and Presidents Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande’s financial transaction tax which is earmarked for global health and climate.

The authors call on the government to protect France’s legacy on international development by reconsidering the draft budget’s plans to include a 35% reduction in ODA, as well as by ensuring the link between the above-mentioned taxes and revenues for international development is maintained.

On November 8, 2024, President Macron co-signed an op-ed defending solidarity taxes alongside the president of Kenya, William Ruto and Barbados Prime Minister, Mia Mottley.