Role České republiky v zahraniční rozvojové spolupráci

Abstract

This bachelor’s thesis is focuses on the role of the Czech Republic in Foreign Development Cooperation. The aim of the thesis is to provide a comprehensive evaluation of the Czech Foreign Development Cooperation based on the analysis of key documents regulating development cooperation and statistical data available from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) database, covering the time period from 2013 to 2023 The first part of the thesis characterized developing countries, intrduces their classification, and describes the most significant problems they face. This is followed by an overview of the institutional, legal, and economic framework of Czech Development Cooperation, including its historical context and a presentation of the strategic documents governing foreign development cooperation. The analytical part of the thesis focuses on analyzing and evaluating the development of the volume and structure of development assistance in the Czech Republic. It was found that the most significant increase in the volume of aid occured in 2022 and 2023, primarily in connection with the support for refugees from Ukraine, who were forced to leave their country following the Russian invasion in 2022. Before 2022, the total volume of aid remained relatively low and stable, without significant fluctuations. It was also found that the allocation of Official development assistance corresponded with the priorities outlined in the Czech Republic’s strategic documents. Aid was directed toward key sectors (education, healthcare) as well as geographically prioritized countries, primarily Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Georgia, Ethiopia, Cambodia, and Zambia. Sectoral allocation was also in line with the priorities defined in strategic documents, with the main sectoral areas examined in this thesis being water supply and sanitation, education, healthcare, the production sector, and humanitarian aid. The analysis also focused on the fulfillment of the commitment to provide official development assistance amounting to 0.7 % of Gross National Income in line with the international obligations set by the United Nations, or at least 0.33% of GNI according to the European Union commitments for the years 2013–2023. The analysis shows that the Czech Republic has not yet met the set goals, with the exception of 2022, when the aid provided was 0.38 % of GNI.