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European Union pledges EUR 5 million to Phase Three of EIF support for LDCs

The European Union (EU) has pledged EUR 5 million to the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF), providing significant support for the initiative's third phase of activities to help least-developed countries (LDCs) harness trade for sustainable growth. Building on more than a decade of EU support totalling nearly USD 25 million, the contribution was announced on 16 September 2025 at the EIF's High-Level Platform for LDC Partnerships at the WTO in Geneva.

The commitment was also marked at a short ceremony attended by WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and EIF Executive Director Ratnakar Adhikari, who were joined by EU Ambassador João Aguiar Machado and Paz Velasco Velazquez, Head of the Trade, Investment Climate, Entrepreneurship and Value Chains Unit at the Directorate-General for International Partnerships of the European Commission.

Ms Velasco Velazquez said: "The EU has been a reliable partner to the EIF from the very beginning, and we continue to stand with LDCs as they integrate into the global economy. Under the EU's Global Gateway strategy, our commitment to sustainable and inclusive economic growth remains as high as ever. With Phase Three putting investment at the forefront, and with the EIF uniquely positioned to address LDCs’ needs, we are hopeful that this new phase will be very successful."

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala welcomed the announcement, noting: "We are very grateful for the EU's support to the EIF, which comes at just the right time. LDCs need stable and predictable partnerships to strengthen their trade capacities and seize new opportunities despite today's global challenges. This pledge is a signal of confidence in the EIF and in the power of trade to deliver real impact for people's lives and livelihoods."

EIF Executive Director Ratnakar Adhikari added: "This generous contribution from the European Union gives us important momentum as we prepare to start EIF Phase Three. It underscores the European Union's longstanding leadership in Aid for Trade and strengthens our ability to provide catalytic and transformative support to LDCs in the years ahead."

This new pledge builds on earlier commitments by a number of funding partners that were announced in June 2025 in Sevilla, Spain, at the 4^th International Conference on Financing for Development. It provides further momentum towards EIF Phase Three, which will run from October 2025 to December 2031 in alignment with the UN Doha Programme of Action for LDCs. The next phase aims to mobilize at least USD 200 million to deliver catalytic and transformative trade support to LDCs.

Since its launch, the EIF has been the only global Aid for Trade framework dedicated exclusively to helping LDCs use trade as a driver of sustainable economic development and poverty alleviation.

More information on the EIF and its work is available here.

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