Speech by Commissioner Urpilainen at the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA) in Dublin

Speech by Urpilainen at IIEA

Ladies and gentlemen,

I am so pleased to address the Institute of International and European Affairs here in Dublin.

Here at the Institute, you examine the state of the world and Ireland's place in it.

You provide a forum for debate, discussion, and innovation.

And you propose policy solutions to the world's most pressing challenges.

Today, as we all know, the world faces not just one… Or even two… But multiple crises.

We're experiencing a level of tension and polarity not seen since the end of the Cold War.

In this poly-crisis context, how can we achieve a more sustainable future?

The EU's answer to this question is our EUR 300 billion Global Gateway Strategy, which I'll introduce to you shortly.

But first, let me take a closer look at the context behind it – the new paradigm in international relations.

As they say, reality can sometimes be stranger than fiction.

When I took up my role as European Commissioner for International Partnerships five years ago, I never thought I'd see war return to European soil.

Yet today Russia's brutal assault on Ukraine continues.

Meanwhile, the war in Gaza is escalating, the Taliban have returned to power in Afghanistan, and military coups have multiplied in Africa.

Then there was the pandemic.

Covid-19 not only claimed lives, but also destroyed economies. And it continues to take an economic toll.

Today more than half of Low-Income Countries are in debt distress or at high risk of it.

Climate change has also accelerated, wreaking havoc around the world.

It continues to hit the poorest countries the hardest – those least responsible for it, and least equipped to respond.

As you know, these crises are not isolated. Instead, they occur against a backdrop of long-term challenges and trends:

Global demographics continue to shift: In 1890, Europe was 25% of the world population – today, it is less than 10%.

New manufacturing and economic centres have emerged.

Digitalisation is progressing at breakneck speed, but so are the divides it creates.

Those of us old enough to remember the Cold War can recall that geopolitically, it was a simpler time.

An iron curtain divided Europe, and two superpowers vied for global supremacy.

By contrast, today we are living in a more complex world.

The new international relations paradigm is multipolar.

New global powers are emerging, or re-emerging.

Today's world is both hypercompetitive and hyperconnected, with deeply integrated trade links and financial markets.

A world where supply chains can be easily disrupted or weaponised.

A world where Russia and others seek to extend their influence, push alternative governance models, and undermine Europe.

In the new international relations paradigm, geopolitics and geoeconomics have become intertwined. And countries around the world must respond.

This brings me to my second point.

Europe's answer to this paradigm shift is our Global Gateway strategy, which seeks to boost resilience for the EU and partner countries alike.

Launched by President von der Leyen in 2021, Global Gateway supports smart, clean, and secure links in the digital, energy, and transport sectors. And it helps strengthen health, education, and research systems across the world.

To increase impact, we deploy a collective approach called Team Europe.

It not only brings together the resources and expertise of the EU institutions, but also its 27 Member States, their development finance institutions, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). It also seeks to mobilise the private sector.

We also leverage EU funds to take some of the risk out of investment. Through a mixture of grants, concessional loans and guarantees, we attract private sector investment to the countries that need it most.

Now as with any large transformational strategy it begs the question … ‘What does Global Gateway mean in practice?'

At its core, Global Gateway is about high-quality partnership.

We seek to understand our international partners' goals for the future, and how EU values intersect with them.

We seek to create links, not dependencies. And to offer truly comprehensive partnership – not just hard infrastructure, but also the regulatory support, technology transfer, and local job creation to make investments last.

For example, at the 2022 EU-AU Summit, African leaders emphasised the need for strategic autonomy in vaccine and pharmaceutical production. Not just to cope with Covid-19, but also malaria and other infectious diseases.

Currently, Africa imports over 99% of its vaccines and 95% of its medicines.

Through a EUR 1 billion Global Gateway initiative, European and African partners – including innovation champion BioNTech – are bringing new technologies to the continent.

Critical mRNA vaccines have already been produced in South Africa. And state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities are taking shape in Rwanda, with Ghana, and Senegal poised to follow.

Our efforts focus on cultivating the right environment for both the production and uptake of health products and innovations.

This spans everything from partnering with universities on skill development, to working with African regulators on timely market authorisation of new products.

As African vaccine and medicine manufacturing picks up pace, we will work to strengthen broader health systems and access to care – ensuring better health and wellbeing for all.

Shifting gears from health to climate and energy…let me give you another example of Global Gateway in action.

Namibia has world class solar and wind resources and holds 30% of the minerals necessary for the green transition.

It has embarked on a path for green industrialisation and aims to become a global frontrunner in renewable energy.

Meanwhile, the EU seeks to make Europe the first climate neutral continent by 2050 and needs alternative energy resources to support the green transition.

Last year, The EU and Namibia signed a partnership agreement that aims to decarbonise economies and create jobs in both our regions.

Today it's taking shape in a EUR 1 billion partnership investment.

At the first EU-Namibia Business Forum last year, we brought together government and finance stakeholders to help create partnerships to expand green hydrogen production, develop new products, and support a Namibia-based industry for raw materials.

We're also collaborating to meet environmental, social, and governance standards.

And we're offering training and skill development, so that all Namibians can benefit from the job opportunities created by green industrialisation.

The EU is already partnering with the African Union to promote regional economic integration.

The African Continental Free Trade Area opens access to the largest free trade area in the world, and in the past 7 years, we've allocated more than EUR 400 million to help it take shape.

In terms of dairy for instance, we want to foster public/private sector partnerships with EU companies who have the expertise to help develop the sector in Nigeria, while having the capacity to provide support and off-take to local producers.

This would not only benefit Nigeria, but the entire continent. It would reduce Africa's dependency on imports, create jobs, promote nutrition and food security, and increase Africa's share of the global economy.

As I said, this partnership is still in the early stages, so stay tuned.

But I hope that these examples give a sense of the depth and breadth of Global Gateway partnerships and what makes them unique.

Dear Friends,

Earlier I referred to the poly-crisis confronting the world.

The dictionary defines poly-crisis as “the simultaneous occurrence of several catastrophic events.”

Even on paper, it's frightening.

The reality is far worse.

In such times, it can be easy to throw up our hands. To think, “What can we do?”

My answer is, we can do a lot. We MUST do a lot.

More than halfway to 2030, the world is on track to deliver a meagre 15% of the sustainable development goals.

We need to adopt a new approach.

This is the idea behind Global Gateway.

Ireland is already partnering with the EU on 26 Team Europe initiatives. Together, we're having an impact in countries across the globe.

I look forward to deepening our partnership with Ireland when it takes up the Presidency of the Council of the EU in 2026.

Through collaboration, we can pave the way for a successful UN Summit of the Future.

We can restore faith in multilateralism.

And we can uphold the values we hold most dear.

As some of the foremost thought leaders and development experts, I hope you will help lead the way.