The first partnership report, entitled “The partnership between the UN and the EU: The United Nations and the European Commission working together in Development and Humanitarian Cooperation”, was issued in March 2007. It focuses on the results achieved in 2005 through the joint efforts of the UN and the EC in almost 90 countries. For the most part, the report presents the outcomes achieved in the development and humanitarian fields, made possible through UN activities supported by EC contributions of € 700 million. EC-UN cooperation ranged from disarmament to electoral assistance, from capacity-building in the health sector to protection of the environment, from support to child enrolment in school to assistance for refugees and stateless people.

In 2005, the UN with EC support:

1. Protected people: Provided 7 million refugees, internally displaced and stateless people in 70 countries with protection and assistance.

2. Reinforced democracy and human rights: Gave 50 million people the possibility to vote as a result of support for democratic elections in 10 countries, from Burundi to Suriname. Prevented 50,000 children from entering armed groups in Africa and Asia by providing education, recreation and health care.

3. Helped communities to recover from war and disaster: Provided food assistance to 22 million people, mostly in countries affected by natural and man-made disasters ranging from Indonesia to Sudan. Helped four million Afghan refugees return home and begin rebuilding their lives, after the fall of the Taliban government.

4. Improved health and education: Immunized 400 million children in 49 countries, from Chad to Indonesia, and administered 2.2 billion doses of oral polio vaccine around the world.

5. Helped build sustainable livelihoods: Assisted 23 countries on Africa and Asia in preserving forest resources and improving livelihoods of forest people. Preserved tens of thousands of jobs through a fisheries quality programme that helped secure the lifting of the ban exports of shrimps from Benin to the EU. This provided revenue for 100,000 people.