The European Commission has submitted the annual accounts of the European Development Fund (EDF) for the 2025 financial year to the European Parliament, the Council and the Court of Auditors, in a cover note dated 16 July 2026. The accounts cover funds managed by the Commission and the European Investment Bank (EIB) for development cooperation with African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states and overseas countries and territories (OCTs). The EDF is not part of the EU budget but relies on ad hoc contributions from EU Member States, with the Commission responsible for financial implementation and the EIB managing the Investment Facility.
In 2025, net payments under the 10th and 11th EDF totalled EUR 893 million, while gross payments reached EUR 949.98 million — 95% of the EUR 1 000 million target. The 11th EDF sunset clause took effect on 31 December 2020, meaning no new financing decisions can be adopted, though ongoing contracts may run until 2035 or 2040. Since 2021, EU cooperation with ACP states and OCTs has been funded through the EU budget under the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe, not the EDF.
The annual accounts must be adopted by the Commission by 31 July of the following year and presented to the European Parliament and Council for discharge. The European Court of Auditors audits the accounts; the Council recommends and the European Parliament decides on granting discharge to the Commission. The 2025 accounts reflect the EDF's declining activity as the fund winds down, with payments below target and most new cooperation now financed through the EU budget.
Stakeholder impact For EU Member States, the winding-down of the EDF reduces their obligation to make ad hoc contributions, shifting development funding to the EU budget where contributions are based on GNI shares. ACP states and OCTs see a transition from EDF-funded projects to budget-funded programmes under Global Europe, which may alter project cycles and conditionality. The European Commission and EIB face reduced administrative workloads for EDF management, though legacy contracts require oversight until 2040. The European Parliament gains greater oversight as development funding moves to the EU budget, where it is subject to the ordinary budgetary procedure and discharge.
Institutional follow-up The European Court of Auditors will audit the 2025 EDF accounts and issue a report. The Council will then adopt a recommendation on discharge, followed by a European Parliament vote to grant or withhold discharge to the Commission for EDF implementation.