National Advisory Council for Development Cooperation
Nationale Adviesraad voor Ontwikkelingssamenwerking
National Advisory Council for Development Cooperation
Conseil consultatif national pour la coopération au développement
Postbus 20061, 2500 EB The Hague, the Netherlands
Tel.: (31)-70-3486060 / Fax: (31)-70-3486256
E-mail: nar-dgis@dgis.minbuza.nl
In mid 1997, the functions and membership of the NAR will change in accordance with recent changes in the organisation of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In the early 1960s, when there was growing public interest in development cooperation, the Netherlands' government decided that it should try to involve as many sections of society as possible in its aid policy. Thus the National Advisory Council for Aid to Less Developed Countries was installed by the State
Secretary for Foreign Affairs on 22 January 1964. In February 1975 its name was changed to National Advisory Council on Development Cooperation (NAR).
Responsibilities and composition
It is the responsibility of the NAR to advise the Minister for Development Cooperation, and through him or
her the government, on Dutch development cooperation. It may make reports on its own initiative or at the
request of the Minister. The Council is composed in such a way as to represent as broad a cross section of
Dutch society as possible, drawing on the academic community, industry, politics, the trade union movement,
religious organisations, etc. For its first seven years the Council was chaired by Professor J. Tinbergen. In
December 1970 he was succeeded by Dr C.L. Patijn, who was in turn succeeded in September 1978 by J.H.
van Oostveen, who held the chair for over twelve years. Professor E.W. Hommes has been chairman of the
Council since 12 November 1990.
Appointment of members
At present the Council has 55 members. The Minister for Development Cooperation appoints the chairperson
and the members for terms not exceeding four years. Appointment is on the basis of personal expertise and
an active interest in development cooperation. Members under the age of seventy may be reappointed. Civil
servants who are directly involved in government policy may not be members of the NAR.
Secretariat
The Council is assisted by an official secretariat, which forms part of the Policy Planning Section of the
Directorate-General for International Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Recommendations are drawn up by working parties and submitted for approval to the Plenary Meeting of the
Council. The day-to-day running of the Council is taken care of by the Bureau. This is composed of the
chairperson and vice-chairperson(s) of the NAR, a number of Council members and the chairpersons of the
working parties. The Bureau's tasks include forming the working parties.
Since its inception the Council has given its opinion on many aspects of development problems in over a
hundred publications. Recommendations have been made on such subjects as trade policy towards developing
countries, women in development, the role of foreign investors and multinational companies in the Third
World, agricultural development, the population problem, employment in developing countries, environmen-
tal problems and administrative and management capacity in Sub-Saharan Africa. Its most recent recommen-
dations are listed in the enclosed annex. Each recommendation contains a list of previous Council
publications, some of which are translated into English, French and, occasionally, Spanish.
The Council also organises seminars to promote the development of ideas on development cooperation. The
minutes of such seminars are then published. Seminars have been held on such topics as EC agricultural
policy and the Third World, the Third UN Development Decade, Dutch industry and development
cooperation and the expansion of bilateral policy. An international conference on development policy in the
1990s has also been held.
Further Information
Caroline van Dullemen, Secretary, E-mail: dullemen@dgis.minbuza.nl
Irene van der Winkel, Production Manager, E-mail: nar-dgis@dgis.minbuza.nl
Updated on February 24, 1997
Developer's Note: These pages were developed for use on the Netscape browser. Please address comments to Peter Ballantyne, Information Programme, ECDPM