France is set to prioritise foreign aid programmes in areas where the country has strong self-interest or expertise, according to the nation's global development minister. Éléonore Caroit, France's minister for international partnerships—a role renamed from minister for development last year—stated that France is now explicitly seeking returns from its diplomatic relationships.
In an exclusive interview, Caroit explained: "Part of your development financing also needs to go into sectors where you have an interest, because you have a competitive advantage or particular know-how as a country; then you will also be able to better address development challenges."
Like the United Kingdom and the United States, France has implemented substantial cuts to its foreign aid budget, reducing it five times in just two years. Latest data shows France spent $13.8 billion (£10.3 billion) on foreign aid in 2025, down from a peak of $17.7 billion in 2022. The UK spent $17.5 billion in 2025, down from $21.7 billion in 2020.
The 2026 French budget confirmed cuts of £695 million to aid, representing the second most significant reduction to a government department (down 18 per cent compared to 2025) as the country tackles its unsustainable debt burden. A new global development strategy has been launched, prioritising partnerships and knowledge-sharing with wealthier developing countries while preserving grant-based financing for fragile and conflict-affected nations.
Speaking with The Independent, Caroit was more vocal about seeking economic returns than the UK typically is. "If we were talking about climate, France happens to have great companies that are top builders of trains, public transportation systems, and water treatment," she said. "So we will, as a priority, invest in these areas rather than solar panels, where we don't have an industry."
"It's not that we are tying our aid to French companies investing, but we are really looking at sectors where there is French experience that can be helpful to a country, and where we can also find our own interest," Caroit added.
Mikaela Gavas at the Center for Global Development noted that Caroit's comments reflect a broader European shift where governments are "deliberately steering development finance toward its own industrial strengths." In practice, this means projects funded will increasingly be shaped by European or French commercial interests rather than development needs or partner-country preferences.
The language used by Caroit is much more bullish than that of Jenny Chapman, the UK's development minister, who has framed international development as sharing UK expertise rather than gaining returns. At a recent CGD event, Baroness Chapman revealed the UK discussed incorporating "national interest" into aid strategy but decided against it.
According to CGD's Ian Mitchell, the UK's focus on "communities of expertise"—described as hubs sharing expertise in climate, energy, education, health, finance, and governance—reflects a desire for development to benefit areas where the UK has strengths, though the self-interest is more veiled. "In either case, the benefits of prioritising domestic companies or sectors through aid are at best vanishingly small and could even be damaging domestically," Mitchell said, adding that it could subsidise less efficient domestic organisations.
On the UK, Caroit said: "I do believe that France and the UK are like-minded in general, because we understand that for development to be sustainable, you need the country receiving investments to be in the driving seat, empowered by the relationship." More transactional partnerships are being developed by the US under Donald Trump, who effectively closed USAID upon returning to the White House, demanding health data and mineral rights in return for aid.
Caroit stated that putting public money towards development is "perhaps the best way that money can be spent," if it also helps attract private investment. She added: "There's also no point in investing in war and defence if you don't also invest in development, which brings peace and stability."
In France's 2026 budget, the biggest cuts were to multilateral aid (down 42 per cent) and humanitarian aid (down 41.2 per cent), despite widespread concern over attacks on multilateral institutions and escalating humanitarian crises. Caroit said it would be "wrong" to think France is turning its back on multilateralism, noting maintained financing for UN agencies and funds pooled through the European Union.
France recently co-hosted the Africa Forward development conference in Nairobi with Kenya, attracting over 35 heads of government and announcing French investments worth $27 billion (£20 billion) in energy transition, digital and AI, maritime economy, and agriculture.
Caroit said many changes to France's development strategy would have been made regardless of aid cuts, as there has been a long-term need to better direct public and private funds for maximum impact. "Public money for education, health and other areas is required for stability and to show global solidarity," she said. "But we have also seen situations—for instance in Haiti—where tonnes of public money has gone in and the result has been very disappointing. That's why we need flexibility in how we finance different kinds of things."
