For the budget period 2014-2020, the Instrument for Cooperation with Industrialised Countries (ICI) will be replaced by the Partnership Instrument for Cooperation with Third Countries (PI).

The EU’s interaction with many countries around the world focuses on development cooperation. The PI will offer a different approach to established models of development
cooperation by promoting policy cooperation with countries of strategic interest to the EU. In particular, it will allow the EU to establish a wider political dialogue with emerging partners. It will also support the EU’s relations with countries that are no longer eligible for bilateral development aid.

The Partnership Instrument (PI) has global reach and the vocation to address global challenges such as climate change and energy security and to support the external dimension of EU policies (e.g. competiveness, research, and innovation). The external projection of the “Europe 2020” Strategy will be a major strategic component of the PI. It will
also be able to address specific aspects of the EU’s market access, trade, investment and business opportunities and to support public diplomacy and outreach activities.