Services and structure

The central board of the FPS Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation consists of six Directorates-General and six Staff Directorates and Directorates.

Directorate General for Multilateral Affairs and Globalisation (DGM)

The Directorate General for Multilateral Affairs and Globalisation (DGM) is responsible for promoting and defending Belgium's foreign policy with regard to multilateral issues and the CFSP.
  1. Last updated on

Remit

Within the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, the Directorate General for Multilateral Affairs and Globalisation (DGM) is responsible for promoting and defending Belgium's foreign policy with regard to multilateral issues and the CFSP.

Structure

As the above-mentioned issues are so numerous and wide-ranging, the DGM, which can rely on the multilateral action of our Permanent Representations and our bilateral posts, is divided into 8 areas of competence. These are each managed by a directorate, based on the following allocation of roles.

The Directorate for Security Policy (M1) provides management, advocacy, development and coordination of the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP). The Directorate is also tasked with international security in the broad sense and, from this remit, participates in all aspects of the decision-making process within international organisations including the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). M1 provides management, advocacy, development and coordination of the issue "hybrid threats and disinformation".

The Directorate for the United Nations and OIF (M2) is responsible for promoting and developing international cooperation around the world within the framework of the United Nations, including the General Assembly and its committees, the Security Council, peacekeeping operations, sanctions, the Economic and Social Council and its functional committees, the Grand Conferences, specialised institutions and budgetary contributions, and the UN's candidacy policy. In addition, it is also competent for the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF). 

The Directorate for Human Rights (M3) is tasked with shaping and implementing the human rights and democracy-building component of our foreign policy, both bilaterally and in the context of international and regional organisations such as the United Nations, the European Union, and the Council of Europe.

The Directorate for International Governance (M4) is dedicated to the management, promotion and coordination of Belgian policy in the following areas:

  • International economic and financial cooperation;
  • the fight against international organised financial crime;
  • cyber;
  • space; 
  • the rule of law, including tackling corruption, money laundering and organised crime.

The Directorate for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation (M5) is responsible for managing and coordinating Belgian policy in the area of disarmament and non-proliferation.

The Directorate for EU External Relations (ME6) ensures the follow-up of all EU external policies (Community and CFSP), under the joint responsibility of the DGM and the DGE (Directorate General for European Affairs and Coordination).

The Directorate for Counter Terrorism - Countering Violence Extremism (M7) manages and coordinates foreign policy in the areas of countering and preventing terrorism, violent extremism and radicalisation.

The Directorate for the Environment and Climate (MD8) manages, develops and coordinates foreign policy in the area of environment and sustainable development, and is under the joint responsibility of the DGM and the DGD.

Two horizontal services are also operational within the DGM. The Transversal Multilateral Issues service & CoorMulti (M0.1) is a permanent coordination and consultation structure for multilateral issues that manages and coordinates, among other things, the policy on sanctions and ensures the coherence of Belgian policy. To this end, within the FPS, the CoorMulti is tasked with consulting and informing other federal public services, communities and regions, and civil society organisations. Finally, the M0.0 service is responsible for the management and quality control of the Directorate General.