March 2026 Data (April Edition)

Section A: The Themes Hidden in March's Lobbying Data

Surge in EU-ASEAN Business Council Lobbying as Strategic Partnership Progresses

March 2026 saw a significant increase in lobbying by the EU-ASEAN Business Council and the World Economic Forum, coinciding with ongoing efforts to deepen the EU-ASEAN Strategic Partnership. Business representatives, including those engaging with Direct. Gen. Tech Sovereignty and Comm Hoekstra (Climate), urged enhanced trade facilitation and cooperation in areas like supply chains and digital policy, reflecting calls made during high-level meetings just prior to the April ASEAN–EU Ministerial summit.

📎 Joint Ministerial Statement, 28 April 2026 · EU-ASEAN Business Council statement, 25 March 2026

Global Gateway Strategy Sparks LAC-Focused Lobbying

Lobbying activity in March 2026 included briefings by Expertise France, Agence Francaise de Developpement, Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, and the Inter-American Development Bank with Direct. Gen. International Partnerships on Global Gateway projects targeting the Latin America and Caribbean region, such as infrastructure projects and connectivity initiatives. This aligns closely with the EU’s flagship investment approach, renewed at ministerial level in early 2026, and underscores industry efforts to shape its implementation, particularly regarding local impact and critical resources.

📎 2nd session of the Global Gateway Working Group on Circular Economy in ...

Focused Engagement on EU-Gulf Affairs Amid Policy Shifts

Foreign Affairs lobbyists, including representatives from Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and Appel de Geneve / Geneva Call, registered heightened activity related to EU-Gulf relations in March 2026 as the EU signaled expanding ties with the Gulf Cooperation Council. This push came during a period of regional crisis and was mirrored in coordinated policy statements and joint meetings between the EU—often through interlocutors such as Direct. Gen. Mediterranean—and the GCC, highlighting how industry advocacy aligns with evolving energy, trade, and security priorities.

📎 ORF Expert Speak, 14 April 2026 · European Council on Foreign Relations commentary, 26 March 2026 · GCC and EU joint statement, 5 March 2026

Eastern Partnership Civil Society Efforts Amplified in Advance of Security Talks

Organizations such as the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum and the Democracy Development Foundation, in dialogue with Comm Kos (Enlargement), intensified lobbying ahead of the March 2026 Eastern Partnership Senior Officials’ Meeting, seeking stronger EU support for independent media, civil society, and law enforcement cooperation. This advocacy, also advanced by the National Interests Advocacy Network ANTS in meetings with Comm Kubilius (Defence and Space), coincides with renewed EU commitments to Ukraine, Moldova, and the wider region on democratic reforms and resilience measures.

📎 EaP Senior Officials' Meeting, 19 March 2026 | Eastern Partnership ...

Section B: Lobbying Activity by Industry

This section compares, by industry, the lobbying activity with the European Commission last month to its historical average.

Industry Lobbying Activity, March 2026

In March 2026, 3 industries from this sector were active in lobbying meetings with the European Commission, led by Extraterritorial Organisations.

Industries running notably above their historical average this month include State and Policy Administration and Community Services.

On the quieter side, Extraterritorial Organisations saw notably less lobbying activity than their historical average.

Section C: Lobbying by Industry for the Past Year

To contextualize Section B, this chart shows the residual trajectory of the same top industries from Section B over the past 12 months — the deviation from what would be expected after accounting for seasonal patterns and the overall trend. Persistent above-zero values indicate sustained over-activity; persistent below-zero values indicate sustained quiet periods.

Industry Lobbying Residuals, March 2026

This chart shows the 3 industries in this sector with the largest deviations from expected lobbying activity in March 2026. Positive values run above their seasonal trend, negative values below.

Extraterritorial Organisations, State and Policy Administration, and Community Services saw lobbying notably below expected levels this month.

Section D: Lobbying Activity by Organization

In this section, we see the organizations with the most unusual lobbying behavior last month, defined by either unusually high or unusually low lobbying activity.

Organization Lobbying Activity, March 2026

In March 2026, 37 organizations from this sector took part in 52 lobbying meetings with the European Commission.

The organizations with the most notable increases in lobbying activity this month include EU-ASEAN Business Council, European American Chamber of Commerce New York, ChildFund Alliance, Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, and Search for Common Ground.

On the quieter side, American Chamber of Commerce to the European Union, Human Rights Watch, and World Economic Forum saw notably less lobbying activity than usual.

New to the sector's lobbying records this month: National Interests Advocacy Network ANTS, Center for Civilians in Conflict, Lebanese Center for Human Rights, "Democracy Development Foundation" Foundation, and Egregor.

Section E: Lobbying of Government Institutions in the Past Month

Every lobbying meeting takes place with one of two types of European Commission body: a Commissioner's cabinet (political staff) or a Directorate-General (the civil service). This section shows the organisation-to-institution pairings with the most unusual lobbying activity last month, defined by the largest absolute difference between this month's meeting count and the pair's 12-month rolling average.

Lobbying of Commission Institutions, March 2026 vs 12-Month Avg

In March 2026, 37 organisations from this sector met with 33 Commission bodies across 52 meetings — split across 17 Commissioner cabinets and 16 Directorates-General.

Notable increases in lobbying activity this month include Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum with Comm Kos (Enlargement) and Agence Francaise de Developpement with Direct. Gen. International Partnerships.

Section F: Organization Lobbying by Subject in the Past Month

This section shows the organisation-to-subject pairings with the most unusual lobbying activity last month. Subjects are classified from each meeting's title text into one of 19 EU policy areas. A meeting covering multiple topics counts toward each of them.

Lobbying by Subject, March 2026 vs 12-Month Avg

In March 2026, 33 organisations from this sector lobbied on 11 policy topics across 52 meetings. Meetings may touch multiple topics, so subject totals can exceed total meetings.

Topics with notably elevated lobbying activity this month include EU-ASEAN Business Council on Foreign Affairs, European American Chamber of Commerce New York on Foreign Affairs, Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum on Social Issues, EU-ASEAN Business Council on Environment, and ChildFund Alliance on Social Issues.

Section G: Most-Lobbied Officials

This section lists the most-frequent lobbying touchpoints between this sector's organisations and individual European Commission officials last month, compared to each pairing's average over the past year.

Most-Lobbied Officials, March 2026

In March 2026, 58 European Commission officials took part in 52 meetings with this sector's lobbyists.

The most-frequent meetings this month were Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum and Marta Kos + 1 other at Comm Kos (Enlargement), Agence Francaise de Developpement and Felix Fernandez-Shaw at Direct. Gen. International Partnerships, Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America and Apostolos Tzitzikostas at Comm Tzitzikostas (Transport and Tourism), EU-ASEAN Business Council and Oliver Varhelyi + 1 other at Comm Varhelyi (Health and Animal Welfare), and European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam and Jozef Sikela + 1 other at Comm Sikela (International Partnerships).

Most activity came from Cabinet members (32 meetings), followed by Director (12) and Head of Unit (11).