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(2004/C 88 E/0195)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0510/04

by Sérgio Marques (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(24 February 2004)

Subject:   Stage reached in the implementation of aid to Venezuela

Following the tragic floods which occurred in Venezuela in December 1999, the Commission allocated substantial sums of money to support reconstruction in the affected areas (including the state of Vargas) and to support risk prevention (i.e. devising and implementing programmes designed to enable natural risks to be managed in a huge area adjacent to the one affected by the 1999 floods in the states of Falcón, Miranda and Yaracuy).

Unfortunately, in spite of the money allocated by the Commission, implementation of the projects concerned has been repeatedly postponed.

According to information provided by the Commission itself in September 2003, the start of the joint implementation by Corpovargas (a body responsible for rehabilitating and developing the state of Vargas) of the two projects to be implemented in the state of Vargas (‘Support for reconstruction and the prevention of disasters in the stage of Vargas’ and ‘Social reconstruction in the state of Vargas’) is dependent upon the arrival in Venezuela of two European technical-assistants experts. The financing agreements have already been signed by the Venezuelan Government.

As regards the project which is concerned with preventing flooding in the states of Falcón, Yaracuy and Miranda, the Commission stated in September 2003 that the technical annexes to the financing agreement (which was due to be signed by the Commission and the Venezuelan Government by 31 December 2003) had still to be concluded.

In view of the above, would the Commission answer the following questions?

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(13 April 2004)

The project entitled ‘Support for reconstruction and the prevention of disasters in the State of Vargas’ officially started on 1 September 2003 when two European experts joined the project management unit (Corpovargas). These experts had been engaged for a period of six months to help get the project under way and advise the management body in drawing up provisional and annual operational plans for 2004. They also made an active contribution to drawing up the dossier for the first international call for tender (EuropeAid/117572/D/W/VE) for a works contract amounting to some EUR 10 million.

The provisional operational plan, totalling EUR 382 450, was approved on 14 November 2003 although implementation of the first payments had already begun. The long-term international technical assistance team took up its duties in February this year.

The Commission would point out that, despite its repeated calls, its national counterpart has not made any contribution to the project's implementation, and consequently no local technical assistants have yet been engaged and the project's timetable may have to be altered.

The financing agreement for the prevention of flooding in the States of Falcon, Yaracuy and Mirador came into force on 29 December 2003 after being signed by the Venezuelan Minister for Foreign Affairs. This agreement defines the responsibilities and duties of the Office of the Deputy Minister for Planning and Development, which is the official authority and management body for the project. A delegation agreement between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Planning and Development is being signed.

The invitation to tender for the international assistance contract has been concluded, the evaluation committee has given its conclusions and the contract is now being awarded.

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