COUNCIL DECISION
of 19 March 2007
amending Decision 2001/822/EC on the association of the overseas countries and territories with the European Community
(2007/249/EC)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community and in particular Article 187 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Whereas:
(1)
Council Decision 2001/822/EC of 27 November 2001 on the association of the overseas countries and territories with the European Community (the Overseas Association Decision) (1) establishes the legal framework for promoting the economic and social development of the overseas countries and territories (OCTs) and for enhancing economic relations between them and the Community. The Overseas Association Decision applies until 31 December 2011. To coincide with the duration of the 10th European Development Fund (2008 to 2013) (10th EDF) and the multiannual financial framework 2007 to 2013, it should be extended until 31 December 2013.
(2)
Annex II A of the Overseas Association Decision lays down the financial allocations for the period 2000 to 2007. In the light of the newly established 10th EDF, the amount for the period 2008 to 2013 should be allocated.
(3)
Provisions should be made for rules governing the transition from the ninth EDF to the 10th EDF as far as the OCTs are concerned. Those rules should be established in accordance with the general rules on the commitment of funds of the ninth EDF and of previous EDFs after 31 December 2007 set out in Article 1 of Decision 2005/446/EC of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States meeting within the Council of 30 May 2005 setting the deadline for the commitment of the funds of the ninth EDF (2) and in Article 1(3) and (4) of the Internal Agreement between the Representatives of the Government of Member States meeting within the Council, on the financing of Community aid under the multiannual framework for the period 2008 to 2013 in accordance with the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement and the allocation of financial assistance for the OCTs to which Part Four of the EC Treaty applies (3) (Internal Agreement establishing the 10th EDF).
(4)
The Internal Agreement establishing the 10th EDF lays down an overall amount of EUR 286 million to be allocated to the OCTs. The apportionment of that amount between, on the one hand, the different instruments for development finance cooperation related to the EDF, and on the other hand, the criteria and elements for determining the beneficiary OCTs’ initial indicative allocations, should be laid down.
(5)
Regarding the apportionment between the different instruments for development finance cooperation related to the EDF, coordination should be ensured in particular between support to regional cooperation and integration and support at territorial level, to enhance the resilience of the OCTs towards the challenges that they are facing regardless of their GNP per capita or other elements used to determine the territorial allocations.
(6)
The financial assistance to the OCTs should be allocated on the basis of standard, objective and transparent criteria. Such criteria should include, in particular, the level of GNP of an OCT, the size of its population and continuity with previous EDFs. Special treatment should be reserved for the least developed OCTs referred to in Annex I B of the Overseas Association Decision, as well as for OCTs which, due to geographical isolation or other constraints, have more difficulties in engaging in regional cooperation and integration.
(7)
When reporting expenditure within the EDF to Member States and the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Commission should distinguish between Official Development Assistance (ODA) and non-ODA activities.
(8)
Special attention should be paid to strengthening the institutional capacities of the OCTs and to good governance, including in the financial, tax and judicial areas.
(9)
Special attention should also be paid to strengthening cooperation between OCTs, ACP States and the outermost regions referred to in Article 299(2) of the Treaty or other actors in the respective regions in which OCTs are situated.
(10)
The terms and conditions of financing in relation to the operations of the OCT Facility referred to in Annex II C of the Overseas Association Decision should be brought into line with the revision of the corresponding Articles in Annex II of the Partnership Agreement between, on the one hand the members of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States, and on the other hand the European Community and its Member States, signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000 (4) (the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement).
(11)
It is crucial to ensure continuity as regards the eligibility of OCTs for funding from the general thematic budget lines of the General Budget of the European Union, outside the EDF. The thematic Regulations referred to in Annex II E of the Overseas Association Decision have been replaced by Regulation (EC) No 1905/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 establishing a financing instrument for development cooperation (5) from 1 January 2007. Annex II E should therefore be amended in order to replace references to those Regulations with a reference to the new financing instrument. In order to ensure continuity, such amendment should apply as from 1 January 2007.
(12)
Taking into account the special relationship between the OCTs and the Member States to which they are linked, the possible participation of OCTs in horizontal Community programmes should be generalised so that the OCTs are allowed to participate in the programmes that are open to the Member Sates to which the OCTs are linked, subject to the rules and objectives of the programmes and the arrangements applicable to the Member States to which the OCTs are linked. In order to allow participation of the OCTs from the beginning of the new programming period, this amendment should be introduced from 1 January 2007.
(13)
A review covering all aspects of European Union spending and resources, including OCTs funding, should be conducted on the basis of a report by the Commission in 2008 to 2009.
(14)
The current technical amendments are without prejudice to subsequent revision of the Overseas Association Decision, in particular pursuant to Article 62 thereof,
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:
Article 1
Council Decision 2001/822/EC is hereby amended as follows:
1.
in Article 23, the fourth subparagraph shall be replaced by the following:
‘The financial and accounting procedures applicable to development finance cooperation for the OCTs by virtue of the ninth EDF shall be those laid down in the ninth EDF Financial Regulation. The financial and accounting procedures applicable to development finance cooperation for the OCTs by virtue of the 10th EDF shall be those laid down in the 10th EDF Financial Regulation.’;
2.
the following paragraph shall be added to Article 24:
‘9. For the implementation of the 10th EDF, the respective provisions of the Internal Agreement establishing the 10th EDF shall be applicable.’;
3.
in Article 25(1), the words ‘the period from 2000 to 2007’ shall be replaced by the words ‘the periods from 2000 to 2007 and from 2008 to 2013’;
4.
Article 31 shall be replaced by the following:
‘Article 31
Technical assistance
1. On the initiative of or on behalf of the Commission, studies or technical assistance measures may be financed in order to ensure the preparation, monitoring, evaluation and supervision necessary for implementing this Decision and the overall evaluation of this Decision referred to in Article 1(1)(c) of Annex II A.
Such studies or technical assistance measures shall be financed by the overall grant allocation.
2. On the initiative of the OCTs, studies or technical assistance measures may be financed in relation to the implementation of the activities contained in the SPD, subject to the Commission's opinion.
In the framework of the 9th EDF, such studies or technical assistance measures shall be financed from the allocation of the OCTs concerned. In the framework of the 10th EDF, they shall be financed by the overall grant allocation.’;
5.
the following Article shall be inserted:
‘Article 33a
1. After 31 December 2007, or after the date of entry into force of the Internal Agreement establishing the 10th EDF if this date falls later, balances from the ninth EDF or from previous EDFs shall no longer be committed, with the exception of the balances and funds decommitted after this date of entry into force resulting from the system guaranteeing the stabilisation of export earnings from primary agricultural products (Stabex) under the EDFs prior to the ninth EDF and the remaining balances and reimbursements of the funds allocated under the ninth EDF to finance the resources of the Facility set out in Annex II C, excluding the related interest rate subsidies.
2. Funds decommitted from projects under the ninth EDF or from previous EDFs after 31 December 2007 shall no longer be committed, unless decided otherwise by the Council unanimously, on the basis of a proposal by the Commission, with the exception of the Stabex funds decommitted after this date of entry into force which shall be automatically transferred to the respective territorial indicative programmes financed in accordance with Article 3(1) of Annex II Aa and of the funds allocated under the ninth EDF to finance the resources of the Facility set out in Annex II C, excluding the related interest rate subsidies.’;
6.
Article 58 shall be replaced by the following:
‘Article 58
Programmes open to the OCTs
Individuals from an OCT and, where applicable, the relevant public and/or private bodies and institutions in an OCT, shall be eligible for Community programmes, subject to the rules and objectives of the programmes and the arrangements applicable to the Member State to which the OCT is linked. The programmes shall apply to OCT nationals within the framework of the quota for the Member State to which the OCT concerned is linked, if the programme concerned uses such a quota.
The main programmes that are open to the OCTs are those listed in Annex II F, as well as any programme succeeding them.’;
7.
in Article 63, the year ‘2011’ shall be replaced by ‘2013’;
8.
in Article 1(1)(c) of Annex II A, the words ‘two years’ shall be replaced by ‘four years’;
9.
after Annex II A, a new Annex II Aa shall be inserted, the text of which appears in Annex I to this Decision;
10.
Annex II B shall be amended as follows:
(a)
Article 1 shall be replaced by the following:
‘Article 1
1. An amount of up to EUR 20 million as laid down in Article 5 of the Internal Agreement establishing the ninth EDF shall be provided by the EIB in the form of loans from its own resources in accordance with the conditions provided for by its statutes and this Annex.
2. An amount of up to EUR 30 million as laid down in Article 3 of the Internal Agreement establishing the 10th EDF shall be provided by the EIB in the form of loans from its own resources in accordance with the conditions provided for by its statutes and this Annex.’;
(b)
in Article 2(2), point (c) shall be replaced by the following:
‘(c)
during the period covered by the ninth EDF, the amount of the interest rate subsidy calculated in terms of its value at the times of disbursement of the loan shall be charged against the interest subsidy allocation laid down in Annex II A, Article 3(3)(d), and paid directly to the EIB;
during the period covered by the 10th EDF, the amount of the interest rate subsidy calculated in terms of its value at the times of disbursement of the loan shall be charged against the interest subsidy allocation laid down in Annex II Aa, Article 1(1)(b), and paid directly to the EIB;
Interest subsidies may be capitalised or used in the form of grants to support project-related technical assistance, particularly for financial institutions in the OCTs.’;
11.
Annex II C shall be replaced by the text appearing in Annex II to this Decision;
12.
Annex II E shall be replaced by the text appearing in Annex III to this Decision;
13.
Annex II F shall be replaced by the text appearing in Annex IV to this Decision.
Article 2
Taking of effect
This Decision shall take effect on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
However, Article 1, points (6), (12) and (13) shall apply from 1 January 2007.
Done at Brussels, 19 March 2007.