[pic] | COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES |

Brussels, 13.6.2007

COM(2007) 324 final

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL

on the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 on information measures relating to the common agricultural policy {SEC(2007) 800}

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSIONTO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL

on the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 on information measures relating to the common agricultural policy

PART ONE MEASURES UNDER COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) NO 814/2000

I. Introduction

This report concerns the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 for the years 2003–2006.

The objectives of the information measures on the CAP as defined by Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 are:

helping to explain the CAP as well as to implement and develop it, |

promoting the European Model of Agriculture and helping people understand it, |

providing information for farmers and others living in rural areas, |

raising public awareness of the issues and objectives of the CAP. |

- Actions fall into two main categories:

those submitted by third party organisations for co-financing by EAGGF which can be either programmes or specific measures, |

those at the initiative of the Commission and financed at a rate of 100% by EAGGF ("direct actions"). |

- It was decided by the Council (Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 814/2000) that a report on the implementation of the Regulation should be presented to the European Parliament and the Council every two years. This is the second such report. The first report covering the2000–2002 period was presented in May 2003[1].

The development of the implementing measures which laid down the detailed rules for the application of Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 and, in particular, those relating to grants awarded to third parties, were described in the report of May 2003. In the meantime, there has been a further minor technical change to the implementing rules[2].

This present report to the European Parliament and Council was originally scheduled for presentation in December 2005. It was held over in order to allow completion of the evaluation of the measures taken under this Regulation carried out within the specific framework of the Commission’s evaluation policy for the period 2000–2005, and to enable the Commission to take into consideration the findings of this evaluation[3]. The full text as well as the summary is to be found on the Europa website:http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/eval/reports/cap_info/index_en.htm

The annexes and list of abbreviations mentioned in the text are to be found in the accompanying Commission Staff Working Document.

II. Budget

For the period 2003–2006, EUR 6.5 million was made available annually for information measures under line B1-382 (as it was known in 2003), and following changes in nomenclature line 05 08 06 for the budgetary years 2004–2006.

The breakdown between actions taken by the Commission and actions taken by third party organisations (grants) was as follows:

2003: direct actions (2 500 000) (38%) – grants (4 000 000) (62%),2004: direct actions (2 500 000) (38%) – grants (4 000 000) (62%),2005: direct actions (3 000 000) (46%) – grants (3 500 000) (54%),2006: direct actions (3 700 000) (57%) – grants (2 800 000) (43%).

However, with the exception of 2006 which saw a marked increase in uptake, the yearly budgets were significantly under-spent (execution reached 64% in 2003, 51% in 2004, 61% in 2005, and 98% in 2006; see details in Table 2 under point IV). The limited uptake of the funding possibilities was due mainly to under-spending of the budget allocated to grants. Since many grant applications contained errors or were of poor quality, only a small part of the projects met all of the requirements (eligibility, exclusion, selection, and award criteria).

In order to improve uptake of the budget allocated to grants, and following a review of the most frequently made errors by applicants, calls for proposals 2005/C 252/06[4] concerning co-financed actions under the 2006 exercise, and 2006/C 236/07[5] concerning co-financed actions under the 2007 exercise have been further streamlined, and the wording clarified in order to help applicants avoid such errors. The success of these efforts is reflected in the very considerably increased uptake of the budget allocated to grants in the 2006 exercise.

III. Breakdown of actions financed (in terms of commitments credits)

The first report on Council Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 described how in the 2000–2002 period, the Commission had gradually improved the rules governing measures carried out. It noted also the revision of the implementing rules in Commission Regulation (EC) No 2208/2002 which guided grants activity in the 2003–2006 period[6]. This introduced significant improvements in the scheme: simplification, increased transparency, better evaluation of the information actions proposed, better definition of the messages to communicate and better dissemination. The annual call for proposals was progressively refined and developed, in response to the new political climate in which the CAP operated. There was a strong focus on informing farmers and the wider public about the changes in political direction, in particular the reform of 2003 and subsequent related reforms.

1. Grants (communication actions taken at the initiative of third party organisations)

In the reporting period, the Commission has made use of the budget line to co-finance a series of measures including seminars, conferences, publications, exchange visits, as well as other activities, all of which have helped – both directly and indirectly – to improve the level of understanding of the CAP among the citizens of the EU.

Two kinds of measures are allowed, specific information measures and annual work programmes. A specific information measure is an independent and self–contained information event of short duration, organised on the basis of a single budget. Examples of a specific measure in the reporting period are one conference, or one seminar, etc. An annual work programme is a set of two to five specific information measures.

The maximum financing rate for the measures referred to above is 50% of eligible costs. However, the rate may be increased to 75% in exceptional cases, as specified in the implementing Regulation, and defined in the call for proposals.

In the reporting period, 35 programmes and 70 specific actions were co-financed. It has to be noted that each programme contains a number of actions and that the 35 programmes financed contained 99 specific actions bringing the overall total to 169 actions for the four years. Grants were awarded to 121 conferences and seminars, 11 visits, 22 publications, 11 audiovisual productions and four Web portals.

The table below indicates the number of received and successful applications by Member State.

Table I [pic]

Annex 1 gives an overview of grants in the reporting period. Details on individual grants are to be found on the Europa website: http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/grants/capinfo/index_en.htm

It is important to emphasise that a considerable number of the actions co-financed reached a wider audience beyond the immediate participants thanks to the multiplier effect of the specialised press and media. This reflects the increased emphasis in recent years in the calls for proposals on better dissemination of messages and the need for applicants to define media plans, including target audiences.

As in the past, many grants beneficiaries were located in Belgium, where the most prominent EU level socio-professional organisations (including COPA-COGECA, AEFPR, CEJA) have their headquarters. An important number of such measures were also implemented in Italy, and Spain. This reflects the ongoing high level of applications from these countries.

In 2003–2006, there continued to be relatively few applications from the northern part of the EU-15. Since enlargement, the number of applications from the new Member States has been very low. The Commission services are reflecting on the possible reasons for this situation, and will explore what further channels beyond publication of the annual call for proposals in the Official Journal of the European Communities and on the Europa Website, it might be appropriate to use in order to achieve greater publicity for the calls for proposals. In this context, particular attention will be paid to the specificities of the new Member States.

In 2003–2006, grants were awarded inter alia to seminars and conferences on the CAP and implementation of CAP reform, WTO and rural development. These included a number of conferences exploring themes involving agriculture and the wider society, as well as enlargement.

Individual bodies which were successful in obtaining grants in this period include EU level environmental and rural development organisations such as WWF and EUROMONTANA. In addition to traditional beneficiaries such as COPA-COGECA and CEJA, inter alia also regional and local authorities in the Member States, media organisations, and national farmers' organisations (often members of EU level bodies) were successful, as were some academic bodies. In a part of the co-financed actions, beneficiaries made use of the possibility to involve further organisations as partners in the execution of the projects.

As mentioned earlier, in the 2003–2006 period, procedures for assessing and evaluating grants were improved. Requirements concerning ex-ante and ex-post evaluations were further refined in the annual calls for proposals. It should be recalled also that the obligations of beneficiaries concerning the auto-evaluation of their actions form part of the individual grant agreements concluded between the Commission and the beneficiaries. Grants were awarded after a rigorous selection procedure. Currently, the communication strategy of the DG aims to strengthen its capacity to measure and assess the impact of its information actions. Reports on the implementation of grants are and will in the future also be analysed with a view to assessing the overall impact achieved. This is also in line with the findings of the external evaluation, and the objectives of the Regulation.

2. Communication actions taken at the initiative of the Commission

In 2003–2006, as in the previous period, there was a significant number of actions financed at the initiative of the Commission, which were carried out often with external technical assistance. Some 38% of the budget was earmarked for these measures in 2003 and 2004, and this increased to 46% in 2005 and 57% for 2006.

Annex II details all communication initiatives by the Commission in 2003–2006 as well as the respective costs

Conferences/seminars

The organisation of conferences and seminars continued to be a key activity. This category includes activities such as hearings, seminars for specific groups (journalists, consumer organisations, etc.), EU and international conferences.

In 2003–2006, there was an increasingly strong orientation from the Commission on deepening dialogue with stakeholders across the range of EU policies. Consequently, there was a renewed emphasis on involving a broad range of civil society organisations in conferences and seminars.

Co-operation with other institutions was intensified, as for example, in the conference on young farmers jointly organised by the Commission and European Parliament in January 2005; as well as the conference on "Co-existence of genetically modified, conventional and organic crops – freedom of choice" from 4–6 April 2006 in Vienna, which was organised jointly with the Austrian presidency of the EU. There was also a strong focus on preparing for enlargement.

Participation/stands at fairs

This focus on civil society, and involving all interested bodies; the emphasis of the Commission from 2005 on "going local" , increasingly influenced in these years the organisation of the Commission's regular participation in major annual fairs such as the Salon international de l’Agriculture in Paris and the Internationale Grüne Woche in Berlin, and fairs in general

The frequent presence of the Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, other Commissioners, Members of the European Parliament, as well as other senior political leaders at national and regional level, served to raise the media profile of the Commission's participation at the fairs.

Fairs will remain an important tool in reaching the general public. The focus on seeking synergies, and devising appropriate messages and activities aimed at the general public, will continue as recommended also in the external evaluation.

Publications

A range of one-off and regular publications were produced. CAP reform, rural development and WTO figured prominently, as in the past.

At present, the DG is carrying out a review of these publications in line with the recommendations of the evaluation. In future, it aims to develop more on-line publications, including also the provision of material that can be tailored to meet local needs; this should contribute inter alia towards meeting linguistic needs at local level.

Website

The "Agriculture and Rural Development" website has developed rapidly in the reporting period, notably as an important source of specialist information on the CAP and Rural Development. The recent evaluation found that the website is widely used among key stakeholder organisations as a source of information.

There has also been a significant step towards increased transparency on the CAP: a chapter has been published which guides the interested public to Member State websites with information on beneficiaries of CAP payments.

Also noteworthy is the launch in early 2007 of Commissioner Fischer Boel's web log which uses a new fast-growing means of communication. The e-mail service "Agriculture Newsdigest" which was set up in 2002, is now regularly sent out to more than 14 000 subscribers all over the world.

Clearly the website as a communication tool has considerable potential to develop, and also to reach new and younger audiences among the general public. The current communication strategy of the DG envisages further development of internet based communication, notably using interactive tools.

Opinion Polls

DG Agriculture has continued to poll regularly EU citizens’ opinion on the CAP and rural development. It has recently reviewed its questions in the Eurobarometer survey so as to improve its capacity to measure awareness, and knowledge of the policy, and also to allow it to define different target groups among the general public. This is also in line with the recommendations of the external evaluation.

Visits

Due of its potential to reach the wider public, greater publicity is being given to the visits programme of the DG, both on the Internet and among interested colleges and universities. This also reflects the recommendations of the external evaluation.

IV. The proportion of spending (commitments and payments) between grants at the initiative of third parties and information actions at the initiative of the Commission

Table 2 |

Budget line 05.0806: Commitments and payments 2003–2006 |

2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2003–2006 |

(**) | In relation to the year of commitment and the following year (n+1 rule). |

Annex II: | Breakdown of direct actions by the Commission 2003–2006 |

Annex III: | List of abbreviations. |

[1] Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 on information measures relating to the common agricultural policy (COM(2003)235 final of 8.5.2003)

[2] Commission Regulation (EC) No 1820/2004 of 20 October 2004 amending Regulation (EC) No 2208/2002 laying down detailed rules for applying Council Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 on information measures relating to the common agricultural policy (OJ L 320, 21.10.2004, p. 14)

[3] European Commission, DG AGRI Contract AGRI 2005/0421, Evaluation of the Information Policy on the Common Agricultural Policy, December 2006.

[4] OJ C 252, 12.10.2005, p. 28

[5] OJ C 236, 30.9.2006, p. 71

[6] Commission Regulation (EC) No 2208/2002 of 12 December 2002 laying down detailed rules for applying Council Regulation (EC) No 814/2000 on information measures relating to the common agricultural policy (OJ L 337, 13.12.2002, p. 21).

[7] Communication to the Commission “Action Plan to Improve Communicating Europe by the Commission” (SEC(2005) 985) of 20 July 2005.