Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the 'Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) amending for the second time Regulation (EEC) No 1360/90 establishing a European Training Foundation` () (98/C 19/13)

On 25 June 1997 the Commission decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under Article 198 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned proposal.

The Section for External Relations, Trade and Development Policy, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on this matter, adopted its opinion on 9 October 1997. The rapporteur was Mrs Cassina.

At its 349th plenary session (meeting of 29 October 1997), the Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 111 votes to three, with four abstentions.

1. Introduction

1.1. Council Regulation No 1360/90 set up a Training Foundation for the purpose of promoting the development of vocational training systems in the countries of central and eastern Europe participating in the Phare programme. The first amendment to this regulation (No 2063/94) extended the Foundation's remit to include countries eligible under the Tacis programme. At the current time, 25 countries () are covered by the Foundation's activities. The Foundation has its headquarters in Turin and started work three years ago.

1.2. The proposed amendment is designed to enlarge the Foundation's remit to include the Mediterranean partner countries, and also to consolidate its work and make it more efficient. To this end the proposal sets out the roles and functions of the people and bodies managing the Foundation and clarifies the specific responsibilities of those involved. The aim is to ensure that all parties - starting with the Commission itself - do their utmost to promote the development of training strategies, to improve the forecasting capacity of the Foundation and to increase the consistency between other aspects of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership and cooperation on developing vocational training systems throughout the region.

1.3. The ESC has consistently maintained that cooperation on vocational training with third countries is strategically valuable. In the Member States, the development of differing, but high-quality, training systems has been, and continues to be, a key factor in economic growth, in the relationship between people and work, and in ensuring competitiveness with respect to quality and a dynamic business environment. In other words, investment in human resources is a key element in the process of European integration. In the partnership with the Mediterranean countries, which in the short term provides for the setting up (by 2010) of a free trade area of shared wealth, stability and democracy based on dialogue, it is essential to give particular priority to cooperation in the sphere of vocational training.

1.4. The ESC feels certain that this Foundation can contribute significantly to joint development in the Euro-Mediterranean region, and welcomes the Commission's proposal.

2. General comments

2.1. The task of the Foundation is not specifically to manage programmes, but rather to support their implementation, assessing requirements so as to frame forward-looking and appropriate training schemes and far-sighted and specific intervention strategies.

2.1.1. Article 3 of Regulation 1360/89 sets out the Foundation's functions, which include:

- defining training needs and priorities in cooperation with the competent bodies in the eligible countries;

- providing information on current initiatives and future needs; disseminating information through publications, meetings and other means;

- taking part in initiatives, including pilot projects, for the setting up of specialized multinational teams for specific projects and for identifying operations which could be cofinanced, and implementing programmes as requested by the Commission or the Council;

- identifying the bodies and people with a training record to design, prepare, implement and/or manage projects;

- laying down the tendering procedures for projects funded or cofinanced by the Foundation (task of the governing board);

- helping the Commission to monitor and evaluate the overall effectiveness of training assistance.

2.2. The ESC is particularly interested in the Foundation's activities and the proposal in question given the role that it plays in the Euro-Mediterranean partnership, and because it has been calling on all the EU institutions for some time to be more coherent, open and committed to promoting the participation of the Mediterranean partner countries in Community activities and projects relating to training.

2.3. The ministerial Euro-Mediterranean Conference held in Barcelona (in November 1995) conferred on the ESC the task of establishing links with its Mediterranean counterparts and equivalent bodies so as to 'contribute to a better understanding of the major issues relevant in the Euro-Mediterranean partnership`. In this context, the ESC - in liaison with the economic and social councils of the Member States, has stepped up its efforts to establish contacts and cooperate with its partners in the Mediterranean region, and has addressed the question of vocational training at various meetings and in its written contributions, always endeavouring to put forward practical avenues of research and methodologies.

2.3.1. In its report 'Migration and the creation of a free trade area` prepared for the summit of economic and social councils in Paris (21 and 22 November 1996), the ESC emphasized that apposite, high-level vocational training designed in liaison with the different economic and social sectors of the Mediterranean partners and the Member States was the key to achieving comparable levels of competitiveness and promoting the trade flows and channelling of investment that seem essential for creating activity. In particular, the ESC highlighted the strategy of training instructors and managers, and capitalizing on the potential human input of workers from the Mediterranean countries who have, or have had, experience of migration in the EU countries.

2.3.2. The ESC has subsequently prepared a paper for the next summit of economic and social councils (to be held in Morocco in November 1997) on 'the role of the economic and social interest groups in implementing social measures (particularly vocational training) to back up economic development`.

2.3.2.1. This paper emphasizes the vocational training role which the social partners have always played in the Member States and considers that this experience can and must help the social partners in the Mediterranean countries by giving them the resources they need to take on these responsibilities, and advocates the setting up of transnational networks that draw on existing education and training structures.

2.3.2.2. Specifically, it is proposed to set up a network that would function as an embryonic labour market observatory and monitor migration flows, with the support of the European institutions, in particular the European Training Foundation which is the subject of the present opinion.

2.4. For all these reasons, the ESC is very interested in, and fully supports, the Commission's proposal. The ESC is also prepared henceforward to contribute to the subsequent activities of the Foundation, and would ask the Commission not only to forward its annual report, as provided for in Article 5 (9) of the Regulation, but also to routinely request the ESC's opinion on this report.

2.5. Finally, without wishing at this stage to propose priority areas for the Foundation's work, the ESC would stress that certain specific issues concerning the Mediterranean region merit careful attention: in particular equal opportunities for men and women is a dimension that should be 'mainstreamed`, i.e. integrated into the various programmes.

3. Specific comments

3.1. The amendment proposed to Article 2 specifies the framework in which the Foundation is to work, i.e. 'following general policy guidelines set by the Commission`. This amendment concerns both the Foundation itself, which is urged to ensure complete consistency with EU policies towards third countries, and the Commission, whose various departments are required to set out an overall framework of coherent guidelines on the matter. The Committee endorses this proposal.

3.2. With the amendment proposed to Article 4 (1), the Commission is required to ensure cooperation with relevant Community bodies, in particular Cedefop, which works on EU training strategies. Here again clear need for more involvement and responsibility on the part of the Commission. The Committee endorses this proposal.

3.3. As regards the composition of the governing board - Articles 5 (1) and 5 (4) - the proposal to increase the number of Commission representatives from two to three, while maintaining the right of the Commission representatives to one sole vote, must be interpreted in the light of the previous amendments. The idea is not to give the Commission greater weight on the governing board, which currently comprises one representative per Member State and two representatives from the Commission (one of whom chairs the board and has no vote), but to allow particular bodies to compare notes to try and achieve maximum effectiveness. The Committee endorses this proposal.

3.4. The proposed amendment to Article 5 (7) changes the deadline for adopting the annual work programme from 30 November of the year preceding the programme to the beginning of the year in which it comes into effect, and introduces the possibility of adapting the programme during the course of the year. This proposal must be read in conjunction with Article 10 (1) and (2) (budget procedure). Here the director is required to present the budget at the beginning of each financial year and the governing board to adopt it no later than 15 February. The amendment links the programme's content (annual programme within the framework of a three-year rolling perspective) to available resources, but allows a certain flexibility in implementation during the financial year. The ESC considers this amendment to be appropriate.

3.5. The role of the director has been enhanced in the proposed amendment to Article 7 (1), second paragraph, which gives him or her not just the authority, but also the responsibility 'for properly implementing the governing board's decisions and the guidelines set down for the Foundation's activities`. This grants more explicit executive powers to the director and requires him or her to work together with the political authorities of the EU (Commission and Member States) as appropriate.

In the proposed amendment to the first paragraph of Article 7, the director's term of office, previously a five-year renewable term, is 'three to five years, which can be extended on a proposal from the Commission`. The ESC has its reservations regarding this amendment. In other comparable foundations the term of office is five years; the ESC therefore thinks that the first term should be confirmed as five years with the possibility of extension for up to a further five years.

3.6. In the proposed amendment to Article 10 (4), the governing board is required to adopt the budget at the same time as the work programme. This amendment not only streamlines the decision-making procedure for the Foundation's activities, but most importantly places decisions about its work (content) on an equal footing with decisions on its resources. The Committee endorses this amendment.

3.7. In the proposed amendment to Article 6 (1) and (2), the Commission would also be involved in appointing the members of the advisory forum, whose task is to advise the governing board, either when requested or on its own initiative. Though this proposal seems appropriate, the ESC nevertheless notes that the advisory forum is very large, effectively comprising two experts for each Member State and each beneficiary country, and two for the social partners at EU level. Although such an advisory body must include representatives of all parties concerned, it should be able to maintain and increase the effectiveness of its work. The ESC would therefore like the advisory forum to operate increasingly on the basis of specialized groups (thematic or regional) and advocates making provision for its opinions to be incorporated in the decision-making process of the governing board when appropriate.

3.8. The Commission explicitly states that it does not anticipate changes in the staff of the Foundation. The ESC would recommend that, when the tasks assigned have to be reorganized, care be taken to boost the competence and motivation of those concerned, notably by encouraging every effective opportunity for training so that they can acquire the specific skills they need to respond fully to the training requirements of the Mediterranean partner countries. The ESC hopes that the Commission's proposals concerning the budget procedure will take account of such requirements and that those responsible for the budget will thus consider whether funding for the Foundation should not be increased, if only by a small amount.

Brussels, 29 October 1997.

The President of the Economic and Social Committee

Tom JENKINS

() OJ C 156, 24. 5. 1997, p. 27.

() Under Phare: Albania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and FYROM; Under Tacis: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldavia, Uzbekistan, Russian Federation, Tadzhikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Mongolia.