A4-0063/98

Resolution on Court of Auditors Special Report No 6/97 concerning TACIS subsidies allocated to the Ukraine, together with the Commission's replies (C4-0350/97)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to Court of Auditors Special Report No. 6/97 (C4-0350/97) ((OJ C 171, 5.6.1997, p. 1.)),

- having regard to the 'interim evaluation¨ of the Tacis Programme produced by the Evaluation Unit of Commission Directorate General IA,

- having regard to Articles 188c(4) and 206(1) of the EC Treaty,

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee on External Economic Relations (A4-0063/98),

Programme implementation

1. Regrets the fact that only 37.5% of all Tacis commitments in Ukraine from 1991 to mid-1996 gave rise to payments in that period, and that for nuclear safety programmes the equivalent figure is only 25.5%; believes that this rate of budgetary implementation is too slow and undermines the programme in policy terms, particularly in the nuclear sector;

2. Notes the Commission's efforts to speed up implementation in 1997, which have led to overall Tacis contracting targets being exceeded over the year; stresses however the imperative need for such contracts to be translated into concrete action within the shortest possible timespan;

3. Observes that Tacis implementation difficulties in Ukraine have arisen principally from the following:

- lack of a sustained policy by the authorities in Ukraine to achieve a speedy transition towards a market economy,

- insufficient and unstable personnel resources in all the Commission and national services concerned, especially in the Commission's Kiev Delegation,

- fragmentation of expenditure over relatively small projects with limited impact, leading to an excessive administrative burden in relation to potential benefits,

- lack of clarity and focus as to the strategic objectives of the Tacis programme,

- administrative shortcomings of partner organizations in Ukraine,

- frequently diverging policies and priorities on the part of the Commission and Ukrainian beneficiaries, resulting at times in a lack of commitment to Tacis on the part of the latter,

- poor coordination, and unclear division, of responsibilities between the Commission and (i) other outside providers of assistance, (ii) consultancy companies/contractors and (iii) Ukrainian partner organizations,

- excessively burdensome and lengthy programming and contracting procedures;

4. Recommends:

- that the Commission pursue its policy of reducing the number of projects financed, focusing the Ukrainian Tacis programme on a limited number of sectors, which should be maintained at least for the four-year period foreseen by the indicative programme, and concentrate resources on far fewer, larger projects (maximum ten per year, apart from BISTRO contracts),

- that the Commission review all current Tacis projects in Ukraine with a view to cancelling or closing all old and non-performing projects by June 1998,

- that the Commission ensure far better staffing for its Kiev delegation, if necessary by redeploying staff from Brussels; points to the initiative of other donors in redeploying staff at local level as an experience which deserves serious consideration;

- that the Commission take action to ensure a greater degree of staff continuity in DGIA, especially at the highest levels,

- that the Commission henceforth commit expenditure under the Ukrainian Tacis programme only when the relevant tenders can be finalised within six months, failing which the commitment should normally be cancelled,

- that expenditure which cannot be implemented within a reasonable timespan be reallocated to horizontal Tacis programmes available to all beneficiary countries on presentation of suitable project applications;

- that the problem of insufficient coordination between international donors and in particular between the Union and the Member states be dealt with as a priority problem;

Nuclear safety

5. Deeply regrets the severe shortcomings and delays in the Ukrainian nuclear safety programme revealed by the Court of Auditors; reminds all the parties concerned of their shared responsibility for these and the serious dangers associated with continuing delay;

6. Notes that the ongoing blockages in the Ukrainian nuclear safety programme can be attributed to the dispersal of responsibilities for decision-making and differences of policy between the various donors and the beneficiaries, combined with the internal difficulties of the Ukrainian nuclear sector; calls on the Commission therefore to prepare contingency plans for greater independent provision of nuclear safety assistance in direct agreement with the Ukrainian authorities should the G7 programme fail to progress significantly by December 1998;

7. Awaits the forthcoming report of the Court of Auditors on nuclear safety assistance under both the Tacis and Phare programmes in early 1998; emphasises that this report will provide the European Parliament with the occasion for a thorough review of the effectiveness of this policy and the consequences for its future direction;

Evaluation

8. Welcomes the creation of an in-house evaluation unit in DGIA; calls on the Commission to ensure that its independence is strengthened and that it enjoys sufficient resources to carry out its task effectively; stresses the need to evaluate projects beyond the time of their completion, in order to improve feed-back from past experience and future activities;

9. Stresses the need to encourage a more strategic approach to the identification of national needs and directions of change in Ukraine; in particular, the implementation of the Interim agreement and the PCA with Ukraine should be promptly incorporated within Tacis programmes;

General comments

10. Emphasises that the policy of providing technical assistance for the transition process in Ukraine, or elsewhere, must be subject to continual review in terms of effectiveness; re-emphasises moreover that a clear commitment to the protection of the financial interests of the Community on the part of the beneficiary country is a pre-requisite of such assistance;

11. Draws attention to the fact that Ukraine also benefits from funding under the Tacis Democracy Programme, the management and financing of which are separate from the main Tacis Programme and complemented by contributions from the European Parliament; re-emphasises its commitment to the continuing success of the Democracy Programme, pointing out that the comments of the Court of Auditors and those in this resolution apply only to the main Tacis programme;

12. Considers that the Commission should prepare a proposal for a legal basis enabling the use of TACIS funds to finance cooperation with Ukraine within the 5th framework research programme;

13. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council and the Court of Auditors.