WRITTEN QUESTION E-3425/02

by Roberta Angelilli (UEN) to the Commission

(2 December 2002)

Subject: Further information on funds from EQUAL, the ESF and the IVth Action Programme on Equal Opportunities and their use by the City of Rome

With reference to my previous question P-2841/02(1) and in the light of the reply received from Commissioner Diamantopoulou dated 29 October 2002, could the Commission:

1. indicate why the City of Rome has not received any financing under the Fourth Action Programme on Equal Opportunities?

2. name the EQUAL projects in which the City of Rome is participating in association with the Immigration Office?

3. state whether the City of Rome submitted applications for projects which were not approved?

(1) OJ C 52 E, 6.3.2003.

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(22 January 2003)

1. The medium-term Community action programme on equal opportunities for men and women (1996-2000) was established by Council Decision 95/593/EC of 22 December 1995(1). Since then, there have been several calls for proposals.

A selection committee evaluates the proposals received, according to the eligibility criteria set out in the call for proposals. After this first selection, there is a short list of eligible projects, which undergo a further selection based on a qualitative assessment. Only after that, is there a final decision on the projects to be financed, according to the available budget, as stated in the calls for proposals.

This procedure is applied to all the proposals received, and implies that if a proposal is not selected, this may be due to eligibility criteria or, when eligible, to the results of the qualitative assessment. When a proposal is not retained in the final short-list of projects to be financed, the organisations concerned are informed in writing.

To give an example, the Municipality of Rome presented a proposal in the year 2000, which met the eligibility criteria, but which did not make the final short list. The Municipality of Rome was informed of this and the reasons for the decision on 12 July 2000.

2. The Municipality of Rome is taking part in a project aimed at reconciling work and private life (IT-IT-LAZ-328) and in the Integ.R.A project (IT-IT-S-MDL-328).

The first project is based on the observation that there is a general lack of an organisational and political culture to protect parents and promote the reconciliation of work and private life. To remedy this situation, the project aims to create a Sportello Tempo/Lavoro/Famiglia office, a website where an expert on reconciling work and private life is available, and a quality label for companies. Awareness-raising activities and campaigns will also be organised under the project.

The aim of the second project is to promote the integration of asylum seekers into society and the workplace by improving the quality of care they receive and piloting new training methods.

3. The publication of calls for projects and their selection is entirely the responsibility of the authorities which manage the programmes. The Commission is therefore not in a position to know which operator has submitted a project and whether it has been selected. The relevant managing authority is the Lazio regional authority (Address: via Rosa Raimondi Garibaldi, 7 00145 ROMA) (Tel: 0039-06-51.681 Director: Dr Franco Schina).

(1) OJ L 335, 30.12.1995.