WRITTEN QUESTION E-2225/02

by Nuala Ahern (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(23 July 2002)

Subject: Forestry resources in the Congo Basin

Is it true that, although the RDC territory contains the majority of forestry resources in the Congo Basin, this country is, at least from the point of view of the 9th EDF regional programme, attached to Southern Africa, with the result that the funds to be allocated to Central Africa in general and, more specifically, those which could be used for the conservation and management of natural resources in the region are drastically reduced?

Joint answerto Written Questions E-2224/02, E-2225/02, E-2227/02 and E-2228/02given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(27 September 2002)

Regional cooperation activities under the 9th European Development Fund (EDF) are programmed in accordance with certain principles set out in the Cotonou Agreement(1). Article 1 states that the principles of sustainable management of natural resources and the environment shall be applied and integrated at every level of the partnership. Article 28 of the Agreement and Article 7 of Annex IV stipulate that the primary objective of regional cooperation is to support regional integration processes. Protection and sustainable management of natural resources such as tropical forest ecosystems is defined as a thematic and cross-cutting issue under Article 32 of the Agreement.

The Regional and National Indicative Programmes (RIPs and NIPs) fulfil the need to focus on a limited number of fields spelled out in the Commission's communication on the European Community's development policy(2) and the Cotonou Agreement. This focus reflects the stated needs of partner organisations, operations financed by other donors and the availability of resources from other financial instruments.

Environmental and natural resource issues are addressed through regional programmes that complement operations conducted in the individual countries in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity. Support for regional integration also entails putting in place regional sectoral policies, harmonising legislation and policies, and establishing environmental and quality criteria at regional level. Building regional organisations by supporting the formulation of regional and national policies and strategies for sustainable development is an essential part of protecting natural resources.

In practice, some 20 % of the financial resources available for regional programmes has been allocated to the management of natural resources, which is a focal sector in three of the five RIPs now being finalised. These are additional resources; they do not include programmes financed under the 8th EDF, some of which were launched recently, or the budget headings for the environment and forestry.

The Commission is aware of the environmental issues at stake in Central Africa(3), of the economic and social importance of the forestry sector for the region and the wealth of biodiversity in Central Africa. That is why the rational management of sustainable natural resources, in particular the conservation of forest ecosystems and biodiversity, flora and fauna, is a focal sector of the regional indicative programme under the 9th EDF: 20 % to 25 % of the resources of the RIP, i.e. EUR 11 to EUR 13,75 million, have been allocated to the sector, in addition to the sums earmarked in the national indicative programmes.

We should point out that:

- in percentage terms, the overall allocation to the sector has progressively increased in successive EDFs (from 19 % of the RIP for the 7th EDF to 21 % in the 8th EDF and now 20-25 %);

- rational management of natural resources is provided for in the national indicative programmes of most of the countries of the Central African region (Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon) as a non-focal sector, and extra finance may be forthcoming to complement the regional programmes in this field;

- other additional funds may be allocated from the Tropical Forests and Environment budget headings;

- the Democratic Republic of the Congo may participate in Central African environmental programmes via cofinancing from its national indicative programme and/or the regional indicative programmes of the regions to which the DRC belongs (East and Southern Africa). In view of the importance of the DRC's forests in the Congo basin, DRC participation could entail a substantial financial contribution to funding the programme;

- the mid-term review of the RIP could mobilise other resources for allocation so as to use its current budget to the full.

Taking together the potential financial support for the RIP, the budget headings and the NIPs for the region, it is quite probable that the amount devoted to environmental and forestry operations will be maintained under the 9th EDF.

The Cotonou Agreement includes an important innovation in terms of the geographical make-up of the programming regions, compared with the Lomé Convention. It provides for the relevant African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) States themselves to decide on the definition of the regions, based on their membership of regional groupings created for the purpose of regional economic integration.

The DRC chose to participate in the East and Southern Africa regions for the 9th EDF RIP, in the light of its membership of Comesa (Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa) and the SADC (Southern African Development Community). The DRC is not a member of the EMCCA (the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa), the Central African organisation duly mandated to promote regional economic integration.

The fact that the DRC chose to participate in the East and Southern African regions naturally affected the total budget for the 9th EDF RIP for Central Africa. Given the size of the DRC, the overall allocation for the RIP has fallen from EUR 91 million under the 8th EDF to EUR 55 million under the 9th EDF. However, this does not mean that the resources potentially available to protect biodiversity in the Congo basin have been reduced. Rational management of natural resources is also a focal sector in the 9th EDF RIP for East Africa.

The Commission is aware of the importance of conservation and sustainable management of forests in the Congo for the sustainable development and conservation of biodiversity in the region, given that the DRC accounts for the bulk of the forest reserves in the Congo basin. The RIP currently being drafted provides for the possibility of DRC participation in a regional programme for the conservation and rational management of natural resources in the Congo basin by means of co-financing between the RIPs for Central Africa and East and Southern Africa and the DRC's national indicative programme.

The NIPs for the Central African countries, given that their primary objectives are sustainable development and poverty alleviation, focus on priority development sectors (including transport) defined in the joint declaration of the Council and the Commission of 10 November 2000 and the Cotonou Agreement.

Community operations to support transport at national level complement those at regional level. The infrastructure services sector is also a priority of the RIP, given its importance for the physical integration of the market. This sector fits in with the strategy of support for regional integration in Central Africa.

The transport strategy also fits in with the priorities set for the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) by African States.

Transport infrastructure projects are always subject to an environmental impact assessment. In future, it is proposed to conduct Sustainable Impact Assessments, which will enable us to pinpoint the economic, social and environmental impact of the project, minimise risk (for example, in terms of the impact on indigenous people and forest ecosystems) and define flanking operations.

In line with the Cotonou Agreement, non-governmental actors have been involved in programming and were consulted when the national indicative programmes were being drafted.

The 9th EDF RIP for Central Africa explicitly provides for the possibility of continuing the Ecofac programme, to consolidate operations undertaken to conserve and promote rational economic exploitation of forest ecosystems. It is proposed to conduct an evaluation of the Ecofac programme by the end of 2002, with a view to defining priorities and drawing up an action plan for subsequent phases of the programme.

The Commission is aware that there are problems with hunting and the sale of bushmeat and wildlife. The programmes to preserve biodiversity in Central Africa include a wildlife conservation component. In addition, specific programmes are being run to develop alternatives to poaching and protect sentinel species.

(1) Agreement signed on 23 June 2000; text in OJ L 317, 15.12.2000.

(2) COM(2000) 212 final.

(3) The region of Central Africa, for the purposes of the 9th EDF RIP, comprises Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, the Central African Republic, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Chad.