EN Official Journal of the European Union L 168/48

DECISION OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE EFTA STATES

No 5/2004/SC

of 23 September 2004

establishing a principle of cost sharing for the EEA Financial Mechanism

THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE EFTA STATES,

Having regard to the Agreement on the European Economic Area as adjusted by the Protocol Adjusting the Agreement on the European Economic Area, hereinafter referred to as the EEA Agreement,

Having regard to the Agreement on the participation of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia, and the Slovak Republic in the European Economic Area, hereinafter referred to as the EEA Enlargement Agreement,

Having regard to Protocol 38a on the EEA Financial Mechanism inserted into the EEA Agreement by the EEA Enlargement Agreement,

Having regard to the Agreement between the Kingdom of Norway and the European Community on a Norwegian Financial Mechanism for the period 2004 to 2009,

Having regard to the Decision of the Standing Committee of the EFTA States No 4/2003/SC of 4 December 2003 establishing an EEA Financial Mechanism Interim Committee,

Having regard to the Decision of the Standing Committee of the EFTA States No 4/2004/SC of 3 June 2004 establishing a Financial Mechanism Committee,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The contributions of the EEA EFTA Member States to the EEA Financial Mechanism for the period 2004 to 2009 are to be determined on the basis of the Annex to this Decision.

Article 2

This Decision shall take immediate effect.

Article 3

This Decision shall be published in the EEA Section of, and in the EEA Supplement to, the Official Journal of the European Union.

Done at Brussels, 23 September 2004. For the Standing Committee The President Kjartan JÓHANNSSON The Secretary-General William ROSSIER

ANNEX

TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION OF COST SHARING OF THE EEA FINANCIAL MECHANISM FOR THE PERIOD 2004 TO 2009

1. The contributions of the EEA EFTA Member States to the EEA Financial Mechanism are to be based on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the three most recent years for which data is available. For any EEA EFTA Member State, the share to be applied for the financial year t, is to be calculated according to the following formula: Share (t) = ((GDP(t-4)/GDPEFTA (t-4)) + (GDP(t-3)/GDPEFTA (t-3)) + (GDP(t-2)/GDPEFTA (t-2))) : 3

2. In this formula, GDPEFTA denotes the overall GDP of the EEA EFTA Member States while GDP denotes the GDP of the EEA EFTA Member State in question.

3. The contribution of an individual EEA EFTA Member State to each of the five annual tranches of the Financial Mechanism thus corresponds to that State’s share of GDP in the overall GDP of the EEA EFTA Member States, averaged over the three most recent years for which data is available.

4. The data on GDP shall be delivered by the EEA EFTA Member States’ National Statistical Institutes (NSIs).

5. Contributions shall be expressed in euro.

6. The GDP figures for Liechtenstein, which does not officially provide such data, shall be estimated by dividing the GDP for Switzerland by the resident population of Switzerland and multiplying the result by the resident population of Liechtenstein.