WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2375/96 by Gianfranco DELL'ALBA to the Commission. 1997 Preliminary draft budget
Date: 1996-08-27
Institutions: DELL'ALBA, European Parliament
Subjects: Community budget, European Development Fund, aid programme, developing countries, eligibility criteria, financial cooperation, human rights













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91996E2375

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2375/96 by Gianfranco DELL'ALBA to the Commission. 1997 Preliminary draft budget  


Official Journal C 060 , 26/02/1997 P. 0144 





WRITTEN QUESTION E-2375/96 by Susan Waddington (PSE) to the Commission (27 August 1996)Subject: 1997 Preliminary draft budgetIn the light of the breakdown of appropriations in line B7-702 (human rights and democracy in the developing countries) can the Commission say when and how it decides to take action (selection of projects, beneficiaries, resources made available by the EU and/or third parties, etc.)?Answer given by Mr Pinheiro on behalf of the Commission (8 October 1996)Since the entry into force of the Treaty on European Union, the Community's development cooperation policy has been closely tied to the consolidation of democracy and the rule of law and to the observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms.The Community's approach in this area is a positive one, aimed at promoting such values and supporting any measure to nurture and consolidate democracy and the rule of law. Consequently, the Community can take negative measures in the event of serious human rights violations or an interruption of the democratic process.The Community has created a number of financial instruments to implement this policy: special budget headings, funds for financial cooperation with third countries, the European Development Fund (EDF) and counterpart funds. It is through integrated use of these instruments and through political dialogue with its partners that the Community feels it can best implement this policy.When selecting measures to finance, the Commission now takes account of the development strategy of each country and examines the projects in that light; it also takes account of thematic priorities (elections, support for the judicial system, human rights observers). The Commission tries to concentrate its resources in priority countries or countries at risk, such as Mozambique, Rwanda, Haiti and Burundi in 1995 and 1996. In such cases, the Commission conducts fact-finding missions to analyse the situation in the country and identify on the ground needs in terms of human rights and democracy. The aim of these missions is to propose schemes to be funded and identify those bodies best able to carry them out.The various projects examined or identified are analysed to determine their quality, their conformity with the budget heading's financing criteria and with the thematic priorities, their cost-effectiveness, the experience of the applicant body in the relevant field, the political expediency of carrying out the measures and the order of priority according to the needs of the recipient country. If the evaluation is positive, the Commission takes the final decision. Once the scheme has been adopted by the Commission, a contract is drawn up and the financial commitment is made.