98/717/EC: Commission Decision of 3 December 1998 on the Community's financial contribution to a programme for the control of organisms harmful to plants and plant products in the French overseas departments for 1998 (notified under document number C(1998) 3788) (Only the French text is authentic)
Date: 1998-12-03
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU aid, French overseas department and region, financial aid, parasitology, plant health treatment

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Official Journal of the European Communities

L 340/51

COMMISSION DECISION

of 3 December 1998

on the Community’s financial contribution to a programme for the control of
organisms harmful to plants and plant products in the French overseas depart-
ments for 1998

(notified under document number C(1998) 3788)

(Only the French text is authentic)

(98/717/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 3763/91
of 16 December 1991 introducing specific measures in
respect of certain agricultural products for the benefit of
the French overseas departments (1), as last amended by
Regulation (EC) No 2598/95 (2), and in particular the first
subparagraph of Article 11(3) thereof,

Whereas Commission Decision 93/522/EEC (3), as last
amended by Decision 96/633/EC (4), defines the measures
eligible for Community financing under programmes for
the control of organisms harmful to plants and plant
products in the French overseas departments, the Azores
and Madeira;

Whereas specific growing conditions in the French over-
seas departments call
for particular attention; whereas
measures concerning crop production, in particular plant
health measures, must be adopted or strengthened in
those regions;

Whereas the plant health measures to be adopted or
strengthened are particularly costly;

Whereas a programme of measures has been presented to
the Commission by the competent French authorities;
whereas this programme specifies the objectives to be
achieved, the operations to be carried out, their duration
and their cost with a view to a possible Community
financial contribution;

Whereas the Community’s financial contribution may
cover up to 60 % of eligible expenditure, protective meas-
ures for bananas being excluded;

Whereas the plant protection operations in the French
single
overseas departments provided for
programme documents
the period 1994/99 and
financed from the Structural Funds cannot be the same as
those contained in this programme;

in the

for

(1) OJ L 356, 24. 12. 1991, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 267, 30. 10. 1995, p. 1.
(3) OJ L 251, 8. 10. 1993, p. 35.
(4) OJ L 283, 5. 11. 1996, p. 58.

Whereas the operations provided for in the European
Community framework programme for research and tech-
nological development cannot be the same as those
contained in this programme;

Whereas the technical information provided by France
has enabled the Standing Committee on Plant Health to
analyse the situation accurately and comprehensively;

Whereas the measures provided for in this Decision are in
accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee
on Plant Health,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

A Community financial contribution to the official
programme for the control of organisms harmful to plants
and plant products in the French overseas departments
presented by France for 1998 is hereby approved.

Article 2

The official programme shall consist of
programmes:

four

sub-

1. a sub-programme drawn up for the department of

Guadeloupe in three parts:

— evaluation structures, analysis and diagnostics of

phytosanitary risks,

— control of main harmful organisms,

— control of scales;

2. a sub-programme drawn up for the department of

Guyana in three parts:

— evaluation structures, analysis and diagnostics of

phytosanitary risks,

— development of control methods for main harmful

organisms,

— agricultural pest warning system for rice producers;

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3. a sub-programme drawn up for the department of

R(cid:130)union in three parts:
— evaluation structures, analysis and diagnostics of

phytosanitary risks,

— development of control methods for main harmful

organisms,

— applied research on harmful organisms;

4. a sub-programme drawn up for the department of

Martinique in three parts:
— evaluation structures, analysis and diagnostics of

phytosanitary risks,

— control of main harmful organisms,
— biological and integrated crop control.

Article 3

financial

The Community’s
the
programme in 1998 presented by France shall be 60 % of
expenditure related to eligible measures as defined by
Decision 93/522/EEC, with a maximum of ECU 750 000
(VAT excluded).

contribution

to

The Community shall reimburse expenditure up to the
amount given in the first paragraph, at the accounting
rate for the ecu on l September 1998, namely ECU
1 = FRF 6,611350.

Article 4

France and for which the necessary financial resources are
committed between l October and 31 December 1998.
The final date for payments in connection with the opera-
tions shall be 30 September 1999; unjustified delay shall
entail loss of entitlement to Community financing.

Should any extension of
the deadline for payment
become necessary, the competent official authorities shall
submit a request along with the necessary justification,
before the final date laid down.

Article 6

Provisions on the financing of the programme, compli-
ance with Community policies and the information to be
supplied to the Commission by France shall be as set out
in Annex II.

Article 7

Any public contracts connected with investments covered
by this Decision shall be subject to Community law.

Article 8

This Decision is addressed to the French Republic.

An advance of ECU 300 000 shall be paid to France.

Done at Brussels, 3 December 1998.

Article 5

The Community assistance shall relate to expenditure on
eligible measures associated with the operations covered
by the programme for which provisions are adopted by

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

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ANNEX I

FINANCIAL TABLE FOR 1998

Guadeloupe

Guyana

Martinique

R(cid:130)union

EC

168 000

124 800

222 000

235 200

Total

750 000

(1) ECU 1 = FRF 6,611350 (1 September 1998).

Eligible expenses 1998

(in ecus) (1)

National

112 000

83 200

148 000

156 800

500 000

Total

280 000

208 000

370 000

392 000

1 250 000

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ANNEX II

I. PROVISIONS ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAMME

A. Provisions on financial implementation

1. The Commission’s intention is to establish real cooperation with the authorities responsible for the
implementation of the programme. In line with the programme these authorities are those indicated
below.

Commitments and payments

2. France shall guarantee that all public and private bodies involved in the management and implemen-
tation of all operations part-financed by the Community shall keep suitable accounting records of all
transactions in order to facilitate the verification of expenditure by the Community and the national
inspection authorities.

3. The initial budgetary commitment shall be based on an indicative financial plan; this commitment

shall be made for one year.

4. The commitment will be made when the decision approving assistance is adopted by the Commission
under the procedure provided for in Article 16a of Council Directive 77/93/EEC (1), as last amended
by Commission Directive 98/2/EC (2).

5. Following commitment, an initial advance of ECU 300 000 shall be paid.

6. The balance of the amount committed shall be paid as two equal payments, each of ECU 225 000.
The first instalment of the balance shall be paid upon presentation to and approval by the Commis-
sion of an interim activity report. The second and final instalment of the balance shall be paid upon
presentation to and approval by the Commission of a final activity report and a detailed breakdown of
the total expenditure incurred.

Authorities responsible for the implementation of the programme

— C e n t r a l a d m i n i s t r a t i o n :

Minist(cid:138)re de l’agriculture et de la p(cid:136)che
Direction g(cid:130)n(cid:130)rale de l’alimentation
Sous-direction de la protection des v(cid:130)g(cid:130)taux
175, rue du Chevaleret
75646 PARIS CEDEX 13

— L o c a l a d m i n i s t r a t i o n :

— Guadeloupe:

Minist(cid:138)re de l’agriculture et de la p(cid:136)che
Direction de l’agriculture et de la for(cid:136)t
Jardin Botanique
97109 BASSE TERRE CEDEX

— Martinique:

Minist(cid:138)re de l’agriculture et de la p(cid:136)che
Direction de l’agriculture et de la for(cid:136)t
Jardin Desclieux
BP 642
97262 FORT DE FRANCE CEDEX

— Guyana:

Minist(cid:138)re de l’agriculture et de la p(cid:136)che
Direction de l’agriculture et de la for(cid:136)t
Cit(cid:130) Rebard
Route de Baduel
BP 746
97305 CAYENNE CEDEX

— R(cid:130)union:

Minist(cid:138)re de l’agriculture et de la p(cid:136)che
Direction de l’agriculture et de la for(cid:136)t
Parc de la Providence
97489 SAINT DENIS DE LA R(cid:144)UNION

(1) OJ L 26, 31. 1. 1977, p. 20.
(2) OJ L 15, 21. 1. 1998, p. 34.

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7. The actual expenditure incurred shall be notified to the Commission broken down by type of action
or sub-programme in a way demonstrating the link between the indicative financial plan and
expenditure actually incurred. If France keeps suitable computerised accounts this will be acceptable.

8. All payments of aid granted by the Community under this Decision shall be made to the authority
designated by France, which will also be responsible for repayment to the Community of any excess
amount.

9. All commitments and payments shall be made in ecus.

Financial schedules for Community support frameworks and amounts of Community aid shall be
expressed in ecus at the rate fixed by this Decision. Payment shall be made to the following account:

Minist(cid:138)re du budget
Direction de la comptabilit(cid:130) publique
Agence comptable centrale du Tr(cid:130)sor
139, rue de Bercy
75572 PARIS CEDEX 12
No E 478 98 Divers

Financial control

10. Inspections may be carried out by the Commission or the Court of Auditors should it so request.
France and the Commission shall immediately exchange all relevant information in regard to the
outcome of an inspection.

11. For three years following the last payment relating to the assistance the authority responsible for
implementation shall keep available to the Commission all documentary evidence of expenditure
incurred.

12. When it submits applications for payment France shall make available to the Commission all official

reports relating to supervision of the measures in question.

Reduction, suspension and withdrawal of aid

13. France shall declare that Community funds are used for the intended purposes. If implementation of a
measure appears to require only part of the financial assistance allotted the Commission shall
immediately recover the amount due. In cases of dispute the Commission shall examine the case,
asking France or the other authorities designated by France for implementation of the measure to
submit their comments within two months.

14. The Commission may reduce or suspend aid for a measure if the examination confirms the existence
of an irregularity, in particular of a substantial modification affecting the nature or conditions of
implementation of the measure for which approval by the Commission has not been sought.

Recovery of undue payments

15. All sums unduly paid must be reimbursed to the Community by the designated authority indicated in
point 8. Interest may be levied on sums not reimbursed. If for any reason the designated authority
indicated in point 8 does not reimburse the Community, France shall pay the amount to the
Commission.

Prevention and detection of irregularities

16. The partners shall observe a code of conduct drawn up by France in order to ensure that any

irregularity in the provision of assistance programme is detected. France shall ensure that:

— suitable action is taken in this area,
— any amount unduly paid as a result of an irregularity is recovered,
— action is taken to prevent irregularities.

B. Monitoring and assessment

I. Monitoring Committee

1. E s t a b l i s h m e n t

Independent of the financing of this action, a Monitoring Committee for the programme shall be
set up, composed of representatives of France and the Commission. It shall review implementation
of the programme regularly and, in appropriate cases, propose any adjustments required.

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2. The committee shall establish its own internal procedures within one month of the notification of

the present decision to France.

3. C o m p e t e n c e o f M o n i t o r i n g C o m m i t t e e

The committee:

— shall have as its general responsibility the satisfactory progress of the programme towards
attainment of the objectives set. Its competence shall embrace the programme measures within
the limits of the Community aid granted. It shall keep watch with respect to the regulatory
provisions, including those on eligibility of operations and projects,

— shall, on the basis of information on the selection of projects already approved and imple-
mented, reach an opinion on application of the selection criteria set out in the programme,

— shall propose any action required to accelerate implementation of the programme should the
information furnished periodically by the interim monitoring and assessment indicators reveal a
delay,

— may, in agreement with the Commission representative(s), adjust the financing plans within a
limit of 15 % of the Community contribution to a sub-programme or measure for the entire
period, and 20 % for any financial year, provided that the total amount scheduled in the
programme is not exceeded. Care must be taken to see that the main objectives of the
programme are not thereby compromised,

— shall give its opinion on the adjustments proposed to the Commission,

— shall issue an opinion on technical assistance projects scheduled in the programme,

— shall give its opinion on the final draft report,

— shall report regularly, and at least twice during the relevant period, to the Standing Committee

on Plant Health on the progress of the programme and expenditure incurred.

II. Monitoring and assessment of the programme during the implementation period (continuous moni-

toring and assessment)

1. The national agency responsible for implementation shall also be responsible for continuous

monitoring and assessment of the programme.

2. By continuous monitoring is meant an information system on the state of progress of

the
programme. Continuous monitoring will cover the measures contained in the programme. It
involves reference to the financial and physical indicators structured so as to permit assessment of
the correspondence between expenditure on each measure and predefined physical
indicators
showing the degree of realisation.

3. Continuous assessment of a programme will involve analysis of the quantitative results of imple-
mentation on the basis of operational, legal and procedural considerations. The purpose is to
guarantee correspondence between measures and programme objectives.

Implementation report and scrutiny of programme

4. France shall notify to the Commission, within one month of adoption of the programme, the name
of the authority responsible for compilation and presentation of the final implementation report.

The final report shall contain a concise evaluation of the entire programme (degree of achievement
of physical and qualitative objectives and of progress accomplished) and an assessment of the
immediate phytosanitary and economic impact.

The final report on the present programme will be presented by the competent authority to the
Commission on 31 December 1998 at the latest and shall thereafter be presented to the Standing
Committee on Plant Health as soon as possible after that date.

5. The Commission may jointly with France call in an independent assessor who shall, on the basis of
the continuous monitoring, carry out the continuous assessment referred to in point 3. He/she may
submit proposals for adjustment of the sub-programmes and/or measures, and amending the
selection criteria for projects, etc., in the light of difficulties encountered in the course of implemen-
tation. On the basis of monitoring of management he/she shall give an opinion on the administra-
tive measures to be taken.

C. Information and publicity

In the framework of this action, the agency appointed as responsible for the programme shall ensure that
it is adequately publicised.

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It shall in particular take action to:

— make potential recipients and professional organisations aware of the possibilities offered under the

programme measures,

— make the general public aware of the Community’s role in the programme.

France and the agency responsible for implementation shall consult the Commission on initiatives
envisaged in this area, possibly through the Monitoring Committee. They shall regularly notify the
Commission of information and publicity measures adopted, either by a final report or through the
Monitoring Committee.

The national legal provisions on confidentiality of information shall be complied with.

II. COMPLIANCE WITH COMMUNITY POLICIES

Community policies applying in this field must be complied with.

The programme shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions on coordination of and compliance
with Community policies. The following information must be supplied by France.

1. Award of public contracts

The ‘public contracts' (1) questionnaire must be completed for:

— public contracts above the ceilings set by the ‘supplies' and ‘works' Directives that are awarded by
contract-awarding authorities as defined in these Directives and are not covered by the exemptions
specified therein,

— public contracts below these ceilings where they constitute components of a single piece of work or of
uniform supplies of a value above the ceiling. By ‘a single piece of work' is meant a product of building
or civil engineering works intended in itself to fulfil an economic or technical function.

The ceilings will be those in force on the date of notification of this Decision.

2. Protection of the environment

(a) General information

— description of the main environmental features and problems of the region concerned, giving, inter

alia, a description of the important conservation areas (sensitive zones),

— a comprehensive description of the major beneficial and harmful effects that the programme, given

the investments planned, is likely to have on the environment,

— a description of the action planned to prevent, reduce or offset any serious harmful effects on the

environment,

— a report on consultations with the responsible environmental authorities (opinion of the Ministry for
the Environment or its equivalent) and, if there were any such consultations, with the public
concerned.

(b) Description of planned activities

For programme measures liable to have a significantly harmful effect on the environment:

— the procedures which will be applied for assessing individual projects during implementation of the

programme,

— the mechanisms planned for monitoring environmental impact during implementation, assessing

results and eliminating, reducing or offsetting harmful effects.

(1) Notice C(88) 2510 to the Member States on monitoring compliance with public procurement rules in the case of
projects and programmes financed by the Structural Funds and financial instruments (OJ C 22, 28. 1. 1989, p. 3).