WRITTEN QUESTION No. 559/99 by Karl HABSBURG-LOTHRINGEN Possible misappropriation of EU funds (World Vision)
Date: 1999-03-03
Institutions: European Parliament, HABSBURG-LOTHRINGEN
Subjects: Austria, EU control, EU programme, Member of the European Parliament, donation, fraud against the EU, fund (EU), professional ethics, use of aid

C 348/40

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

3.12.1999

(1999/C 348/049)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0559/99

by Karl Habsburg-Lothringen (PPE) to the Commission

Subject: Possible misappropriation of EU funds (World Vision)

(3 March 1999)

There have been recurrent reports, particularly in the Austrian media, in connection with a scandal concerning
donations to World Vision, of the misappropriation of EU funds and intervention by Members of the European
Parliament. Has the Austrian World Vision organisation misappropriated EU funds, or were the funds used
properly? Was there really intervention by Members of the European Parliament, and if so, who were they?

Joint answer
to Written Questions P-0223/99, E-0313/99 and P-0559/99
given by Mrs Bonino on behalf of the Commission

(20 April 1999)

Upon learning of the legal proceedings against World Vision Austria (WVA) at the end of November 1998, the
Commission contacted the Austrian judicial authorities offering to cooperate on the aspects involving
Community funds. It also asked to be kept informed of the findings on these aspects, in line with the provisions
of national law.

With the permission of the Austrian judicial authorities, a financial control visit took place in January 1999 to
the field headquarters of WVA’s implementing partner in Sarajevo (World Vision International BiH) where
financial documentation for the Community funded aid projects is kept. The audit was limited to the control
and testing of Commission (ECHO) financed operations. No irregularity was found in respect of the use of
ECHO funds by this non-governmental organisation.

As far as humanitarian projects are concerned, contacts between the Commission and WVA, before, during
and after the implementation, were mainly managed between World Vision’s offices in Bosnia-Herzegovina
and the Commission’s (ECHO) office in Sarajevo, and were of a purely operational nature. No contacts of the
sort mentioned were used to secure humanitarian funding of WVA backed projects in Bosnia. Its proposals
were judged on their own merits and assessed in conformity with the relevant criteria. Control of the
implementation of these projects was carried out by the Commission’s (ECHO) office in Sarajevo with
technical assistance from the International management group (IMG) there.

In respect of two of the three contracts with WVA, the Commission made final payments to WVA
in September and October 1998 of euro 38 900 and euro 30 383 respectively. This was shortly before
news of the legal proceedings reached the Commission. The Austrian authorities subsequently blocked the
bank accounts of WVA. As an additional control, the Commission wrote to the legal adviser of WVA to ask
about the status of these payments and whether he was aware of any irregularities that might affect
Community funds. As a precaution a final payment under the third contract with WVA for approximately
euro 100 000 has been suspended. This payment will remain suspended until the legal adviser replies with
clarification.

In addition to projects in the area of humanitarian aid, WVA has received contracts under the Obnova, Phare
and Tacis programmes in Bosnia, Romania and Mongolia as follows:

(Euros)

Programme

Action

Contract Amount

Obnova

Integrated return programme for the return of refugees and
displaced persons in the Maglaj and Zavidovici municipalities,
Bosnia

Phare: Partnership

Village renewal in Romania

Phare: Partnership

Micro-enterprise in the community (Romania)

Phare: Partnership

Training and Consulting for micro-enterprise (Romania)

Tacis: Partnership and
Cooperation

Community forestry development, Mongolia

3 539 370

57 480

118 480

153 000

118 160