WRITTEN QUESTION E-2321/03 by Freddy Blak (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Number of Commission officials dealing with external relations.
Date: 2003-07-14
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Community body, ECHO, European Commission, European official, foreign policy, personnel administration

C 88 E/78

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

8.4.2004

(cid:1) whether it agrees that it should prevent or restrict in any way the activities within the Union of oil
companies who are unwilling to clarify openly their commercial and industrial dealings with African
countries?

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(10 September 2003)

The Commission is not aware of the specific study published by the Catholic Relief Services on the
incapacity of the investments in the oil sector to eradicate poverty in the oil producing countries.
However, the findings of the report, as they are published on the Catholic Relief Services’ web-site confirm
an existing trend. In fact, oil and mineral dependence are strongly associated with unusually bad conditions
for the poor. Oil development tends to further concentrate wealth among political and military élites,
which may be associated with undermining democracy and deteriorating human rights situations. Once
states become dependent on oil or mineral exports, they have difficulty diversifying their economy and
promoting sectors like agriculture and manufacturing, which provide greater direct benefits to the poor.
Finally, oil and mineral dependence becomes an obstacle to pro-poor types of economic activity.

The Commission does not have a detailed overview of the activities of oil companies in Africa. However,
several direct contacts with some proactive multinationals in the field of the oil and mining sectors have
taken place in the framework of the Commission strategy on Corporate Social Responsibility.

The Commission President Mr Prodi wrote a letter in 2002 to express his support for a campaign launched
in June 2002 to call on multinational companies to disclose payments they make to governments in poor
countries. This so-called ‘Publish What You Pay’ campaign is headed by Mr Soros and endorsed by more
than 30 lobby groups, including Amnesty International, Friends of the Earth and Save the Children. The
recently established European Multi-Stakeholder Forum will take note of the campaign and of companies’
best practices in its next Development Roundtable meeting on 29/30 September 2003. The Parliament is
part of the Forum as an observer. The issue of promoting Corporate Social Responsibility was identified
also by the report of the Catholic Relief Services as the most efficient way to tackle the problems provoked
by the oil and mining sectors in Africa.

It is not possible to restrict or prevent the activities of oil companies unwilling to publicise their payments.
Nevertheless, it is needed to promote more the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility and the role of
Civil Society at national level that could be a sort of watchdog with respect to those companies. Moreover,
the Commission expresses
the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD) Anti-Bribery Convention where the bribery of foreign public officials in the context
of international business transactions is a punishable offence.

support

full

for

its

Finally it should be pointed out, that the Commission, in its regular political dialogues with several partner
countries, discusses issues relating to oil and mineral revenues, advocating clear and transparent integration
of these revenues in state budgets.

(2004/C 88 E/0086)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2321/03

by Freddy Blak (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(14 July 2003)

Subject: Number of Commission officials dealing with external relations

Could the Commission please provide a list of the number of Commission officials in DG-aidco, ECHO
and DG-dev broken down per programme and per country both in headquarters and in beneficiary
countries?

8.4.2004

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Official Journal of the European Union

C 88 E/79

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(13 October 2003)

The table (Annex 1) which is sent direct to the Honourable Member and to Parliament’s Secretariat, shows
for each operational directorate of the EuropeAid Cooperation office the total number of officials dealing
with each programme. Auxiliary staff has not been included in the total number reported. All figures relate
to the situation at the end of June 2003 unless otherwise stated.

A second table with the requested information from the Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO) (Annex 2),
a third one concerning the Delegations (Annex 3) and a fourth one concerning the Directorate General
Development (Annex 4) are sent direct to the Honourable Member and to Parliament’s Secretariat as well.

(2004/C 88 E/0087)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2345/03

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL)
and Alexander de Roo (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(16 July 2003)

Subject: Protection of unspoiled natural and cultural

landscapes with a potential for ecotourism in the

mountain region in the Polish province of Dolnoslaœkie, Lower Silesia

Is the Commission aware that,

in the mountain region of Karkonosze and Góri Izerskie in the
1.
southwestern Polish province of Lower Silesia (województwo Dolnoslaœkie),
the beautiful natural
landscape, the historic villages and the vestiges of inhabitation by earlier peoples have not so far been
disturbed by war, industrialisation or agricultural modernisation, as a result of which the region was made
the subject of an international travelling exhibition,
‘The Jelenia Góra (Hirschberg) valley of castles and
gardens, our joint European heritage’, and possesses a potential unique within Europe for eco-, agro-,
cultural and health tourism?

2.
Is the Commission aware that ten years ago in this region local Polish farmers took the initiative to
set up the European Centre for Eco and Agro Tourism (ECEAT), which has grown into an international
organisation with sections in 15 countries and 2 000 units of sustainable tourism accommodation?

Is the Commission aware that around the town of Jelenia Góra and the national park (park narodow)
3.
Karkonoski, which has been protected since 1959, the landscapes of Doliny Bobru and Rudawski Park
have had the status of protected landscapes (parki krajobrazowe) since 1989 and that most of the
surrounding countryside has the status of a protected landscape zone (obszary krajobrazu chronionego
oraz otuliny parków krajobrazowych), although the transport zone between Jelenia Góra and Zgorzelec on
the German border is not included?

4.
Is the Commission aware that three international conferences organised by the Polish Centre for the
Preservation of Historic Landscapes with the support of the International Committee for Historic Gardens
and Cultural Landscapes (Icomos-IFLA) have recommended that the Polish Government place this region
on the Unesco world heritage list?

5.

Has the Polish Government proposed the region for Natura 2000 status?

(2004/C 88 E/0088)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2346/03

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL)
and Alexander de Roo (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(16 July 2003)

Subject: Devastation of previously unspoiled natural and cultural landscapes and destruction of ecotourism
due to the increase in opencast mining and quarrying in the Polish province of Dolnoslaœkie,
Lower Silesia

1.
Is the Commission aware that, shortly before Poland’s accession to the EU, mining companies are
hurrying to purchase land and acquire long-term concessions for large-scale opencast mining in the