Communication from the Commission to the Council and Parliament - Preparing for the participation of the Western Balkan countries in Community programmes and agencies
Date: 2003-12-03
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU office or agency, EU programme, Western Balkans, cooperation policy, framework agreement

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 3.12.2003
COM(2003) 748 final

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION
TO THE COUNCIL AND PARLIAMENT

Preparing for the participation of the Western Balkan countries in Community
programmes and agencies

1.

INTRODUCTION

According  to  the  “Thessaloniki  Agenda  for  the  Western  Balkans:  moving  towards
European  integration”,  endorsed  at  the  European  Council  on  20  June  2003,
“Community  programmes  will  be  opened  to  SAP  countries  along  the  lines
established for the participation of candidate countries”  and “SAP countries could
be  allowed  to  participate  in  Community  agencies,  in  ways  similar  to  those
established for candidate countries.”

The  Community  has  a  great  deal  of  experience  of  opening  up  Community
programmes  to  associated  European  countries,  having  done  so  with  the  candidate
countries1  and  non-EU  members  of  the  European  Economic  Area.  Agenda  2000
noted that the countries of central and eastern Europe’s participation in programmes
for  the  implementation  of  the  Community  acquis  would  provide  “a  useful
preparation for accession in familiarising the candidate countries and their citizens
with the Union’s policies and working methods”, and enhance their ability to apply
the  acquis  and  not  just  incorporate  it  into  national  law.  However,  it  is  not  an
instrument solely for use in the final stages of preparations for accession. As the EEA
countries have demonstrated, participation in Community programmes can also be of
benefit to countries that are likely to remain  associated  countries for  a long time or
indefinitely, such as Norway or Iceland. In particular, it encourages the exchange of
useful  experience,  especially  helpful  in  cases  where  a  pan-European  approach  is
called for.

A  similar  approach  should  be  taken  to  the  countries  of  the  western  Balkans  as  the
SAP  countries  will  sooner  or  later  all  be  associated  countries  (stabilisation  and
association  agreements)  and  all  are  recognised  as  potential  applicants  for
membership.  Involvement  in  Community  programmes  and  in  the  work  of
Community  agencies  will  give  them  a  firm  symbolic,  practical  and  operational
foothold in the EU. It will enable the EU to support their efforts towards European
integration by facilitating the transfer of know-how and good practice, particularly in
those areas  of  the  acquis  that  will  serve  as  a  central  reference  point  for  the  reform
process in the western Balkans.

1

The  idea  of  involving  the  candidate  countries  in  Community  programmes  was  put  forward  at  the
meeting of the European Council in Copenhagen in June 1993. Work on putting the idea into practice
started in 1997. The Luxembourg European Council in December 1997 made it a pre-accession strategy
instrument.  A  Commission  Communication  to  the  Council  of  20  December  1999  on  the  thirteen
candidate countries proposed new guidelines for consolidating this instrument, extending it to Cyprus,
Malta and Turkey and  simplifying  procedures.  For  further  information,  see  the  enlargement  pages  on
the Europa server at http://europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/pas/ocp/index.htm

2

                                                
framework  agreements 

The  Thessaloniki  Agenda  set  out  some  basic  ideas  for  the  implementation  of  this
decision2  and  invited  the  Commission  to  submit  “specific  proposals  to  these  ends,
including  draft 
the  opening  up  of  Community
programmes,  taking  into  account  the  needs  and  possibilities  of  each  country,
including  financial  constraints  (CARDS  contribution  and  national  financing),  and
the  necessary  administrative  capacity."  This  Communication  sets  out 
the
Commission’s  proposed  guidelines  on  how  the  five  western-Balkan  countries
included in the stabilisation and association process can be involved in Community
programmes  and  agencies.3  The  Commission  recommends  a  gradual  and  selective
approach that takes account of these countries’ needs and priorities.

for 

The Communication also provides some useful explanations, for the authorities and
the people concerned in the SAP countries as much as anyone, concerning what is a
rather complicated process: it presents policies and procedures, the schedule and the
administrative and financial implications. Lastly, it is worth noting that the five SAP
countries  will  be  starting  to  participate  in  Community  programmes  just  as  the
configuration for associated-country involvement is changing: when the ten acceding
countries join the EU on 1 May 2004, their status will change. This is an important
step, which provides a good reason for following up on the previous Communication
from December 1999.

2.

GRADUAL  AND  SELECTIVE 
COUNTRIES’ PARTICIPATION IN COMMUNITY PROGRAMMES

IMPLEMENTATION  OF  THE  WESTERN  BALKAN

2.1.

Overview of Community programmes

The purpose of Community programmes4 is to support the European Union’s internal
policies.  They  are  action  programmes,  designed  primarily  as  means  of  achieving
objectives set by the EU and its Member States, based on internal budget headings.

The  appropriations  under  these  heading  can  be  used  to  fund  participation  by
Community  nationals  only.  Consequently,  candidate  countries  that  are  not  yet
members of the EU  (and soon the SAP countries) cannot participate in Community
programmes unless they pay into the Community budget a financial contribution to
cover  the  estimated  cost  of  participation  by  their  citizens.  Since  the  objectives  and
priorities  of  any  given  programme  may  be  quite  far  removed  from  the  needs  and
concerns of SAP countries, a progressive and selective approach is called for.

2

3

4

Participation in Community programmes must be planned. On the basis of framework agreements to be
signed  between  the  Community  and  each  of  the  SAP  countries  and  providing  for  the  opening  in
principle  of  such  programmes,  the  Commission  will  gradually  implement  them,  by  deciding  on  the
specific programmes that would be opened in each case and agreeing with the respective countries on
the modalities (through the conclusion of Memoranda of Understanding). Priority areas for the opening
of  Community  programmes  could  include  education  and  training,  culture,  research,  energy,
environment, civil society, SME support, and anti-fraud co-ordination.”
Albania,  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina,  Croatia,  Former  Yugoslav  Republic  of  Macedonia  and  Serbia  and
Montenegro.
The  complete  list  of  Community  programmes  open  to  candidate  countries  can  be  found  at:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/pas/ocp/programmes/

3

                                                
There are also international programmes and internal Community programmes with
an  external  component  for  which  the  countries  of  the  western  Balkans  are  already
eligible.  For  instance,  the  Tempus  programme  (mobility  and  support  for  higher
education),  the  “third  country”  section  of  the  Life  programme5  and  the  action
programme  for  environmental  NGOs  all  rely  on  external  budget  headings.  The
international section of the Sixth Framework Programme for Research is open to the
countries  of  the  western  Balkans  even  though  it  is  financed  by  an  internal  budget
heading. Similarly, the Youth Programme relies on internal allocations but provides
for special cooperation arrangements with non-member countries including those in
the western Balkans.

Access  to  Community  programmes  does  not  extend  to  instruments  such  as  Ispa,
Interreg, Phare or Sapard.

2.2.

Outline of procedures

Conclusion of bilateral framework agreements

The  Europe  Agreements  provided  the  legal  basis  for  the  countries  of  central  and
eastern Europe’s involvement in Community programmes but, for the SAP countries,
a legal basis must be created as not all the countries have signed a stabilisation and
association agreement yet.6 The European Community will therefore have to use for
the western Balkans the same approach as it used for Cyprus, Malta and Turkey, with
which  it  concluded  framework  agreements  in  the  absence  of  provisions  relating  to
Community programmes in the Europe Agreements or elsewhere.7

At  the  beginning  of  2004,  the  Commission  will  present  to  the  Council  a  draft
recommendation  for  negotiating  directives  for  an  agreement  with  each  of  the  SAP
countries. A mechanism will be set up to take account of Kosovo’s special status so
that Kosovan people and organisations can also take part in the programmes.8

These  framework  agreements  will  be  concluded  in  accordance  with  Article  300  of
the  EC  Treaty  and  with  reference  to  the  internal  legal  bases  for  the  various
Community  programmes.  The  agreements  will  lay  down,  for  each  country,  the
general principles governing participation in the programmes, including requirements
with  regard  to  administrative  and  financial  capacity  (e.g.  provisions  on  financial
control). The aim will be to conclude the framework agreements by the end of 2004.

5

6

7

8

LIFE-Third Countries is in principle open to countries with an Adriatic coastline because of the priority
give to the Mediterranean basin and the Baltic Sea.
Two SAAs have been concluded to date, with Croatia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
but these have not yet entered into force and do not in any case provide for participation in programmes.
An  SAA  is  currently  being  negotiated  with  Albania  and  feasibility  studies  are  being  carried  out  to
determine  whether  negotiations  can  be  opened  with  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  and  Serbia  and
Montenegro.
A different approach was used for the countries of central and eastern and central Europe: the Europe
Agreements  provided  scope  for  opening  up  Community  programmes  to  them  so  the  Association
Councils  were  able  to  adopt  framework  decisions  laying  down  general  rules  and  conditions  for
participation.
In accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1244.

4

                                                
SAA consolidation

Initially,  the  bilateral  agreements  will  have  to  be  concluded  separately  from  the
SAAs  but  it  may  make  sense,  later,  to  add  a  special  protocol  on  this  matter  to  the
SAAs.  At  some  stage,  participation  in  Community  programmes  should  be  properly
incorporated into the association framework and joint institutions should be given the
appropriate  powers,  though  initially  participation  will  not  be  made  conditional  on
this.

Clause opening up Community programmes

Access to Community programmes for candidate countries was made conditional on
the insertion of an access clause in the measure establishing the programme (usually
a Council Decision). As a result, the process of opening up the programmes to those
countries took several years, as the decisions setting up or renewing the programmes
were adopted. If this approach were to be used for the SAP countries, they would not
be able to take part in many programmes until 2007: while eight programmes are to
be  created  or  renewed  between  now  and  2005,  the  year  when  the  framework
agreements with the western Balkans is due to be implemented, sixteen programmes
have already been set up and will run until 2007 at least and would not therefore be
open until then.

The  Commission  is  proposing  a  special  approach  that  will  facilitate  access  for  the
SAP countries and deliver results from 2005.

- Existing Community programmes will be declared open by a generic clause to be
inserted into the bilateral framework agreements with the SAP countries. (The clause
will  apply  to  all  programmes  running  on  the  day  the  framework  agreements  enter
into force).

-  However,  for  future  Community  programmes  (created  or  renewed  after  the
framework agreements enter into force) the approach used for the candidate countries
is more appropriate, with a clause granting access to the SAP countries included in
each Decision or Regulation setting up or renewing a programme.

Memoranda of understanding

The  approach  taken  with  the  candidate  countries  will  also  be  used  for  the  SAP
countries:  for  each  programme,  the  Commission  will  conclude  a  memorandum  of
understanding  with  each  country  wishing  to  take  part  in  the  programme.  The
memorandum  of  understanding  will  lay  down  the  rules  governing  participation,  in
particular  the  administrative  capacities  required,  the  planned  financial  contribution,
the  mechanisms  for  taking  part  in  the  management  of  the  programme  and  the
financial-control provisions.

The  target  will  be  to  conclude  memoranda  of  understanding  for  the  first  batch  of
programmes by the end of the first quarter of 2005, to enable the SAP  countries to
take part in those programmes from 2005 (see calls for proposals launched in 2005).

5

2.3.

Administrative  and 
programmes

General approach

financial 

implications  of  opening  up  Community

The Commission’s departments will coordinate their approach,  to  make  best  use of
their operational experience with the candidate countries.

The  countries  of  the  western  Balkans,  for  their  part,  will  have  to  decide  which
programmes to apply for and what administrative and budgetary resources they want
to spend on enabling their citizens to take part in the various programmes.

Not  all  of  the  existing  28  Community  programmes  are  necessarily  suitable  for  the
SAP  countries  at  present.  Since  the  programmes  are  meant  to  accompany  certain
internal  EU  policies,  there  may  not  be  a  very  good  match  between  the  programme
objectives and  the  Balkan  countries’  own  priorities.  As  a  guide,  there  are  currently
sixteen programmes in which a majority of candidate countries are participating and
eleven which all candidate countries have applied for.

Furthermore, a number of pre-conditions may be attached to participation in a certain
programmes, such as:

- appropriate administrative capacity (e.g. the Socrates, Leonardo da Vinci et Youth
programmes  are  managed  through  bodies  set  up  specially  in  each  participating
country; certain preparatory measures have to be taken before these bodies can be set
up and access to the programmes is subject to checks on the institutional capacity for
enforcing the programme rules and ensuring sound financial management);

-  coming  into  line,  before  participation,  with  the  acquis  and  the  way  the  acquis  is
implemented  in  practice  (e.g.  MEDIA  and  certain  programmes  relating  to
employment and social affairs).

The countries of the western Balkans should therefore be encouraged to be selective
when deciding which programmes they want to take part in, and should be allowed to
take a gradual approach to participation, in line with their administrative capacity and
their ability to take  advantage of what the programmes have to offer. Countries are
advised to select:

- general, pan-European programmes;

- programmes that fit the priorities identified in the SAP framework;

- programmes that meet the country’s needs.

Some programmes are unlikely to be of any real benefit to the SAP countries initially
and may require some preparatory measures either because they are geared towards
very  specific  aspects  of  internal  EU  policies  or  the  acquis,  or  because  they  are

6

designed  to  support  political  cooperation  between  Member  States  in  a  particular
field.9

the 

international  programmes  or 

For 
international  sections  of  Community
programmes  to  which  the  countries  of  the  western  Balkans  already  have  access,
(Tempus, the Sixth Framework Programme for Research, Life-Third Countries10 and
Youth),  the  question  is  when  they  will  be  able  to  participate  in  the  corresponding
Community  programme  and  how  best  to  organise  the  transition  from  one  to  the
other.

It is also worth bearing in mind the high-priority areas of the Cards programme, such
as  customs  cooperation  and  justice  and  home  affairs.  The  SAP  countries  should
assess the potential benefits of taking part in programmes in these areas in terms of
how  well  they  will  complement  Cards  activities  and  what  value  added  they  will
bring.

The Commission will discuss the features of the various programmes with the SAP
countries  and,  through  dialogue,  help  them  to  select  programmes  that  meet  their
needs.

Financial  contribution,  absorption  capacity  and  administrative  resources  of  the  SAP
countries

It  must  be  made  clear  to  the  authorities  in  the  SAP  countries  that  effective
participation in Community programmes will depend, above all, on their willingness
to devote sufficient financial resources to it and on the availability of administrative
capacity.

Each country will have to make an annual financial contribution to the Community
budget  to  cover  the  estimated  cost  of  participation  in  a  given  programme  by  its
citizens. The size of these contributions will be negotiated with the Commission and
set down in the memoranda of understanding referred to at point 2.3. Programming
for the contributions will be on a three-year basis. They may be part-financed by the
Cards Programme (see below).

The  Community  should  draw  on  its  experience  with  the  candidate  countries  in
estimating the absorption capacity of each SAP country and laying down appropriate
rules on payment. It is essential to make sure that national contributions allocated to
programmes rather than other priorities are used in full since unspent funds  are not
returned to the countries that contributed them.

Care  must  also  be  taken  to  ensure  before  participation  that  the  administrative
resources  which  the  SAP  countries  intend  to  devote  to  programmes  are  both
sufficient and operational.

9

10

In addition, some programmes, due to finish in the  near future, are unlikely at this stage to be of any
significant use to the western Balkans. In such cases, it would be better to wait until they are renewed
before becoming involved.
Life-Third Countries must be extended to cover all countries with an Adriatic coastline.

7

                                                
Rules on financial assistance from the Cards Programme

The  guidelines  for  the  Cards  Programme  will  be  revised  to  incorporate  rules  on
Cards  co-financing  for  the  SAP  countries’  contributions  towards  participation  in
Community programmes. The main rules are set out below.

-  Cards  co-financing  will  come  from  the  existing  budgets  for  each  national  Cards
Programme.

- The amounts allocated to the co-financing of Community-programme contributions
must  not  exceed  5%  of  the  total  annual  budget  for  any  given  national  Cards
Programme.  To  encourage  a  gradual  and  selective  approach  to  participation  in
Community  programmes,  it  will  only  be  possible  to  give  Cards  co-financing  to
3-5 new  programmes  per  programming  year.  Co-financing  may  not  exceed  75%  of
the  national  contribution  to  any  given  programme  and  the  proportion  must  be
steadily reduced over the three-year programming period.

- Co-financing  for  participation in  a  Community  programme  must  take the  form  of
financial support over three years, to be paid to the recipient country at the beginning
of the period. The amounts paid will then be used by the SAP countries to help pay
the annual contribution to the Community budget required for each programme.

Multi-annual programming for 2005-06 and national annual programmes from 2005
will be adjusted accordingly.

2.4.

Indicative implementation schedule

The  aim  is  to  start  with  an  initial  selection  of  programmes  in  2005,  i.e.  to  be
operational within two years of the adoption of the Thessaloniki Agenda, which is a
political  imperative.  The  Commission  must  also  consider  how  this  exercise  fits  in
with  the  current  financial  perspectives,  with  a  view  to  anticipating  a  subsequent
increase, and must ensure a smooth administrative transition, within the Directorate-
Generals in charge of the  programmes, from the ten accession countries to  the  five
SAP countries.

The schedule is quite tight:

- the draft negotiating directives for the framework agreements will be submitted and
endorsed by the  Council in  the first  quarter of  2004, so that the agreements can be
concluded by the end of 2004; 

- the multi-annual programming schedule for 2005-06 will be adopted by the end of
2004 and the Cards guidelines will be updated at the same time;

- the first memoranda of understanding should be negotiated and concluded by spring
2005.

8

3.

PARTICIPATION  OF  THE  WESTERN  BALKAN  COUNTRIES  IN  THE  WORK  OF
COMMUNITY AGENCIES

3.1.

General approach

The  Community  agencies11  are  autonomous  bodies  set  up  by  Council  Regulation
either to provide expertise in a given field and standard technical information both to
the EU and to the Member States or to perform type-approval functions in a specific
sector.

According  to  the  Thessaloniki  Agenda,  “SAP  countries  could  be  allowed  to
participate  in  Community  agencies,  in  ways  similar  to  those  established  for
candidate  countries.”  Initially,  participation  by  the  candidate  countries  took  a
variety of forms, ranging from “formative and informative” participation, consisting
of seminars, special meetings following Management-Board meetings, joint working
parties, secondment of national experts etc. to full participation in the agencies’ work
without voting rights in the Management Boards. So far, full participation has proved
possible  only  in  the  European  Environment  Agency12,  though  most  candidate
countries  have  started  negotiations  on  participation  in  the  work  of  the  European
Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and
Drug Addiction (EMCDDA). 

The  SAP  countries’  involvement  in  the  work  of  Community  agencies  can  be
approached in a similar way to their participation in Community programmes.

-  A  selective  approach  is  called  for  as  only  five  agencies  can  at  present  feasibly
cooperate with the SAP countries13 since they are the only ones that: have a mandate
for it; operate in a way that is compatible with a pan-European approach; and share
common  objectives  with  the  SAP  countries.  These  are:  the  European  Environment
Agency,  the  European  Monitoring  Centre  for  Drugs  and  Drug  Addiction,  the
European  Monitoring  Centre  for  Racism  and  Xenophobia  (EUMC),  the  European
Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the European Aviation Safety Agency.

11

12

13

For a full list of the Community agencies in whose work the candidate countries can become involved,
see  http://europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/pas/ocp/agencies/.  Europol  and  Eurojust  should  also  be
added to that list although they are not strictly speaking Community agencies but EU agencies, set up in
accordance  with  Title  VI  of  the  Treaty  on  European  Union.  The  Council  has  authorised  Europol  to
negotiate agreements with the countries of the western Balkans.
Since 1 January 2002 for all candidate countries except Turkey, whose involvement in the EEA started
only on 26 March 2003.
The  other  agencies  are  not  suitable  for  opening  up  to  the  SAP  countries  either  because,  like  the
European  Agency  for  Reconstruction  (EAR)  or  the  European  Training  Foundation  (ETF),  they  run
assistance  programmes  covering  part  or  all  of  the  western  Balkans,  or  because  they  have  a  technical
remit or function relating exclusively to EU internal policies and the internal market, e.g. the European
Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, the European Foundation for the Improvement of
Living  and  Working  Conditions,  the  European  Agency  for  the  Evaluation  of  Medicinal  Products,  the
European  Food  Safety  Agency,  Office  for  Harmonisation  in  the  Internal  Market  (trade  marks  and
designs), the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, the Community Plant Variety Office and
the Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union.

9

                                                
-  A  gradual  approach  is  recommended,  similar  to  the  approach  taken  with  the
candidate  countries:  it  would  be  sensible  to  start  by  launching  cooperation
programmes in 2005 and 2006 as part of the regional Cards Programme to familiarise
the  SAP  countries  with  the  Agencies’  work.  The  aim  would  be  to  carry  out  the
requisite preparations in terms of adoption of the Community acquis and upgrading
administrative capacity, where this is pre-condition of participation. Only then, with
the benefit of the experience gathered during the cooperation programmes, would it
be appropriate to consider whether to conclude an agreement on involvement in the
work of individual agencies.

- As with Community programmes, the Community agencies’ budgets are, as a rule,
internal budget headings. As a result, a non-member country can participate fully in
the work of an agency only if it makes a contribution to the Community budget.14

-  Since  the  agencies  are  very  diverse  and  different  countries  will  be  interested  in
different things, the Community should examine with each country when it would be
possible and desirable for them to start participating and to then begin negotiating a
bilateral agreement.

3.2.

The European Environment Agency (EEA)

The Cards programme has been providing support for a cooperation project between
the EEA and the countries of the western Balkans since 2002, as part of the Regional
Environmental Reconstruction Programme (REReP).

On 6 June 2003, ministers from the region wrote a joint letter to Ms Wallström, the
Commissioner with responsibility for the environment, applying for full membership
of the EEA. Ms Wallström replied on 23 July 2003, that their application could not
yet  be  considered.  Moreover,  she  added  that,  on  the  basis  of  the  Thessaloniki
Agenda, there was a possibility of greater involvement in the Agency’s work as each
country developed the capacity to fulfil the obligations and meet the costs that went
along with it.

The REReP Task-Force is an appropriate forum for further discussions to determine
exactly how, and how quickly, the countries of the western  Balkans will be able to
participate in the EEA’s work. The short-term goal should be to continue with and if
possible step up existing cooperation between the Agency and the SAP countries.

14

The countries in question must make an annual financial contribution, gradually increasing over the first
three  years  in  line  with  their  increasing  involvement  in  the  agencies’  work.  Cofinancing  may  be
available  through  the  national  Cards  Programmes  on  the  same  basis  as  for  participation  in  the
Community programmes.

10

                                                
3.3.

Indicative schedule

It is too early to plan  a comprehensive schedule for SAP countries’ involvement in
the  agencies  since  any  such  schedule  will  have  to  be  preceded  by  discussions
between  the  Commission  and  each  SAP  country  for  each  agency.  The  experience
acquired in the course of the preliminary cooperation programmes will be taken into
account.

With regard to the Cards Programme:

-  the  guidelines  can  be  amended  at  the  same  time  as  they  are  amended  for
participation in Community programmes in 2004;

- cooperation programmes and preparatory measures can be included in the regional
programme from 2005.

11

Glossary

Acquis

SAA

Community laws, rules, legal precedents etc.

Stabilisation and Association Agreement

CARDS

Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation

EEA

Ispa

Ineterreg

Life

Media

NGO

SAP

REReP

Sapard

European Economic Area

Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession

European  Regional  Development  Fund  (ERDF)  Community  Initiative  to
promote cooperation between regions in the European Union

Financial Instrument for the Environment

Programme  designed  to  enhance  the  competitiveness  of  Europe’s  audio-
visual industry

Non-governmental organisation

Stabilisation and association process

Regional Environmental Reconstruction Programme

Special Accession Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development

Socrates

Community action programme concerned with education

Tempus

Trans-European mobility programme for higher education

EU

European Union

12