WRITTEN QUESTION E-0630/04 by Antonios Trakatellis (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Official Development Assistance (ODA) of the Union: funding by Member States, actions in the Balkans and application of conditionality and Community rules.
Date: 2004-03-03
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU Member State, EU aid, European Agency for Reconstruction, Greece, Western Balkans, accession to the European Union, aid policy, commitment of expenditure, development aid, financing of aid, human rights, terms for aid

3.4.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 84 E/825

In its decision of 1 October 2003 (1) the Commission proposes this transport axis as a priority project and
identifies a series of bottlenecks which need to be removed in order best to use this transport mode in the
interest of the enlarged Europe.

The Commission did not propose technical standards for the improvement of navigability for this project
due to the fact that Member States have to go through a series of legal, technical and environmental
studies in the phase of project planning before putting any specific possible conditions.

(1) COM(2003) 564 final.

(2004/C 84 E/0920)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0630/04

by Antonios Trakatellis (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 March 2004)

Subject: Official Development Assistance (ODA) of the Union: funding by Member States, actions in the

Balkans and application of conditionality and Community rules

Funding of development aid by the Union fell from 0,45 % in 1990 to 0,33 % in 2001, which is
significantly below the political commitment of 0,7 % GDP announced by the UN and the Göteborg
European Council. The Council has therefore included a binding commitment for ODA to reach 0,39 % of
GDP by 2006 in the Community acquis for the new Member States as an interim step to eventually
reaching 0,7 % of GDP.

Since in many Member States implementation of ODA is lagging behind, for instance in Greece’s five-year
programme for development cooperation and aid (2002-2006), will the Commission say:

1. What is the percentage ODA of the Union and each individual Member State for 2002 and 2003, and

how much does this amount to in millions of euros (EUR) in the Member States?

2. Why has Greece’s five-year programme for development cooperation and aid (2002-2006) for the
Balkans,
level of appropriations spent
(commitment appropriations) and what percentage of Greece’s ODA does this represent for 2002
and 2003?

the Black Sea, etc. been delayed, what

is the overall

3.

4.

Is the ODA of Member States of the Union in the Balkans linked to actions of the European Agency
for Reconstruction (1), the implementation of the CARDS (2) programme and the Stability Pact for
South East Europe, and what is the Union’s contribution within the framework of the implementation
of Greece’s ODA in the Balkans, on the basis of plans for infrastructures and public works (networks,
roads etc.)?

Is assistance being suspended in the event of a failure to respect human rights and are Community
rules being respected (for instance, on public procurement contracts etc.) by the services or bodies
which have undertaken to implement the Union’s ODA plans and programmes and, if so, which
regions are concerned?

(1) Regulation 2415/2001/EC of 10.12.2001, OJ L 327, 12.12.2001 (amending Regulations 2666/2000/EC and 2667/

2000 of 5.12.2000, OJ L 306, 7.12.2000).

(2) Programme for Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilization. Regulation 2666/2000/

EC, 5.12.2000, OJ L 306, 7.12.2000.

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(5 April 2004)

Questions relating to Greece’s bilateral assistance fall outside the remit of Directorate-General External
Relations (DG RELEX).

C 84 E/826

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

3.4.2004

In the interests of making the Community assistance cohesive and more efficient and complementary, the
Member States and the Commission regularly exchange information on the operations they intend to
implement. This is done in the countries concerned at the level of Community Delegations/European
Agency for Reconstruction and Member States’ Embassies and in the CARDS committee, which is
composed of representatives of all Member States. Practical arrangements for on-the-spot coordination are
covered by guidelines approved by the CARDS Committee and meetings with Member States take place on
a regular basis in the countries of the region. The Commission further encourages coordination and
cooperation with international financial institutions, United Nations cooperation programmes and other
donors. Such co-ordination is secured e.g. through the Community/World Bank Joint Office. The Stability
Pact specifically acts to ensure co-ordination of assistance of a regional nature, i.e. assistance covering two
and more countries of the region.

A precondition for the Western Balkan countries to receive assistance is that they respect democratic
principles, the rule of law, human and minority rights, fundamental freedoms and the principles of
international law. Article 5 of the CARDS Regulation (1) states that if these principles are not respected, the
Council, acting by qualified majority on a proposal from the Commission, may take appropriate measures.
Community assistance shall also be subject to the conditions defined by the Council in its Conclusions of
29 April 1997, in particular as regards the recipients’ undertaking to carry out democratic, economic and
institutional reforms.

Community assistance is being implemented by the European Agency for Reconstruction in Serbia and
Montenegro and in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The Commission’s de-concentrated
delegations are responsible for implementing Community assistance in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina
and in Croatia. The regional CARDS programme is implemented by DG EuropAid Co-operation Office
(AIDCO).

(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 2666/2000 of 5 December 2000 on assistance for Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Croatia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, repealing Regulation
(EC) No 1628/96 and amending Regulations (EEC) No 3906/89 and (EEC) No 1360/90 and Decisions 97/256/EC
and 1999/311/EC.

(2004/C 84 E/0921)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0631/04

by Ioannis Marínos (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 March 2004)

Subject: Abolition of the interest rate subsidy for border regions in Greece

The Chamber of Commerce of the Dodecanese has complained that the Greek Government has decided to
abolish Joint Ministerial Decisions 2041901/16.5.1989 and 2078809/10.10.1989 authorising ‘the
payment of a 3 % difference in interest, to be charged to the joint account of Law 128/1975, in respect
of updated balances of loans granted for the working capital of commercial and craft undertakings based
in the prefectures of Evros, Rodopi, Xanthi, the Dodecanese, Lesbos, Chios and Samos.’

Recent ministerial decisions (9034/B.289/10.2.2003 and 37497/B. 1232/2.6.2003) have amended the
above Joint Ministerial Decisions of 1989, and it has been decided that craft and commercial undertakings
in border regions shall be subsidised for the entire amount by bank loans up to 20 % of the annual
turnover for the previous year or the last twelve months for newly founded undertakings and that the
subsidy provided for by Joint Ministerial Decision 2041901/16.5.1989 shall be granted until 31.12.2004.

A letter from the Ministry of Finance (Protocol 80771/B.2334, dated 2.12.2003) states that the reason for
the abolition of the interest rate subsidy in border regions of Greece is that ‘given our role in the EU, it is
not advisable that interest rate subsidies be granted without an expiry date or limits in respect of the sum
granted, even in the case of urgent socio-economic circumstances affecting the less developed regions of
the country.’