Proposal for a Council Decision on the position to be adopted by the Community within the ACP-EC Council of Ministers regarding a decision on the use of the reserve of the long-term development envelope of the ninth European Development Fund
Date: 2004-03-29
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: ACP countries, European Development Fund, developing countries, development aid

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 29.3.2004 
COM(2004) 208 final 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the position to be adopted by the Community within the ACP-EC Council of 
Ministers regarding a decision on the use of the reserve of the long-term development 
envelope of the ninth European Development Fund 

(presented by the Commission) 

EN 

   EN 

 
 
 
  
  
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

The European Community plays an active role in the preparation and implementation of new 
initiatives  in  support  of  developing  countries.  Such  initiatives  in  favour  of  ACP  countries 
make substantial contributions to poverty reduction, which is the main objective of both the 
ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement  signed  in  Cotonou  on  23  June  2000  and  the  Community 
Development policy. 

Since the initial programming of the 9th EDF regional envelope, new initiatives have emerged 
which address specific needs that have arisen within the existing priorities of ACP countries, 
as well as EU development policy priorities. 

However,  the  amount  initially  earmarked  for  intra-ACP  co-operation  under  the  9th  EDF 
(€300 million)  is  too  limited  to  cover  all  initiatives.  For  this  reason,  9th  EDF  reserves  have 
been  mobilised  in  the  past  for  new  initiatives,  such  as  contributions  to  the  Global  Fund  to 
Fight HIV/aids, Malaria and Tuberculosis (GFATM), debt reduction and capacity building in 
various areas. 

Additionally, the amount of €4 million referred to in paragraph 3 (a) (iii) (Joint Parliamentary 
Assembly) of Annex I – Financial Protocol of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement has been 
fully committed and extra funds are needed to reinforce its role as a consultative body. 

Given  that  funds  earmarked  for  the  Joint  Parliamentary  Assembly  under  the  long-term 
development  envelope  are  fully  committed,  and  the  9th  EDF  envelope  for  regional 
co-operation  is  fully  absorbed,  no  additional  funds  are  available  for  new  initiatives.  Under 
these circumstances, in accordance with paragraph 8 of Annex I – Financial Protocol of the 
ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement,  the  ACP-EC  Council  of  Ministers  can  take  appropriate 
measures,  which  can  be  applied  when  funds  provided  for  in  any  of  the  instruments  of  the 
Agreement are exhausted. 

Against  this  background,  the  Commission  proposes  that  the  Council  should  adopt  the 
enclosed decision on the transfer of €172 million from the reserve of the 9th EDF long-term 
development  envelope  subject  to  agreement  by  the  ACP-EU  Council  of  Ministers.  This 
amount will be used for the following purposes: 

1. 

JOINT PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY 

€2 million 

Article  17  of  the  Cotonou  Agreement  states  that,  as  a  consultative  body,  the  Joint 
Parliamentary  Assembly  should  promote  democratic  processes  through  dialogue  and 
consultation; facilitate greater understanding between the peoples of the European Union and 
ACP  States  and  raise  public  awareness  of  development  issues;  discuss  issues  pertaining  to 
development and the ACP-EU Partnership; adopt resolutions and make recommendations to 
the Council of Ministers with a view to achieving the objectives of the ACP-EC Partnership 
Agreement. 

Paragraph 3 (a) (iii) of Annex I - Financial Protocol of the Partnership Agreement sets aside 
€4 million for these purposes. Being fully committed, a transfer of €2 million from the reserve 
of the long-term development envelope of the ninth European Development Fund to the Joint 
Parliamentary  Assembly  allocation  is  needed  to  ensure  continued  implementation  of  the 
purposes referred to in Article 17.  

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2. 

INTRA-ACP  CO-OPERATION  UNDER  REGIONAL  CO-OPERATION 
ENVELOPE 

€170 million 

2.1. 

NATURAL RESOURCES (€60 MILLION) 

Capacity  Building  in  Environmental  management  and  implementation  of  Multilateral 
Environmental Agreements 

ACP  countries  need  to  negotiate  and  implement  a  number  of  Multilateral  Environmental 
Agreements  and  Conventions  (e.g.  Desertification  Convention  (UNCCD),  UNFF,  CITES, 
Plant  Genetic  Resources  Treaty,  Chemicals  Conventions,  Aarhus  Convention,  Climate 
Change, etc.). Capacity building would include: i) strengthening their capacity to negotiate the 
agreements, ii) support for the ratification process, iii) implementing measures foreseen in the 
Conventions,  including  activities  to  increase  countries’  adaptive  capacity  to  the  adverse 
effects  of  climate  change,  drought,  land  degradation  and  other  threats  to  the  environment. 
Activities  will  include  support  for  the  strengthening  of  networks  involving  civil  society 
representatives  and  indigenous  community-based  organisations.  A  network  of  management 
units based with ACP Regional bodies could be also set up. 

The  EC  Biodiversity  and  the  Life  Sciences  &  Biotechnology  Action  Plans  entrust  the 
Commission with the responsibility to support inter alia: i) the formulation of national policies 
to maintain plant and animal stocks and ii) capacity building activities to define intellectual 
property rights in relation to biodiversity, and to develop supportive frameworks for equitable 
access and benefit sharing. Similarly, under the Biosafety (Cartagena) Protocol donors have 
the  responsibility  to  build  capacity  and  enhance  the  ability  of  institutional  and  non-
institutional  stakeholders  to  take  informed  and  responsible  decisions  with  respect  to  trans-
boundary movements of GMOs. 

Several  UN  Agencies  (e.g.  FAO,  UNEP,  UNITAR)  have  multilateral  environmental 
programmes of actions of a clearly trans-regional nature which could be supported with Intra-
ACP resources.  

These activities would cover all regions in the ACP group of countries. An indicative amount 
of €30 million is needed to implement them. 

EU Action Plan for Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) 

The  Commission  launched  an  EU  Initiative  for  Forest  Law  Enforcement,  Governance  and 
Trade  (FLEGT)  at  the  Johannesburg  Summit.  A  Communication  on  an  EU  FLEGT  Action 
Plan  was  subsequently  published  in  May  2003,  and  Council  Conclusions  were  adopted  in 
October of the same year. 

The Action Plan sets out a new approach to tackling illegal logging, which seeks to link the 
promotion  of  good  governance  in  developing  countries  with  the  legal  instruments  and 
leverage  offered  by  the  EU  internal  market.  The  core  components  of  the  Action  Plan  are 
support  for  improved  governance  in  wood-producing  countries,  and  a  licensing  scheme  to 
ensure  only  legal  timber  enters  the  EU.  The  licensing  scheme  for  timber  imports  will  be 
implemented  on  a  voluntary  (but  binding)  basis  through  a  series  of  partnerships  with  badly 
affected wood-producing countries.  

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Intra-ACP funds would support the technical assistance required to develop these partnerships 
in target countries and regions, these including Papua New Guinea (Pacific); Central African 
Republic, Ghana (West Africa); Guyana and Surinam (Caribbean). An indicative amount of 
€10 million is needed to implement these purposes.  

Fisheries 

Representatives  from  the  ACP  countries  expressed  their  concern  at  the  insufficient  funds 
allocated to the programme “Strengthening Fisheries Management in African, Caribbean and 
Pacific  Countries”  (ACP  Fish  II).  This  programme  is  one  of  the  core  initiatives  in  fisheries 
under  the  9th  EDF.  Resources  were  largely  insufficient  given  the  high  number  of  potential 
beneficiaries (more than 50 countries).  

A feasibility study conducted by FAO and submitted in December 2003 identified projects in 
African,  Caribbean  and  Pacific  regions  for  an  amount  largely  exceeding  the  initially 
earmarked  resources  of  €11.5  million.  Such  projects  are  consistent  with  the  objectives  and 
approach of the ACP Fish II programme. Extra funds of an indicative amount of €20 million 
are needed to cover the identified gap. 

2.2. 

PRIVATE SECTOR SUPPORT AND INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION 
TECHNOLOGIES (€65 MILLION) 

Action Plan on Agricultural Commodities and the EU-Africa Cotton partnership 

ACP countries have on several occasions expressed the need to improve the competitiveness 
of commodities and reduce the vulnerability of producers in the most commodity-dependent 
developing countries. The Council also requested the Commission recently to duly examine 
the  problems  of  cotton-dependent  countries.  The  proposed  Action  Plan  on  Agricultural 
Commodities identifies a range of activities designed both to improve competitiveness and to 
reduce  vulnerability,  the  cotton  partnership  being  considered  as  a  specific  spin-off  of  this 
Action  Plan.  Both  plans  correspond  to  political  commitments  and  were  adopted  as 
Communications by the Commission on 12 February 2004.  

This request would allow targeted co-operation on agricultural commodities with international 
organisations in the specific areas identified in the Communication. The cotton-related actions 
include  measures 
integration,  research,  design  and 
implementation  of  a  Universal  Cotton  Classification,  and  market-based  price  insurance 
instruments.  These  actions  will  have  important  leverage  effects  for  other  actions  initiated 
under EU Member States patronage or other developed countries. 

the  field  of  vertical  chain 

in 

An  indicative  amount  of  €45  million  is  needed  for  implementation  of  the  ACP-EU  Action 
Plan  on  Agricultural  Commodities  (€30  million)  and  of  the  EU-Africa  cotton  partnership 
(€15 million). 

ACP Information and Communication Technology Programme 

Following a request from the ACP Committee of Ambassadors to conduct a feasibility study 
in  2003,  this  project  was  confirmed  as  a  priority  in  the  “ACP-EU  Joint  position  on 
Information Society for Development” in December 2003. It will contribute to the creation of 
an African ICT industry and support the integration of ICT in EU development activities. The 
programme will bring clear economic benefits to ACP countries by creating employment in a 
booming sector and easing their integration in the world economy. 

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The  new  resources  will  be  used  for:  (1)  Regulatory  reforms: 
to  provide  new 
telecommunication  regulations  to  enable  cost  reductions,  improved  services  and  market 
expansion; (2) Capacity building: to provide training for young high-school graduates for the 
development  of  software;  (3)  Venture  capital:  to  fund  ICT  activities  of  SMEs  in  ACP 
countries;  (4)  e-Government:  to  stimulate  the  development  of  applications  through 
government procurement, enabling the creation of a national IT industry. 

An indicative amount of €20 million is needed to implement these purposes. 

In  the  context  of  the  World  Summit  for  Information  Society,  developing  countries’  further 
needs for ICT-related projects should also be financed out of National Indicative Programme 
resources. 

2.3. 

METHODOLOGICAL SUPPORT AND CAPACITY BUILDING (€25 MILLION) 

Migration Capacity Building Facility  

It should be underlined that there are already different financial sources for the integration of 
migration issues into development policy. (a) Migration-related activities that produce direct 
synergies  with  existing  development  priorities  should  be  financed  out  of  existing  EDF 
country allocations. (b) Support for refugees continues to be financed out of the humanitarian 
assistance budget line or – where the LRRD approach can be applied – the EDF. (c) Migrant-
related programmes in ACP countries that involve south-north migration (migrants wishing 
to travel to the EU, migrants already residing in the EU, or migrants returning from the EU) 
should  in  principle  be  financed  under  the  newly  created  ENEAS  programme  (budget  line 
190203 ex B7 667). 

Complementary to these mechanisms, the Commission is currently exploring possibilities of 
setting up an intra-ACP Migration Capacity Building Facility. This facility would finance 
regional  and  cross-border  programmes  aimed  at  migrants  and  migration  flows  to  and  from 
ACP countries. The facility would focus on south-south migration and would aim to: 

•  Build regional analytical and statistical expertise on migration flows and migration-related 

issues in the ACP region.  

•  Improve ACP capacities to design and implement migration policies and strategies that are 

conducive to the development process.  

•  Enhance,  through  information  dissemination  and  technical  assistance,  institutional  ACP 

capacity for effective and humane migration management. 

An indicative amount of €25 million is needed to implement the purposes referred to above. 

2.4. 

OTHER (€ 20MILLION) 

Strategic Partnership with UN 

The ACP-EC partnership is committed to working together towards achieving the objectives 
of poverty eradication, sustainable development and the gradual integration of ACP countries 
into  the  world  economy.  The  world’s  leaders,  in  adopting  the  Millennium  Declaration  in 
2000,  reaffirmed  the  role  of  the  UN  and  committed  the  world  community  to  the  fight  for 
development  and  against  poverty.  The  ACP-EC  partnership  will  largely  benefit  from 
improved co-operation between the UN and the EC. 

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The  EC’s  development  strategy  is  concerned  with  improving  the  quality  and  impact  of 
policies and activities with ACP countries by clarifying the Community’s role within the UN 
context  and  by  closer  co-operation  with  those  UN  organisations  whose  mandate  and 
capacities  match  ACP-EC  development  policy  priorities.  The  main  goals  of  the  strategic 
partnership are “to strengthen the involvement of the EC in upstream policy dialogue and to 
build a more transparent, financially predictable and easier to monitor partnership with chosen 
UN  agencies,  funds  and  programmes”  (COM(2001)231:  Communication  on  Building  an 
effective partnership with the United Nations in the fields of development and humanitarian 
affairs). 

An indicative amount of € 10 million is needed to implement the purposes referred to above, 
in particular in the areas of governance and post-conflict situations. 

Support for the implementation of intra-ACP programmes  

The ACP-EC partnership is committed to improve the impact of intra-ACP activities. As an 
important  part  of  this  project-related  approach,  it  is  often  necessary  to  assist  in  delineating 
intra-ACP  interventions  in  various  development  sectors,  assist  in  the  preparation  of  specific 
programme proposals and allow undertaking a number of evaluation exercises. An indicative 
amount of € 10 million is needed to implement the purposes referred to above. 

For  the  reasons  set  out  above,  the  Commission  proposes  that  the  Council  should  adopt  the 
attached decision on the use of the reserve of the long term development envelope of the ninth 
European Development Fund. 

6 

 
 
  
 
Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the position to be adopted by the Community within the ACP-EC Council of 
Ministers regarding a decision on the use of the reserve of the long-term development 
envelope of the ninth European Development Fund 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community,  and  in  particular 
Article 310 in conjunction with the second subparagraph of Article 300(2) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

Article 15 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000 
establishes  an  ACP-EC  Council  of  Ministers  with  powers  to  take  decisions  in 
accordance  with  the  Agreement,  and  Paragraph  8  of  Annex  I  allows  the  Council  of 
Ministers  to  take  appropriate  measures  where  the  funds  provided  for  in  any  of  the 
instruments of the Agreement are exhausted. 

Funds  from  the  9th  EDF  for  the  Joint  Parliamentary  Assembly  and  for  Regional 
Co-operation  and  Integration  are  exhausted.  The  Community's  position  within  the 
ACP-EC  Council  of  Ministers  should  therefore  be  established  with  a  view  to  its 
adopting a decision on the use of the reserve of the long-term development envelope 
the ninth European Development Fund, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Article 1 

The Community shall adopt the following position within the ACP-EC Council of Ministers 
on  the  use  of  the  reserve  of  the  long-term  development  envelope  of  the  ninth  European 
Development Fund, based on the attached draft decision of the ACP-EC Council of Ministers. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

7 

 
 
  
 
 
 
ANNEX 

Draft 

DECISION OF THE ACP-EC COUNCIL OF MINISTERS 

on the use of the reserve of the long-term development envelope of the ninth European 
Development Fund 

THE ACP-EC COUNCIL OF MINISTERS, 

Having  regard  to  the  ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement  signed  in  Cotonou  on  23  June  2000, 
and in particular Paragraph 8 of its Annex I, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

Funds  for  the  Joint  Parliamentary  Assembly  under  the  9th  EDF  long-term 
development envelope and for regional co-operation and integration are exhausted.  

To  ensure  continued  implementation  of  the  purposes  referred  to  in  Article  17  of  the 
ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement  (Joint  Parliamentary  Assembly),  it  is  appropriate  to 
allocate supplementary resources to this effect. 

To ensure contributions to efforts of capacity building in environmental management 
and implementation of multilateral environmental agreements, the establishment of an 
ACP-EU Action Plan for Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT), 
and  the  strengthening  of  fisheries  management  in  African,  Caribbean  and  Pacific 
Countries, it is appropriate to allocate supplementary resources to this effect. 

To ensure support for producers in the most commodity-dependent ACP countries, to 
improve  competitiveness  and  reduce  vulnerability,  as  well  as  promoting  information 
and  communication  technologies  in  ACP  countries,  it  is  appropriate  to  allocate 
supplementary resources to this effect. 

To ensure methodological support and capacity building in the field of migration and 
regional co-operation, focusing on south-south migration, it is appropriate to allocate 
supplementary resources to this effect. 

To  ensure  closer  co-operation  with  those  UN  organisations  whose  mandate  and 
capacities  match  ACP-EC  development  policy  priorities,  in  particular  in  the  areas  of 
governance  and  post-conflict  situations,  and  improve  the  impact  of  intra-ACP 
activities, it is appropriate to allocate supplementary resources to this effect,  

8 

 
 
  
 
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Article 1 – Joint Parliamentary Assembly 

An amount of €2 million shall be transferred from the reserve of the long-term development 
envelope  of  the  ninth  European  Development  Fund  to  the  Joint  Parliamentary  Assembly 
allocation under long-term development envelope, in accordance with the purposes stated in 
Article 17 and Protocol 1 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement. 

Article 2 – Intra-ACP Co-operation under the Regional Co-operation Envelope 

An  amount  of  €170  million  shall  be  transferred  from  the  reserve  of  the  long-term 
development  envelope  of  the  ninth  European  Development  Fund  to  the  allocation  for  intra-
ACP Co-operation under the regional co-operation envelope, in accordance with the purposes 
stated in Articles 28, 29 and 30 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement. This amount can be 
used for the following purposes:  

2.1 

2.2 

2.3 

2.4 

Natural  resources  (€60  million),  for  actions  in  the  field  of  environment  and  natural 
resources  (including  fisheries  scientific  and  technical  assessment,  control  and 
surveillance). 

Information  and  Communication  Technologies 
Private  sector  support  and 
(€65 million),  for  actions  to  support  producers  in  the  most  commodity-dependent 
ACP countries and to promote information and communication technologies in ACP 
countries. 

Methodological support and Capacity Building (€25 million), for the setting-up of an 
intra-ACP Migration Capacity Building Facility. 

Strategic Partnership with the UN and support for the implementation of intra-ACP 
programmes  (€ 20 million),  for 
the  strengthening  of  co-operation  with  UN 
organisations  closest  to  ACP-EC  development  policy  priorities,  in  particular  in  the 
areas of governance and post-conflict situations, and improving the impact of intra-
ACP activities. 

The Chief Authorising Officer of the EDF is requested to take the measures necessary to give 
effect to this Decision, which shall enter into force on the day it is adopted. 

Article 3  

Done at 

For the ACP-EC Council of Ministers 
The President 

9