Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on establishing a financing instrument for the promotion of democracy and human rights worldwide (European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights)
Date: 2006-06-26
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU aid, EU financial instrument, cooperation policy, democratisation, foreign policy, human rights

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 26.6.2006 
COM(2006) 354 final 

2006/0116 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on establishing a financing instrument for the promotion of democracy and human 
rights worldwide 

(European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights) 

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

The  objective  of  the  proposal  for  a  new  financing  instrument  for  the  promotion  of 
democracy and human rights is to provide a legal basis for the successor programme 
to  the  European  Initiative  for  Democracy  and  Human  Rights  (EIDHR),  which  is 
based on two regulations that expire end 20061.  

The new instrument, like EIDHR, will have the specific mission to assist in meeting 
EU  policy  objectives  regarding  the  promotion  of  human  rights  and  democracy  in 
external  relations,  as  indicated  in  Treaty  mandates2  and  articulated  in  Commission 
communications, European Parliament resolutions and Council conclusions over the 
years. These objectives are of a global nature, reflected in EU Guidelines on Human 
Rights  issues3  and  echoed  in  different  ways  in  the  Stabilisation  and  Association 
process4,  the  European  Neighbourhood  policy5,  and  in  the  European  Consensus  on 
Development6, as well as in new regional initiatives such the EU Strategy for Africa7 
and EU strategic partnership with Latin America8 and the EU policy towards Asia9. 
The  main  policy  framework  for  the  EIDHR  has  been  set  by  the  2000  and  2001 
Commission communications10. 

The new instrument, will, like EIDHR, be designed to complement the various other 
tools  for  implementation  of  EU  policies  on  democracy  and  human  rights,  which 
range  from  political  dialogue  and  diplomatic  demarches  to  various  instruments  of 
financial  and  technical  cooperation,  including  both  geographic  and  thematic 

Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  975/1999,  as  amended  by  Regulation  (EC)  No  1882/2003,  Regulation 
(EC)  No  2240/2004,  and  Regulation  (EC)  2110/2005;  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  976/1999,  as 
amended  by  Regulation  (EC)  No  907/2003,  Regulation  (EC)  No  2242/2004,  and  Regulation  (EC) 
2112/2005 
Article 11(1) TEU; Articles 177(2), 181a(1) TEC. 
Guidelines  to  EU  policy  towards  third  countries  on  the  death  penalty,  June  1998;  Guidelines  to  EU 
policy  towards  third  countries  on  torture  and  other  cruel,  inhuman  or  degrading  treatment  or 
punishment,  April  2001;  EU  Guidelines  on  children  and  armed  conflict,  December  2003;  EU 
Guidelines on human rights defenders, June 2004. 
Cf. Zagreb summit in November 2000 
http://europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/intro/sap/summit_zagreb.htm 
Commission  Strategy  Paper European  Neighbourhood Policy,  COM(2004)  373  final  of  12May  2004, 
Council conclusions of 14July 2004. 
Joint  Statement  by  the  Council  and  the  representatives  of  the  governments  of  the  Member  States 
meeting within the Council, the European Parliament and the Commission ”The European Consensus 
on Development”, adopted on 22 November 2005. 
The  EU  and  Africa:  towards  a  strategic  partnership,  adopted  by  the  European  Council,  15-16 
December 2005 
Commission  Communication  A  stronger  partnership  between 
COM(2005)636 final of 8 December 2005 
Commission  Communication  Europe  and  Asia:  A  Strategic  Framework  for  Enhanced  Partnerships, 
COM(2001) 469 final of 4 September 2001; Commission Communication New Partnership with South 
East Asia, COM(2003) 399 final of 9 July 2003; Commission Policy Paper A maturing partnership – 
shared interests and challenges in EU-China relations, COM(2003) 533 final of 10 September 2003; 
Commission  Communication  An  EU-India  Strategic  Partnership,  COM(2004)  430  final  of  16  June 
2004 
EU  election  assistance  and  observation,  COM(2000)  191  final  of  11  April  2000;  The  EU’s  Role  in 
Promoting  Human  Rights  and  Democratisation  in  Third  Countries,  COM(2001)  252  final  of  8  May 
2001 

the  EU  and  Latin  America, 

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programmes. It will also complement the more crisis-related interventions of the new 
Stability instrument.  

Whilst  democracy  and  human  rights  objectives  are  increasingly  “mainstreamed”  in 
these  various  instruments,  the  new  financing  instrument  will  have  a  specific 
complementary role by virtue of its global nature and its independence of action. As 
with EIDHR, this makes possible cooperation with civil society on sensitive human 
rights  and  democracy  issues,  providing  the  flexibility  to  respond  to  changing 
circumstances or to support innovation, contrasting with the long term programming 
approach of the geographic programmes. It also provides an EC capacity to articulate 
and support specific objectives and measures at international level, which are neither 
geographically linked nor crisis related, which may require a transnational approach 
or  involve  operations  both  within  the  EU  and  in  a  range  of  partner  countries.  It 
provides  the  necessary  framework  for  operations  such  as  EU  election  observation 
requiring  policy  coherence,  a  unified  management  system  and  common  operating 
standards.  

Given  the  planned  radical  simplification  of  the  regulatory  architecture  governing 
external assistance, the original intention of the Commission was to propose that the 
future framework for its specific activity on democracy and human rights, following 
on  from  the  EIDHR,  take  the  form  of  a  Thematic  Programme,  using  the  four 
proposed regulations on external assistance as a legal base11. A Communication on a 
thematic  programme  for  the  promotion  of  democracy  and  human  rights  worldwide 
under  the  future  Financial  Perspectives  (2007-2013)  was  thus  published  by  the 
Commission  in  January12  which  had  been  prepared  following  consultations  in  the 
later part of 200513. Consultations have continued since with a view to preparing the 
programming documents. 

Given  the  special  character  of  EU  action  on  democracy  and  human  rights,  being 
linked to a specific Treaty mandate, the need for a separate Regulation, as opposed to 
a  Thematic  Programme,  has  been  long  been  argued  in  particular  by  the  European 
Parliament,  which  was  at  the  origin  of  the  EIDHR.  Although  the  Commission  has 
been aware of the concerns of the Parliament, it has wished first to ensure an inter-
institutional  consensus  on  the  overarching  plan  for  the  simplification  of  the 
regulatory architecture governing external assistance. Now that this seems secure, the 
Commission considers it is now appropriate to propose a separate Regulation.  

The proposal mirrors the main ideas developed in the Communication for a Thematic 
programme for the promotion of democracy and human rights worldwide under the 
future  Financial  Perspectives  (2007-2013),  and 
the 
consultations carried out in that context. No further consultations have been carried 
out with regard to the proposed regulation, for reasons of urgency, given the need for 
the Regulation to be adopted in time for operations to take place as from 2007. 

takes  account  of 

thus 

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Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on External Actions 
through Thematic Programmes under the Future Financial Perspectives 2007 – 2013, COM(2005) 324 
final of 3 August 2005. 
COM(2006) 23 final of 25 January 2006 
see http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/consultations/er.htm 

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The  proposed  instrument  is  based  both  on  Article  179  (1)  TEC  ,  which  covers 
measures in the field of development cooperation with developing countries, and on 
Article 181a (2) TEC , which covers measures in the field of economic, financial and 
technical cooperation with third countries other than developing countries. This legal 
basis  secures  a  global  outreach  of  the  instrument.  The  Regulation  in  its  entirety  is 
subject to the co-decision procedure under Article 251 TEC. 

The  structure  of  the  Regulation  follows  closely  that  of  the  other  newly  proposed 
financing  instruments  for  external  assistance  which  all  are  to  operate  within  the 
framework of the Financial Perspectives 2007-201314. The Regulation is divided into 
three  Titles  which  cover  the  objectives  and  scope  of  the  European  Instrument  for 
Democracy  and  Human  Rights  (Title  I  –  Articles  1  to  3),  general  rules  for  the 
implementation  of  the  instrument  (Title  II  –  Articles  4  to  15),  and  final  provisions 
(Title III – Article 16 to 20). 

The  provision  of  Article  1  of  Title  I  reflects  the  strategic  objectives  for  the 
instrument  as  developed  and  presented  in  the  Commission’s  Communication  on  a 
Thematic Programme for the promotion of democracy and human rights worldwide 
under the future Financial Perspectives (2007-2013)15. Article 2 refers to the fields 
for  assistance  under  the  instrument  in  pursuit  of  the  objectives  as  elaborated  under 
Article 1. The list of specific activities within each field is non-exhaustive and may 
be complemented in delivering assistance in response to specific needs. Article 2(3) 
provides for the possibility to implement Community assistance within the European 
Union provided the supported activity is directly related to situations arising in third 
countries.  This  particularly  applies  to  rehabilitation  centres  for  victims  of  torture 
based  within  the  European  Union  and  actions  which  can  only  be  implemented 
outside the targeted third country. 

11. 

Article  3  of  Title  I  lays  down  general  principles  for  the  implementation  of  the 
Regulation, namely that  

•  assistance under the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights shall 
complement assistance provided for under other financing instruments referred to 
in the provision,  

•  assistant is consistent with the relevant EU policies in the field,  

•  coordination is ensured with respective assistance programmes of Member States, 

•  exchanges  of  information  are  sought  with  the  European  Parliament  and  civil 

society. 

12. 

Articles  4 to 6 of Title II describe the general procedural  framework for  delivering 
external  Community  assistance.  This  conforms  to  the  guidelines  laid  down  in  the 
reform of the management of the Community’s external assistance16, and considers 
the experience and innovations made since then. Article 5 lays down the procedure 

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European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI), Development Cooperation and Economic 
Cooperation Instrument (DCECI), Instrument for Stability (IfS) 
COM(2006) 23 final of 25 January 2006 
On the Reform of the Management of External Assistance, SEC (2000) 814 of 16 May 2000 

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for programming the assistance under the instrument by way of strategy papers and 
its revisions. Strategy papers are drawn up in line with the Common Framework and 
Procedure  for  Strategy  Papers  for  the  Thematic  Programmes  2007-201317.  The 
strategy  papers  are  adopted  by  the  Commission  in  the  form  of  a  Commission 
decision after obtaining a favourable opinion by a management committee made up 
of representatives of the Member States and chaired by a Commission representative 
(Article  16).  To  ensure  adequate  complementarity  of  Community  assistance  with 
Member  States’  assistance  and  that  of  other  donors  and  actors,  consultations 
including  with  representatives  of  civil  society,  shall  take  place  during  the 
programming process.  

Article 6 provides that financing decisions under the instrument generally are taken 
by the Commission in the form of Annual Action Programmes. based on the Strategy 
Papers  and  their  revisions.  The  Annual  Action  Programme  includes  all  types  of 
financing  in  terms  of  Article  8  and  Article  12  of  this  Regulation,  and  in  particular 
comprises  the  Annual  Work  Programme  on  the  basis  of  Article  110(1)  of  the 
Financial  Regulation18.  Amendments  to  the  Annual  Action  Programme  are  adopted 
by  the  Commission  after  a  favourable  opinion  by  the  management  committee.  In 
cases  where  amendments  do  not  exceed  20%  of  the  global  amount  allocated  to  the 
Annual Action Programme the Commission informs the management committee and 
the European Parliament. In exceptional cases (Article 7) and for financing Support 
Measures (Article 8), the Commission may take financing decisions not covered by 
the Strategy Papers. 

Article  7  on  Special  Measures  increases  the  Community’s  capacity  to  respond  to 
unforeseen situations and developments and introduces a particular flexibility for the 
effective implementation of the Community’s complementary external assistance in 
the  field  of  promoting  democracy  and  human  rights.  Thus,  the  Commission  may 
decide  on  assistance  measures  originally  not  covered  by  Strategy  Papers.  As  the 
Commission decisions are taken outside the scope of Strategy Papers as approved by 
the management committee, financing decisions on measures exceeding € 5 million 
have  been  made  subject  to  a  favourable  opinion  by  the  management  committee.  In 
cases  where  the  specific  assistance  measure  remains  below  €  5  million  the 
Commission  informs  the  management  committee  and  the  European  Parliament 
within one month of the adoption.  

Article  8  allows  the  Community  to  finance  with  operational  and  administrative 
expenditure  credits  Support  Measures  necessary  for  the  implementation  of  the 
Regulation  and  for  achieving  its  objectives.  Where  Support  Measures  are  financed 
outside the scope of Strategy Papers, Article 8(3) provides for them to be adopted in 
the same manner as Special Measures. 

Article 9 lists the entities, bodies and institutions eligible for receiving grants under 
this  Regulation.  In  line  with  current  practice  and  the  respective  provisions  in  other 
external  assistance  instruments,  Article  9(1)  provides  for  a  broad-based  eligibility, 

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Commission  Working  Paper  approved  by  the  Inter-service  Quality  Support  Group  on  [date  to  be 
inserted] 
Council  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No  1605/2002  of  25  June  2002  on  the  Financial  Regulation 
applicable to the general budget of the European Communities, OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1 

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complemented  by  the  savings  clause  of  Article  9(2),  according  to  which  bodies  or 
actors  not  listed  by  Article  9(1)  are  deemed  eligible  for receiving  grants  under  this 
Regulation, provided this is necessary to achieve the objectives of the Regulation. 

Article  10  allows  the  Commission  to  manage  the  measures  financed  under  this 
Regulation  using  management  methods  provided  for  in  the  Financial  Regulation 
(centralised  management  or  joint  management  with  international  organisations).  In 
accordance with Article 54 of the Financial Regulation, Article 10(2) establishes the 
criteria  for  delegating  budget  implementation  tasks  to  national  public-sector  bodies 
or bodies governed by private law with a public-service mission.  

Article  11  and  12  of  Title  II  list  the  forms  of  budget  commitments  and  types  of 
financing  on  the  basis  of  Commission  decisions  on  Strategy  Papers  (Article  5), 
Annual  Action  Programmes  (Article  6),  Special  Measures  (Article  7)  and  Support 
Measures (Article 8). On the basis of Article 108(1)(b) of the Financial Regulation, 
Article 12 (c) identifies the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and 
Democratisation (EIUC) as a  potential recipient of grants under this  Regulation  for 
securing  the  continuation  of  the  European  Master’s  Degree  Programme  in  Human 
Rights and Democratisation and the EU-UN Fellowship Programme. The legal basis 
for  the  present  financing  of  the  European  Inter-University  Centre  expires  by  end 
200619. Article 12 also opens up the possibility of cofinancing with Member States, 
other donor countries, international and regional organisations, and other entities.  

Article  13  of  Title  II  sets  out  the  rules  for  participation  in  the  award  of  grants  and 
public  contracts  financed  under  this  Regulation.  Article  13  allows  in  particular 
natural  and  legal  persons  of  third  countries  which  open  their  own  grant  procedures 
and  public  procurement  to  EU  Member  States  to  take  part  in  grant  award  and 
procurement  procedures  under  this  Regulation.  The  provisions  comply  with  the 
abrogated Regulations on access to Community external assistance20. 

Article 15 of Title II binds the Commission to monitor and review, and regularly to 
evaluate the effectiveness of its programming under this Regulation. Member States 
and the European Parliament shall receive the respective reports for their information 
and discussion. 

Articles 16 to 20 of Title III comprise final provisions pertaining to the establishment 
of  a  management  committee  of  Member  States’  representatives  (Article  16)  in 
accordance  with  the  comitology  decision  of  the  Council21,  an  annual  report  by  the 
Commission  on  the  implementation  of  assistance  measures  under  this  Regulation 
(Article 17), the financial reference amount for the implementation of the Regulation 
(Article 18),  and a  review  of this Regulation after four  years of implementation on 
the basis of a Commission proposal (Article 19). 

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Decision No 791/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 establishing 
a  Community  action  Programme  to  promote  bodies  active  at  European  level  and  support  specific 
activities in the field of education and training, OJ L 138, 30.4.2004, p. 31 
OJ L 344, 27.12.2005, p. 1, OJ L 344, 27.12.2005, p. 23 
Council Decision 1999/468/EC, OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23 

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22. 

Article 20 of Title III determines that the Regulation shall apply from 1 January 2007 
for  a  period  of  seven  years  until  31  December  2013.  The  entry  into  force  of  the 
Regulation by 1 January 2007 is imperative to ensure continuity of the legal basis for 
complementary external assistance in the field of promoting democracy and human 
rights  beyond  the  31  December  2006.  At  this  date,  the  present  legal  bases  for  the 
European  Initiative  for  Democracy  and  Human  Rights  will  expire.  The  delivery  of 
democracy  and  human  rights  external  assistance  under  the  2007  budget  therefore 
needs the entering into force of this Regulation by 1 January 2007.  

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2006/0116 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on establishing a financing instrument for the promotion of democracy and human 
rights worldwide 

(European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community,  and  in  particular 
Articles 179(1) and 181a(2) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,1 

Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty,2 

Whereas: 

(1) 

A new framework for planning and delivering assistance is proposed in order to make 
the Community’s external assistance more effective. Council Regulation (EC) No [...] 
establishes  an  Instrument  for  Pre-Accession  (IPA)  for  Community  assistance  to 
candidate and potential candidate countries. Regulation (EC) No […] of the European 
Parliament and of the Council establishes a European Neighbourhood and Partnership 
Instrument  providing  direct  support  for  the  EU’s  European  Neighbourhood  Policy. 
Regulation (EC) No [...] of the European Parliament and of the Council establishes a 
financing  instrument  for  Development  Cooperation  and  Economic  Cooperation. 
Regulation (EC) No […] of the European Parliament and of the Council establishes a 
financing  Instrument  for  Stability  providing  assistance  in  situations  of  crisis  and 
emerging  crisis,  and  specific  global  and  transregional  threats.  This  Regulation 
establishes a European Instrument for the Promotion of Democracy and Human Rights 
(EIDHR) worldwide; 

(2) 

Article 6(1) of the Treaty on European Union stipulates that the Union is founded on 
the  principles  of  liberty,  democracy,  respect  for  human  rights  and  fundamental 
freedoms,  and  the  rule  of  law,  principles  which  are  common  to  the  Member  States. 
Any European State which respects these principles may according to Article 49 of the 
Treaty on European Union apply to become a member of the Union; 

(3) 

The promotion of democracy and the rule of law, and human rights and fundamental 
freedoms  constitutes  a  prime  objective  of  the  Community’s  development  policy  and 

1 
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OJ C […], […], p. […]. 
OJ C […], […], p. […]. 

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economic, financial and technical cooperation with third countries. . A commitment to 
respect,  promote  and  protect  democratic  principles  and  human  rights  is  an  essential 
element of the Community’s contractual relations with third countries3; 

The  European  Consensus  on  Development  jointly  agreed  by  the  Council  and  the 
representatives of the governments of the Member States meeting within the Council, 
the European Commission and the European Parliament4 underlines that “progress in 
the protection of human rights, good governance and democratisation is fundamental 
for poverty reduction and sustainable development” 

The  financing  instrument  contributes  to  achieving  the  objective  of  the  European 
Union’s  Common  Foreign  and  Security  Policy  regarding  the  development  and 
consolidation  of  democracy  and  the  rule  of  law,  and  respect  for  human  rights  and 
fundamental freedoms.;  

The  Community’s  contribution  to  the  development  and  consolidation  of  democracy 
and  the  rule  of  law,  and  of  respect  for  human  rights  and  fundamental  freedoms  is 
rooted in the general principles established by the International Bill of Human Rights5, 
and  any  other  Universal  Human  Rights  Instrument  adopted  within  the  framework  of 
the United Nations;  

Democracy  and  human  rights  are  inextricably  linked.  The  fundamental  freedoms  of 
expression and association are the preconditions for political pluralism and democratic 
process, whereas democratic control and separation of powers are essential to sustain 
an independent judiciary  and  the  rule of law which in turn  are  required for effective 
protection of human rights;  

Human  rights  may  be  considered  in  the  light  of  universally  accepted  international 
norms, but democracy has to be seen as a process, developing from within, involving 
all  sections  of  society  and  a  range  of  institutions  that  should  ensure  participation, 
representation, responsiveness and accountability. The task of building and sustaining 
a  culture  of  human  rights  and  making  democracy  work  for  its  citizens,  though 
especially  urgent  and  difficult  in  emerging  democracies,  is  essentially  a  continuous 
challenge, belonging first and foremost to the people of the country concerned; 

In order to address the above issues in an effective, timely and flexible manner beyond 
the expiry of Council Regulation (EC) No 975/19996 and Council Regulation (EC) No 
976/19997, which served as the legal base for the European Initiative for Democracy 
and  Human  Rights  and  which  expire  by  31  December  2006,  specific  financial 

Commission Communication on the Inclusion of Respect for Democratic Principles and Human Rights 
in Agreements between the Community and Third Countries, COM(1995) 216 of 23 May 1995 
OJ C 46, 24.2.2006, p. 1 
The  International  Bill  of  Human  Rights  comprises  the  Universal  Declaration  of  Human  Rights,  the 
International  Covenant  on  Economic,  Social  and  Cultural  Rights,  the  International  Covenant  on  Civil 
and Political Rights, the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 
and the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at 
the abolition of the death penalty 
OJ  L  120,  8.5.1999,  p.1,  as  last  amended  by  Regulation  Regulation  (EC)  No  2110  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 344, 27.12.2005, p. 1)  
OJ  L  120,  8.5.1999,  p.  8,  as  last  amended  by  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  2112/2005  (OJ  L  344, 
27.12.2005, p. 23) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

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resources and a self-contained financing instrument are required that can continue to 
work in an independent manner whilst remaining complementary to humanitarian aid 
and long term development and cooperation financing instruments; 

(10)  Community  assistance  under  this  Regulation  is  designed  to  complement  the  various 
other tools for implementation of EU policies on democracy and human rights, which 
range  from  political  dialogue  and  diplomatic  demarches  to  various  instruments  of 
financial  and  technical  cooperation,  including  both  geographic  and  thematic 
programmes.  It  will  also  complement  the  more  crisis-related  interventions  of  the 
Instrument for Stability; 

(11) 

In  particular,  in  addition  and  complementary  to  the  measures  agreed  with  partner 
countries  in  the  context  of  the  cooperation  pursued  under  the  Instrument  for  Pre-
accession, the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument, the Development 
Cooperation  and  Economic  Cooperation  Instrument,  the  Cotonou  Agreement  with 
ACP  countries  and  the  Instrument  for  Stability,  the  Community  provides  assistance 
under  this  Regulation  that  addresses  global,  regional  and  national  human  rights  and 
democratisation issues in partnership with civil society; 

(12)  Furthermore,  whilst  democracy  and  human  rights  objectives  are  increasingly 
mainstreamed in all external assistance financing instruments, Community assistance 
under this Regulation will have a specific complementary role by virtue of its global 
nature  and  its  independence  of  action  from  the  consent  of  third  country  authorities. 
This  makes  possible  cooperation  with  civil  society  on  sensitive  human  rights  and 
democracy issues, providing the flexibility to respond to changing circumstances or to 
support  innovation.  It  also  provides  a  Community  capacity  to  articulate  and  support 
level,  which  are  neither 
specific  objectives  and  measures  at 
geographically linked nor crisis related, which may require a transnational approach or 
involve  operations  both  within  the  Community  and  in  a  range  of  third  countries.  It 
provides  the  necessary  framework  for  operations  such  as  independent  EU  election 
observation  requiring  policy  coherence,  a  unified  management  system  and  common 
operating standards;  

international 

(13)  The  2001  “Guidelines  for  strengthening  operational  coordination  between  the 
Community,  represented  by  the  Commission,  and  the  Member  States  in  the  field  of 
external  assistance”  emphasise  the  need  for  enhanced  coordination  of  EU  external 
assistance in the fields of supporting democratisation and promoting respect for human 
rights  and  fundamental  freedoms  worldwide.  The  Commission  and  Member  States 
shall ensure that their respective assistance measures are complementary; 

(14)  The  relevance  and  scope  of  Community  assistance  in  promoting  democracy  and 
human  rights  calls  for  the  Commission  to  seek  regular  and  frequent  exchanges  of 
information with the European Parliament.  

(15)  The  Commission  needs  to  consult  representatives  of  civil  society,  as  well  as  other 
donors  and  actors,  as  early  as  appropriate  in  the  programming  process  in  order  to 
facilitate  their  respective  contributions  and  to  ensure  that  assistance  activities  are  as 
complementary to each other as possible; 

(16)  The  Community  needs  to  be  able  to  respond  rapidly  to  unforeseen  needs  and  in 
exceptional circumstances in order to enhance  the  credibility  and  effectiveness  of  its 

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commitment to the promotion of democracy and human rights in countries where such 
situations arise. This requires the possibility for the Commission to decide on Special 
Measures  not  covered  by  Strategy  Papers.  This  assistance  management  instrument 
corresponds to those included in the other external assistance financing instruments; 

(17)  This  Regulation  establishes  a  financial  framework  for  the  entire  duration  of  the 
programme which is to be the principal point of reference for the budgetary authority, 
within  the  meaning  of  point  37  of  the  Interinstitutional  Agreement  of  17  May  2006 
between  the  European  Parliament,  the  Council  and  the  Commission  on  budgetary 
discipline and sound financial management; 

(18)  Financial  support  needs  to  be  secured  for  the  European  Inter-University  Centre  for 
Human Rights and Democratisation, providing a European Masters Degree in Human 
Rights and Democratisation and an EU-UN Fellowship Programme, beyond the expiry 
by  end  2006  of  Decision  No  791/2004/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the 
Council  of  21  April  2004  establishing  a  Community  action  programme  to  promote 
bodies active at European level and support specific activities in the field of education 
and training8, which served as the legal basis for funding;  

(19)  The measures necessary for the implementation of this Regulation should be adopted 
in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the 
procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission9.  

(20) 

In accordance with the principle of proportionality, it is necessary and appropriate for 
the  achievement  of  the  basic  objectives  of  this  Regulation  to  lay  down  rules  on  a 
European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights. This Regulation does not go 
beyond what is necessary in order to achieve the objective pursued, in accordance with 
the third paragraph of Article 5 of the Treaty. 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 

8 
9 

OJ L 138, 30.4.2004, p. 31 
OJ C184 17.7.1999, p. 23. 

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TITLE I  
OBJECTIVES AND SCOPE 

Article 1 
Objectives 

1. 

This  Regulation  establishes  a  European  Instrument  for  Democracy  and  Human 
Rights  under  which  the  Community  shall  provide  assistance,  within  the  framework 
of the Community’s policy on development cooperation and economic, financial and 
technical  cooperation  with  third  countries,  contributing  to  the  development  and 
consolidation of democracy and the rule of law, and of respect for human rights and 
fundamental freedoms. 

2. 

Such assistance shall aim in particular at 

a) 

b) 

c) 

d) 

enhancing respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms where they are 
most at risk and providing support and solidarity to victims of repression and 
abuse; 

strengthening  the  role  of  civil  society  in  promoting  human  rights  and 
democratic  reform,  developing  political  participation  and  representation,  and 
supporting conflict prevention; 

supporting the international framework for the protection of human rights, the 
rule of law and the promotion of democracy; 

building  confidence 
development of electoral observation and assistance. 

in  democratic  electoral  processes 

through  further 

Article 2 
Scope  

1. 

Having regard to Articles 1 and 3, Community assistance shall relate to the following 
fields: 

(a) 

support  for  democracy  and  processes  of  democratisation,  in  particular  by 
strengthening the role of civil society in 

i) 

ii) 

citizen’s  political  participation 

developing 
representation, 
encouraging  civil  society  dialogue  and  cooperation,  and  helping  to 
empower marginalised sections of the population; 

and 

encouraging participatory decision-making processes at national, regional 
and local level, and promoting equal participation of men and women in 
civil society, economic and political life; 

iii) 

fostering  mutual  respect  and  pluralism  both  at  the  level  of  civil  society 
and  at  the  political  level  by  promoting  freedom  of  expression  and 

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assembly,  an  independent  and  responsible  media,  unimpeded  access  to 
information, and freedom of association; 

strengthening  the  rule  of  law  and  encouraging  legal  reform,  the 
independence of the judiciary, the fight against impunity and contributing 
to 
reconciliation 
transitional 
mechanisms,  including  support  to  the  establishment  and  functioning  of 
ad hoc international tribunals and the International Criminal Court; 

the  establishment  of 

justice  and 

supporting  reforms  to  achieve  effective  democratic  accountability  and 
oversight,  including  oversight  of  the  security  sector,  and  encouraging 
measures against corruption; 

applying conflict prevention and conflict resolution approaches, so as to 
avert  violent  conflict,  tackle  root  causes  and  develop  appropriate 
democratic processes to channel and manage divergent interests; 

iv) 

v) 

vi) 

(b) 

the  promotion  and  defence  of  human  rights  and  fundamental  freedoms  as 
proclaimed  in  the  Universal  Declaration  of  Human  Rights  and  other 
international  instruments  concerning  civil,  political,  economic,  social  and 
cultural rights. This includes support through civil society for:  

i) 

the abolition of the death penalty, prevention of torture and ill-treatment 
and rehabilitation of victims of torture and human rights abuses; 

ii) 

human rights defenders; 

iii) 

the fight against racism and xenophobia, discrimination on any ground; 

iv)  minorities, ethnic groups and indigenous peoples; 

v) 

the rights of women 

vi) 

the rights of children; 

vii)  core labour standards; 

viii)  education,  training  and  monitoring  in  the  area  of  human  rights  and 

democracy; 

(c) 

the  strengthening  of  the  international  framework  for  the  protection  of  human 
rights, the rule of law and the promotion of democracy, in particular by  

i) 

providing  support  for  specific  international  and  regional  instruments 
concerning human rights, justice and democracy; 

ii) 

fostering cooperation with multilateral and regional organisations; 

iii)  promoting observance of international humanitarian law;  

(d)  building confidence in democratic electoral processes, in particular  

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i) 

through deployment of European Union Election Observation Missions; 

ii) 

by  contributing  to  developing  electoral  observation  capacity  at  regional 
and  local  level,  and  supporting  initiatives  to  enhance  participation  and 
trust in the electoral process; 

The  promotion  of  gender  equality,  children’s  rights,  rights  of  indigenous  peoples, 
and  conflict  prevention  shall  be  taken  into  account  r  as  far  as  appropriate  by  all 
assistance measures referred to in this Regulation. 

The assistance measures may be implemented on a global or regional basis, or in the 
territories  of  third  countries.  Assistance  measures  implemented  in  the  territory  of  a 
Member State shall be directly related to situations arising in third countries.  

Article 3 
Complementarity and Coherence of Community Assistance 

the  European  Neighbourhood  and  Partnership 

Community  assistance  under  this  Regulation  shall  be  complementary  to  that 
provided  for  under  the  Regulations  establishing  the  Instrument  for  Pre-accession 
the 
Assistance, 
Development  Cooperation  Economic  Cooperation  Instrument,  the  Partnership 
Agreement  between  the  Members  of  the  African,  Caribbean  and  Pacific  Group  of 
States, of the one part, and the European Community and its Member States, on the 
other  part10,  and  the  Instrument  for  Stability.  Community  assistance  under  this 
Regulation  shall  be  provided  if,  and  to  the  extent  that,  adequate  assistance  cannot 
alone  be  provided  under  these  instruments,  or  if  assistance  can  be  provided  more 
effectively under this Regulation. 

Instrument, 

The  Commission  shall  ensure  that  measures  adopted  under  this  Regulation  are 
consistent with the Community's overall strategic policy framework and in particular 
with  the  objectives  of  the  above  instruments,  as  well  as  with  other  relevant 
Community measures and measures under the Treaty on European Union.  

In  order  to  enhance  the  effectiveness  and  consistency  of  Community  and  Member 
States  assistance  measures,  the  Commission  shall  promote  close  co-ordination 
between its own activities and those of the Member States, both at decision-making 
level  and  on  the  ground.  Coordination  shall  involve  regular  consultations  and 
frequent  exchanges  of  relevant  information  during  the  different  phases  of  the 
assistance  cycle,  in  particular  at  field  level  and  shall  constitute  a  key  step  in  the 
programming processes of the Community and Member States. 

The  Commission  shall  seek  regular  exchanges  of  information  with  the  European 
Parliament. 

The Commission shall conduct  a dialogue with civil society on the implementation 
of the objectives of this Regulation.  

2. 

3. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

10 

OJ L 317, 15.12.2000, p. 3; OJ L 385, 29.12.2004, p. 88 

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TITLE II  
IMPLEMENTATION 

Article 4 
General framework for implementation 

Community  assistance  under  this  Regulation  shall  be  implemented  through  the  following 
measures:  

a) 

Strategy Papers and Revisions thereof as appropriate; 

b)  Annual Action Programmes; 

c) 

Special Measures; 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

1. 

2. 

Article 5 
Strategy Papers and Revisions 

Strategy  Papers  shall  set  out  the  Community's  strategy  for  Community  assistance 
under this Regulation, the Community's priorities, the international situation and the 
activities of the main partners.  

Strategy  papers  shall  set  out  the  priority  areas  selected  for  financing  by  the 
Community,  the  specific  objectives,  the  expected  results  and  the  performance 
indicators.  They  shall  also  give  the  indicative  financial  allocation,  both  overall  and 
per priority area; this may be given in the form of a range, where appropriate.  

Strategy  Papers,  and  any  revisions  or  extensions  thereof,  shall  be  adopted  in 
accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 16(2). They shall cover no more 
than  the  period  of  validity  of  this  Regulation.  Strategy  papers  shall  be  reviewed  at 
mid-term, or ad hoc if necessary. 

The Commission and Member States shall consult each other, as well as other donors 
and  actors  including  representatives  of  civil  society,  at  an  early  stage  of  the 
programming process in order to promote complementarity among their cooperation 
activities. 

Article 6 
Annual Action Programmes  

Notwithstanding Article 7, the Commission shall adopt Annual Action Programmes 
based on the Strategy Papers and Revisions referred to in Article 5. 

Annual  Action  Programmes  shall  specify  the  objectives  pursued,  the  fields  of 
intervention, the expected results, the management procedures and the total amount 
of  financing  planned.  They  shall  contain  a  description  of  the  operations  to  be 
financed, an indication of the amounts allocated for each operation and an indicative 

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3. 

4. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

1. 

implementation  timetable.  Objectives  shall  be  measurable  and  have  time  bound 
benchmarks.  

Annual  Action  Programmes,  and  any  revisions  or  extensions  thereof,  shall  be 
adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 16(2). In cases where 
amendments to Annual Action Programmes do not exceed 20% of the global amount 
allocated  to  them,  such  amendments  shall  be  adopted  by  the  Commission.  It  shall 
inform the Committee referred to in Article 16(1). 

In case an Annual Action Programme has not yet been adopted, the Commission may 
exceptionally,  on  the  basis  of  the  Strategy  Papers  referred  to  in  Article  5,  adopt 
measures not provided for in an Annual Action Programme under the same rules and 
procedures as for Annual Action Programmes. 

Article 7 
Special Measures 

Notwithstanding  Article  5,  in  the  event  of  unforeseen  needs  or  exceptional 
circumstances, the Commission may adopt Special Measures not covered in Strategy 
Papers. 

Special  Measures  shall  specify  the  objectives  pursued,  the  areas  of  activity,  the 
expected  results  and  the  total  amount  of  financing  planned.  They  shall  contain  a 
description of the operations to be financed, an indication of the  amounts allocated 
for each operation and an indicative implementation timetable. 

Where  the  cost  of  such  measures  exceeds  EUR  5  million,  the  Commission  shall 
adopt them in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 16(2).  

For Special Measures below EUR 5 million, the Commission shall send the measures to the 
Member States for information within one month of adopting its decision. 

Article 8 
Support measures 

Community financing under this Regulation may cover expenditure associated with 
the  preparation,  follow-up,  monitoring,  audit  and  evaluation  activities  directly 
necessary  for  the  implementation  of  this  Regulation  and  the  achievement  of  its 
objectives, such as studies, meetings, information, training and publication activities, 
expenditure associated with computer networks for the exchange of information, and 
any other administrative or technical assistance necessary for the management of the 
programme.  It  may  also  cover  expenditure,  where  appropriate,  for  actions  for 
highlighting  the  Community  character  of  the  assistance  measures,  for  activities  to 
explain the objectives and results of assistance measures to the general public in the 
countries concerned.  

2. 

Community financing shall also cover expenditure at Commission delegations on the 
administrative support needed to manage operations financed under this Regulation. 

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16 

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3. 

1. 

2. 

1. 

2. 

1. 

2. 

The  Commission  shall  adopt  Support  Measures  not  covered  by  Strategy  Papers  as 
referred to in Article 5 in accordance with Article 7, paragraph 3 and 4. 

Article 9 
Eligibility 

Without prejudice to Article 13, the following bodies and actors shall be eligible for 
funding  under  this  Regulation  for  the  purposes  of  implementing  the  assistance 
measures referred to in Articles 6 and 7: 

a) 

b) 

c) 

d) 

civil  society  and  community  based  organisations  and  networks  thereof  at 
national, regional, and international level;  

public or private sector non-profit agencies, institutions and organisations and 
networks at national, regional, and international level; 

international and regional inter-governmental organisations; 

natural  persons  when  this  is  necessary  to  achieve  the  objectives  of  this 
Regulation. 

Other  bodies  or  actors  not  listed  in  paragraph  (1)  can  be  financed  when  this  is 
necessary to achieve the objectives of this Regulation. 

Article 10 
Management Procedures 

The  assistance  measures  financed  under  this  Regulation  shall  be  implemented  in 
accordance with Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/200211 and any revision 
thereof  on  a  centralised  basis  or  by  joint  management  with  international 
organisations in accordance with Article 53(1) of that Regulation. 

The  Commission  may,  in  accordance  with  Article  54  of  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom) 
No  1605/2002,  decide  to  entrust  tasks  of  public  authority,  and  in  particular  budget 
implementation tasks, to bodies referred in Article 54(2)(c) of that Regulation. 

Article 11 
Budget commitments 

Budget  commitments  shall  be  made  on  the  basis  of  decisions  taken  by  the 
Commission in accordance with Articles 6, 7 and 8. 

Community financing may take one of the following legal forms, inter alia: 

a) 

grant agreements, grant decisions or contribution agreements; 

b) 

agreements according to Article 54 Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002; 

11 

OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1 

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17 

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c) 

procurement contracts; 

d) 

employment contracts. 

Article 12 
Types of financing 

1. 

Community financing may take the following forms: 

a) 

b) 

c) 

d) 

e) 

f) 

projects and programmes; 

grants  to  finance  projects  submitted  by  international  and  regional  inter-
governmental organisations listed in Article 9(1) (c) ; 

grants  to  support  operating  costs  of  the  European  Inter-University  Centre  for 
Human  Rights  and  Democratisation  (EIUC),  in  particular  for  the  European 
Master’s  Degree  Programme  in  Human  Rights  and  Democratisation  and  the 
EU-UN Fellowship Programme, fully accessible to nationals of third countries, 
as  well  as  other  education,  training  and  research  activities  promoting  human 
rights and democratisation; 

contributions to international funds, such as those managed by international or 
regional organisations; 

human and material resources for effective implementation of European Union 
Election Observation Missions; 

public  contracts  as  defined  in  Article  88  of  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No 
1605/200212. 

2. 

Measures  financed  under  this  Regulation  are  eligible  for  cofinancing  from  the 
following, in particular from: 

a)  Member  States  and  their  local  authorities,  and  in  particular  their  public  and 

parastatal agencies; 

b) 

other donor countries, and in particular their public and parastatal agencies; 

c) 

d) 

international and regional inter-governmental organisations; 

companies, firms, other private organisations and business, and other non-state 
actors. 

3. 

In the case of parallel cofinancing, the project or programme is split into a number of 
clearly  identifiable  components,  which  are  each  financed  by  different  partners 
providing cofinancing in such a way that the end-use of the financing can always be 
identified. In the case of joint cofinancing, the total cost of the project or programme 
is shared between the partners providing the cofinancing and resources arte pooled in 

12 

OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1 

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18 

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such  a  way  that  it  is  not  possible  to  identify  the  source  of  funding  for  any  given 
activity undertaken as part of the project or programme. 

In the case of joint cofinancing, the Commission may receive and manage funds on 
behalf  of  the  bodies  referred  to  in  paragraph  2  (a),  (b),  and  (c),  for  the  purpose  of 
implementing joint measures. Such funds shall be dealt with as assigned revenue in 
accordance with Article 18 of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002. 

In the event of co-financing and in other duly justified cases, the Commission may 
entrust  tasks  of  public  authority,  and  in  particular  budget  implementation  tasks,  to 
bodies referred to in Article 54(2)(c) of Regulation (EC) No 1605/2002. 

Article 13 
Rules of participation and rules of origin 

Participation  in  the  award  of  procurement  or  grant  contracts  financed  under  this 
Regulation shall be open to all natural persons who are nationals of or legal persons 
who  are  established  in  a  Member  State  of  the  Community,  in  an  official  candidate 
country  as  recognised  by  the  European  Community  or  in  a  Member  State  of  the 
European Economic Area. 

Participation  in  the  award  of  procurement  or  grant  contracts  financed  under  this 
Regulation  shall  also  be  open  to  all  natural  persons  who  are  nationals  of  or  legal 
persons  who  are  established  in  a  developing  country,  as  specified  by  the  OECD 
Development Assistance Committee, in addition to natural or legal persons eligible 
by  virtue  of  this  Regulation.  The  Commission  shall  publish  and  update  the  list  of 
developing countries established by the OECD Development Assistance Committee 
in accordance with regular reviews of this list. 

Participation  in  the  award  of  procurement  or  grant  contracts  financed  under  this 
Regulation  shall  also  be  open  to  all  natural  persons  who  are  nationals  of  or  legal 
persons who are established in any country other than those referred to in paragraph 
1,  where  reciprocal  access  to  their  external  assistance  has  been  established. 
Reciprocal  access  shall  be  granted  whenever  a  country  grants  eligibility  on  equal 
recipient  country  concerned. 
terms 

the  Member  States  and 

the 

to 

to 

Reciprocal access shall be established by means of a specific decision concerning a 
given  country  or  a  given  regional  group  of  countries.  Such  a  decision  shall  be 
adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 16(2) and shall be in 
force for a minimum period of one year. 

Participation  in  the  award  of  grants  and  public  contracts  financed  under  this 
Regulation shall be open to international organisations. 

The provisions of paragraph 1, 2 and 3 are without prejudice to the participation of 
categories  of  eligible  organisations  by  nature  or  by  localization  in  regard  to  the 
objectives of the action to carry out.  

Experts  may  be  of  any  nationality.  This  is  without  prejudice  to  the  qualitative  and 
financial requirements set out in the Community’s procurement rules. 

4. 

5. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

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19 

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6. 

7. 

8. 

9. 

10. 

11. 

12. 

If  measures  financed  under  this  Regulation  are  implemented  on  a  centralised  basis 
and  indirectly  by  delegation  to  specialised  Community  bodies,  international  or 
national public sector bodies, or bodies governed by private law with a public service 
mission  in  accordance  with  Article  54(2)  c)  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No 
1605/2002,  participation  in  the  public  procurement  and  grant  award  procedures  of 
the  managing  entity  shall  be  open  to  natural  persons  who  are  nationals  of  the 
countries  having  access  to  Community  contracts  and  grants  in  accordance  with  the 
principles  set  out  in  paragraph  1,  and  of  any  other  country  eligible  under  the  rules 
and procedures of the managing entity, and to legal persons which are established in 
those countries. 

Whenever  Community  assistance  covers  an  operation  implemented  through  an 
international  organisation,  participation  in  the  appropriate  contractual  procedures 
shall be open to all natural persons and legal persons who are eligible pursuant to this 
Article as well as to all natural persons and legal persons who are eligible pursuant to 
the  rules  of  that  organisation,  care  being  taken  to  ensure  that  equal  treatment  is 
afforded  to  all  donors.  The  same  rules  shall  apply  in  respect  of  supplies,  materials 
and experts. 

Whenever Community funding covers an operation co-financed with a third country, 
subject  to  reciprocity,  or  with  a  regional  organisation,  or  with  a  Member  State, 
participation  in  the  appropriate  contractual  procedures  shall  be  open  to  all  natural 
persons and legal persons who are eligible pursuant to this Article as well as to all 
natural  persons  and  legal  persons  who  are  eligible  under  the  rules  of  such  third 
country,  regional  organisation  or  Member  State.  The  same  rules  shall  apply  in 
respect of supplies, materials and experts. 

All supplies  and  materials purchased under a contract financed under this Regulation must 
originate from the Community or from an eligible country as defined in paragraph 1 and 2. 
The term "origin" for the purpose of this Regulation is defined in the relevant  Community 
legislation on rules of origin for customs purposes. 

The  Commission  may,  in  duly  substantiated  cases,  authorise  the  participation  of 
natural and legal persons either from countries having traditional economic, trade or 
geographical links with neighbouring countries, or from other third countries, and the 
purchase and use of supplies and materials of different origin. 

Derogations  may  be  justified  on  the  basis  of  the  unavailability  of  products  and 
services in the markets of the countries concerned, for reasons of extreme urgency, or 
if  the  eligibility  rules  would  make  the  realisation  of  a  project,  a  programme  or  an 
action impossible or exceedingly difficult. 

Tenderers who have been awarded contracts shall respect internationally agreed core 
labour  standards,  such  as  ILO  core  labour  standards,  conventions  on  freedom  of 
association and collective bargaining, elimination of forced and compulsory labour, 
elimination  of  discrimination  in  respect  of  employment  and  occupation,  and  the 
abolition of child labour. 

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1. 

2. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

Article 14 
Protection of the financial interests of the Community 

Any agreement or contract resulting from the implementation of this Regulation shall 
contain provisions ensuring the protection of the Community's financial interests, in 
particular with respect to fraud, corruption and any other irregularities in accordance 
with  Council  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No  2988/199513,  Council  Regulation  (EC, 
Euratom)  No  2185/199614,  and  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No  1073/1999  of  the 
European Parliament and of the Council15. 

Agreements  and  contracts  shall  expressly  entitle  the  Commission  and  the  Court  of 
Auditors to have the power of audit, on the basis of documents and on-the-spot, over 
all contractors and subcontractors who have received Community funds. They shall 
also  expressly  authorise  the  Commission  to  carry  out  on-the-spot  checks  and 
inspections,  as  provided  for  in  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No  2185/1996  of  11 
November 1996. 

Article 15 
Evaluation 

The  Commission  shall  regularly  monitor  and  review  its  programmes,  and  evaluate 
the  effectiveness  of  programming  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  the  objectives  have 
been  met  and  to  enable  it  to  formulate recommendations  with  a  view  to  improving 
future operations. 

The  Commission  shall  send  its  evaluation  reports  to  the  Committee  referred  to  in 
Article  16(1)  and  to  the  European  Parliament  for  information.  Member  States  may 
request  discussion  of  specific  evaluations  in  the  Committee  referred  to  in  Article 
16(1). The results shall feed back into programme design and resource allocation. 

The  Commission  shall  associate  all  stakeholders  as  appropriate  in  the  evaluation 
phase  of  Community  assistance  provided  under  this  Regulation.  Joint  evaluations 
with Member States, international organisations or other bodies may be undertaken. 

13 
14 
15 

OJ L 312, 23.12.1995, p. 1 
OJ L 292, 15.11.1996, p. 2 
OJ L 136, 31.5.1999. p. 1 

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TITLE III 

FINAL PROVISIONS 

Article 16 
Committee 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

1. 

2. 

The  Commission  shall  be  assisted  by  a  Democracy  and  Human  Rights  Committee, 
hereinafter referred to as “the Committee”. 

Where  reference  is  made  to  this  paragraph,  Articles  4  and  7  of  Council  Decision 
1999/468/EC16 shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof. The 
period  provided  for  in  Article  4(3)  of  Council  Decision  1999/468/EC  shall  be  30 
days.  

The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure. 

The  minutes  of  the  Committee  meetings  shall  be  sent  to  the  European  Parliament  for 
information. 

Article 17 
Annual Report 

The  Commission  shall  examine  progress  achieved  in  implementing  the  assistance 
measures  undertaken  pursuant  to  this  Regulation  and  shall  submit  to  the  European 
Parliament  and  to  the  Council  an  annual  report  on  the  implementation  and  results 
and, as far as possible, main outcomes and impacts of the assistance. The report shall 
be  an  integral  part  of  the  Annual  Report  on  European  Community  development 
policy  implementation  and  implementation  of  external  assistance  and  of  the  EU 
Annual Report on Human Rights.  

The  annual  report  shall  contain  information  relating  to  the  previous  year  on  the 
measures  financed,  the  results  of  monitoring  and  evaluation  exercises,  the 
involvement of the relevant partners, and the implementation of budget commitments 
and payments, broken down according to global, regional, and country measures, and 
fields of assistance. It will assess the results of assistance in meeting the objectives of 
this Regulation. 

Article 18 
Financial reference amount 

The financial reference amount for the implementation of this Regulation for the period 2007-
2013  shall  be  EUR  1.103,702  million.  Annual  appropriations  shall  be  authorised  by  the 
budgetary authority within the limits of the Financial Perspective 2007 – 2013. 

16 

OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23 

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Article 19 
Review 

The  Commission  shall  submit  to  the  European  Parliament  and  to  the  Council,  by  31 
December  2010,  a  report  evaluating  the  implementation  of  this  Regulation  in  the  first  three 
years, if appropriate with a legislative proposal introducing the necessary modifications to the 
instrument. 

Article 20 
Entry into force 

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in 
the Official Journal of the European Union.  

It shall apply from 1 January 2007 until 31 December 2013. 

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT 

1. 

NAME OF THE PROPOSAL: 

REGULATION  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  PARLIAMENT  AND  OF  THE  COUNCIL  ON 
ESTABLISHING  A  FINANCING  INSTRUMENT  FOR  THE  PROMOTION  OF  DEMOCRACY 
AND HUMAN RIGHTS WORLD WIDE (EUROPEAN INSTRUMENT FOR DEMOCRACY AND 
HUMAN RIGHTS) 

2. 

ABM / ABB FRAMEWORK 

Policy  Area(s)  concerned  and  associated  Activity/Activities:  Human  Rights  and 
Democracy – European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights (19.04) 

3. 

BUDGET LINES 

3.1. 

Budget  lines  (operational  lines  and  related  technical  and  administrative 
assistance lines (ex- B.A lines)) including headings: 

19.01.04.01  Development  Cooperation  and  Economic  Cooperation  Instrument 

(DCECI) – Expenditure on administrative management (part) 

19.01.04.02  European  Neighbourhood  and  Partnership  Instrument  (ENPI)  – 

Expenditure on administrative management (part) 

19.01.04.03 

Instrument  for  Stability  (IfS)  –  Expenditure  on  administrative 
management 

19.04.01 

European Inter-University Centre 

19.04.02.01  Human  Rights  and  Democracy  –  Activities  under  horizontal  and 

geographical coverage of the European Neighbourhood Instrument 

19.04.02.02  Human  Rights  and  Democracy  –  Activities  under  horizontal  and 
geographical coverage of the Development Cooperation and Economic 
Cooperation Instrument 

19.04.02.03  Human  Rights  and  Democracy  –  Activities  under  horizontal  and 

geographic coverage of the Pre-accession Instrument 

19.04.02.04  Human  Rights  and  Democracy  –  Activities  under  the  horizontal  and 

geographic coverage of the Stability Instrument 

19.04.03.01  EU electoral and observation missions – Activities under the horizontal 
and geographical coverage of the European Neighbourhood Instrument 

19.04.03.02  EU electoral and observation missions – Activities under the horizontal 
and  geographical  coverage  of  the  Development  Cooperation  and 

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Economic Cooperation Instrument 

19.04.04 

Preparatory action to establish a conflict-prevention network 

19.04.05 

Completion of former cooperation 

It should be noted that the adoption of the  proposal for a Regulation establishing a 
financing instrument for the promotion of democracy and human rights world wide 
will necessitate a review of the structure of budget chapter 19.04. 

3.2. 

Duration of the action and of the financial impact: 

2007 - 2013 

3.3. 

Budgetary characteristics: 

Budget 
line 

19.04 

Type of expenditure 

New 

EFTA 
contribution 

Contributions 
from  applicant 
countries 

in 

Heading 
financial 
perspective 

Non-
comp 

Diff1/ 
Non-
diff2 

YES 

NO 

NO 

No 4 

4. 

SUMMARY OF RESOURCES 

4.1. 

Financial Resources 

4.1.1. 

Summary of commitment appropriations (CA) and payment appropriations (PA) 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

Expenditure type 

Section 
no. 

Operational expenditure3 

Commitment  Appropriations 
(CA) 

8.1. 

Payment Appropriations (PA) 

a 

b 

Year 
n 

n + 1

n + 2

n + 3

n + 4 

n + 5 
and 
later 

Total 

130,673 

136,963 

141,764 

145,825 

151,873 

320,533 

1.027,631 

64,422 

101,890 

129,824 

142,211 

150,358 

438,926 

1027,631 

Administrative expenditure within reference amount4 

1 
2 
3 
4 

Differentiated appropriations 
Non-differentiated appropriations hereafter referred to as NDA 
Expenditure that does not fall under Chapter xx 01 of the Title xx concerned. 
Expenditure within article xx 01 04 of Title xx. 

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Technical  & 
assistance (NDA) 

administrative 

8.2.4. 

c 

TOTAL REFERENCE AMOUNT 

Commitment Appropriations 

Payment Appropriations 

a+c 

b+c

9,406 

10,248 

10,599 

10,712 

11,240 

23,866 

76,071 

140,079 

147,211 

152,363 

156,537 

163,113 

344,399 

1.103,702 

73,828 

112,138 

140,423 

159,923 

161,598 

462,792 

1103,702 

4.1.2.  Compatibility with Financial Programming 

(cid:59) 

(cid:133) 

(cid:133) 

Proposal is compatible with existing financial programming. 

Proposal  will  entail  reprogramming  of  the  relevant  heading  in  the  financial 
perspective. 

Proposal  may  require  application  of  the  provisions  of  the  Interinstitutional 
Agreement5 (i.e. flexibility instrument or revision of the financial perspective). 

4.1.3.  Financial impact on Revenue 

(cid:59) 

(cid:133) 

Proposal has no financial implications on revenue 

Proposal has financial impact – the effect on revenue is as follows: 

5. 

CHARACTERISTICS AND OBJECTIVES 

5.1. 

Value-added  of  Community  involvement  and  coherence  of  the  proposal  with 
other financial instruments and possible synergy 

The justification for a separate thematic programme for the promotion of democracy 
and  human  rights  worldwide  common  to  all four new  instruments derives from the 
fact that the promotion of democracy and human rights figures among the proposed 
objectives and eligible measures of all three geographic instruments (ENPI, DCECI 
and  IPA)  as  well  as  the  Instrument  for  Stability.  Opportunities  for  specific 
interventions  will  arise  in  the  context  of  geographic  programmes.  However, 
democracy  and  human  rights  are  par  excellence  issues  of  global  concern  and 
relevance.  Hence  the  need  for  an  EC  capacity  to  articulate  and  support  specific 
objectives  and  measures  at  international  level,  which  are  neither  geographically 
linked nor crisis related. Furthermore, global campaigns relating to human rights and 
democracy require a trans-national approach and may involve operations both within 
the  EU  and  in  a  range  of  partner  countries.  For  operations  such  as  EU  election 
observation,  a single thematic  programme is  required to ensure policy coherence, a 
unified management system and common operating standards.  

5 

See points 19 and 24 of the Interinstitutional agreement. 

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5.2. 

Objectives, expected results and related indicators of the proposal in the context 
of the ABM framework 

The general objective shall be to contribute to the development and consolidation of 
democracy, conflict prevention and respect for human rights, in accordance with EU 
policies and guidelines and in close cooperation with civil society. 

Key areas of activity will include: 

•  promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms where they are most at risk, 
especially  freedoms  of  expression  and  association  and  the  protection  of  human 
rights  defenders,  as  preconditions  for  civil  society  activity  and  advancement 
towards  democracy;  support  for  victims  of  repression,  in  particular  for  the 
rehabilitation of victims of torture and ill treatment; 

•  strengthening  the  role  of  civil  society  in  promoting  human  rights,  democratic 
to  enhance  political 
reform  and  conflict  prevention, 
representation  and  participation  and  to  develop  civil  society  dialogue  in  divided 
societies; 

including  support 

•  encouraging  less  well  represented  groups  to  gain  a  voice  and  participate  in  civil 
society  and  the  political  system,  combating  all  forms  of  discrimination  on  any 
grounds, and promoting the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples; 

•  strengthening  the  rights  of  women  and  children  as  a  specific  target  and  also  by 

mainstreaming children rights and gender equality in all activities;  

•  strengthening the international framework for the protection of human rights, the 
rule  of  law  and  the  promotion  of  democracy,  in  particular  international  criminal 
justice mechanisms and core legal instruments;  

•  building  confidence 

further 
development of EU electoral observation and support for observation capacity at 
regional and national level  

in  democratic  electoral  processes, 

through 

The programme will:  

•  be  global  in  scope,  supporting  activities  at  international,  regional  and  national 
level, including within the EU, where it may support activities directly related to 
third country human rights abuses; promote an integrated approach to democracy 
building  and  the  protection  of  human  rights  and  ensure  gender  and  conflict 
sensitivity;  

•  work  primarily  with  and  through  civil  society,  supporting  it  in  becoming  an 

effective force for dialogue and reform;  

•  provide financial and technical assistance for operations that cannot be carried out 
in  an  appropriate  or  effective  manner  through  mainstreaming  within  other  EC 
programmes;  these  may  include  as  well  cooperation  with  international  and 
regional  organizations  with  a  specific  expertise  in  the  area  of  human  rights  and 
democracy.  

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5.3.  Method of Implementation (indicative) 

Centralised Management 

(cid:59) 

directly by the Commission 

(cid:133) 

indirectly by delegation to: 

(cid:133) 

executive Agencies 

(cid:133) 

bodies set up by the Communities as referred to in art. 185 of the 
Financial Regulation 

(cid:59) 

national public-sector bodies/bodies with public-service mission 

(cid:133) 

Shared or decentralised management 

(cid:133)  with Member states 

(cid:133)  with Third countries 

(cid:59) 

Joint management with international organisations (please specify)  

Article 10(2) of the proposed Regulation 

6. 

MONITORING AND EVALUATION 

6.1.  Monitoring system 

Monitoring  and  evaluation  of  the  assistance  provided  under  the  European  Initiative 
for  Democracy  and  Human  Rights  (EIDHR)  in  the  past  took  place  at  four  levels. 
First,  an  EC  task  manager  follows  each  project  and  if  possible  visits  the  project 
during  its  implementation  and  makes  a  final  assessment  after  completion.  Second, 
EIDHR projects are included in the results based monitoring system (ROM) through 
which additional monitoring missions are undertaken by external consultants. Third, 
specific EIDHR evaluations are carried out every year covering projects in the area 
of  a  particular  EIDHR  objective.  Finally,  EIDHR  projects  are  included  in  broader 
evaluations  carried  out  by  the  RELEX  family  Evaluation  Unit  covering  either  a 
specific  geographic  area  or  a  sector.  This  monitoring  and  evaluation  system  will 
continue  under  the  proposed  Regulation  for  a  European  Instrument  for  Democracy 
and Human Rights. 

6.2. 

Evaluation 

In 2005, two EIDHR specific evaluations were completed. A general impact study on 
a  sample  of  48  completed  EIDHR  projects.  After  combining  results  from  the 
different  evaluation  criteria,  including  relevance  and  implementation  aspects,  the 
study  shows  that  70%  of  the  individual  projects  score  excellent  or  good  in  the 
assessment.  However,  the  study  suggests  that  many  organizations  implementing 
projects  have  a  limited  understanding  of  the  EIDHR  as  a  global  programme. 
Furthermore,  beneficiaries  and  target  groups  should  be  more  involved  in  needs 

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assessment  and  formulation  of  projects  proposals  as  well  as  in  the  follow-up  and 
evaluation. Potential links and synergies with other EC or non-EC funded activities 
in related areas are not enough explored. A general picture of the EC emerged as not 
the most flexible donor but once funding is obtained there are major advantages for 
the  beneficiary  organizations.  The  EU  is  seen  as  a  major  player  in  the  field  of 
democracy  and  human  rights  promotion  in  the  world  and  EU  funding  is  often 
substantial and implies political backing for the organizations. 

Another  evaluation  covered  completed  projects  in  the  area  of  fighting  racism  and 
xenophobia  as  well  as  promotion  of  rights  of  minorities  and  demonstrated  that 
EIDHR funding in this area reached some of the most vulnerable communities in the 
most challenging environments in the world. Although the study did not explore the 
projects  that  were  not  funded,  it  is  clear  that  important  initiatives  are  being 
undertaken  ranging  from  those  that  were  usefully  spending  European  funds  on 
providing  services  of  a  fixed  duration  to  mitigate  the  effects  of  racism  and 
xenophobia,  to  those  that  were  outstanding,  working  in  the  most  difficult 
circumstances  and  yet  applying  cutting  edge  programming  that  was  potentially 
sustainable  with  local  ownership.  EIDHR  funds  have  given  some  NGOs  strategic 
freedom  to  implement  innovative  major  projects  that  would  have  been  impossible 
without  EU  support  and  which  could  become  models  for  future  practice  by  central 
and local government, domestically and internationally, who have the primary long 
term responsibility for their people. Furthermore NGOs were able to pioneer projects 
and  challenge  policies,  with  their  participative  methodology  and  human  rights 
principles  adding  real  value  and  promoting  trust  across  ethnic  divides,  where 
bureaucracies  may  not  be  trusted  and  conversely  where  governments  may  be 
constrained and do not have the confidence to take risks on unpopular minority rights 
issues.  Through  the  EIDHR  the  EU  has  been  able  to  demonstrate  in  practice  the 
principles  of  human  rights  and  interethnic  cooperation  for  which  it  stands,  while 
showing its commitment to civil society and support to a diversity of approaches to 
protect fundamental rights. 

In  addition,  a  specific  study  “Generating  impact  indicators  for  the  EIDHR”  was 
delivered. It includes proposed impact indicators at programme and project level as 
well  as  a  guide  for  EIDHR  partners  on  how  to  generate  good  indicators  for  their 
project. The guide is available on the EIDHR website. The result of this study served 
as a basis for the proposed projects impact indicators that are included in the EIDHR 
2005-2006 calls for proposals to select projects under the global campaigns. 

Two evaluation reports have been received in 2006 covering the EC training project 
on  civilian  aspects  of  crises  management  and  an  Andean  Programme  on  Human 
Rights.  It  is  foreseen  to  undertake  an  additional  two  EIDHR  specific  evaluations 
during the year. 

Based  on  Article  15  of  the  proposed  Regulation,  monitoring  and  evaluation  of  the 
assistance  provided  under  the  European  Instrument  for  Democracy  and  Human 
Rights will continue as in previous years.  

6.3.  Mid-Term Review 

Article  19  of  the  proposed  Regulation  provides  for  a  mid-term  review  of  the 
implementation  of  the  Regulation.  The  Commission  shall  submit  to  the  European 

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Parliament  and  to  the  Council  by  31  December  2010  a  report  evaluating  the 
implementation  of  assistance  under  the  Regulation  in  the  first  three  years  (2007-
2009).  If  appropriate,  the  Commission  may  propose  necessary  modifications  to  the 
instrument.  

7. 

ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES  

Reference is made to the provision of Article 14 of the proposed Regulation. 

8. 

DETAILS OF RESOURCES 

8.1. 

Impact on human resources 

The  human  resources  needed  to  manage  assistance  are  estimated  at  4,8  staff 
in  commitment 
(comprising  all  categories  of  staff)  per  EUR  10  million 
appropriations  managed  yearly.  Over  the  whole  period,  this  would  mean  a  total 
increase  estimated  at  775  FTE  (full  time  staff  equivalent)  for  the  following  four 
instruments  for  external  assistance  –  DCECI,  ENPI,  Instrument  for  Stability,  and 
European  Instrument  for  Democracy  and  Human  Rights  (EIDHR)  –  on  top  of 
existing  staff  in  place  as  of  1  April  2006.  The  resources  required  for  the  European 
Instrument  for  Democracy  and  Human  Rights  will  cover  all  actions  under  the 
Regulation. The resources needed for 2007 are compatible with the Preliminary Draft 
Budget 2007. 

8.2. 

Overall financial impact of human resources 

The  additional  human  resources  needed  for  the  management  of  the  action  as 
compared to the situation by 1 April 2006 will be financed on the appropriations for 
administrative  support  expenditure  (contract  agents  and  local  agents).  They  shall 
complement the other human resources involved in the management at headquarters 
and in delegations (officials, temporary agents and others).  

The estimated costs are taken into account in point 4.1.1. 

8.3 

Other Administrative  expenditure included in reference amount  (Expenditure  on 
administrative management) 

Les besoins en ressources humaines et administratives seront couverts à l’intérieur de 
la  dotation  allouée  à  la  DG  gestionnaire  dans  le  cadre  de  la  procédure  d’allocation 
annuelle. 

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