EU agencies : the way ahead.
Date: 2010-05-17
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU office or agency, operation of the Institutions, powers of the institutions (EU)

EU AGENCIES
The way ahead

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More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu).
Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication.

Luxembourg: Offi  ce for Offi  cial Publications of the European Communities, 2010

ISBN 978-92-9199-204-1
DOI: 10.2805/33209

© European Communities, 2010
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

Photos used with permission. Page 9:1 © Caterina Ballatore; Pages 9:2, 10:1, 14:1, 16:2, 17:2 © European Communities; 
Page 11:2 © Getty Images; Page 18:1 © ETF/A. Ramella; Page 19:2 Digital Vision; All others: iStockphoto. 

Printed in Belgium
Printed on white chlorine-free paper

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Introduction

A number of decentralised Agencies have been set up by the European Parliament and the Council 
of the European Union to carry out specifi c legal, technical or scientifi c tasks within the European 

Union system. The majority work independently alongside the main EU institutions, adding value by 

helping to implement policy and promote the sharing of  information and expertise in areas that 

impact on the lives of Europe’s 500 million citizens.
The Agencies were established to help implement EU policies more effi  ciently and to respond to 
particular needs identifi ed by the EU institutions and Member States. For example, the European 

Food Safety Authority was established in 2002 to help provide decision-makers with independent 

scientifi c advice on food safety. The European Chemicals Agency on the other hand, was set up in 

2007 primarily to carry out tasks related to new EU legislation on chemicals.  

The Agencies provide meaningful advice, facilitate exchanges of best practice among Member States 

and underpin consensus-building through networks and exchanges.  All Agencies work in the public 

interest and as they are spread throughout the EU, they can facilitate outreach to EU citizens. 

The Agencies represent a signifi cant presence within the EU with a combined staff  in 2008 of more 

than 4,460 people. Their combined budget of around €1.24 billion in 2008 represented just 1.03% of 

the overall EU budget for that year.
The European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council have initiated discussions 
which will help shape the EU’s future approach to the governance of EU Agencies, involving an 

evaluation of the existing Agencies and refl ections on changes which could be made to improve the 

system in the future.
This brochure gives the reader an overview of the missions of all the EU agencies and describes our 
common objectives to strengthen the service we deliver to the EU institutions and ultimately to all 

EU citizens.

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Common objectives

When planning future work 
or legislative programmes, the 

EU institutions, particularly 

the Commission, should 

involve the Agencies more 

through greater dialogue. This 

would help when new policy 

directions are being 

considered, and would assist 

the Agencies in structuring 

their own resources and 

budgets, thereby improving 

overall effi  ciency. 

The Commission and 
budgetary authorities need to 

maintain their fi nancing 

commitments while an 

agency is being built up. If the 

mandate of an agency is 

changed, the fi nancial 

implications of that change 

need to be examined to make 

sure the agency involved can 

carry out its new role.

The Agencies support the 
objective of ensuring that EU 

bodies adhere to the same 

standards of management 

and governance. However, the 

agencies have faced 

signifi cant diffi  culties in using 

the fl exibility inbuilt in their 

specifi c regulatory framework 

by the legislator. These 

diffi  culties pertain mostly to 

the issue of having 

Commission Services 

acknowledge the needs for 

such fl exibility to face the 

specifi c conditions under 

which the agencies operate.

4

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The Agencies would favour 
stronger and more direct 

contact with the European 

Parliament. MEPs could make 

more use of the specialised 

agencies to help them when 

they have to consider policy 

and legislative proposals 

involving scientifi c and 

technical matters.

The Agencies would 
welcome closer and more 

frequent dialogue with the 

Council which would allow 

The Agencies play an 
important role in 

communicating to EU 

citizens in relation to their 

area of expertise and on the 

overall European “project”. 

The Agencies want to 

them to better schedule their 

strengthen their cooperation 

and networking with the 

Commission and other EU 

institutions.

medium and long-term 

planning to assist the Council.  

They would also welcome the 

opportunity to give input at 

the earliest stage into the 

planning of Presidency 

programmes.

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EU agencies 

6

9

22

21

10

8

11

18

4

7

12

14

23

13

20

5

27

19

16

2

3

24

25

26

1

15 17

6

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1

2

3

4

5

6

    Community Fisheries Control Agency (CFCA)

15    European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA)

Vigo, Spain

Lisbon, Portugal

   Community Plant Variety Offi  ce  (CPVO)

Angers, France

16    European Medicines Agency (EMA)

London, United Kingdom

   European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU 

17    European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug 

OSHA)
Bilbao, Spain

Addiction (EMCDDA)
Lisbon, Portugal

   European Agency for the Management of Operational 
Cooperation at the External Borders of the Member 
States of the European Union (FRONTEX)
Warsaw, Poland

   European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA)

Cologne, Germany

   European Centre for Disease  Prevention and Control 

(ECDC) 
Stockholm, Sweden

7

   European Centre for the Development of Vocational 

Training (Cedefop)
Thessaloniki, Greece

8

9

   European Chemicals Agency (ECHA)

Helsinki, Finland

   European Environment Agency (EEA)

Copenhagen, Denmark

10    European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)

Parma, Italy

11    European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE)

Vilnius, Lithuania

12    European Foundation for the Improvement of Living 

and Working Conditions (EUROFOUND)
Dublin, Ireland

13    European GNSS Supervisory Authority (GSA)

Brussels, Belgium

14    European Law Enforcement Agency (EUROPOL)

The Hague, The Netherlands

18    European Network and Information Security Agency 

(ENISA) 
Heraklion, Greece

19    European Police College (CEPOL)
Bramshill, United Kingdom

20    European Railway Agency (ERA)
Lille and Valenciennes, France

21    European Training Foundation (ETF)

Turin, Italy

22    European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA)

Vienna, Austria

23    The European Union’s Judicial Cooperation Unit 

(EUROJUST)
The Hague, The Netherlands

24    European Union Satellite Centre (EUSC)

Torrejón, Spain

25    Fusion for Energy (F4E)
Barcelona, Spain

26    Offi  ce for Harmonization in the Internal Market

(Trade Marks and Designs) (OHIM)
Alicante, Spain

27    Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union 

(CdT)
Luxembourg, Luxembourg

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E U   A G E N C I E S

Community Fisheries 
Control Agency
CFCA  

•                The core task of the CFCA is to ensure 
uniform and eff ective application of the 
rules of the Common Fisheries Policy by 
Member States. To this end, it organises 
operational cooperation between Member 
States and coordinates their fi sheries 
control, inspection and surveillance 
activities at sea and ashore.

•  Through its activities, the CFCA contributes 
to a European wide level playing fi eld for the 
fi shing industry and sustainable exploitation 
of common marine living resources.

•  The CFCA promotes actively a culture of 
compliance by all stakeholders.

ESTABLISHED IN 2005
LOCATED IN VIGO, SPAIN
www.cfca.europa.eu

Community Plant 
Variety Oﬃ  ce  
CPVO

•  Meeting the challenges of the plant 
breeding industry by high quality 
processing of applications for Community 
plant variety rights at aff ordable costs while 
providing policy guidance and assistance in 
the exercise of these rights for the benefi t of 
stakeholders.

•  CPVO’s goals are to optimise quality and 
costs of plant variety rights system, to 
improve international cooperation in plant 
variety protection and to contribute to the 
enforcement of community plant variety 
rights. 

•  To date, the Community protection system 
managed by the CPVO has become the 
biggest of its kind in the world, with more 
than 36,000 applications processed 
resulting in the granting of more than 
27,000 Community plant variety rights.  

ESTABLISHED IN 1995
LOCATED IN ANGERS, FRANCE
www.cpvo.europa.eu

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T h e   w a y   a h e a d

European Agency for 
Safety and Health at Work  
EU-OSHA

•  Making Europe a safer, healthier and more 
productive place to work.

•  EU-OSHA is Europe’s reference point for 
occupational safety and health (OSH) 
information. 

•  We identify new and emerging risks in order 
to facilitate preventive action. We collect 
and analyse good practices and promote 
their exchange. And through our campaigns 
we raise awareness of work-related risks and 
how to prevent them. 

ESTABLISHED IN 1994
LOCATED IN BILBAO, SPAIN
www.osha.europa.eu 

European Agency for the 
Management of Operational 
Cooperation at the 
External Borders
FRONTEX

•  Coordinating Member States’ actions in 
external borders management.

•  Frontex aims to provide support to border 
control authorities in the Member States by 
coordinating operational activities, 
strengthening its analytical and intelligence 
capabilities, implementing a coherent and 
comprehensive strategy for relationships 
with external partners, and optimally 
managing its internal resources and 
procedures. By doing so, Frontex contributes 
to an effi  cient, high and uniform level of 
control on persons and surveillance of the 
external borders of the Member States. 

ESTABLISHED IN 2004
LOCATED IN WARSAW, POLAND 
www.frontex.europa.eu 

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E U   A G E N C I E S

European Centre for Disease 
Prevention and Control   
ECDC

•  ECDC’s mission is to strengthen Europe’s 
defences against infectious diseases.

•  ECDC seeks to be a proactive centre of 
excellence on all aspects of prevention and 
control of infectious diseases.  Our aim is to 
make state-of-the-art knowledge, and the 
most up-to-date information, available to 
decision-makers in this area.

•  ECDC  gathers, analyses and disseminates 
data on 47 infectious diseases and two 
health issues (antimicrobial resistance and 
healthcare-associated infections).  We 
provide scientifi c guidance to EU policy- 
makers and also support the EU’s Early 
Warning and Response System (EWRS) on 
public health threats 365 days a year.  When 
called on to do so, ECDC can off er hands-on 
technical support to the European 
Commission and Member States in 
responding to disease outbreaks.

ESTABLISHED IN 2004
LOCATED IN STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN 
www.ecdc.europa.eu

European Aviation 
Safety Agency 
EASA  

•            Your safety is our mission.

•  EASA is the EU’s central regulator for 
aviation safety; it promotes the highest 
common standards of safety and environ-
mental protection in civil aviation in Europe 
and worldwide. Our vision is the safest and 
most environmentally-friendly aviation 
system in the world.

•  A milestone achievement of the agency in 
December 2006 was the certifi cation of the 
Airbus A380, the world’s largest airliner. In 
addition to the airworthiness of aircraft and 
parts, the agency is taking up new responsi-
bilities in the areas of air operations, fl ight 
crew licensing, air traffi  c management, 
airports and the approval of third-country 
operators fl ying into the EU.

ESTABLISHED IN 2002
LOCATED IN COLOGNE, GERMANY 
www.easa.europa.eu

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T h e   w a y   a h e a d

European Chemicals Agency 
ECHA

•  ECHA is working for the safe use of chemicals 
across Europe.

•  ECHA ensures the consistent 
implementation of the new EU chemicals 
regulation (REACH) and classifi cation and 
labelling regulation (CLP) and provides the 
best possible scientifi c advice on chemicals 
to EU institutions.

•  ECHA’s work will lead to higher levels of 
protection of human health and the 
environment by readily available information 
on the properties of chemicals, by stricter 
control of the use of hazardous chemicals 
and by  progressive substitution or 
restriction of chemicals of very high concern. 

ESTABLISHED IN 2007
LOCATED IN HELSINKI, FINLAND   
www.echa.europa.eu 

European Centre for the 
Development of Vocational 
Training 
Cedefop

•  Cedefop is the centre of reference for 
vocational education and training for the 
European Union.   

•  Vocational education and training aims to 
provide people with the knowledge, skills 
and competence they need throughout 
their working life.  With its expertise in 
research and policy analysis, Cedefop 
provides evidence to the European 
Commission, Council and European 
Parliament as well as Member States and 
the social partners who work together in 
this fi eld.  The aim is to ensure that people 
acquire the right skills, move easily between 
jobs, sectors and countries, and have their 
skills - however acquired - recognised and 
valued. 

•  Among other projects, Cedefop reports on 
policy developments in the EU Member 
States, forecasts the medium-term supply 
and demand of skills in Europe as a whole, 
analyses fi nancing schemes, and studies the 
benefi ts of vocational education and 
training. In addition, the agency provides 
much of the expert advice underpinning 
the development of common European 
tools, such as Europass and the European 
qualifi cations framework. 

ESTABLISHED IN 1975
LOCATED IN THESSALONIKI, GREECE 
www.cedefop.europa.eu  

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E U   A G E N C I E S

European Environment Agency 
EEA 

•          I  nformation for improving Europe’s 

environment.

•  EEA’s goal is to be globally recognised as the 
leading body for the provision of timely, 
relevant and accessible European 
environmental data, information, 
knowledge and assessments.

•  To help the Community and Member 
countries make informed decisions about 
improving the environment, integrating 
environmental considerations into 
economic policies and moving towards 
sustainability.

•  To improve communications and 
dissemimination to citizens via multimedia, 
user-friendly, multilingual information.

ESTABLISHED IN 1990
LOCATED IN COPENHAGEN, DENMARK 
www.eea.europa.eu

European Food Safety Authority 
EFSA

•  Committed to ensuring  Europe’s food 
is safe.

•  EFSA’s goal is to become globally 
recognised as the European reference body 
for risk assessment on food and feed safety, 
animal health and welfare, nutrition, plant 
protection and plant health.

•  Our large body of scientifi c advice has 
helped risk managers across the EU make 
informed decisions to protect the health of 
European citizens and respond rapidly on 
urgent food safety incidents such as dioxins 
in Irish pork and melamine in composite 
foods from China.

•  EFSA works with Member States, European 
bodies, international and third country 
organisations to share information, data and 
best practices, identify emerging risks and 
promote coherent communications on risks 
in the food chain. 

ESTABLISHED IN 2002
LOCATED IN PARMA, ITALY   
www.efsa.europa.eu

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T h e   w a y   a h e a d

European Institute for 
Gender Equality  
EIGE

•  To promote gender equality including 
gender mainstreaming across the EU and 
Member States.

•  To fi ght discrimination based on sex. 

•  To raise EU citizens’ awareness on the issues 
of gender equality via the collection, 
analysis and dissemination of gender-based 
information, the development of methods 
to improve data at European level and the 
setting-up and coordination of a European 
Network on Gender Equality.

ESTABLISHED IN 2006
LOCATED IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM AND SOON 
TO RELOCATE TO ITS PERMANENT SEAT IN VILNIUS.
eige.europa.eu

European Foundation for the 
Improvement of Living and 
Working Conditions 
EUROFOUND

•  Promoting the improvement of quality of 
work and life across the European Union.

•  Eurofound’s main objective is to provide 
policy-makers with relevant and timely 
information, data and analysis on key social 
policy issues and on anticipating and 
managing industrial change. 

•  Eurofound’s network of European 
correspondents across the 27 EU Member 
States and beyond, as well as its three 
pan-European surveys on quality of life, 
working conditions and company practices, 
make it a unique source of information for all 
decision-makers seeking to improve the lives 
of Europe’s citizens. 

ESTABLISHED IN 1975 
LOCATED IN DUBLIN, IRELAND   
www.eurofound.europa.eu 

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E U   A G E N C I E S

European GNSS 
Supervisory Authority
GSA 

•                By developing a new generation of global 
navigation satellite systems (GNSS), Europe 
is opening new doors for high-technology 
industry development, job creation and 
economic growth. With Europe in the 
driver’s seat, Galileo has the potential to 
become a cornerstone of the global 
position, navigation and time system of the 
future. 

•  Given the strategic nature of satellite 
navigation, the GSA was established to be 
the regulatory agency for the European 
GNSS Programmes (which include both 
Galileo and EGNOS), while laying the 
foundations for economically viable 
systems.

•  The GSA is working to:
-  Ensure the security accreditation of the 

systems and the operation of the Galileo 
Security Centre;

  -  Contribute to the preparation of the 

commercialisation of the systems with a 
view to good-quality service provision and 
high market penetration (EGNOS offi  cially 
began providing services in 2009);

  -  Accomplish other tasks entrusted to it by 
the Commission, in particular the promo-
tion of applications and services and ensur-
ing the certifi cation of the components of 
the systems.

ESTABLISHED IN 2004
LOCATED IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
www.gsa.europa.eu

European Law 
Enforcement Agency 
EUROPOL

•  Europol is the European Law Enforcement 
Agency. It is an intelligence-led organisation 
and coordinates responses to international 
serious crime and terrorism. Europol takes a 
proactive approach to undermining entire 
criminal networks.

•  Europol works closely together with the law 
enforcement agencies of the 27 EU Member 
States, as well as with other cooperation 
partners such as Australia, Canada, the USA 
and Norway.

•  Europol puts analysis at the centre of its 
activities. By understanding how crime 
groups operate, Europol and its cooperation 
partners are able to undermine the criminal 
organisations and frustrate their activity. 
The exchange of personal data makes it 
important for Europol to live up to the 
highest standards of data protection and 
data security.

ESTABLISHED IN 1999
LOCATED IN THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS
www.europol.europa.eu

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T h e   w a y   a h e a d

European Medicines Agency 
EMA

•  European Medicines Agency. Science. 
Medicines. Health.

•  The mission of the agency is to foster 
scientifi c excellence in the evaluation, 
supervision and safety-monitoring of 
medicines, for the benefi t of public and 
animal health. It provides the Member States 
and the EU institutions the best-possible 
scientifi c advice on any question relating to 
the evaluation of the quality, safety and 
effi  cacy of medicinal products for human or 
veterinary use.

•  Almost all new medicines for human and 
veterinary use in the EU are approved 
through the EMA. The agency has a special 
role in medicines for children, medicines for 
rare diseases, advanced therapy medicines 
and herbal medicines.

•  The agency works with other EU agencies 
such as ECDC, EFSA and EMCDDA on a range 
of scientifi c issues. Together with the 
European Commission, the agency 
maintains operational links with 
international partners on medicine-related 
issues. 

ESTABLISHED IN 1993
LOCATED IN LONDON, UK
www.ema.europa.eu

European Maritime 
Safety Agency 
EMSA

•  Quality shipping, safer seas, cleaner oceans.

•  EMSA provides technical assistance to the 
European Commission and the Member 
States in the development and implementa-
tion of EU legislation on maritime safety, 
pollution by ships and maritime security. 
It has also been given operational tasks 
in the fi eld of oil pollution response, vessel 
monitoring and in the long-range 
identifi cation and tracking of vessels.

•  EMSA’s role is a highly practical one, 
combining a range of services with the 
overall aim of ensuring safer and more 
secure shipping. For example, the agency 
runs a 24*7*365 Maritime Support Services 
centre for Member States, that off ers 
amongst others a service for satellite 
imaging of oil spills (CleanSeaNet), a 
Europe-wide vessel traffi  c monitoring 
system using AIS broadcasts (SafeSeaNet), 
and the EU LRIT data centre, which tracks 
EU-fl agged ships via satellite messaging. It 
has also set up a network of 16 oil pollution 
response vessels covering all EU waters, 
which are ready to assist Member States in 
case of a major pollution incident.

ESTABLISHED IN 2002
LOCATED IN LISBON, PORTUGAL
www.emsa.europa.eu 

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E U   A G E N C I E S

European Network and 
Information Security Agency 
ENISA

•  ENISA – Securing Europe’s Information 
Society.

•  Every day, we experience the Information 
Society. Interconnected networks touch our 
everyday lives, at home and at work. It is 
therefore vital that computers, mobile 
phones, banking, and the internet function, 
to support Europe’s digital economy. ENISA is 
the EU’s response to network and 
information security issues of the European 
Union. As such, it is the ‘pacemaker’ for 
information security in Europe.

•  ENISA’s role is an expert body in Network 
and Information Security (NIS) for the EU. 
As such it is:
-  Giving independent, expert advice to the 

EU and its Member States,

-  Promoting good practices in, for example, 
risk assessment and risk management, 
awareness raising, and how to respond to 
computer security incidents.

ESTABLISHED IN 2004
LOCATED IN HERAKLION, GREECE
www.enisa.europa.eu 

European Monitoring Centre 
for Drugs and Drug Addiction
EMCDDA 

•  Your reference point on drugs in Europe

•  Independent, science-based information is a 
vital resource to help Europe understand 
the nature of its drug problems and better 
respond to them. The EMCDDA off ers 
policy-makers the data they need for 
drawing up drug laws and strategies. It also 
provides drug professionals with best-
practice examples and evaluation tools to 
improve the quality of their services.  

•  One of our tasks is to detect new drugs 
appearing on the illicit market that could 
pose risks to European citizens. In 
cooperation with Europol and EU Member 
States, we carry out early-warning and risk- 
assessment activities that may pave the way 
for legal controls. To date, we have detected 
almost 100 new uncontrolled substances.

ESTABLISHED IN 1993
LOCATED IN LISBON, PORTUGAL
www.emcdda.europa.eu

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T h e   w a y   a h e a d

European Police College 
CEPOL

•  Brings together senior police offi  cers 
through its training activities, exchange 
programmes and specialised projects to 
support and develop a European approach 
to the main problems facing Member States 
in the fi ght against crime, crime prevention, 
and the maintenance of law and order, and 
public security.

•  Operates as a network with the core 
activities implemented in and by Member 
States.

•  Organises between 70-100 training 
activities a year, creates Common Curricula 
relevant to all Member States and operates 
a state-of-the-art electronic network to 
assist learning and communication.

ESTABLISHED AS AN EU AGENCY IN 2005 (2001)
SECRETARIAT LOCATED IN BRAMSHILL, UK
www.cepol.europa.eu 

European Railway Agency 
ERA

• We work for a safe and modern railway.
•  The activities carried out by the agency 
aim at:
 - Developing a common approach to safety,
 - Improving the interoperability of the 

European rail system,

- Facilitating the exchange of information 

within the railway sector.

•  The adoption of the new legal framework at 
the end of 2008 with the amendment of the 
Agency Regulation, the new Interoperability 
and Safety directives, resulted in new tasks 
for the agency. A Cross Acceptance Unit has 
started its work in 2008 and the fi rst 
recommendation on the list of parameters to 
be checked for vehicle authorisation was 
supported by the Risk Committee in June 
2009. The Agency has established itself as 
the system authority for the European Rail 
Traffi  c Management System (ERTMS) 
specifi cations.

ESTABLISHED IN 2004
LOCATED IN VALENCIENNES AND LILLE, FRANCE
www.era.europa.eu

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E U   A G E N C I E S

European Training Foundation
ETF 

•                The ETF helps transition and developing 
countries in the EU neighbourhood to 
harness the potential of their human capital 
through the reform  of education, training 
and labour market systems in the context of 
the EU’s external relations policy. 

•  Our vision is to make vocational education 
and training in the partner countries a driver 
for lifelong learning and sustainable 
development, with a special focus on 
competitiveness and social cohesion. 

•  By developing people’s skills and knowl-
edge the ETF’s activities contribute to a 
better functioning labour market, thus 
increasing prosperity, creating sustainable 
growth and encouring social inclusion in 
transition and developing countries. 

ESTABLISHED IN 1994
LOCATED IN TURIN, ITALY
www.etf.europa.eu

European Union Agency 
for Fundamental Rights   
FRA

•  Helping to make fundamental rights a 
reality for everyone in the EU.

•  The agency undertakes comparative 
research across a range of thematic areas in 
the context of the European Union Charter 
of Fundamental Rights.

•  Further to that, the agency gives evidence-
based advice and formulates opinions to 
the EU institutions and the EU Member 
States.

•  The agency cooperates closely with civil 
society and raises awareness on 
fundamental rights among the general 
public.

ESTABLISHED IN 2007
LOCATED IN VIENNA, AUSTRIA 
fra.europa.eu

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T h e   w a y   a h e a d

The European Union’s 
Judicial Cooperation Unit  
EUROJUST

•  Eurojust, the European Union’s Judicial 
Cooperation Unit.

•  Eurojust’s goal is to reinforce the fi ght against 
serious organised and cross-border crime. 
Eurojust is composed of 27 National 
Members, who are prosecutors or judges, 
one from each EU Member State. The 
national members are seconded in accord-
ance with their respective legal systems and 
hold permanent seats in The Hague.

•  Eurojust receives requests for assistance 
from national authorities in cases of serious 
organised crime and involving two or more 
Member States. Eurojust then organises 
judicial coordination and cooperation 
between the Member States, as well as with 
other cooperation partners such as Norway, 
Iceland, the USA, Croatia, Switzerland, and 
the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. 
Eurojust also has 31 judicial contact points 
in 23 countries outside the European Union.

•  The national members and the College are 
supported by an administration led by the 
Administrative Director. The Secretariat of 
the European Judicial Network (EJN) is 
situated within the Eurojust administration.

•  In 2008, Eurojust managed 1,193 cases, and 
organised 132 coordination meetings in The 
Hague, involving police and judicial 
authorities both within and outside the 
Member States.

ESTABLISHED IN 2002
LOCATED IN THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS 
www.eurojust.europa.eu  

European Union Satellite Centre 
EUSC

•  Observation and analysis for security.

•  The European Union Satellite Centre 
supports the decision-making of the 
European Union by providing geospatial 
intelligence products and services in the 
context of  Europe’s common foreign and 
security policy and, in particular, the 
European security and defence policy 
(ESDP), primarily through the analysis of data 
from Earth observation satellites. 

•  The EUSC has supported, and is currently 
supporting the Council of the EU, EU 
Member States, the European Commission, 
Third States and international organisations 
such as the UN and NATO in decision-making 
at EU, national and international level. Prime 
benefi ciaries of EUSC services are ESDP 
missions and operations.

ESTABLISHED IN 2001
LOCATED IN TORREJÓN, SPAIN  
www.eusc.europa.eu 

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E U   A G E N C I E S

Fusion for Energy  
F4E 

• Bringing the power of the sun to earth.

•  Fusion for Energy (F4E) is the European 
Union’s organisation responsible for 
providing Europe’s contribution to ITER, the 
world’s largest scientifi c partnership that 
aims to demonstrate fusion as a viable and 
sustainable source of energy. ITER brings 
together seven parties that represent half of 
the world’s population- the EU, Russia, 
Japan, China, India, South Korea and the 
United States. 

•  F4E also supports fusion research and 
development initiatives through the 
Broader Approach Agreement, signed with 
Japan, a fusion energy partnership which 
will last for 10 years. 

•  Ultimately, F4E will contribute towards the 
construction of demonstration fusion 
reactors.

•  To date, F4E has placed grants across Europe 
fi nancing the enhancement of fusion 
technologies for ITER and the manufacture 
of ITER components. F4E has also been 
proactive in communicating through 
awareness campaigns the merits of fusion 
energy and the associated business 
opportunities for industry and SMEs.

ESTABLISHED IN 2007
LOCATED IN BARCELONA, SPAIN
www.fusionforenergy.europa.eu

Oﬃ  ce for Harmonisation in 
the Internal Market 
(Trade Marks and Designs)    
OHIM

•  OHIM is the trade mark and design 
registration offi  ce of the European Union. 

•  The offi  ce, which is non-profi t-making and 
funded entirely by fees from users, 
administers the Community trade mark 
(CTM) and the registered Community design 
(RCD).

•  Community registration of trade marks and 
designs off ers EU-wide protection for these 
intellectual property rights through a single 
cost-eff ective registration process.

•  Since its establishment, OHIM has registered 
around 1m Community trade marks and 
designs for organisations drawn from over 
170 countries.

ESTABLISHED IN 1996
LOCATED IN ALICANTE, SPAIN
www.oami.europa.eu

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T h e   w a y   a h e a d

Translation Centre for the Bodies 
of the European Union
CdT

•  One of the translation services which helps 
implement the EU’s strategic framework for 
multilingualism.

•  CdT  contributes  to  the smooth operation 
of the Community agencies and offi  ces  by  
meeting  their  translation  needs.  Today  
CdT provides translation  services  (747,000  
pages in 2008) to over 40 Community 
agencies,  institutions  and  other bodies, 
and enables them to better achieve their 
policy objectives.

•  CdT  contributes  to  the  overall  economy 
of the Community translation system in 
particular by undertaking large-scale 
projects, such as the interinstitutional  
terminology  database, IATE. The IATE 
project has merged  the  terminological  
resources of the translation services of the  
EU  and  was launched by the Centre in 
1999. Today IATE is, with over 8.5 million 
terms, the biggest terminology resource in 
the world and accessible to any EU citizen 
(iate.europa.eu).

ESTABLISHED IN 1994
LOCATED IN LUXEMBOURG  
www.cdt.europa.eu  

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Agencies online   

Agency

Website

Community Fisheries Control Agency, CFCA 

http://www.cfca.europa.eu 

Community Plant Variety Offi  ce, CPVO 

http://www.cpvo.europa.eu 

European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, EU-OSHA 

http://www.osha.europa.eu

For more 
information

Page 8

Page 8

Page 9

European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation 
at the External Borders, FRONTEX 

http://www.frontex.europa.eu 

Page 9

European Aviation Safety Agency, EASA 

http://www.easa.europa.eu 

Page 10

European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, ECDC 

http://www.ecdc.europa.eu 

Page 10

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, Cedefop 

http://www.cedefop.europa.eu 

Page 11

European Chemicals Agency, ECHA 

http://echa.europa.eu 

European Environment Agency, EEA 

http://www.eea.europa.eu 

Page 11

Page 12

European Food Safety Authority, EFSA 

http://www.efsa.europa.eu 

Page 12

European Institute for Gender Equality (under preparation), EIGE 

http://eige.europa.eu 

Page 13

European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working 
Conditions, EUROFOUND

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu 

Page 13

European GNSS Supervisory Authority, GSA 

http://www.gsa.europa.eu 

Page 14

European Law Enforcement Agency, EUROPOL

http://www.europol.europa.eu

Page 14

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Agency

Website

For more 
information

European Maritime Safety Agency, EMSA 

http://www.emsa.europa.eu 

Page 15

European Medicines Agency, EMA 

http://www.ema.europa.eu 

Page 15

European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, EMCDDA 

http://www.emcdda.europa.eu 

Page 16

European Network and Information Security Agency, ENISA 

http://www.enisa.europa.eu 

Page 16

European Police College, CEPOL

http://www.cepol.europa.eu

Page 17

European Railway Agency, ERA 

http://www.era.europa.eu 

European Training Foundation, ETF 

http://www.etf.europa.eu 

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, FRA 

http://fra.europa.eu 

Page 17

Page 18

Page 18

The EU’s judicial cooperation unit, Eurojust

http://www.eurojust.europa.eu

Page 19

European Union Satellite Centre, EUSC 

http://www.eusc.europa.eu

Page 19

Fusion for Energy, F4E 

http://fusionforenergy.europa.eu 

Page 20

Offi  ce for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and 
Designs), OHIM 

http://oami.europa.eu 

Page 20

Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union, CdT 

http://www.cdt.europa.eu 

Page 21

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Printed in Belgium
Printed on white chlorine-free paper

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