Proposal for a DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on a Union Civil Protection Mechanism
Date: 2011-12-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU financial instrument, European cooperation, aid to disaster victims, civil defence, emergency aid, man-made disaster, natural disaster, transport economics, vocational training

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 20.12.2011 
COM(2011) 934 final 

2011/0461 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on a Union Civil Protection Mechanism 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

{SEC(2011) 1630 final} 
{SEC(2011) 1632 final} 

 
 
  
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

Grounds for and objectives of the proposal 

This proposal is to replace the Council Decisions on the Civil Protection Mechanism,1 which 
facilitates  reinforced  cooperation  between  the  Member  States  and  the  Union  in  the  field  of 
civil protection and the Civil Protection Financial Instrument,2 which provides funding for the 
actions under the Mechanism to ensure protection against natural and man-made disasters. 

After a comprehensive evaluation of the Civil Protection legislation for the period 2007-20093 
and  taking  account  of  lessons  learnt  from  past  emergencies,  this  proposal  merges  the  two 
Council  Decisions  in  a  single  legal  act.  The  financial  provisions  should  be  viewed  in  the 
context  of  the  proposals  for  the  financial  perspective  2014-2020,  as  outlined  in  the 
Commission's Communication from 29 June 2011 on 'A Budget for Europe 2020'4.  

Based on the new Treaty Article 196 for civil protection policy, the aim of the Mechanism is 
to support, coordinate and supplement the actions of the Member States in the field of civil 
protection  in  improving  the  effectiveness  of  systems  for  preventing,  preparing  for  and 
responding  to  natural  and  man-made  disasters  of  all  kinds  within  and  outside  the  Union. 
Specific  objectives  include  (a)  to  achieve  a  high  level  of  protection  against  disasters  by 
preventing or reducing their effects and by fostering a culture of prevention (b) to enhance the 
Union's  state  of  preparedness  to  respond  to  disasters  (c)  to  facilitate  rapid  and  efficient 
emergency response interventions in the event of major disasters. 

The proposal builds on the 2010 Commission Communication 'Towards a stronger European 
disaster  response:  the  role  of  civil  protection  and  humanitarian  assistance'5  and  the  2009 
Communication  on  'A  Community  approach  on  the  prevention  of  natural  and  man-made 
disasters'6. 

The  proposal  contributes  to  Europe's  2020  objectives  and  to  increasing  the  security  of  EU 
citizens and building resilience to natural and man-made disasters as an important part of the 
Stockholm  Programme7  and  the  EU  Internal  Security  Strategy8.  Furthermore,  by  supporting 
and  promoting  measures  to  prevent  disasters,  EU  Civil  Protection  policy  would  reduce  the 
costs to the EU economy from disasters and therefore obstacles to growth. The higher level of 
protection of citizens, material assets and the environment would minimise the adverse social, 
economic and environmental impact of disasters likely to affect the most vulnerable regions 
and people and thus contribute to a more sustainable and inclusive growth. 

1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
8 

OJ L 314, 1.12.2007, p. 9. 
OJ L 71, 10.3.2007, p. 9. 
COM(2011)696 final. 
COM(2011) 500 final. 
COM(2010)600 final. 
COM(2009) 82 final. 
C 115/1, 4.5.2010. 
COM(2010) 673 final. 

EN 

2 

   EN 

 
                                                 
The proposal also makes a significant contribution to simplification. The new decision merges 
into  a  single  text  the  provisions  relating  to  the  functioning  of  the  Mechanism  and  those 
relating  to  the  financing  of  its  activities,  that  in  the  past  were  in  separate  decisions.  It  also 
simplifies  the  existing  procedures  for  the  pooling  and  co-financing  of  the  transport  of 
assistance  (e.g.  by  avoiding  a  systematic  reimbursement  of  50%,  as  is  the  case  under  the 
current rules, and by appointing a lead state in transport operations involving several Member 
States),  thereby  significantly  reducing  the  administrative  burden  on  the  Commission  and 
Member  States.  It  also  establishes  simplified  rules  for  the  activation  of  the  Mechanism  in 
emergencies in third countries. 

The strengthened Mechanism will contribute to the implementation of the Solidarity Clause, 
on  which  the  European  Commission  and  the  High  Representative  will  bring  forward  a 
proposal in 2012. 

Existing provisions in the area of the proposal  

Two  legal  instruments  govern  civil  protection  cooperation  at  the  EU  level:  (1)  Council 
Decision  2007/779/EC,  Euratom  of  8  November  2007  establishing  a  Community  Civil 
Protection Mechanism (recast)9 and (2) Council Decision 2007/162/EC, Euratom of 5 March 
2007 establishing a Civil Protection Financial Instrument10 both repealed by this Decision.  

Consistency with other policies and objectives of the Union 

Particular attention has been given to ensure close coordination  between civil protection and 
humanitarian aid, as well as consistency with actions carried out under other EU policies and 
instruments,  in  particular  in  the  fields  of  justice,  liberty  and  security  policy,  including 
consular  support  and  protection  of  critical  infrastructure,  environment,  in  particular  flood 
management  and  control  of  major  accidental  hazards;  climate  change  adaptation;  health; 
marine pollution; external relations and development.  

Consistency with other EU financial instruments is ensured by a number of provisions which 
clearly define the scope of the instrument and exclude double financing.  

2. 

CONSULTATION  OF 
ASSESSMENT 

INTERESTED 

PARTIES  AND 

IMPACT 

An  impact  assessment  report  was  prepared  to  examine  policy  options  and  their  impacts, 
including all relevant aspects of an ex-ante evaluation.11 The impact assessment process was 
accompanied  by  an  Impact  Assessment  Steering  Group  involving  21  Commission  services 
and benefitted from input of an external study.  

Consultation of interested parties 

9 
10 
11 

OJ L 314, 1.12.2007, p.9. 
OJ L 71/9, 10.3.2007, p.9. 
OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p.1. 

EN 

3 

   EN 

 
                                                 
Three  targeted  stakeholder  consultations12  were  carried  out,  in  addition  to  a  series  of 
stakeholder events preceding the Commission's 2010 Disaster Response Communication.13  

Other  interested  stakeholders  are  actors  active  in  the  field  of  emergency  management,  the 
humanitarian community, UN bodies, research, internal security, environment, foreign policy 
and other related policy areas.  

All  comments  by  stakeholders  were  fully  considered  and  are  reflected  in  the  impact 
assessment report. 

Impact assessment 

The  main  problems  identified  are:  (1)  Reactive  and  ad  hoc  mechanics  of  the  EU  Civil 
protection cooperation limit the effectiveness, efficiency and coherence of European disaster 
response,  (2)  Unavailability  of  critical  response  capacities  (capacity  gaps),  (3)  Limited 
transport solutions  and heavy procedures hinder optimal response, (4) Limited preparedness 
in training and exercises, and (5) Lack of integration of prevention policies. 

The impact assessment assessed a number of policy options  

Availability of assistance: (1) voluntary pool without EU financing; (2) voluntary pool with a 
limited EU co-financing; and (3) voluntary pool with a higher degree of EU co-financing; as 
well as a wider range of options (from discontinuation to the EU Civil Protection Force); 

Addressing capacity gaps: (1) no EU action; (2) supporting Member States in developing the 
deficit capacity; (3) filling the gaps with EU level capacities; 

Addressing limited logistical and financial resources for transport: (1) discontinuation of the 
scheme; (2) no policy change; (3) increase of the maximum co-financing for the most urgent 
priority needs; and (4) increase of the maximum co-financing across the board;  

Simplification of transport provisions: (1) no policy change; (2) simplification of the current 
transport provisions;  

Preparedness:  (1)  no  new  EU  legislation;  no  increase  in  EU  funding;  (2)  general  EU 
preparedness policy framework  without binding provisions plus supplementary EU funding; 
(3) EU funding for national training conditional on training centres meeting certain minimum 
requirements; 

Prevention: (1) no new EU legislation no increase in EU funding; (2) general EU prevention 
policy framework without binding provisions plus supplementary EU funding; (3) completion 
of national disaster risk management plans by a certain date; 

The impact assessment is submitted with this proposal. 

12 

13 

General stakeholder meetings were held on 6 April and 17 June 2011 with 600 invited stakeholders and 
about 120 participants each. Meeting of CP Directors-General held in Budapest on 23-25 May 2011. 
COM(2010) 600 final. 

EN 

4 

   EN 

 
                                                 
3. 

LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL 

Summary of the proposed action 

The  text  follows  a  structure  based  on  the  main  four  blocks  of  civil  protection  policy: 
prevention, preparedness, response and the external dimension plus a chapter on the financial 
provisions. 

(a) 

Objectives, subject matter and scope 

One  of  the  changes  is  to  align  the  subject  matter  of  the  Mechanism  with  the  new  Treaty 
Article  196  which  advocates  an  integrated  approach  to  disaster  management.  The  general 
objective is addressed in Article 1 and further detailed in specific objectives and supported by 
indicators to measure the progress (Article 3). 

The  Scope  (Article  2)  for  actions  to  assist  with  the  response  to  disasters  applies  inside  and 
outside the Union. Prevention and preparedness measures cover the Union, and certain third 
countries mentioned in Article 28. 

(b) 

Prevention 

The proposal introduces a new chapter on prevention with a view to enhancing the importance 
of  the  EU  prevention  policy  framework  and  effectively  linking  it  to  the  preparedness  and 
response actions.  

Article  5  sets  out  the  tasks  for  the  Commission  which  are  based  on  the  2009  Prevention 
Communication and on Council Conclusions.  

Building on the ongoing work on risk assessments and to ensure effective cooperation within 
the Mechanism, Member States are required to communicate their risk management plans by 
end 2016 (Article 6). These are an important planning instrument and contribute to a coherent 
risk management policy, as outlined in the EU Internal Security Strategy14.  

(c) 

Preparedness 

The  main  focus  is  placed  on  preparedness  actions  to  improve  the  response  planning,  to 
enhance EU response capacity and the overall level of preparedness for large-scale disasters. 
The provisions are based on the proposals from the 2010 Disaster Response Communication 
and the Council Conclusions on European disaster management training15. The main changes 
include: 

• 

• 

Establishing and managing of a Emergency Response Centre ('ERC'). The ERC 
will be built on the existing Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC), which 
should be strengthened to ensure 24/7 operational capacity; (Article 7 (a)). 

Developing  a  coherent  planning  framework  for  response  operations  by 
preparing  reference  scenarios,  mapping  existing  capacities  and  developing 

14 
15 

COM(2010) 673 final. 
15520/08. 

EN 

5 

   EN 

 
                                                 
contingency plans for their deployment. Synergies between in-kind assistance 
and humanitarian aid are also sought; (Article 10). 

Establishing  a  European  Emergency  Response  Capacity  in  the  form  of  a 
voluntary  pool  of  pre-identified  capacities,  which  Member  States  make 
available for operations under the Mechanism. The need for increased visibility 
of the capacities is also highlighted; (Article 11). 

Identification  and  filling  gaps  in  the  response  capacities  by  supporting  the 
development  of  complementary  EU-funded  capacities,  where  this  has  been 
considered more cost-efficient than Member States' individual investments. A 
special  monitoring  procedure  is  envisaged  and  the  Commission  is  obliged  to 
report  every  two  years  to  the  Council  and  the  Parliament  on  the  progress; 
(Article 12). 

Enlarging  the  scope  of  the  current  EU  preparedness  actions  in  the  field  of 
training,  including  through  the  establishment  of  a  training  network  and 
diversification  of  the  training  programme.  The  Commission  can  also  provide 
guidance on EU and international civil protection training; (Article 13). 

Sending expert teams to advise on prevention and preparedness measures at the 
request of an affected state or the UN and its agencies; (Article 13(2)). 

Providing the possibility to assist Member States in pre-positioning emergency 
response capacities in logistical hubs inside the EU (Article 7(f)). 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

(d) 

Response 

The proposed changes aim to ensure more effective and swifter reponse through:  

• 

• 

• 

Temporary pre-positioning of capacities in situations of increased risk; (Article 
15.2). 

Proposal  of  an  emergency  response  plan  and  request  for  deployment  of  the 
capacities; (Article 15(3) (c)). 

Requiring  Member  States  to  ensure  host  nation  support  for  the  incoming 
assistance, as called  for in the Council Conclusions on Host Nation support16 
(Article 15(6)). 

(e) 

External dimension of civil protection operations: 

In operations outside the Union, the proposal promotes consistency in the international civil 
protection work through:  

• 

Providing  assistance  through  the  Mechanism  at  the  request  of  the  United 
Nations or its agencies, or a relevant international organisation; (Article 16(1)). 

16 

15874/10. 

EN 

6 

   EN 

 
                                                 
• 

• 

the Commission informing the European External Action Service to allow for 
consistency  between  civil  protection  operation  and  the  overall  EU  relations 
with the affected country; (Article 16.3). 

Clarifying the cases when consular support assistance can be provided, taking 
into  account  a  forthcoming  proposal  for  a  Council  Directive  on  coordination 
and cooperation measures regarding consular protection for unrepresented EU 
citizens; (Article16(7)). 

(f) 

Financial support provisions 

The financial provisions are incorporated in a new chapter. The eligible actions (Articles 20-
23) are grouped in general, prevention and preparedness, response and transport, and include 
support  for  the  new  actions  proposed  above.  The  provisions  relating  to  the  support  for 
transport  under  the  current  Instrument  are  amended  and  simplified  and  introduce  revised 
conditions for financing increasing the co-financing rates up to 85% of the total eligible cost 
and up to 100% in limited cases when certain criteria are met.  

New provisions allow one Member State to take the lead in requesting EU financial support 
for operations, which involve several Member States and allowing an affected Member State 
requesting assistance to request also co-financing of transport costs.  

Changes  are  also  introduced  to  the  types  of  financial  intervention  to  allow  for  the 
reimbursement  of  expenses  and  the  establishment  of  trust  funds.  In  the  case  of  grants  and 
public procurement, it will not be necessary to include emergency response related operations 
in  the  annual  work  programme  of  the  Commission  (Article  25).  The  financial  provisions  of 
this  Decision  should  apply  as  of  1  January  2014  as  they  are  related  to  the  Multi-annual 
Financial Framework 2014-2020. 

(g) 

Legal basis 

The  legal  basis  of  this  proposal  is  Article  196  of  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the 
European Union.  

(h) 

Subsidiarity principle 

The objectives of the proposal cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States acting on 
their own. 

The  Mechanism  was  established  because  major  disasters  can  overwhelm  the  response 
capacities  of  any  Member  State,  which  can  no  longer  cope  alone.  EU  action  in  this  field 
involves managing situations with a strong trans-/multinational component, which necessarily 
require overall coordination and concerted action beyond the national level. The joint work on 
prevention  and  risk  management  can  progress  faster  thanks  to  exchange  of  experience  and 
reinforced coherence at EU level.  

Taking into account the benefits in terms of reducing the loss of human life, environmental, 
economic and material damage, the proposal brings clear EU added value. It allows Member 
States  to  contribute  more  effectively  to  EU  assistance  under  the  Mechanism  and  to  benefit 
from  improved  coordination  and  cooperation.  The  proposal  would  increase  the  level  of 
preparedness  for  large  scale  disasters  and  create  a  more  coherent  disaster  risk  management 

EN 

7 

   EN 

 
policy.  A  coherent  and  effective  response  would  be  ensured  through  the  rapid  response 
capacity ready to help everywhere where needed.  

The  proposal  furthermore  pursues  economies  of  scale,  such  as  cost-effective  logistics  and 
transport, coherent and effective response through the voluntary pool of capacities and better 
use of scarce resources by sharing the EU-funded capacities. 

(i) 

Proportionality principle 

The  proposal  does  not  go  beyond  what  is  necessary  to  achieve  the  objectives.  It  addresses 
shortfalls that have been identified in past interventions and builds on the mandates given by 
the Council and the European Parliament.  

The administrative burden falling upon the Union and Member States is limited and does not 
go  beyond  what  is  necessary  to  achieve  the  objectives  of  the  review.  The  certification  and 
registration procedure for the capacities is simple and will be executed through the Common 
Emergency  Communication  and  Information  System  (CECIS)17.  Member  States  are  obliged 
only to inform the Commission on the completion of the risk management plans, in order to 
ensure consistency with the work on pre-planning and scenario development. 

No specific format beyond what the Financial Regulation provides is required for submitting 
applications for funding. Particular attention has been given to ensure that the procedures to 
be  followed  in  the  event  of  major  disasters  provide  for  the  necessary  flexibility  and  allow 
urgent action to be taken. 

(j) 

Choice of instrument 

Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council. 

4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATION 

The  Commission's  Communication  on  'A  Budget  for  Europe  2020'18  envisages  budgetary 
commitments  for  the  EU  civil  protection  policy  of  EUR  513  million  in  current  prices,  as 
follows: EUR 276 million inside the Union and EUR 237 million for operations outside the 
Union.  

17 

18 

CECIS  facilitates  communication  between  the  MIC  with  National  Authorities,  making  response  to 
disasters faster and more effective. 
COM(2011) 500 final. 

EN 

8 

   EN 

 
                                                 
2011/0461 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on a Union Civil Protection Mechanism 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 196 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national Parliaments, 

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

In  view  of  the  significant  increase  in  the  numbers  and  severity  of  natural  and  man-
made disasters in recent years and in a situation where future disasters are likely to be 
more  extreme  and  more  complex  with  far  reaching  and  longer-term  consequences, 
resulting, in particular, from climate change and potential interaction between several 
natural  and  technological  hazards,  an  integrated  approach  to  disaster  management  is 
increasingly important. The Union should support, coordinate and supplement actions 
of  Member  States  in  the  field  of  civil  protection  with  a  view  to  improving  the 
effectiveness  of  systems  for  preventing,  preparing  for  and  responding  to  natural  and 
man-made disasters. 

A  Civil  Protection  Mechanism  was  created  by  Council  Decision  2001/792/EC, 
Euratom  of  23  October  2001  establishing  a  Community  mechanism  to  facilitate 
reinforce  cooperation  in  civil  protection  assistance  interventions19  recast  by  Council 
Decision  2007/779/EC,  Euratom  establishing  a  Community  Civil  Protection 
Mechanism  20.  The  financing  of  that  Mechanism  was  ensured  by  Council  Decision 
2007/162/EC,  Euratom  of  5  March  2007  establishing  a  Civil  Protection  Financial 
Instrument21
,  which  provided  for  financial  assistance  to  be  given,  both  as  a 
contribution  to  improving  the  effectiveness  of  response  to  major  emergencies  and  to 
enhance preventive and preparedness measures for all kinds of emergencies, including 
the  continuation  of  measures  that  were  previously  taken  under  Council  Decision 

19 
20 
21 

OJ L 297, 15.11.2001, p. 7.  
OJ L 314, 1.12.2007, p. 9. 
OJ L 71, 10.03.2007, p. 9. 

EN 

9 

   EN 

 
                                                 
(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

1999/847/EC of 9 December 1999 establishing a Community action programme in the 
field of civil protection22. The Financial Instrument expires on 31 December 2013. 

The  protection  to  be  ensured  under  the  Union  Civil  Protection  Mechanism  should 
cover  primarily  people,  but  also  the  environment  and  property,  including  cultural 
heritage,  against  all  natural  and  man-made  disasters,  including  acts  of  terrorism  and 
technological,  radiological  and  environmental  accidents,  marine  pollution  and  acute 
health emergencies, occurring inside or outside the Union. Civil protection and other 
emergency  assistance  may  be  required  in  all  of  these  disasters  to  complement  the 
response capabilities of the affected country. 

The  Civil  Protection  Mechanism  constitutes  a  visible  expression  of  European 
solidarity  by  ensuring  a  practical  and  timely  contribution  to  prevention  of  and 
preparedness for disasters and the response to major disasters and imminence thereof. 
This  Decision  should  therefore  not  affect  the  reciprocal  rights  and  obligations  of  the 
Member  States  under  bilateral  or  multilateral  treaties,  which  relate  to  the  matters 
covered  by  this  Decision,  nor  Member  States'  responsibility  to  protect  people,  the 
environment and property on their territory. 

The  Mechanism  should  take  due  account  of  relevant  Union  legislation  and 
international commitments, and exploit synergies with relevant Union initiatives, such 
as the European Earth monitoring programme (GMES), the European Programme for 
Critical  Infrastructure  Protection  (EPCIP)  and  the  Common  Information  Sharing 
Environment (CISE).  

The  Mechanism  should  include  a  general  policy  framework  for  Union  disaster  risk 
prevention actions aimed at achieving a high level of protection and resilience against 
disasters  by  preventing  or  reducing  their  effects  and  by  fostering  a  culture  of 
prevention. Risk management plans are essential to ensure an integrated approach to 
disaster  management,  linking  risk  prevention,  preparedness  and  response  actions. 
their 
Therefore, 
communication and implementation.  

the  Mechanism  should 

include  a  general 

framework 

for 

Prevention  is  of  key  importance  for  protection  against  disasters  and  requires  further 
action  as  called  for  in  the  Council  Conclusions  of  30  November  2009  and  in  the 
European  Parliament  Resolution  of  21  September  2010  on  the  Commission's 
Communication a "Community approach on the prevention of natural and man-made 
disasters23". 

An  overview  of  risks  conducted  at  EU  level,  drawing  on  national  risk  assessment 
efforts, will allow for added value in the form of advanced scenario and contingency 
planning  in  view  of  optimal  coordination  of  European  response,  preparedness  and 
prevention actions. 

By contributing to the further development of detection and early warning systems, the 
Union should assist Member States in minimising the lead time to respond to disasters 
and  to  alert  Union  citizens.  These  systems  should  take  into  account  and  build  upon 
existing and future information sources and systems. 

22 
23 

OJ L 327, 21.12.1999, p. 53.  
COM (2009) 82 Final. 

EN 

10 

   EN 

 
                                                 
(10)  The  Mechanism  should  include  a  general  policy  framework  aimed  at  continuously 
improving the level of preparedness of civil protection systems, personnel and citizens 
within the Union. This includes training programmes and a training network, at Union 
and Member State level, on disaster prevention, preparedness, and response as called 
for  in  the  Council  Conclusions  of  14  November  2008  on  European  disaster 
management training arrangements. 

(11)  Other  preparatory  measures  include  pooling  of  information  related  to  necessary 
medical  resources  and  stimulating  the  use  of  new  technologies.  In  accordance  with 
Article 346 of the Treaty, no Member State should be obliged to supply information 
the disclosure of which it considers contrary to the essential interests of its security. 

(12)  The  development  of  civil  protection  assistance  intervention  modules,  consisting  of 
resources  of  one  or  more  Member  States  which  aim  to  be  fully  interoperable,  is 
pursued at Union level in order to contribute to the development of a civil protection 
rapid  response  capability.  Modules  should  be  organised  at  the  level  of  the  Member 
States and subject to their direction and command.  

(13)  The  Mechanism  should  make  it  possible  to  mobilise  and  facilitate  coordination  of 
assistance  interventions.  The  reinforced  cooperation  should  be  based  on  a  Union 
structure consisting of an emergency response centre, a European emergency response 
capacity in the form of a voluntary pool of pre-committed capacities from the Member 
States, trained experts, a common emergency communication and information system 
managed  by  the  Commission  and  contact  points  in  the  Member  States.  It  should 
provide  a 
for 
disseminating  that  information  to  the  Member  States  and  for  sharing  lessons  learnt 
from interventions.  

for  collecting  validated  emergency 

information, 

framework 

(14) 

In  order  to  improve  the  planning  of  disaster  response  operations  and  to  ensure  the 
availability  of  key  capacities,  it  is  necessary  to  develop  reference  scenarios  for  the 
main  types  of  disasters,  map  key  existing  capacities  available  in  Member  States, 
develop  contingency  plans  for  the  deployment  of  the  capacities  and  develop  a 
European  Emergency  Response  Capacity  in  the  form  of  a  voluntary  pool  of  pre-
committed capacities of Member States. The contingency planning exercise could also 
be  used  to  determine  whether  there  are  gaps  in  the  emergency  response  capacities 
available in the Member States that may be filled with capacities to be developed with 
Union support, which would be shared across the Union. 

(15)  With  respect  to  disaster  response  assistance  interventions  outside  the  Union,  the 
Mechanism should facilitate and support actions undertaken by the Member States and 
the Union as a whole in order to promote consistency in international civil protection 
work.  The  United  Nations,  where  present,  has  an  overall  coordinating  role  for  relief 
operations  in  third  countries.  Assistance  provided  under  the  Mechanism  should  be 
coordinated  with  the  United  Nations  and  other  relevant  international  actors  to 
maximise  the  use  of  available  resources  and  avoid  any  unnecessary  duplication  of 
effort. Enhanced coordination of civil protection assistance through the Mechanism is 
a  prerequisite  to  supporting  the  overall  coordination  effort  and  ensuring  a 
comprehensive Union contribution to the overall relief effort. In major disasters where 
assistance  is  provided  under  both  the  Mechanism  and  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No 

EN 

11 

   EN 

 
1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid24, the Commission shall ensure 
the  effectiveness,  coherence  and  complementarities  of  the  overall  Union  response 
respecting the European Consensus on Humanitarian Aid25. 

(16)  The  availability  of  adequate  means  of  transport  needs  to  be  improved  to  support  the 
development  of  a  rapid  response  capability  at  the  Union  level  The  Union  should 
support  and  supplement  the  efforts  of  Member  States  by  facilitating  the  pooling  of 
transport  resources  of  Member  States  and  contributing,  where  necessary,  to  the 
financing of additional means of transport subject to certain criteria. 

(17)  Assistance  interventions  should  be  subject  to  full  coordination  in  situ  so  as  to 
maximise  the  effectiveness  and  ensure  access  to  suffering  populations.  The 
Commission  should  provide  appropriate  logistical  support  for  the  dispatched  expert 
teams. 

(18) 

The Mechanism should also be used for supporting consular assistance to the citizens 
of  the  Union  in  major  emergencies  in  third  countries,  if  requested  by  the  consular 
authorities of a Member State for its own citizens or by the Lead State or the Member 
State coordinating assistance for all Union citizens. The Lead State concept should be 
understood in accordance with the European Union guidelines on the implementation 
of the consular Lead State concept26.  

(19)  Where  the  use  of  military  capacities  is  considered  in  support  of  civil  protection 
operations  to  be  appropriate,  cooperation  with  the  military  should  follow  the 
modalities, procedures and criteria established by the Council or its competent bodies 
for making available to the Mechanism military capacities relevant to the protection of 
civilian populations 

(20)  Participation  of  European  Free  Trade  Association  (EFTA)  countries  which  are 
members  of  the  European  Economic  Area  (EEA),  acceding  countries,  candidate 
countries and potential candidates should be possible. 

(21) 

In  order  to  ensure  uniform  conditions  for  the  implementation  of  this  Decision, 
implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those powers should 
be  exercised  in  accordance  with  Regulation  (EU)  No  182/2011  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general 
principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission’s 
exercise  of  implementing  powers,  in  particular  in  accordance  with  the  examination 
procedure.27 

(22)  The objective of this Decision cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States, 
and can therefore, by reason of the scale or effects of the proposed action, taking into 
account  the  benefits  resulting  from  the  operation  of  the  Mechanism  in  terms  of 
reducing  the  loss  of  human  life  and  damage,  be  better  achieved  at  Union  level.  If  a 
major emergency overwhelms the response capabilities of an affected Member State, 
this  State  should  be  able  to  appeal  to  the  Mechanism  to  supplement  its  own  civil 

24 
25 
26 
27 

OJ L 163, 2.7.1996, p.1. 
OJ C 25, 30.1.2008, p.1. 
OJ C 317, 12.12.2008, p. 6. 
OJ L 55, 16.2.2003 p.13. 

EN 

12 

   EN 

 
                                                 
protection  and  other  emergency  response  resources.  The  Union  may  therefore  adopt 
measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the 
Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set 
out  in  that  Article,  this  Decision  does  not  go  beyond  what  is  necessary  in  order  to 
achieve that objective. 

(23)  This Decision shall not affect actions falling under Regulation (EC) No 1717/2006 of 
the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  15  November  2006  establishing  an 
Instrument for Stability28[to be updated for the 2014-2020 period, once adopted], the 
public  health  measures  adopted  under  Union  legislation  concerning  Union  action 
programmes  in  the  field  of  health,  nor  the  consumer  safety  measures  adopted  under 
Decision  No  1926/2006/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  18 
December  2006  establishing  a  programme  of  Community  action  in  the  field  of 
consumer  policy  (2007-2013)29  [to  be  updated  for  the  2014-2020  period,  once 
adopted].  

(24)  For  reasons  of  coherence,  actions  falling  under  Council  Decision  2007/124/EC, 
Euratom of 12 February 2007 establishing for the period 2007 to 2013 [to be updated, 
once adopted for the 2014-2020 period], as part of the General Programme on Security 
and  Safeguarding  Liberties,  the  specific  Programme  "Prevention,  Preparedness  and 
Consequence Management of Terrorism and other Security related risks"30 or relating 
to the maintenance of law and order and the safeguarding of internal security should 
not be covered by this Decision. This Decision does not apply to activities covered by 
Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid31.  

(25)  The provisions of this Decision should be without prejudice to the adoption of legally 
binding  acts  under  the  Euratom  Treaty,  setting  out  specific  emergency  measures  in 
case of nuclear or radiological emergencies.  

(26)  As  regards  disasters  caused  by  terrorist  action,  nuclear  or  radiological  accidents,  the 
Mechanism should cover only the preparedness and response actions within the remit 
of civil protection. 

(27)  This Decision covers actions in the field of marine pollution prevention, preparedness 
and  response  with  the  exception  of  actions  falling  under  Regulation  (EC)  No 
1406/2002  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  27  June  2002 
establishing the European Maritime Safety Agency[to be updated, once the new act is 
adopted].  

(28) 

In  order  for  the  Commission  to  ensure  the  implementation  of  this  Decision,  the 
Commission  may  finance  such  activities  related  to  preparation,  monitoring,  control, 
audit and evaluation that are required for the management of the programme and the 
achievement of its objectives. 

(29)  The reimbursement of expenses and award of public procurement contracts and grants 
under the Civil Protection Financial Instrument should be implemented in accordance 

28 
29 
30 
31 

OJ L 327, 24.11.2006, p. 1. 
OJ L 404, 30.12.2006, p. 39. 
OJ L 58, 24.2.2007, p. 1. 
OJ L 163, 2.7.1996, p. 1. 

EN 

13 

   EN 

 
                                                 
with  Council  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No  1605/2002  of  25  June  2002  on  the 
Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities32 
(the  Financial  Regulation).  Due  to  the  specific  nature  of  action  in  the  field  of  civil 
protection, it is appropriate to provide that grants may also be awarded to private law 
persons  It  is  also  important  that  the  rules  of  that  Regulation  have  been  met,  in 
particular regarding the principles of economy, efficiency and effectiveness laid down 
therein. 

(30)  The  financial  interests  of  the  Union  should  be  protected  through  proportionate 
measures  throughout  the  expenditure  cycle,  including  the  prevention,  detection  and 
investigation of irregularities, the recovery of funds lost, wrongly paid or incorrectly 
used  and,  where  appropriate,  penalties.  Appropriate  measures  should  be  taken  to 
prevent  irregularities  and  fraud  and  the  necessary  steps  taken  to  recover  funds  lost, 
wrongly  paid  or  incorrectly  used  in  accordance  with  Council  Regulation  (EC, 
Euratom)  No  2988/95  of  18  December  1995  on  the  protection  of  the  Communities 
financial interests33, Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 of 11 November 
1996 concerning on-the-spot checks and inspections carried out by the Commission in 
order to protect the European Communities' financial interests against fraud and other 
irregularities34 and Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of the European Parliament and of 
the  Council  of  25  May  1999  concerning  investigations  conducted  by  the  European 
Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)35. 

(31)  For the period 2014-2020 a financial reference amount is laid down in this Decision 
constituting  the  prime  reference,  within  the  meaning  of  point  [17]  of  the 
Interinstitutional  Agreement  of  XX/YY/2012  between  the  European  Parliament,  the 
Council  and  the  Commission  on  cooperation  in  budgetary  matters  and  on  sound 
financial  management,  for  the  budgetary  authority  during  the  annual  budgetary 
procedure.  This reference  amount  is  partly  fed  from  Heading  3  "Security  and 
Citizenship"  and  partly  from  Heading  4  "Global  Europe"  of  the  financial  framework 
2014-2020. 

(32)  The financial provisions of this Decision should apply as of 1 January 2014 as they are 

related to the Multi-annual Financial Framework 2014-2020.  

32 
33 
34 
35 

OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p.1. 
OJ L 312, 23.12.1995, p.1. 
OJ L 292, 15.11.1996, p.2. 
OJ L 136, 31.05.1999, p.1. 

EN 

14 

   EN 

 
                                                 
HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION: 

CHAPTER I 

Objective, scope and definitions 

Article 1 

General objective and subject matter 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

The Union Civil Protection Mechanism (hereinafter referred to as 'the Mechanism') 
shall aim to support, coordinate and supplement the actions of the Member States in 
the field of civil protection in improving the effectiveness of systems for preventing, 
preparing for and responding to natural and man-made disasters. 

The protection to be ensured by the Mechanism shall cover primarily people, but also 
the  environment  and  property,  including  cultural  heritage,  against  all  natural  and 
man-made  disasters,  including  acts  of  terrorism,  technological,  radiological  or 
environmental  accidents,  marine  pollution  and  acute  health  emergencies,  occurring 
inside or outside the Union.  

The Union intervention enhances prevention, preparedness and response capacity of 
Member  States  to  face  major  disasters  minimising  human  and  material  loss.  The 
objective  of  this  Decision  cannot  be  sufficiently  achieved  by  Member  States 
operating alone and can be better achieved at Union level by reason of the scale or 
effects of the proposed action. 

This Decision lays down the general rules and the rules for the provision of financial 
assistance under the Mechanism. 

The Mechanism shall not affect Member States' responsibility to protect people, the 
environment  and  property  on  their  territory  against  disasters  and  endowing  their 
emergency management systems with sufficient capabilities to enable them to cope 
adequately with disasters of a magnitude and nature that can reasonably be expected 
and prepared for. 

The Mechanism shall not affect obligations under existing relevant legislation of the 
Union  or  the  European  Atomic  Energy  Community  or  under  existing  international 
agreements. 

This Decision shall not apply to the actions carried out under [Regulation (EC) No 
1717/2006;  Regulation  (EC)  No  1257/96;  Regulation  (EC)  No  1406/2002  [and 
Union legislation concerning action programmes in the fields of health, home affairs, 
justice] 

Article 2 

Scope 

1. 

This  Decision  shall  apply  to  preventive  and  preparedness  measures  for  all  kinds  of 
disasters inside the Union and in countries referred to in Article 28. 

EN 

15 

   EN 

 
2. 

3. 

1. 

This Decision shall apply to actions to assist with the response to immediate adverse 
consequences of a major disaster regardless of its nature, inside or outside the Union, 
where a request is made for assistance in accordance with this Decision.  

This  Decision  shall  take  into  account  the  special  needs  of  isolated,  outermost  and 
other regions or islands of the Union in the case of a disaster. 

Article 3 

Specific objectives 

The  Mechanism  shall  support,  coordinate  or  supplement  reinforced  cooperation 
between the Union and Member States in pursuit of the following specific objectives: 

(a) 

to achieve a high level of protection against disasters by preventing or reducing 
their effects and by fostering a culture of prevention; 

(b) 

to enhance the Union’s state of preparedness to respond to disasters; 

(c) 

to facilitate rapid and efficient emergency response interventions in the event 
of major disasters or their imminence. 

2. 

Progress  towards  the  achievement  of  the  specific  objectives  set  out  in  paragraph  1 
shall be assessed through indicators that cover inter alia: 

(a)  progress  in  implementing  the  disaster  prevention  framework  measured  by  the 
number of Member States with disaster management plans as set out in Article 
4; 

(b)  progress  in  increasing  the  level  of  readiness  for  disasters  measured  by  the 
number of response capacities available for emergency interventions under the 
Mechanism and the degree of their interoperability; 

(c)  progress  in  improving  the  response  to  disasters  measured  by  the  speed  and 
degree of coordination of interventions under the Mechanism and the adequacy 
of assistance provided to the needs on the ground. 

The indicators shall be used for monitoring, evaluation and review of performance as 

appropriate. 

Article 4 

Definitions 

For the purpose of this Decision, the following definitions shall apply: 

1. 

2. 

"disaster" means any situation, which has or may have an adverse impact on people, 
the environment or property; 

"major disaster" means any situation, which has or may have an adverse impact on 
people,  the  environment  or  property  and  which  may  result  in  a  call  for  assistance 
under the Mechanism; 

EN 

16 

   EN 

 
3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

9. 

10. 

11. 

"response"  means  any  action  taken  under  the  Mechanism  during  or  after  a  major 
disaster to address its immediate adverse consequences;  

"preparedness"  means  a  state  of  readiness  and  capability  of  human  and  material 
means enabling them to ensure an effective rapid response to an emergency, obtained 
as a result of action taken in advance; 

"prevention" means any action aimed at reducing risks or prevent harm to people, the 
environment or property resulting from disasters;  

"early warning" means the timely and effective provision of information that allows 
action to be taken to avoid or reduce risks and ensure preparedness for an effective 
response; 

"module" means a self-sufficient and autonomous predefined task- and needs-driven 
arrangement  of  Member  States’  capabilities  or  a  mobile  operational  team  of  the 
Member States, representing a combination of human and material means that can be 
described  in  terms  of  its  capacity  for  intervention  or  by  the  task(s)  it  is  able  to 
undertake; 

"risk assessment" means the overall cross-sectoral process of risk identification, risk 
analysis,  and  risk  evaluation  undertaken  for  the  purposes  of  national  level 
assessments. 

"risk management plan" means planning instrument prepared by a Member State to 
foresee  risks,  to  estimate  their  impacts,  and  to  develop,  select  and  implement 
measures to reduce, adapt to and mitigate the risks and their impacts cost-effectively, 
as well as to set the framework for integrating different sector or hazard-specific risk 
management instruments into a common overall plan; 

"host nation support" means any action undertaken in the preparedness and response 
phases  by  country  receiving  assistance  and  transit  countries  to  remove  foreseeable 
obstacles to the delivery and use of international assistance; 

"response capacity" means assistance that may be provided through the Mechanism 
upon request, including modules, equipment, relief supplies, expertise and services. 

CHAPTER II 

Prevention 

Article 5 

Prevention actions 

To fulfil the prevention objectives and actions, the Commission shall: 

(a) 

take action to improve the knowledge base on disaster risks and facilitate the sharing 
of knowledge, best practices and information;  

(b) 

support and promote Members States' risk assessment and mapping; 

EN 

17 

   EN 

 
(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

1. 

2. 

3. 

establish and regularly update an overview of natural and man-made risks the Union 
may face taking into account the future impact of climate change; 

promote  and  support  the  development  and  implementation  of  Members  States'  risk 
management  plans  including  guidelines  on  their  content  and  provide  for  adequate 
incentives, where needed; 

raise awareness about the importance of risk prevention and support Member States 
in public information, education and awareness-raising; 

support  Member  States  and  third  countries,  referred  to  in  Article  28,  in  preventing 
major disasters;  

undertake additional prevention tasks necessary to achieve the objective specified in 
point (a) of Article 3(1). 

Article 6 

Risk management plans 

In  order  to  ensure  an  effective  cooperation  within  the  Mechanism,  Members  States 
shall communicate to the Commission their risk management plans. 

The risk management plans shall take into account the national risk assessments and 
other relevant risk assessment and shall be coherent with other relevant plans in force 
in that Member State.  

Member  States  shall  ensure  by  the  end  of  2016  at  the  latest  that  their  risk 
management plans are ready and communicated to the Commission in their most up-
to-date form. 

CHAPTER III 

Preparedness 

Article 7 

General preparedness actions of the Commission 

The Commission shall carry out the following preparedness actions: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

establish  and  manage  the  Emergency  Response  Centre  (ERC),  ensuring  24/7 
operational  capacity,  and  serving  the  Member  States  and  the  Commission  for  the 
purposes of the Mechanism; 

manage a Common Emergency Communication and Information System (CECIS) to 
enable  communication  and  sharing  of  information  between  the  ERC  and  contact 
points of the Member States; 

contribute  to  the  development  of  detection  and  early  warning  and  alert  systems  for 
disasters in order to enable a rapid response, and to promote their inter-linkage and 
their linkage to the ERC and the CECIS. Those systems shall take into account and 

EN 

18 

   EN 

 
build  upon  existing  and  future  information,  monitoring  and  detection  sources  and 
systems; 

(d) 

establish and maintain a capability to mobilise and dispatch, as quickly as possible, 
teams of experts responsible for: 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

1. 

2. 

– 

– 

– 

assessing the needs in a state requesting assistance, 

facilitating,  when  necessary,  the  coordination  of  emergency  assistance 
operations  on  site  and  liaising,  when  necessary  and  appropriate,  with  the 
competent authorities of the state requesting assistance, 

supporting  the  requesting  state  with  expertise  on  prevention,  preparedness  or 
response actions; 

establish  and  maintain  a  capability  to  provide  logistical  support  and  assistance  for 
expert teams, modules and other response capacities deployed under the Mechanism, 
as well as other actors on the ground; 

assist Member States in prepositioning emergency response assets in logistical hubs 
inside the Union; 

take any other supporting and complementary action necessary in the framework of 
the Mechanism to achieve the objective specified in point (b) of Article 3(1). 

Article 8 

Modules 

Member States shall work towards developing modules, in particular to meet priority 
intervention or support needs under the Mechanism. 

The modules shall be made up of the resources of one or more Member States.  

The  modules  shall  be  able  to  perform  pre-defined  tasks  in  the  areas  of  response  in 
accordance  with  acknowledged  international  guidelines  and  therefore  able  to  be 
dispatched at very short notice and to work self-sufficiently and autonomously for a 
given period of time. 

The  modules  shall  be  interoperable  with  other  modules.  They  shall  undertake 
training and exercises in order to meet the interoperability requirement and shall be 
placed under the authority of a person who is responsible for their operation.  

The  Modules  shall  be  able  to  provide  assistance  to  other  Union  bodies  and/or 
international institutions, especially the United Nations. 

3. 

The  Commission  shall  support  efforts  to  improve  the  inter-operability  of  the 
modules,  taking  into  account  the  best  practices  at  Member  States'  and  international 
levels. 

EN 

19 

   EN 

 
1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

1. 

Article 9 

General preparedness actions of Member States 

Member  States  shall  identify  in  advance  modules  or  other  capacities  within  their 
competent  services,  in  particular  their  civil  protection  or  other  emergency  services, 
which might be available for intervention or could be established at very short notice 
and be dispatched, generally within 12 hours following a request for assistance. They 
shall  take  into  account  that  the  composition  of  modules  or  other  capacities  may 
depend on the type of major disaster and on its particular needs. 

Member  States  shall  identify  in  advance  experts  that  can  be  dispatched  as  parts  of 
expert teams, as specified in point (d) of Article 7.  

Member  States  shall  consider  providing,  as  required,  other  intervention  support, 
which might be available from the competent services, such as specialised personnel 
and equipment to deal with a particular disaster, including for the purpose of Article 
16(.7), and of calling upon resources, which may be provided by non-governmental 
organisations and other relevant entities. 

Member States may, subject to appropriate security safeguards, provide information 
about  relevant  military  capacities  that  could  be  used  as  a  last  resort  as  part  of  the 
assistance  through  the  Mechanism,  such  as  transport  and  logistical  or  medical 
support. 

Member States shall provide relevant information on the experts, modules and other 
intervention support referred to in paragraphs 1 to 4 to the Commission and promptly 
update this information when necessary. 

Member  States  shall  designate  the  contact  points  and  inform  the  Commission 
accordingly. 

Member  States  shall  take  the  necessary  actions  to  ensure  host  nation  support  for 
assistance coming from other Member States.  

Member  States,  supported  by  the  Commission  if  they  so  request,  shall  take  the 
necessary measures to ensure the timely transport of assistance they offer. 

Article 10 

Planning of operations 

The Commission and Member States shall work together to improve the planning of 
response operations under the Mechanism. For this purpose: 

(a) 

the  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  Member  States,  shall  produce  reference 
scenarios  for  disasters  inside  and  outside  the  Union,  taking  into  account  the 
risk management plans referred to in Article 6;  

(b)  Member  States  shall  identify  and  map  key  existing  capacities  that  could  be 
made  available  for  the  response  under  the  Mechanism  to  these  scenarios  and 
inform the Commission thereof; 

EN 

20 

   EN 

 
2. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

(c) 

the  Commission, 
in  cooperation  with  Member  States,  shall  develop 
contingency  plans for the deployment  of these capacities, including transport, 
and  review  them  on  the  basis  of  lessons  learned  from  emergencies  and 
exercises. 

The Commission and the Member States shall identify and ensure synergies between 
in-kind assistance and humanitarian aid funding provided by the Union and Member 
States in the planning of response operations outside the Union. 

Article 11 

European Emergency Response Capacity 

A European Emergency Response Capacity in the form of a voluntary pool of pre-
committed response capacities of Member States shall be established.  

On  the  basis  of  reference  scenarios,  the  Commission,  in  cooperation  with  the 
Member  States,  shall  define  the  types  and  number  of  capacities  required  for  the 
European Emergency Response Capacity (hereinafter referred to as 'capacity goals'). 

The Commission shall define quality requirements for the capacities to be committed 
to the European Emergency Response Capacity. Member States shall be responsible 
for ensuring their quality.  

The  Commission  shall  establish  and  manage  a  process  for  certification  and 
registration  of  capacities  that  Member  States  make  available  to  the  European 
Emergency Response Capacity. 

Member States shall on a voluntary basis identify and register capacities, which they 
commit  to  the  European  Emergency  Response  Capacity.  The  registration  of 
multinational modules provided by two or more Member States shall be undertaken 
jointly by all Member States concerned. 

The  capacities  registered  in  the  European  Emergency  Response  Capacity  shall  be 
available for emergency response operations under the Mechanism at the request of 
the  Commission  through  the  ERC.  Member  States  shall  inform  the  Commission  as 
soon  as  possible  of  any  compelling  reasons  that  prevent  them  from  making  these 
capacities available in a specific emergency.  

In  the  event  of  deployment,  the  capacities  shall  remain  under  Member  States' 
command  and  direction.  The  coordination  among  the  different  capacities  shall  be 
ensured by the Commission through the ERC. The capacities shall remain available 
for the national purposes of Member States when not deployed in operations under 
the Mechanism.  

Member  States  and  the  Commission  shall  ensure  an  appropriate  visibility  of  the 
interventions of the European Emergency Response Capacity. 

Article 12 

Addressing capacity gaps 

EN 

21 

   EN 

 
1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

The  Commission  shall  monitor  progress  towards  the  capacity  goals  and,  in 
cooperation with Member States, identify gaps in the European Emergency Response 
Capacity. 

The Commission shall support Member States in addressing the capacity gaps and in 
filling these gaps in the most appropriate and cost-effective way, including by: 

(a) 

supporting interested Member States in developing response capacities that are 
not,  or  not  in  sufficient  quantities,  available  from  the  European  Emergency 
Response Capacity; or 

(b)  developing response capacities at Union level, where it is more cost-effective, 

that can serve as a common buffer against shared risks. 

Any capacities developed according to this Article shall be controlled and managed 
by  interested  Member  States.  The  Commission  shall  develop  templates  for 
agreements  between  the  Commission  and  Member  States  involved.  The  Member 
States  managing  the  capacities  shall  be  responsible  for  their  registration  in 
accordance with national procedures. 

These  capacities  shall  be  a  part  of  the  European  Emergency  Response  Capacity. 
They shall be available for emergency response operations under the Mechanism at 
the  request  of  the  Commission  through  the  ERC.  When  not  in  use  under  the 
Mechanism, these capacities shall be available for the national purposes of Member 
States managing them.  

Member  States  and  the  Commission  shall  ensure  appropriate  visibility  for  the 
capacities developed in accordance with this Article. 

The  Commission  shall  inform  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  every  two 
years on the progress made on the achievement of capacity goals and remaining gaps 
in the European Emergency Response Capacity. 

The  Commission  may  define,  by  means  of  implementing  acts,  the  following 
modalities  on  the  development,  management,  maintenance  and  making  these 
capacities available to all Member States through the Mechanism: 

(a)  modalities on supporting Member States in developing response capacities that 
are otherwise  not,  or  not in  sufficient  quantities, available from the  European 
Emergency Response Capacity; 

(b)  modalities  on  developing  response  capacities  at  Union  level  to  serve  as  a 

common buffer against shared risks; 

(c)  modalities  on  the  management  and  maintenance  of  the  capacities  mentioned 

under points (a) and (b);  

(d)  modalities  on  how  to  make  the  capacities  mentioned  in  points  (a)  and  (b) 

available to all Member States through the Mechanism. 

8. 

Those  implementing  acts  shall  be  adopted  in  accordance  with  the  examination 
procedure referred to in Article 31(2). 

EN 

22 

   EN 

 
Article 13 

Training, lessons learnt and knowledge dissemination 

1. 

The Commission shall carry out the following tasks in the field of training, lessons 
learnt and knowledge dissemination: 

(a) 

setting up a training programme and training network for civil protection and 
other emergency management personnel on disaster prevention, preparedness, 
and  response,  with  a  view  to  enhance  the  coordination,  compatibility  and 
complementarity  between  the  modules  and  other  capacities  referred  to  in 
Articles 8, 9 and 11, and by improving the competence of the experts referred 
to  in  point  (d)  of  Article  7.  The  programme  shall  include  joint  courses, 
exercises  and  exchange  of  experts  system,  whereby  individuals  may  be 
seconded to other Member States; 

(b)  developing  guidance  on  Union  and  international  civil  protection  training, 

including training on prevention, preparedness and response; 

(c)  organising  and  supporting  workshops,  seminars  and  pilot  projects  on  major 

aspects of prevention, preparedness and response; 

(d) 

setting up a programme of lessons learned from the interventions, exercises and 
trainings  conducted  within  the  framework  of  the  Mechanism,  including 
relevant  prevention,  preparedness  and  response  aspects,  disseminating  these 
lessons and implementing them as appropriate; 

(e) 

stimulating and encouraging the introduction and use of new technologies for 
the purpose of the Mechanism. 

2. 

Upon request of a Member  State, third country, the United Nations or its agencies, 
the Commission may support the provision of advice on prevention and preparedness 
measures through the deployment of an expert team on site. 

CHAPTER IV 

Response 

Article 14 

Notification of major disasters within the Union 

1. 

In the event of a major disaster within the Union, or of the imminence thereof, which 
causes  or  is  capable  of  causing  trans-boundary  effects,  the  Member  State  in  which 
the  disaster  has  occurred  or  is  likely  to  occur  shall,  without  delay,  notify  the 
Commission and potentially affected Member States. 

The  first  subparagraph  shall  not  apply  where  the  obligation  of  notification  has 
already  been  addressed  under  relevant  Union  legislation  or  the  European  Atomic 
Energy Community or existing international agreements. 

EN 

23 

   EN 

 
2. 

3. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

In the event of a major disaster within the Union, or of the imminence thereof, which 
may  result  in  a  call  for  assistance  from  one  or  more  Member  States,  the  Member 
State in which the emergency has occurred or is likely to occur shall, without delay, 
notify the Commission, when a possible request for assistance through the ERC can 
be anticipated, in order to enable the Commission, as appropriate, to inform the other 
Member States and activate its competent services. 

The  notifications  referred  to  in  paragraphs  1  and  2  shall,  as  appropriate,  be  made 
through CECIS. 

Article 15 

Responding to major disasters within the Union 

Where  a  major  disaster  occurs  within  the  Union,  or  in  the  imminence  thereof,  a 
Member  State  may  request  assistance  through  the  ERC.  The  request  shall  be  as 
specific as possible. 

In  situations  of  increased  risk  a  Member  State  may  also  request  assistance  in  the 
form of temporary pre-positioning of response capacities.  

Upon  receiving  a  request  for  assistance,  the  Commission  shall,  as  appropriate  and 
without delay: 

(a) 

forward the request to the contact points of other Member States; 

(b) 

collect validated information on the disaster and disseminate it to the Member 
States; 

(c)  propose a response plan based on the needs on the ground and pre-developed 
contingency plans, and invite Member States to deploy specific capacities from 
the European Emergency Response Capacity in accordance with the plan; 

(d) 

facilitate the mobilisation of teams, experts, modules and intervention support 
other than that from the European Emergency Response Capacity; 

(e)  undertake additional tasks necessary to achieve the objective specified in point 

(c) of Article 3(1). 

Any  Member  State  to  which  a  request  for  assistance  is  addressed  shall  promptly 
determine whether it is in a position to render the assistance required and inform the 
requesting Member State thereof through the CECIS, indicating the scope and terms 
of assistance it might render. The ERC shall keep Member States informed. 

The  requesting  Member  State  shall  be  responsible  for  directing  assistance 
interventions.  The  authorities  of  the  requesting  Member  State  shall  lay  down 
guidelines  and,  if  necessary,  define  the  limits  of  the  tasks  entrusted  to  the 
intervention modules or other capacities. The details of the execution of those tasks 
shall  be  left  to  the  person  in  charge  appointed  by  the  Member  State  rendering 
assistance.  The  requesting  Member  State  may  also  request  the  deployment  of  an 
expert  team  to  support  its  assessment,  facilitate  coordination  on  site  (between 

EN 

24 

   EN 

 
6. 

1. 

2. 

Member  States'  teams),  provide  technical  advice,  or  support  with  performing  any 
other task as needed. 

The requesting Member State shall take the necessary actions to ensure host nation 
support for the incoming assistance. 

Article 16 

Promoting consistency in the response to major disasters outside the Union 

In  the  event  of  a  major  disaster  occurring  outside  the  Union,  or  the  imminence 
thereof,  the  affected  country,  the  United  Nations  and  its  agencies,  or  a  relevant 
international organisation may request assistance through the ERC. 

The  Commission  shall  support  the  consistency  in  the  delivery  of  the  assistance 
through the following actions: 

(a)  maintaining a continuous dialogue with Member States’ contact points in order 
to ensure an effective and coherent European emergency response contribution 
through the Mechanism to the overall relief effort, in particular by: 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

informing  Member  States  without  delay  of  the  full  requests  for 
assistance; 

supporting  a  common  assessment  of  situation  and  needs,  providing 
technical advice and/or facilitating the coordination on site of assistance 
through the presence of an expert team on site; 

sharing relevant assessments and analyses with all relevant actors; 

providing an overview of assistance being offered by Member States and 
other actors; 

advising  on  the  type  of  assistance  required  in  order  to  ensure  that  the 
assistance provided is consistent with the needs assessments; 

assisting  in  overcoming  any  practical  difficulties  in  the  delivery  of 
assistance in areas such as transit and customs; 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

immediately proposing a response plan based on the needs on the ground and 
pre-developed  contingency  plans,  and  inviting  Member  States  to  deploy 
specific  capacities  from  the  European  Emergency  Response  Capacity  in 
accordance with the plan; 

liaising with the affected third country on technical details, such as the precise 
needs for assistance, the acceptance of offers and the practical arrangements for 
the local reception and distribution of assistance; 

liaising or cooperating with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of 
Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) and other relevant actors contributing to the 
overall relief effort in order to maximise synergies, seek complementarities and 
avoid duplication and gaps; 

EN 

25 

   EN 

 
3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

9. 

10. 

(e) 

liaising  with  all  relevant  actors,  in  particular  in  the  closing  phase  of  the 
assistance intervention under the Mechanism, to facilitate a smooth handover. 

Without  prejudice  to  the  Commission's  role,  as  defined  in  paragraph  2,  and 
respecting  the  imperative  for  an  immediate  operational  response  through  the 
Mechanism,  upon  activation  the  Commission  shall  inform  the  European  External 
Action  Service  to  allow  for  consistency  between  the  civil  protection  operation  and 
the overall Union relations with the affected country. 

On  site,  liaison  shall  be  ensured  as  appropriate  with  the  Union  Delegation  for  the 
latter  to  facilitate  contacts  with  the  government  of  the  affected  country.  Where 
necessary,  the  Union  Delegation  shall  provide  logistical  support  to  the  civil 
protection expert teams referred to in the second indent of point (a) of paragraph 2.  

Any  Member  State  to  which  a  request  for  assistance  is  addressed  shall  promptly 
determine whether it is in a position to render the assistance required and inform the 
ERC thereof through the CECIS, indicating the scope and terms of any assistance it 
might render. The ERC shall keep Member States informed. 

Interventions under this Article may either be conducted as an autonomous assistance 
intervention  or  as  a  contribution  to  an  intervention  led  by  an  international 
organisation.  The  Union  coordination  shall  be  fully  integrated  with  the  overall 
coordination provided by the  UNOCHA, when  it is present, and respect  its leading 
role. 

The Mechanism may also support consular assistance to the citizens of the Union in 
major disasters in third countries if requested by:  

(a) 

consular authorities of a Member State for its own citizens; 

(b) 

the Lead State or the Member State coordinating the assistance for all citizens 
of the Union. 

This  support  may  notably  be  requested  if  needed  for  unrepresented  citizens  of  the 

Union under the Council Directive 2012/X/EU36. 

Where  appropriate,  the  Commission  may,  on  a  case-by-case  basis,  undertake 
additional tasks to ensure consistency in the delivery of the assistance.  

Coordination  through  the  Mechanism  shall  not  affect  bilateral  contacts  between 
Member States and the affected country, nor cooperation between the Member States 
and the United Nations. Such bilateral contacts may also be used to contribute to the 
coordination through the Mechanism. 

The  role  of  the  Commission  referred  to  in  this  Article  shall  not  affect  the  Member 
States’  competences  and  responsibility  for  their  teams,  modules  and  other  support, 
including military capacities. In particular, the support for consistency offered by the 
Commission  shall  not  entail  giving  orders  to  Member  States’  teams,  modules  and 

36 

OJL 

EN 

26 

   EN 

 
                                                 
11. 

12. 

13. 

1. 

2. 

other support, which shall be deployed on a voluntary basis in accordance with the 
coordination at headquarters level and on site. 

Synergies  shall  be  sought  with  other  instruments  of  the  Union,  in  particular,  with 
actions financed under Regulation (EC) No 1257/96. 

Member  States  providing  emergency  assistance  as  referred  to  in  paragraph  1  shall 
keep the ERC fully informed of their activities.  

Member States’ teams and modules on site participating in the intervention through 
the  Mechanism  shall  liaise  closely  with  the  ERC  and  the  expert  teams  on  site,  as 
referred to in the second indent of point (a) of paragraph 2. 

Article 17 

Support on site 

The  Commission  may  select,  appoint  and  dispatch  an  expert  team  composed  of 
experts  provided  by  the  Member  States,  the  Commission  and  other  services  and 
agencies of the Union, the UNOCHA or other international organisations, depending 
on the specificity of the mission in the event of major disaster within the Union, in 
accordance  with  Article  15.(5)  or  upon  a  request  for  prevention  and  preparedness 
expertise, as referred to in Article 13(2). 

Paragraph 1 shall also apply when the Commission supports a common assessment 
of  the  situation  and  the  needs  and/or  facilitating  the  coordination  on  site  of  the 
assistance through the dispatch of an expert team on site as referred to in the second 
indent of point (a) of Article 16(2). 

3. 

The procedure for the selection and appointment of experts is the following: 

(a)  Member  States shall nominate  experts, under their responsibility, who  can be 

deployed as part of expert teams.  

(b)  The Commission shall select the experts and the leader for these teams on the 
basis  of  their  qualifications  and  experience,  including  the  level  of  the 
Mechanism  training  undertaken,  previous  experience  of  missions  under  the 
Mechanism  and  other  international  relief  work.  The  selection  shall  also  be 
based on other criteria, including language skills, so as to ensure that the team 
as a whole has available skills needed in a specific situation. 

4. 

5. 

Where  expert  teams  are  dispatched,  they  shall  facilitate  coordination  between 
Member  States'  intervention  teams  and  liaise  with  the  competent  authorities  of  the 
requesting  state.  The  ERC  shall  maintain  close  contact  with  the  expert  teams  and 
provide them with guidance and logistical and other support. 

Where  appropriate,  the  Commission  may  deploy  the  logistical  support  and 
assistance capability  to support  expert  teams, modules  of  Member  States  and  other 
response capacities deployed in the framework of the Mechanism.  

EN 

27 

   EN 

 
Article 18 

Transport 

1. 

The Commission may support Member States in obtaining access to equipment and 
transport resources by: 

(a)  providing  and  sharing  information  on  equipment  and  transport  resources  that 
can  be  made  available  by  the  Member  States,  with  a  view  to  facilitating  the 
pooling of such equipment or transport resources; 

(b) 

assisting  Member  States  to  identify,  and  facilitating  their  access  to,  transport 
resources that may be available from other sources, including the commercial 
market; 

(c) 

assisting Member States to identify equipment that may be available from other 
sources, including the commercial market. 

2. 

The  Commission  may  complement  the  transport  provided  by  Member  States  by 
providing  additional  transport  resources  necessary  for  ensuring  a  rapid  response  to 
major disasters. 

CHAPTER V 

Financial provisions 

Article 19 

Budgetary resources 

1. 

2. 

3. 

The financial reference amount for the implementation of this Decision for the period 
2014 to 2020 shall be EUR 513 000 000 at current prices. 

EUR  276  000  000  at  current  prices  shall  derive  from  heading  3  "Security  and 
Citizenship" of the financial framework and EUR 237 000 000 at current prices from 
heading 4 "Global Europe." 

Appropriations  resulting  from  reimbursement  made  by  the  beneficiaries  for 
emergency response actions shall constitute assigned revenue within the meaning of 
Article 18(2) of the Financial Regulation. 

The  financial  allocation  referred  to  in  paragraph  1  may  also  cover  expenses 
pertaining to preparatory, monitoring, control, audit and evaluation activities, which 
are  required  for  the  management  of  the  programme  and  the  achievement  of  its 
objectives. 

Such expenditure may, in particular, cover studies, meetings of experts, information 
and  communication  actions,  including  corporate  communication  of  the  political 
priorities of the European Union, as far as they are related to the general objectives 
of this Decision, expenses linked to IT networks focusing on information processing 
and  exchange  (including  their  interconnection  with  existing  or  future  systems 
designed  to  promote  cross-sectoral  data  exchange  and  related  equipment),  together 

EN 

28 

   EN 

 
with  all  other  technical  and  administrative  assistance  expenses  incurred  by  the 
Commission for the management of the programme. 

Article 20 

General eligible actions 

The following general actions shall be eligible for financial assistance: 

(a) 

(b) 

studies,  surveys,  modelling  and  scenario  building  to  facilitate  the  sharing  of 
knowledge,  best  practices  and  information,  and  to  enhance  prevention, 
preparedness and effective response; 

training,  exercises,  workshops,  exchange  of  staff  and  experts,  creation  of 
networks,  demonstration  projects  and 
to  enhance 
prevention, preparedness and effective response; 

technology 

transfer 

(c)  monitoring, assessment and evaluation actions; 

(d)  public 

information,  education  and  awareness 

raising  and  associated 
dissemination  actions,  so  as  to  minimise  the  effects  of  disasters  on  Union 
citizens and to help Union citizens to protect themselves more effectively; 

(e) 

establishment  of  a  programme  of  lessons  learnt  from  interventions  and 
exercises  in  the  context  of  the  Mechanism,  including  on  areas  relevant  to 
prevention and preparedness; 

(f) 

communication actions and measures to promote the visibility of the European 
civil protection work in the areas of prevention, preparedness and response. 

Article 21 

Eligible prevention and preparedness actions  

The following prevention and preparedness actions shall be eligible for financial assistance: 

(a)  preparing risk management plans and a Union-wide overview of risks; 

(b)  maintaining the functions provided by the ERC, in accordance with point (a) of 

Article 7 to facilitate a rapid response in the event of a major disaster; 

(c)  developing  and  maintaining  a  surge  capacity  through  a  network  of  trained 
experts of Member States, who can be available at short notice to assist in the 
monitoring, information and coordination tasks of the ERC; 

(d) 

(e) 

establishing  and  maintaining  the  CECIS  and  tools  to  enable  communication 
and  sharing  of  information  between  the  ERC  and  the  contact  points  of  the 
Member States and of other participants in the context of the Mechanism; 

contributing to the development of detection, early warning and alert systems 
for  disasters,  in  order  to  enable  a  rapid  response  and  to  promote  their 
interlinkage and their linkage to the ERC and the CECIS. Those systems shall 

EN 

29 

   EN 

 
take into account and build upon existing and future information, monitoring or 
detection sources and systems; 

(f) 

(g) 

planning  response  operations  under  the  Mechanism,  including  through  the 
development of reference scenarios, capacity mapping and contingency plans; 

creating  and  maintaining  the  European  Emergency  Response  Capacity,  as 
referred to in Article 11. 

The  Union  financial  contribution  for  actions  under  this  point  shall  take  the 
form of unit costs determined per type of capacity and shall not exceed 25% of 
the total eligible costs. 

(h) 

identifying and filling gaps in the European Emergency Response Capacity in 
accordance with Article 12. 

Actions taken in accordance with this point shall be based on a thorough needs 
and  cost-benefit  analysis  per  type  of  capacity,  taking  into  account  the 
probability and impact of the relevant risks. The Union financial contribution 
for the actions under this point shall not exceed 85% of the total eligible costs; 

(i) 

ensuring the availability of necessary logistical capacities to provide technical 
assistance and support to the European Emergency Response Capacity, expert 
teams, other modules and response capacities dispatched under the Mechanism, 
as well as other actors on the ground; 

(j) 

assisting  Member  States  in  prepositioning  emergency  aid  assets  in  logistical 
hubs inside the Union. 

Article 22 

Eligible response actions 

The following response actions shall be eligible for financial assistance: 

(a)  dispatching expert teams together with the necessary equipment, in accordance 

with Article 17; 

(b)  deploying the capacities referred to in points (g), (h) and (i) of Article 21 in the 

event of major disasters, at the request of the Commission through the ERC;  

(c) 

(d) 

supporting  Member  States  in  obtaining  access  to  equipment,  transport 
resources and related logistics as specified in Article 23; 

any other supporting and complementary action necessary in the framework of 
the Mechanism to achieve the objective specified in point (c) of Article 3(1).. 

Article 23 

Eligible actions linked to equipment, transport resources and related logistics 

EN 

30 

   EN 

 
1. 

The  following  actions  shall  be  eligible  for  financial  assistance  in  order  to  allow 
access to equipment, transport resources and related logistics under the Mechanism:  

(a)  providing  and  sharing  information  on  equipment  and  transport  resources  that 
can  be  made  available  by  Member  States,  with  a  view  to  facilitating  the 
pooling of such equipment or transport resources; 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

assisting  Member  States  to  identify,  and  facilitating  their  access  to,  transport 
resources that may be available from other sources, including the commercial 
market; 

assisting Member States to identify equipment that may be available from other 
sources, including the commercial market; 

financing  transport  resources  and  related  logistics  necessary  for  ensuring  a 
rapid  response  to  major  disasters.  Such  actions  shall  be  eligible  for  financial 
support only if the following criteria are met: 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

a  request  for  assistance  has  been  made  under  the  Mechanism  in 
accordance with Articles 15 and 16; 

the  additional  transport  resources  are  necessary  for  ensuring  the 
effectiveness of emergency response under the Mechanism;  

the  assistance  corresponds  to  the  needs  identified  by  the  ERC  and  is 
delivered in accordance with the recommendations given by the ERC on 
the technical specifications, quality, timing and modalities for delivery,  

the  assistance  has  been  accepted  by  a  requesting  country,  the  United 
Nations or its agencies, or a relevant international organisation, under the 
Mechanism;  

the  assistance  complements,  for  disasters  in  third  countries,  the  overall 
Union humanitarian response, where present.  

2. 

The  amount  of  Union  financial  support  for transport  resources  and  related  logistics 
shall  not  exceed  85%  of  the  total  eligible  cost.  The  Union  financial  support  for 
transport resources and related logistics may cover a maximum of 100% of the total 
eligible cost when one of the following criteria is met:  

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

the  costs  relate  to  logistical  operations  in  transport  hubs  (including  among 
others cargo loading or off-loading and warehousing rental),  

 the  costs  relate  to  the  local  transportation  and  are  necessary  to  facilitate  the 
pooling of capacities or a coordinated delivery of assistance,  

 the  costs  relate  to  the  transport  of  the  capacities  mentioned  in  points  (g),  (h) 
and (i) of Article 21. 

3. 

In case of transport and related logistics operations involving several Member States, 
a Member State may take the lead in requesting Union financial support for the entire 
operation. 

EN 

31 

   EN 

 
4. 

5. 

When  a  Member  State  requests  assistance  through  the  Mechanism,  it  may  also 
request  Union  financial  support  for  transporting  capacities  located  outside  its 
territory. 

When  a  Member  State  requests  the  Commission  to  contract  transport  and  related 
logistics  services,  the  Commission  may  request  partial  reimbursement  of  the  costs 
according to the funding rates set out in the previous paragraphs. 

Article 24 

Beneficiaries 

Grants awarded under this Decision may be awarded to legal persons, whether governed by 
private or public law. 

Article 25 

1. 

2. 

3. 

Types of financial intervention and implementing procedures 

The Commission shall implement the Union's financial assistance in accordance with 
the Financial Regulation. 

Financial assistance under this Decision may take any of the forms provided by the 
Financial  Regulation,  in  particular  grants,  reimbursement  of  expenses,  public 
procurement , or contributions to trust funds. 

In  order  to  implement  this  Decision,  the  Commission  shall  adopt  annual  work 
programmes in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 31(2), except for 
actions  falling  under  the  emergency  response  of  Chapter  IV,  which  may  not  be 
foreseen in advance. They shall set out the objectives pursued, the expected results, 
the  method  of  implementation  and  their  total  amount.  They  shall  also  contain  the 
description of actions to be financed, an  indication  of the amount allocated to each 
action and an indicative implementation timetable. For grants, they shall include the 
priorities, the essential evaluation criteria and the maximum rate of co-financing. 

Article 26 

Complementarity and consistency of the Union action 

1. 

Actions receiving financial assistance under this Decision shall not receive assistance 
from other Union financial instruments. 

The  Commission  shall  ensure  that  the  applicants  for  financial  assistance  under  this 
Decision  and  beneficiaries  of  such  assistance  provide  it  with  information  about 
financial assistance received from other sources, including the general budget of the 
Union, and about ongoing applications for receiving such assistance. 

2. 

Synergies and complementarity shall be sought with other instruments of the Union. 
In  the  case  of  a  response  in  third  countries,  the  Commission  shall  ensure  the 
complementarity and coherence of actions financed under this Decision and actions 
financed under Regulation (EC) No 1257/96. 

EN 

32 

   EN 

 
3. 

1. 

2. 

When  assistance  under  the  Mechanism  contributes  to  a  wider  Union  humanitarian 
response,  actions  receiving  financial  assistance  under  this  Decision  shall  be 
consistent with the humanitarian principles referred to in the European Consensus on 
Humanitarian Aid. 

Article 27 

Protection of the financial interests of the Union 

The  Commission  shall  take  appropriate  measures  ensuring  that,  when  actions 
financed under this Decision are implemented, the financial interests of the Union are 
protected by the application of preventive measures against fraud, corruption and any 
other  illegal  activities  by  effective  checks  and,  if  irregularities  are  detected,  by  the 
recovery  of  the  amounts  wrongly  paid  and,  where  appropriate,  by  effective, 
proportionate and deterrent penalties. 

The  Commission  or  its  representatives  and  the  Court  of  Auditors  shall  have  the 
power  of  audit,  on  the  basis  of  documents  and  on  the  spot,  over  all  grant 
beneficiaries, contractors and subcontractors, who have received Union funds under 
this Decision.  

The  European  Anti-fraud  Office  (OLAF)  may  carry  out  on-the-spot  checks  and 
inspections on economic operators concerned directly or indirectly by such funding 
in  accordance  with  the  procedures  laid  down  in  Regulation  (Euratom,  EC)  No 
2185/96 with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption or any 
other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union in connection with 
a grant agreement, grant decision or a contract concerning Union funding.  

Without prejudice to paragraphs 1 and 2, cooperation agreements with third countries 
and  international  organisations,  grant  agreements,  grant  decisions  and  contracts 
resulting  from  the  implementation  of  this  Decision  shall  expressly  empower  the 
Commission,  the  Court  of  Auditors  and  OLAF  to  conduct  such  audits,  on-the-spot 
checks and inspections. 

CHAPTER VI 

General provisions 

Article 28 

Third countries participation and international organisations 

1. 

The Mechanism shall be open to the participation of: 

(a)  European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries which are members of the 
European Economic Area (EEA), in accordance with the conditions laid down 
in  the  EEA  Agreement,  and  other  European  countries  when  agreements  and 
procedures so provide; 

(b)  Acceding countries, candidate countries and potential candidates in accordance 
with  the  general  principles  and  general  terms  and  conditions  for  the 
participation  of  those  countries  in  Union's  programmes  established  in  the 

EN 

33 

   EN 

 
respective  Framework  Agreements  and  Association  Council  Decisions,  or 
similar arrangements; 

2. 
Financial  Assistance  referred  to  in  Articles  20  and  Article  21  (a)  to  (f)  may  also  be 
granted  to  countries  coming  under  the  European  Neighbourhood  Policy  as  well  as  potential 
candidate countries not participating in the Mechanism. 

3. 
International  or  regional  organisations  may  cooperate  in  activities  under  the 
Mechanism  where  relevant  bilateral  or  multilateral  agreements  between  these  organisations 
and the Union so allow. 

Article 29 

Competent authorities 

For  the  purposes  of  applying  this  Decision,  Member  States  shall  appoint  the  competent 
authorities and inform the Commission accordingly. 

Article 30 

Implementing acts 

1. 

The Commission shall adopt implementing acts on the following matters: 

(a) 

functioning of the ERC, as provided for in point (a) of Article 7; 

(b) 

functioning of the CECIS, as provided for in point (b) of Article 7; 

(c)  modalities  for  the  expert  teams,  as  provided  for  in  Article  17,  including 

conditions for the selection of experts;  

(d) 

conditions for identifying the modules, as provided for in Article 8; 

(e) 

(f) 

conditions for resources available for assistance intervention, as provided for in 
Article 9; 

functioning of the Emergency Response Capacity in the form of the voluntary 
pool, as provided for in Article 11;  

(g)  modalities  on  identifying  and  filling  gaps  in  the  European  Emergency 

Response Capacity, as provided for in Article 12; 

(h)  modalities for the training programme, as provided for in Article 13; 

(i)  modalities  applicable  to  interventions  inside  the  Union,  as  provided  for  in 
Article 15 as well as for the interventions outside the Union, as provided for in 
Article 16; 

(j)  modalities on transport, as provided for in Articles 18 and 23. 

2. 

These  implementing  acts  shall  be  adopted  in  accordance  with  the  examination 
procedure referred to in Article 31(2). 

EN 

34 

   EN 

 
Article 31 

Committee procedure 

The  Commission  shall  be  assisted  by  a  committee.  That  committee  shall  be  a 
committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.  

Where  reference  is  made  to  this  paragraph,  Article  5  of  Regulation  (EU)  No 
182/2011  shall  apply.  Where  the  Committee  delivers  no  opinion,  the  Commission 
shall not adopt the draft implementing act and the third subparagraph of Article 5(4) 
of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply. 

Article 32 

Evaluation 

Actions receiving financial assistance shall be monitored regularly in order to follow 
their implementation. 

The  Commission  shall  evaluate  the  application  of  this  Decision  and  submit  to  the 
European Parliament and to the Council: 

(a) 

an  interim  evaluation  report  on  the  results  obtained  and  the  qualitative  and 
quantitative aspects of the implementation of this Decision no later than by 30 
June 2017; 

(b) 

a  communication  on  the  continued  implementation  of  this  Decision  no  later 
than by 31 December 2018,  

(c) 

an ex post evaluation report no later than by 31 December 2021. 

The conclusions shall be accompanied, if appropriate, by proposals for amendments 
to this Decision. 

CHAPTER VII 

Final provisions 

Article 33 

Transitional provision 

Actions  which  are  initiated  before  1  January  2014  on  the  basis  of  Decision 
2007/162/EC,  Euratom37  shall  continue  to  be  administered,  whether  relevant,  in 
conformity with that Decision. 

Member  States  shall  ensure  at  national  level  the  uninhibited  transition  between  the 
actions  carried  out  in  the  context  of  the  previous  Civil  Protection  Financial 

1. 

2. 

1. 

2. 

1. 

2. 

37 

OJ L71, 10.03.2007, p.9-17 

EN 

35 

   EN 

 
                                                 
Instrument  and  those  to  be  implemented  under  the  new  provisions  set  out  in  this 
Decision. 

Article 34 

Repeal 

Decisions  2007/162/EC,  Euratom  2007/779  /EC,  Euratom  are  repealed.  Articles  1  to  14  of 
Decision  2007/162/EC,  Euratom  shall  continue  to  apply  until  31  December  2013  inclusive, 
without prejudice to article 33 (1) 

References  to  the  repealed  Decisions  shall  be  construed  as  references  to  this  Decision  and 
shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in the Annex. 

Article 35 

Entry into force 

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

However Articles 19 to 27 (financial provisions) shall only apply from 1 January 2014. 

Article 36 

Addressees 

This Decision is addressed to the Member States in accordance with the Treaties. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the European Parliament 

For the Council 

The President 

The President 

EN 

36 

   EN 

 
ANNEX 1 

Correlation Table 

Council Decision 
2007/162 EC, Euratom 

Council Decision 
2007/779 EC, Euratom 

This Decision 

Article 1 (1) 

Article 1 (2) 

Article 1 (3) 

Article 1 (4) 

Article 2 (1) 

Article 2 (2) 

Article 2 (3) 

_ 

Article 1 (4) 

_ 

Article 2(3)  

Article 1 (1) 

_ 

Article 1 (2) first 
subparagraph 

Article 1 (2) second 
subparagraph 

Article 1 (2) 

Article 1 (6) 

Article 2 (1) 

Article 2 (2) 

Article 1 (7) 

Article 2 (1) 

_ 

Article 2 (2) 

Article 13 (1)(a) 

Article 2 (3) 

Article 13 (1)(c) 

Article 2 (4) 

Article 7 (d) 

Article 2 (5) 

Article 7 (a) 

Article 2 (6) 

Article 7 (b) 

Article 2 (7) 

Article 7 (c) 

Article 2 (8) 

Article 18 (1) 

Article 2 (9) 

Article 18 (2) 

Article 2 (10) 

Article 16 (7) 

Article 2 (11) 

_ 

EN 

37 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Council Decision 
2007/162 EC, Euratom 

Council Decision 
2007/779 EC, Euratom 

This Decision 

Article 3 

Article 4(1) 

Article 4 (2) (a) 

Article 4 (2) (b) 

Article 4 (2) (c) 

Article 4(3) 

Article 4(4) 

Article 5  

Article 3 

Article 4 

Article 20 

Article 22 (a) 

Article 22 (c) and 

Article 23 (1)(a) (b) (c)  

Article 23 (1) (d) 

Article 23 (2) 

Article 30 (1) (j) 

Article 4(1) 

Article 9 (1) 

Article 4 (2) 

Article 9 (2) 

Article 4 (3) 

Article 8 (1) and (2) 

Article 4 (4)  

Article 9 (3) 

Article 4 (5) 

Article 9 (4) 

Article 4 (6) 

Article 9 (5) 

Article 4 (7) 

Article 9 (8) 

Article 4 (8) 

Article 9 (6) 

Article 24 

Article 7 (a) 

Article 7 (b) 

Article 7 (c) 

Article 7 (d) 

Article 13 (1)(a) 

_ 

Article 13 (1)(d) 

Article 5(1) 

Article 5(2) 

Article 5(3) 

Article 5(4) 

Article 5(5) 

Article 5(6) 

Article 5(7) 

38 

   EN 

EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Council Decision 
2007/162 EC, Euratom 

Council Decision 
2007/779 EC, Euratom 

This Decision 

Article 5(8) 

Article 5(9) 

Article 13 (1)(e) 

Article 18 

Article 5(10) 

Article 7 (e) 

Article 5(11) 

Article 7 (g) 

Article 6 (1) 

Article 6 (2) 

Article 6 (3) 

Article 6 (4) 

Article 6 (5) 

Article 6 (6) 

Article 7 

Article 25(1) 

Article 25(2) 

Article 25(3) second and 
third sentences 

Article 25(3) second and 
third sentences 

Article 25(3) first sentence 

_ 

Article 6 

Article 14 

Article 28 (1) 

Article 7 (1) 

Article 15 (1) 

Article 7 (2) 

Article 15 (3) 

Article 7 (2) (a) 

Article 15 (3) (a) 

Article 7 (2) (c) 

Article 15 (3) (b) 

Article 7 (2) (b) 

Article 15 (3) (d) 

Article 7 (3) first and 
third sentences 

Article 15 (4) and Article 
16(5) 

Article 7 (4) 

Article 15 (5) 

Article 7 (5) 

_ 

Article 7 (6) 

Article 17 (4) first sentence  

Article 8 

Article 26 

EN 

39 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Council Decision 
2007/162 EC, Euratom 

Council Decision 
2007/779 EC, Euratom 

This Decision 

Article 8 (1) first 
subparagraph 

Article 8 (1) second 
subparagraph 

Article 8 (1) third 
subparagraph 

Article 8 (1) forth 
subparagraph 

Article 16 (1) 

Article 16(6) first sentence 

_ 

_ 

Article 8 (2)  

Article 16(3) 

Article 8 (3)  

_ 

Article 8 (4) (a) 

Article 16(2) (a) 

Article 8 (4) (b) 

Article 16(2) (c) 

Article 8 (4) (c) 

Article 16(2) (d) 

Article 8 (4) (d) 

Article 16(2) (e) 

Article 8 (5)  

Article 16(8) 

Article 8 (6) first 
subparagraph 

Article 17 (1) and 3(b) 

Article 8 (6) second 
subparagraph 

Article 17 (4) second 
sentence 

Article 8 (7) first 
subparagraph 

_ 

Article 8 (7) second 
subparagraph 

Article 16(6) second 
sentence 

Article 16(9) 

Article 16(11) 

_ 

Article 8 (7) third 
subparagraph  

Article 8 (7) forth 
subparagraph  

Article 8 (7) fifth 
subparagraph 

40 

   EN 

EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Council Decision 
2007/162 EC, Euratom 

Council Decision 
2007/779 EC, Euratom 

This Decision 

Article 9 

Article 10 

Article 11  

Article 12 (1) 

Article 12 (2) 

Article 12 (3) 

Article 12 (4) 

Article 12 (5) 

Article 8 (8)  

Article 16(10) 

Article 8 (9)(a) 

Article 16(12) 

Article 8 (9)(b) 

Article 16(13) 

Article 9 

Article 16(6)  

Article 18  

Article 19(3) 

Article 10 

Article 28 

_ 

Article 11 

Article 29 

Article 27(1) 

_ 

_ 

_ 

_ 

Article 12 (1) 

Article 30 (1) (e) 

Article 12 (2) 

Article 30 (1) (a) 

Article 12 (3) 

Article 30 (1) (b) 

Article 12 (4) 

Article 30 (1) (c) 

Article 12 (5) 

Article 30 (1) (h) 

Article 12 (6) 

Article 30 (1) (d) 

Article 12 (7) 

Article 12 (8) 

_ 

_ 

Article 12 (9) 

Article 30 (1) (i) 

Article 13 

Article 13 

Article 31 

EN 

41 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Council Decision 
2007/162 EC, Euratom 

Council Decision 
2007/779 EC, Euratom 

This Decision 

Article 14 

Article 15 

Article 16  

Article 17 

Article 14 

Article 15 

Article 19 

Article 32 

Article 34 

Article 35 (2) 

Article 16 

Article 36 

EN 

42 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT  

1. 

FRAMEWORK OF THE PROPOSAL/INITIATIVE  

1.1.  Title of the proposal/initiative  

1.2.  Policy area(s) concerned in the ABM/ABB structure 

1.3.  Nature of the proposal/initiative  

1.4.  Objective(s)  

1.5.  Grounds for the proposal/initiative  

1.6.  Duration and financial impact  

1.7.  Management method(s) envisaged  

2. 

MANAGEMENT MEASURES  

2.1.  Monitoring and reporting rules  

2.2.  Management and control system  

2.3.  Measures to prevent fraud and irregularities  

3. 

ESTIMATED FINANCIAL IMPACT OF THE PROPOSAL/INITIATIVE  

3.1.  Heading(s)  of  the  multiannual  financial  framework  and  expenditure  budget  line(s) 
affected  

3.2.  Estimated impact on expenditure  

3.2.1. Summary of estimated impact on expenditure  

3.2.2. Estimated impact on operational appropriations  

3.2.3. Estimated impact on appropriations of an administrative nature 

3.2.4. Compatibility with the current multiannual financial framework 

3.2.5. Third-party participation in financing  

3.3.  Estimated impact on revenue 

EN 

43 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT 

1. 

FRAMEWORK OF THE PROPOSAL/INITIATIVE  

1.1. 

Title of the proposal/initiative  

Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Union Civil Protection 
Mechanism 

1.2. 

Policy area(s) concerned in the ABM/ABB structure38  

Policy Area concerned and associated Activity/ Activities: 

23 03 – Civil Protection Financial Instrument 

1.3. 

Nature of the proposal/initiative  

(cid:133) The proposal/initiative relates to a new action  

(cid:133) The proposal/initiative relates to a new action following a pilot project/preparatory action39  

(cid:57) The proposal/initiative relates to the extension of an existing action  

(cid:133) The proposal/initiative relates to an action redirected towards a new action  

1.4. 

Objectives 

1.4.1.  The Commission's multiannual strategic objective(s) targeted by the proposal/initiative  

This  Decision  establishes  a  Union  Civil  Protection  Mechanism  to  support,  coordinate  and 
supplement the actions of the Member States in the field of civil protection in improving the 
effectiveness  of  systems  for  preventing,  preparing  for  and  responding  to  natural  and  man-
made disasters. 

1.4.2. 

Specific objective(s) and ABM/ABB activity(ies) concerned  

Specific objective No.1 

TO ACHIEVE A HIGH LEVEL OF PROTECTION AGAINST DISASTERS BY PREVENTING OR REDUCING THEIR 
EFFECTS AND BY FOSTERING A CULTURE OF PREVENTION; 

Specific objective No.2. 

TO ENHANCE THE UNION’S STATE OF PREPAREDNESS TO RESPOND TO DISASTERS; 

Specific objective No.3 

38 
39 

ABM: Activity-Based Management – ABB: Activity-Based Budgeting. 
As referred to in Article 49(6)(a) or (b) of the Financial Regulation. 

EN 

44 

   EN 

 
                                                 
TO  FACILITATE  RAPID  AND  EFFICIENT  EMERGENCY  RESPONSE  INTERVENTIONS  IN 
THE EVENT OF MAJOR DISASTERS OR THEIR IMMINENCE. 

ABM/ABB activity(ies) concerned 

23 03 CIVIL PROTECTION FINANCIAL INSTRUMENT 

1.4.3.  Expected result(s) and impact 

Specify the effects which the proposal/initiative should have on the beneficiaries/groups targeted. 

The proposal will: 

- enable the Union to support, coordinate and supplement the actions of the Member States in the 
field  of  civil  protection  through  the  Union  Civil  Protection  Mechanism  (the  Mechanism)  during 
2014-2020 MFF, including in particular: 

a) measures to prevent or reduce the effects of disaster; and 

b) actions designed to enhance the EU's state of preparedness for response to disasters, including 
actions enhancing EU citizens' awareness. 

c) actions in the field of disaster assistance interventions under the Mechanism; 

This  proposal  will  allow  the  continuation  of  activities  in  the  field  of  disaster  prevention, 
preparedness  and  response  covered  by  Council  Decision  2007/779/EC,  Euratom  and  financed 
through  the  Civil  Protection  Financial  Instrument  (2007/162/EC,  Euratom),  This  includes  the 
creation  of  a  European  Emergency  Response  Capacity  based  on  pre-committed  Member  States' 
assets,  the  development  of  a  European  Emergency  Response  Centre,  the  reinforcement  and  and 
streamline  of  transport  arrangements  and  the  support  to  Member  States  in  the  development  of 
national risk management plans. 

1.4.4. 

Indicators of results and impact  

Specify the indicators for monitoring implementation of the proposal/initiative. 

Specific  objective:  To  achieve  a  high  level  of  protection  against  disasters  by  preventing  or 
reducing their effects and by fostering a culture of prevention 

1. Number of Member States with national risk assessments and disaster risk management plans; 

2. Number and type of studies and projects to improve the knowledge base; 

3. Introduction of new technologies 

Specific objective: To Enhance the Union' s state of preparedness to respond to disasters 

1. Number of experts qualified at the required level 

2.  Number  of  training  and  exercises  and  types  of  courses  included  in  the  training  curriculare 
programme; 

3. Number of exchanges within the EU training network; 

4. Number and type of assets committed to the voluntary pool (the Emergency Response Capacity); 

EN 

45 

   EN 

 
 
5. Number of Member States committing assets to the voluntary pool; 

6. Amounts of EU co-financing for assets in the voluntary pool; 

7. The number and type of critical capacity gaps identified; 

8. The number and type of gaps filled with and without the EU co-financing; 

9. Development by the Commission, with Member States support, of emergency response scenarios for 
inside and outside the EU, covering the entire list of potential major disasters; 

10. Development by the Commission, with Member States support, of a comprehensive inventory of 
assets available in Member States and an analysis of the gaps; 

Specific objective: To facilitate rapid and efficient emergency response interventions in the event 
of major disasters or their imminence 

1. Speed of operations: time between the request for assistance and deployment on site of assistance, as 
well as the full operability of assessment/coordination teams; 

2. Ratio between assets deployed from the pool and additional ad hoc offers from Member States; 

3. The rate of urgent priority needs met; 

4. Number and size of the transport grants and services; 

5.  Time  taken  for  processing  individual  grant/service  requests  as  well  as  overall  time  spent  on 
processing financial operations; 

6. Amounts of EU co-financing for transport operations (including average rate per operation); 

7. Ratio of EU transport co-financing vis-à-vis the entire amount of transport costs; 

8. Number of grants/services and overall amount of the EU transport co-financing awarded to affected 
Member States; 

1.5. 

Grounds for the proposal/initiative  

1.5.1.  Requirement(s) to be met in the short or long term  

EU Civil Protection policy is based on Council Decision 2007/779/EC, Euratom of unlimited 
duration and on Council Decision 2007/162/EC, Euratom. The latter provides funding for the 
actions under the Mechanism and expires end of 2013. 

For  the  sake  of  simplification,  the  two  abovementioned  legislative  proposals  have  been 
merged into one single legislative proposal aiming at improving and further strengthening the 
Union Civil Protection Mechanism in the period 2014-2020 MFF. 

This  proposal  builds  on  the  two  existing  pieces  of  legislation  governing  Civil  Protection 
together  with  the  2010  Communication  'Towards  a  stronger  European  disaster  response:  the 
role  of  civil  protection  and  humanitarian  assistance'  and  takes  into  account  shortcomings 
identified  in  the  comprehensive  evaluation  of  the  civil  protection  legislation  for  the  period 
2007-2009. 

This proposal aims at supporting actions with the purpose of covering gaps identified in the 
evaluation. Main actions are:  

EN 

46 

   EN 

 
(1)  the  development  of  the  Emergency  Response  Centre  (ERC),  ensuring  a  24/7  operational 
capacity,  and  serving  the  Member  States  and  the  Commission  for  the  purposes  of  the 
Mechanism  

(2)  the  shift  from  a  reactive  and  ad  hoc  coordination  to  a  pre-planned,  pre-arranged  and 
predictable EU civil protection system;  

(3) the identification and filling of critical gaps in response capacity;  

(4) the improvement of the financial and logistical transport support and the achievement of 
more cost-effective transport operations, and (5) the development of national risk management 
plans and EU wide overview of risks. 

1.5.2.  Added value of EU involvement 

The EU's added value comes in the form of: 

- reducing the loss of human life, environmental, economic and material damage. 

- a better coordination of civil protection activities since all offers of assistance are collated in the MIC 
for acceptance by the authorities of the affected State. 

-  cost-effectiveness  since  the  assistance  accepted  by  the  affected  State  can  be  pooled  with  the 
assistance of other countries through the transport procedure. 

- an improved efficiency through an increased level of preparedness and a more coherent disaster risk 
management policy; 

-  a  coherent  and  effective  response  through  the  set  up  of  a  Rapid  response  capacity  ready  to  help 
everywhere in the EU and in third countries when needed; 

- a better visibility of the EU's response to disasters; 

- a better use of scarce resources by sharing the EU funded assets. 

1.5.3.  Lessons learned from similar experiences in the past 

These proposals build upon: 

- experience gained in emergencies handled by the Mechanism since its creation in 2001; 

- experience gained as a result of the projects financed within the framework of the calls launched since 
2007 in the field of preparedness and prevention; 

- experience gained as a result of the pilot project financed within the framework of the call launched 
in  2008  "Call  for  proposal  for  a  pilot  project  to  step  up  cooperation  between  Member  States  on 
combating forest fires"; 

- experience gained as a result of the 17 projects and 3 contracts financed under the Preparatory Action 
on an EU rapid response capability;  

- European Parliament resolution of 4 September 2007 on this summer's natural disasters 

- Communication on 'Reinforcing the Union's Disaster Response Capacity' (COM (2008)130) 

EN 

47 

   EN 

 
- Declaration of the European Parliament of 11 March 2008 on early warning for citizens in 
major emergencies 

- European Parliament resolution of 19 June 2008 on stepping up the Union's disaster response 
capacity 

-  Communication  on  a  'Community  approach  on  the  prevention  of  natural  and  man-made  disasters' 
COM(2009)82. 

-  Communication  from  the  Commission  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  'Towards  a 
stronger  European  disaster  response:  the  role  of  civil  protection  and  humanitarian  assistance' 
(COM(2011)600  final)  of  26  October  2010,  as  well  as  Communication  'On  reinforcing  the  Union's 
Disaster Response Capacity' COM(2008)130 final. 

-  Evaluation of  the  application  of  the  Civil  Protection  Mechanism  and  the  Civil  Protection  Financial 
Instrument for the years 2007-2009 (Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the 
Council SEC(2011) 1311 final), also covering a preparatory action for a EU Rapid Response Capacity, 
adopted on 2010 November 2011 (COM (2011) 696). 

1.5.4.  Coherence and possible synergy with other relevant instruments 

Consistency with:  

- Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid; 

-  Regulation  (EC)  No  1406/2002  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  27  June  2002 
establishing a European Maritime Safety Agency;  

-  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  2012/2002  of  11  November  2002  establishing  the  European  Union 
Solidarity Fund;  

- Regulation (EC) No 1717/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 November 2006 
establishing an Instrument for Stability. 

1.6. 

Duration and financial impact  

(cid:57) Proposal/initiative of unlimited duration  

Financial provisions of limited duration: 

–  (cid:57) Budget allocation covers 1/1/2014-31/12/2020 

–  (cid:57)  Financial impact from 01/01/2014 to 31/12/2020 (payments until 31/12/2022) 

1.7.  Management mode(s) envisaged40  

(cid:57) Centralised direct management by the Commission  

40 

Details  of  management  modes  and  references  to  the  Financial  Regulation  may  be  found  on  the  BudgWeb  site: 
http://www.cc.cec/budg/man/budgmanag/budgmanag_en.html 

EN 

48 

   EN 

 
 
 
                                                 
(cid:133) Centralised indirect management with the delegation of implementation tasks to: 

–  (cid:133)  executive agencies  

–  (cid:133)  bodies set up by the Communities41  

–  (cid:133)  national public-sector bodies/bodies with public-service mission  

–  (cid:133)  persons entrusted with the implementation of specific actions pursuant to Title V of the 
Treaty  on  European  Union  and  identified  in  the  relevant  basic  act  within  the  meaning  of 
Article 49 of the Financial Regulation  

(cid:133) Shared management with the Member States  

(cid:133) Decentralised management with third countries  

X Joint management with international organisations UN bodies 

If more than one management mode is indicated, please provide details in the "Comments" section. 

Comments  

NA

41 

As referred to in Article 185 of the Financial Regulation. 

EN 

49 

   EN 

 
                                                 
2. 

MANAGEMENT MEASURES  

2.1.  Monitoring and reporting rules  

Specify frequency and conditions. 

Actions  and  measures  receiving  financial  assistance  under  these  Decisions  shall  be  monitored 
regularly.  

The Commission shall prepare and submit to the European Parliament and to the Council: 

- an interim evaluation report no later than 30 June 2017; 

- a Communication on the continued implementation of this Decision no later than 31 December 2018; 

- an ex post evaluation report no later than 31 December 2021. 

2.2.  Management and control system  

2.2.1.  Risk(s) identified  

If no additional posts are provided, understaffing may lead to the risk of not being able to  

-  respond  to  all  challenges  arising  from  the  increase  in  the  number  of  civil  protection  operations, 
especially in the light of the new broader role assigned to the Emergency Response Centre and political 
exigencies; 

- develop/add activities 

- benefit/develop new technological systems ensuring uninterrupted availability; 

- react appropriately to imminent Civil Protection emergencies. 

2.2.2.  Control method(s) envisaged  

Information on the internal control system setup 

For  the  draft  legislation,  an  existing  internal  control  system  is  foreseen  to  be  used  for 
guaranteeing  that  funds  available  under  new  Instrument  are  used  properly  and  in  line  with 
appropriate legislation.  

Current system is setup as follows: 

1. Internal control system within DG ECHO (3 persons), focused on the compliance with valid 
administrative  procedures  and  legislation  in  force  in  the  area  of  civil  protection.  Internal 
control standards are used for this purpose.  

2.  audit  of  grants  and  contracts  awarded  under  the  Instrument  by  auditors  of  DG  ECHO 

EN 

50 

   EN 

 
 
(6 auditors); 

3. evaluation of activities by external partners 

The actions can also be audited by external entities 

1. OLAF (fraud cases); 

2. Court of Auditors; 

The  current  control  system  is  planned  to  be  kept  in  place.  In  connection  with  increased 
available  funding  from  the  Instrument,  an  increased  focus  on  civil  protection  could  be 
foreseen, in order to properly check spending from the Instrument.  

Estimation of costs and benefits 

For the internal audit, the estimated costs of activities related to the draft legislation amount to 

Estimated 19 000 EUR (127 000 EUR*3*0.05), if 5% of available working time is devoted to 
civil protection. 

There are at the moment 6 external auditors in DG ECHO. Provided that they devote 5 % of 
their  work  time  to  transactions  co-financed/financed  by  the  new  Civil  Protection  Financial 
Instrument,  it  would  mean  the  cost  of  external  audit  amounting  to  app.  38  000  EUR.  Past 
experience shows that the benefits of  control should outweigh the costs and provide a better 
compliance with rules in place. Audits performed in the past had as a results decrease of total 
EU contribution, by deducting costs not eligible for co-financing. 

An assessment of the expected level of risk of non-compliance 

As previous audits of the project co-financed from the current Instrument showed, there is a 
risk  of  inappropriate  use  of  funds.  For  this  reason  it  is  reasonable  to  propose  the  existing 
system for future actions. Taking into account a larger amount of available funds, an increase 
of external auditors could be foreseen. 

The estimated level of compliance should achieve 98 % (error level less than 2 %).  

2.3.  Measures to prevent fraud and irregularities  

Specify existing or envisaged prevention and protection measures. 

ECHO will further devise its anti-fraud strategy in line with the Commission's new anti-fraud strategy 
(CAFS) adopted on 24 June 2011 in order to ensure inter alia that: 

EN 

51 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
ECHO's internal anti-fraud related controls are fully aligned with the CAFS; 

ECHO's fraud risk management approach is geared to identify fraud risk areas and adequate responses; 

The systems used for spending EU funds in third countries enable relevant data to be retrieved with a 
view to feeding this data into fraud risk management (e.g. double funding); 

Where necessary, networking groups and adequate IT tools dedicated to analysing fraud cases related 
to the sector will be set up. 

3. 

3.1. 

ESTIMATED FINANCIAL IMPACT OF THE PROPOSAL/INITIATIVE  

Heading(s)  of  the  multiannual  financial  framework  and  expenditure  budget  line(s) 
affected  

•  Existing expenditure budget lines  

In order of multiannual financial framework headings and budget lines. 

Budget line 

Heading of 
multiannual 
financial 
framework  Number and title 

Type of  
expenditure

Contribution  

Diff./non-
diff 
(42) 

from 
EFTA43 
countries 

from 
candidate 
countries44 

from third 
countries 

within the meaning 
of Article 18(1)(aa) 
of the Financial 
Regulation  

23  03  01  Civil  Protection  within  the 
Union 

Diff. 

YES 

YES* 

YES* 

NO 

23  01  04  02  Civil  Protection 
Expenditure on administrative management 

- 

23 03 06 Civil Protection interventions 
in third countries 

Non-diff. 

YES 

NO 

NO 

NO 

Diff. 

YES 

YES* 

YES* 

NO 

3 

3 

4 

*  

Participation in the Instrument shall be open to candidate countries, EEA countries (Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway) 

•  New budget lines requested  

In order of multiannual financial framework headings and budget lines. 

Heading of 
multiannual 

Budget line 

Type of 
expenditure

Contribution  

42 
43 
44 

Diff. = Differentiated appropriations / Non-Diff. = Non-differentiated appropriations 
EFTA: European Free Trade Association.  
Candidate countries and, where applicable, potential candidate countries from the Western Balkans. 

EN 

52 

   EN 

 
 
 
                                                 
financial 
framework  Number  

[Heading……………………………………..] 

Diff./non-
diff. 

from 
EFTA 
countries 

from 
candidate 
countries 

from third 
countries 

within the meaning 
of Article 18(1)(aa) 
of the Financial 
Regulation  

EN 

53 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3.2. 

Estimated impact on expenditure  

3.2.1. 

Summary of estimated impact on expenditure  

Heading of multiannual financial 
framework:  

Number  Heading 3 Security and Citizenship 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

DG: ECHO – Humanitarian Aid and 
Civil Protection 

(cid:121) Operational appropriations  

23 03 01 Civil Protection within the Union 

of 

an 

administrative 
Appropriations 
from the envelope for specific programmes46  
23 01 04 02 - Expenditure on administrative 
management 

201445 

2015 

2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

2021 and 
subsequent 
years 

TOTAL 

Commitments 

Payments 

nature 

financed 

36,4 
30 

37,4 
34 

38,4 
34 

38,4 
34 

39,4 
35 

40,4 
35 

41,4 
35 

NA 
34.8 

271,8 
271.8 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

NA 

4,2 

TOTAL appropriations  
under HEADING 3 of the multiannual 
financial framework 

Commitments 

37 

38 

39 

39 

40 

41 

42 

Payments 

30,6 

34,6 

34,6 

34,6 

35,6 

35,6 

35,6 

NA 

34,8 

276 

276 

45 
46 

EN 

Year N is the year in which implementation of the proposal/initiative starts. 
Technical and/or administrative assistance and expenditure in support of the implementation of EU programmes and/or actions (former "BA" lines), indirect research, direct 
research. 

54 

E

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Heading of multiannual financial 
framework:  

Number  Heading 4 Global Europe 

DG: ECHO – Humanitarian Aid and 
Civil Protection 

(cid:121) Operational appropriations  

23  03  06  Civil  Protection  interventions  in 
third countries  

Commitments 

Payments 

TOTAL appropriations  
under HEADING 4 
of the multiannual financial framework 

Commitments 

Payments 

(cid:121) TOTAL operational appropriations  

Commitments 

Payments 

(cid:121) TOTAL appropriations of an administrative nature financed from 
the envelope for specific programmes  

TOTAL appropriations  
under HEADINGS 1 to 4 
of the multiannual financial framework 
(Reference amount) 

Commitments 

Payments 

32 

25 

32 

25 

69 

55 

69 

55 

201447 

2015 

2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

33 

30 

33 

30 

72 

64 

72 

64 

34 

31 

34 

31 

73

65 

73

65 

34 

31 

34 

31 

74

66 

74

66 

35 

32 

35 

32 

76

67 

76

67 

36 

33 

36 

33 

78

68 

78

68 

33 

30 

33 

30 

71

64 

71

64 

55 

2021 and 
subsequent 
years 

TOTAL 

NA 
25 

237 

237 

25 

NA 

64 

NA 

237 

237 

513 

513 

513 

64 

513 

E

47 

Year N is the year in which implementation of the proposal/initiative starts. 

EN 

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
EN 

56 

E

 
  
 
Heading of multiannual financial 
framework:  

5 

" Administrative expenditure " 

2014 

2015 

2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

TOTAL 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

DG: ECHO – Humanitarian Aid and 
Civil Protection 

(cid:121) Human resources  
(cid:121) Other administrative expenditure  

TOTAL DG ECHO – Humanitarian 
Aid and Civil Protection 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

48,314 

4,2 

Appropriations  

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

52,514 

TOTAL appropriations 
under HEADING 5 
of the multiannual financial framework 

(Total commitments  
= Total payments) 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

7,502 

52,514 

2014 

2015 

2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

2021 and 
subsequent years 

TOTA

TOTAL appropriations  
under HEADINGS 1 to 5 
of the multiannual financial framework  

Commitments 

76,502 

78,502 

79,502 

80,502 

81,502 

83,502 

85,502 

Payments 

62,502 

71,502 

71,502 

72,502 

73,502 

74,502 

75,502 

NA 

64,000 

EN 

57 

5

5

E

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3.2.2.  Estimated impact on operational appropriations  

–  (cid:133)  The proposal/initiative does not require the use of operational appropriations  

–  (cid:57)  The proposal/initiative requires the use of operational appropriations, as explained below: 

Indicate 
objectives 
and outputs 

Year 
2014 

Year 
2015 

Year 
2016 

Year 
2017 

OUTPUTS 

Commitment appropriations in EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

Year 
2018 

Year 
2019 

Year 
2020 

TOTAL 

Type 
output48 

(cid:216) 

Averag
r
e
e cost  
b
m
of the 
u
output  N

s
t
u
p
t
u
o

f
o

Cost 

r
e
b
m
u
N

s
t
u
p
t
u
o

f
o

Cost 

r
e
b
m
u
N

s
t
u
p
t
u
o

f
o

Cost 

r
e
b
m
u
N

s
t
u
p
t
u
o

f
o

Cost 

r
e
b
m
u
N

s
t
u
p
t
u
o

f
o

Cost 

r
e
b
m
u
N

s
t
u
p
t
u
o

f
o

Cost 

r
e
b
m
u
N

s
t
u
p
t
u
o

f
o

Cost 

Total 
number 
of 
outputs 

Total  
cost 

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE No 1 - 
Prevention49… 

Number 
projects 
financed 
prevention

of 

for 

Studies 

Grant 
agreements 

Number  of 
contracts 

0.3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

70 

21 

0.1 

5 

0.5 

5 

0.5 

5 

0.5 

5 

0.5 

5 

0.5 

5 

0.5 

5 

0.5 

35 

3.5 

Sub-total for specific objective N°1 

15 

3.5 

15 

3.5 

15 

3.5 

15 

3.5 

15 

3.5 

15 

3.5 

15 

3.5 

105 

24.5 

48 
49 

Outputs are products and services to be supplied (e.g.: number of student exchanges financed, number of km of roads built, etc.). 
As described in Section 1.4.2. "Specific objective(s)…" 

EN 

58 

E

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
SPECIFIC  OBJECTIVE  No  2  - 
Preparedness 

0.5 

50 

25 

54 

27 

56 

28 

58 

29 

60 

30 

64 

32 

62 

31 

404 

202 

Grant 
agreements 
and 
contracts 

of 

Number 
projects 
financed 
preparedness 
(incl.  training 
and exercises)

for 

Early warning 
systems 

Emergency 
Response 
Capacity 

Number  of 
adm. 
Arrang. 

Number  of 
grant 
agreements 
+contracts 

0.4 

5 

2 

5 

2 

5 

2 

5 

2 

5 

2 

5 

2 

5 

2 

35 

14 

1 

16 

16 

16 

16 

16 

16 

16 

16 

16 

16 

16 

16 

19 

19 

115 

115 

Sub-total for specific objective N°2 

71 

43 

75 

45 

77 

46 

79 

47 

81 

48 

85 

50 

86 

52 

554 

331 

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE No 3 – 
Response50… 

Deployment 
of experts  

Number of 
contracts 

0.005 

200
51 

1 

200 

1 

200 

1 

200 

1 

200 

1 

200 

1 

200 

1 

1400 

7 

50 
51 

As described in Section 1.4.2. "Specific objective(s)…" 
Based on estimated number of 20 disasters per year and estimated average of 10 experts per disaster. 

EN 

59 

E

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
0.250 

2 

0.5 

2 

0.5 

2 

0.5 

2 

0.5 

2 

0.5 

2 

0.5 

2 

0.5 

14 

3.5 

0.3 

7052

21 

70 

21 

70 

21 

70 

21 

70 

21 

70 

21 

70 

21 

490 

147 

of 

 Number 
transport 
operations 
inside the EU

 Number 
transport 
operations 
outside 
EU 

of 

the 

Grant 
agreement/ 
service 
contract 

Grant 
agreement/ 
service 
contract 

Sub-total for specific objective N°3 

272 

22.5 

272 

22.5 

272 

22.5 

272 

22.5 

272 

22.5 

272 

22.5 

272 

22.5 

1904 

157.5 

TOTAL COST 

358 

69 

362 

71 

364 

72 

366 

73 

368 

74 

372 

76 

373 

78 

2563 

513 

52 

Based on estimated number of 7 flights per disaster outside EU and an estimated average of 10 disasters per year. 

EN 

60 

E

 
  
 
                                                 
3.2.3.  Estimated impact on appropriations of an administrative nature 

3.2.3.1.  Summary  

–  (cid:133)  The  proposal/initiative  does  not 

require 

the  use  of  administrative 

appropriations  

–  (cid:57)  The  proposal/initiative  requires  the  use  of  administrative  appropriations,  as 

explained below: 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

2014 53 

2015 

2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

TOTAL 

HEADING 5 
of the multiannual 
financial framework 

Human resources 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

6,902 

48,314 

0,550 

0,550 

0,550 

0,550 

0,550 

0,550 

0,550 

3.85 

7,452 

7,452 

7,452 

7,452 

7,452 

7,452 

7,452 

52,164 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

0,6 

4,2 

Other  administrative 
expenditure  

Subtotal HEADING 5 
of the multiannual 
financial framework  

Outside HEADING 554 
of the multiannual 
financial framework  

Human resources  

Other expenditure  
of an administrative 
nature 

Subtotal  
outside HEADING 5 
of the multiannual 
financial framework  

TOTAL 

8,052 

8,052 

8,052 

8,052 

8,052 

8,052 

8,052 

56,364 

53 
54 

Year N is the year in which implementation of the proposal/initiative starts. 
Technical  and/or  administrative  assistance  and  expenditure  in  support  of  the  implementation  of  EU 
programmes and/or actions (former "BA" lines), indirect research, direct research. 

EN 

61 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
EN 

62 

   EN 

 
3.2.3.2.  Estimated requirements of human resources  

3.2.3.3.  (cid:133) 

The proposal/initiative does not require the use of human resources  

–  (cid:57)  The  proposal/initiative  requires  the  use  of  human  resources,  as  explained 

below: 

Estimate to be expressed in full amounts (or at most to one decimal place) 

2014 

2015 

2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

(cid:121) Establishment plan posts (officials and temporary agents) 

23 01 01 01 (Headquarters and 
Commission’s Representation 
Offices) 

XX 01 01 02 (Delegations) 

XX 01 05 01 (Indirect research) 

10 01 05 01 (Direct research) 

35 

35 

35 

35 

35 

35 

35 

(cid:121) External personnel (in Full Time Equivalent unit: FTE)55 

36 

36 

36 

36 

36 

36 

36 

23 01 02 01 (CA, INT, SNE from the 
"global envelope") 

XX 01 02 02 (CA, INT, JED, LA and 
SNE in the delegations) 

XX 01 04 
yy 56 

- at 
Headquarte
rs57 

- in 
delegations 

XX 01 05 02 (CA, INT, SNE - 
Indirect research) 

10 01 05 02 (CA, INT, SNE - Direct 
research) 

Other budget lines (specify) 

TOTAL 

71 

71 

71 

71 

71 

71 

71 

XX is the policy area or budget title concerned. 

The human resources required will be met by staff from the DG who are already assigned to 
management of the action and/or have been redeployed within the DG, together if necessary 
with any additional allocation which may be granted to the managing DG under the annual 
allocation procedure and in the light of budgetary constraints. 

Description of tasks to be carried out: 

Officials and temporary agents 

Management  of  grant  agreements  and  contracts;  implementation  and  follow-up  of 

55 

56 
57 

CA= Contract Agent; INT= agency staff ("Intérimaire"); JED= "Jeune Expert en Délégation" (Young 
Experts in Delegations); LA= Local Agent; SNE= Seconded National Expert;  
Under the ceiling for external personnel from operational appropriations (former "BA" lines). 
Essentially  for  Structural  Funds,  European  Agricultural  Fund  for  Rural  Development  (EAFRD)  and 
European Fisheries Fund (EFF). 

EN 

63 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
policy work; administrative support. 

External personnel 

Ensuring the running of the 24/7 Emergency Response Centre; necessary work on the 
field; administrative support. 

EN 

64 

   EN 

 
3.2.4.  Compatibility with the current multiannual financial framework  

–  (cid:57)  Proposal/initiative is compatible the current multiannual financial framework. 

–  (cid:133)  Proposal/initiative  will  entail  reprogramming  of  the  relevant  heading  in  the 

multiannual financial framework. 

Explain what reprogramming is required, specifying the budget lines concerned and the corresponding 
amounts. 

New Multiannual financial framework 2014-2020 as per Communication "A Budget 
for Europe 2020" (COM (2011)500 final) 

–  (cid:133)  Proposal/initiative requires application of the flexibility instrument or revision 

of the multiannual financial framework58. 

Explain what is required, specifying the headings and budget lines concerned and the corresponding 
amounts. 

3.2.5.  Third-party contributions  

–  The proposal/initiative provides for the co-financing estimated below: 

Appropriations in EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

2014 

2015 

2016 

2017 

2018 

2019 

2020 

Total 

0,650 

0,650 

0,650 

0,650 

0,650 

0,650 

0,650 

4,550 

0,126 

0,126 

0,126 

0,126 

0,126 

0,126 

0,126 

0,882 

0,776 

0,776 

0,776 

0,776 

0,776 

0,776 

0,776 

5,432 

countries 
EFTA 
contributions  on  budget 
line 230301 + 23030659 

Third  countries  paying 
to 
contribution 
participate  in  the  Civil 
Protection Mechanism60 

fees 

TOTAL 
cofinanced  

appropriations 

58 
59 
60 

See points 19 and 24 of the Interinstitutional Agreement. 
Based on the fees paid in 2011. 
Based on the fees paid in 2011 (only Croatia at that time) 

EN 

65 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
                                                 
3.3. 

Estimated impact on revenue  

–  (cid:57)  Proposal/initiative has no financial impact on revenue. 

–  (cid:133)  Proposal/initiative has the following financial impact: 

(cid:133) 

(cid:133) 

on own resources  

on miscellaneous revenue  

Appropriations 
available for the 
ongoing budget 
year 

Budget revenue line: 

Article …………. 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

Impact of the proposal/initiative61 

Year 
N 

Year 
N+1 

Year 
N+2 

Year 
N+3 

… insert as many columns as necessary 
in order to reflect the duration of the 
impact (see point 1.6) 

For miscellaneous assigned revenue, specify the budget expenditure line(s) affected. 

Specify the method for calculating the impact on revenue. 

61 

As regards traditional own resources (customs duties, sugar levies), the amounts indicated must be net 
amounts, i.e. gross amounts after deduction of 25% for collection costs. 

EN 

66 

   EN