Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION establishing the position to be adopted, on behalf of the Union, within the International Sugar Council as regards the extension of the International Sugar Agreement 1992
Date: 2012-12-19
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: commodity agreement, renewal of an agreement, sugar, trade agreement (EU)

EUROPEAN 
COMMISSION 

Brussels, 19.12.2012  
COM(2012) 780 final 

2012/0363 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

establishing the position to be adopted, on behalf of the Union, within the International 
Sugar Council as regards the extension of the International Sugar Agreement 1992 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

The  International  Sugar  Agreement  1992,  (hereinafter:  the  “Agreement”)  was  concluded  by 
the  Community  by  Decision  92/580/EEC1  and  entered  into  force  on  1  January  1993  for  a 
period of three years until 31 December 1995. Since then it has been regularly extended for 
further  periods  of  two  years.  The  Agreement  was  extended  last  time  by  decision  of  the 
International Sugar Council in June 2011 and remains into force until 31 December 2013. 

A further extension of the Agreement by up to two years is in the interest of the Union. 

That  extension  of  the  Agreement  entails  the  prolongation  of  the  EU  contribution  to  the 
administrative budget of the Agreement. That contribution is budgeted under item 05 06 01 of 
the EU budget (International agricultural agreements). 

The purpose of this proposal is to seek the Council’s authorisation to the Commission to vote, 
on behalf of the Union, in favour of the extension of the Agreement up to 31 December 2015 
within the International Sugar Council. 

1 

OJ L 379, 23.12.1992, p. 15. 

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2012/0363 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

establishing the position to be adopted, on behalf of the Union, within the International 
Sugar Council as regards the extension of the International Sugar Agreement 1992 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 207 in conjunction with Article 218(9) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

The  International  Sugar  Agreement  1992  was  concluded  by  the  Community  by 
Council Decision 92/580/EEC2 and entered into force on 1 January 1993 for a period 
of three years until 31 December 1995. Since then, it has been regularly extended for 
further  periods  of  two  years.  That  Agreement  was  last  extended  by  decision  of  the 
International  Sugar  Council  in  June  2011  and  remains  into  force  until  31  December 
2013.  A  further  extension  is  in  the  interest  of  the  Union.  The  Commission,  which 
represents the Union in the International Sugar Council, should therefore be authorised 
to vote in favour of such extension, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:  

Article 1 

The position to be taken by the Union within the International Sugar Council shall be to vote 
in favour of the extension of the International Sugar Agreement, 1992 for a further period of 
up to 2 years. 

The Commission is hereby authorised to express this position within the International Sugar 
Council. 

2 

OJ L 379, 23.12.1992, p. 15. 

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Article 2 

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

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LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT 

Policy area: Agricultural and Rural Development 

Activity: International aspects of Agricultural and Rural Development policy area 

TITLE OF ACTION: EXTENSION OF THE INTERNATIONAL SUGAR AGREEMENT 1992 

1. 

BUDGET LINE + HEADING: 

Heading 4 – The EU as a global partner 

05 06 01: International agricultural agreements 

2. 

OVERALL FIGURES 

2.1. 

Total allocation for action (Operational appropriations): EUR million 0.882  

2.2. 

Period of application: 1.1.2014 to 31.12.2015 

2.3. 

Overall  multi-annual  estimate  on  expenditure  (EUR  million),  subject  to  the 
approval of Budget 2014 and 2015 by the Budgetary Authority 

Commitments 

Payments 

2014 

0.430 

0.430 

2015 

0.452 

0.452 

Total 

0.882 

0.882 

2.4. 

Compatibility with the financial programming and the financial perspective 

X 

Proposal compatible with the existing financial programming 

2.5. 

Financial impact on revenue 

X  No financial implications (involves technical aspects regarding implementation 

of a measure). 

3. 

BUDGET CHARACTERISTICS 

Type of 
expenditure 

New 

EFTA 
participation 

Participation 
applicant countries 

Heading Financial 
Perspective 

Comp 

Diff 

NO 

NO 

NO 

4 The EU as a 
global partner 

4. 

LEGAL BASIS 

Article 207 in conjunction with Article 218(9) of the Treaty (TFEU). 

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5. 

DESCRIPTION AND GROUNDS 

5.1. 

Need for Union intervention 

Because  of  its  economic  importance,  especially  in  the  agricultural  sector,  the  EU 
must  be  represented  in  international  agricultural  agreements,  which  represent  an 
important  means  for  following  global  developments  and  defending  Union  interests 
for the products concerned. 

The  payment  of  EU  membership  contributions  enables  the  objectives  of  the 
International Sugar Agreement to be attained. The International Sugar Organisation, 
which is responsible for administering the Agreement, promotes the objectives of the 
Agreement,  such  as  international  cooperation,  exchange  of  statistical  information, 
forecasting market trends, etc. It is therefore in the interests of the EU to be a part of 
the Agreement. 

The membership contributions are determined on an annual basis and are due for as 
long as the EU is a member of the Agreement. 

It is clear that if the EU had to carry out on its own the same actions as are carried 
out  by  the  ISO,  the  total  cost  of  these  would  be  much  greater  than  the  cost  of  the 
membership contributions. 

5.2. 

Actions envisaged and arrangements for budget intervention 

The  EU  pays  membership  contributions  on  an  annual  basis  for  the  International 
Sugar  Organization.  The  annual  contributions  are  due  as  long  as  the  EU  remains  a 
signatory of the Agreement. 

The  European  Commission  participates  fully  in  the  activities  of  the  ISO  and  takes 
full advantage of the benefits of membership. 

6. 

FINANCIAL IMPACT 

6.1. 

Total financial impact on Operational appropriations  

Commitments  (to  the  3rd  decimal  place):  EUR  0.882  million  for  the  period  of  two 
years, i.e. 0.430 for 2014 and 0.452 for 2015. 

6.2. 

Calculation 

The contribution of the member countries is fixed in proportion to the number of the 
votes attributed to the member concerned and proportionally to its importance in the 
international market. 

The number of votes allocated to the EU is estimated at 550 out of 2000 for 2014 and 
2015, i.e. the period of the extension. The estimated contribution per vote for 2014 is 
EUR 782 resulting in a EU contribution of EUR 0.430 million. 

For 2015, taking into consideration the adjustment of the price per vote (EUR 821), 
the  estimated  cost  is  EUR  0.452  million.  These  amounts  already  include  a  10% 
safety  margin  (exchange  rates,  unexpected  changes  in  the  organisation,  etc.).  We 
estimated an exchange rate of EUR 1.25 = GBP 1 for the calculations. 

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7. 

IMPACT ON STAFF AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENDITURE 

7.1. 

Impact on human resources 

Staff to be assigned to management  
of the action using existing resources 

Description of tasks deriving  
from the action 

Types of post 

Number of 
permanent posts 

Number of 
temporary posts 

Permanent 
officials or 
temporary staff 

A 
B 
C 

Other human 
resources 

Total 

0.2 
0.1 
– 

– 

0.3 

– 
– 
– 

– 

– 

Total 

0.2 
0.1 
– 

– 

0.3 

7.2. 

Overall financial impact of human resources 

Preparation for attendance at and 
follow up from meetings of the ISO  

Type of human resources 

Amount EUR 

Method of calculation 

Officials 
Temporary staff 

Other human resources 

36 600 

0.3 x 122 000 

Total 

36 600 

8. 

FOLLOW-UP AND EVALUATION 

8.1. 

Follow-up arrangements 

The ISO activities are closely followed by its members and the Commission fully participates 
at the regular meetings of the ISO. A report of ISO activities is regularly published. 

9. 

ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES 

Payments will only be made directly to the bank account of the ISO on receipt of a written 
request, after verification that the request coincides with the figure agreed by the Council of 
the International Sugar Agreement. 

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