Programming document 2020–22.
Date: 2020-03-06
Institutions: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction
Subjects: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, European social policy, drug addiction, financial planning, operational programme, staff

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Programming document 
2020–22

2020
2021
2022

 
  Contents

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4 

6 

 Foreword by the EMCDDA Director

 Abbreviations

 Mission statement

7 

Section I

7  General context

7 

Responding to EU needs in 2020-22

11 

Section II

11  Multiannual programming 2020-22

11 

 Introduction: the EMCDDA’s strategic approach to 2025

13  Multiannual objectives

14 

14 

17 

19 

23 

23 

23 

 Multiannual programme

 Main area 1: Health

 Main area 2: Security

 Main area 3: Business drivers

 Human and financial resources outlook for 2020-22

 Overview of the past and current situation

 Resources programming for 2020-22

27 

Section III

27 

EMCDDA work programme 2020

27 

27 

27 

 Executive summary

Activities

 Main area 1: Health

36  Main area 2: Security

40  Main area 3: Business drivers

48 

ANNEXES

48 

 Annex I. Estimated budget allocation for the implementation of the EMCDDA 2020 work programme

49 

 Annex II. Human and financial resources (tables 2020-22)

53 

55 

62 

63 

64 

73 

77 

78 

79 

 Annex III. Human resources outlook and staff evolution

 Annex IV. Human resources policies

 Annex V. Buildings

 Annex VI. Privileges and immunities

 Annex VII. Monitoring and evaluation

 Annex VIII. Risk factors identified for delivery of the 2020 work programme

 Annex IX. Procurement plan 2020

 Annex X. Organisation chart 2020

 Annex XI. List of the beneficiaries of Reitox grants (national focal points)

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 Annex XII. Technical assistance projects

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
l   Foreword by the EMCDDA Director

I am proud to introduce the Programming Document (PD) of the European Monitoring Centre for 
Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) for the period 2020-22.

The document, which translates the long-term priorities defined by the EMCDDA Strategy 2025 
into short-term operational priorities, marks the end of the first strategic roadmap (towards 
2020) and the beginning of the second roadmap (towards 2025). It will therefore bring a time for 
mid-term assessment of the progress made in fulfilling our ambitious goals and objectives, while 
reflecting on the way ahead and consequently defining our next key milestones, for 2021-25. This 
will coincide with the end of the current EU drug strategy (2013-20) and its second action plan 
(2017-20), and possibly preparation at the EU level of a new drug policy document, which will 
make our assessment and reflection even more relevant.

Among the many factors that will shape our work in the new programming period, the drug 
situation itself will play a critical role. Keeping pace with this increasingly sophisticated 
phenomenon, and remaining policy and practice relevant, will continue to be our focus in 2020-
22. This will require ongoing review and further innovation around our information collection and 
analysis, in close collaboration with our networks, the Reitox network of national focal points 
in particular, and enriching our collaborations with other partners in the European Union and 
beyond. One example here is the EMCDDA’s partnership with third countries for implementing 
two major projects: the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance Project 7 and the EU4Monitoring 
Drugs project (in 2019-21).

Some of the key results of this sustained effort will be new editions of our leading publications, 
such as the second Health and Social Responses to Drug Problems: a European Guide (in 
2021), the fourth EMCDDA-Europol EU Drug Markets Report (in 2022) and the annual European 
Drug Report package (in a reshaped format), which will be complemented by smaller, focused 
analyses on emerging topics.

In an era when digital transformation becomes vital for the ability of any organisation to deliver 
value to its stakeholders, we will continue to pursue the use of new technologies for business 
optimisation, in all areas, including our communication activities. This will use the results of 
ongoing initiatives, such as the ‘Customers’ needs’ project, which will start bearing fruit from 
2020 on.

However, although the EMCDDA has been receiving unanimous praise for its excellent work and 
its added value to the EU and its Member States, which have been fully acknowledged by our 
stakeholders, including in the fourth external evaluation carried out by the European Commission 
in 2018, the agency is facing a difficult financial prospect for the years ahead.

And while the new EU multiannual financial framework for 2021-27 is still to be defined, the 
EMCDDA plans to review its business model, in order to ensure that it can sustainably deliver on 
its strategic commitments, in line with the resources made available to it.

In 2020 we will be celebrating 25 years since the agency became operational in 1995, which 
we proudly call ’25 years of drug monitoring’. At this important time in the life of the EMCDDA, 
and notwithstanding the challenges ahead, we aim to consolidate our position as the leading 
European source of information on drugs, and to continue playing a key role in supporting the EU 
in working with global partners, and transferring EU knowledge to priority third countries, thus 
supporting relevant EU policies in these areas.

Alexis Goosdeel 
Director, EMCDDA

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l   Abbreviations

AHCC

BPP

CA

CC

CEOS

CEPOL

authority authorised to conclude the contract

Best Practice Portal

contract agent

candidate country

Conditions of employment of other servants of the EU

European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Training

CHAFEA

Consumer, Health, Agriculture and Food Executive Agency

CND

COM

COSI

DG

DRD

DRID

ECDC

ECHA

EDMR

EDND

EDR

EFSA

EMA

Commission on Narcotic Drugs

Communication Unit

Standing Committee on Operational Cooperation on Internal Security

Directorate-General

drug-related deaths (indicator)

drug-related infectious diseases (indicator)

European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control

European Chemicals Agency

European Drug Markets Report

European Database on New Drugs

European Drug Report

European Food Safety Authority

European Medicines Agency

EMCDDA

European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction

EMSA

ENP

ERISSP

ESCAPE

EU

European Maritime Safety Agency

European Neighbourhood Policy

European Reporting Instrument on Sites related to Synthetic Production

European Syringe Collection and Analysis Project Enterprise

European Union

EU4MD

EU4Monitoring Drugs

Euro-DEN

European Drug Emergencies Network

Eurojust

Europol

EUPC

EWS

EXO

FG

FRA

the European Union’s Judicial Cooperation Unit

European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation

European Prevention Curriculum

Early Warning System

Executive Office

function group

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights

Frontex

European Border and Coast Guard Agency

FTE

GPS

HCV

HDG

HEA

HFP

HIV

HR

IAS

ICJ

ICT

IPA

full-time equivalent

general population survey

hepatitis C virus

horizontal working party on drugs

Public Health Unit

heads of national focal points

human immunodeficiency virus

human resources

Internal Audit Service

International Court of Justice

information and communications technology

Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance

IPA 7

Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance Project 7

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22JHA

KI

KPI

Justice and Home Affairs

key indicator

key performance indicator

logframe

logical framework

MASP

MFF

NEWS

NFP

NPS

OAP

OCG

OSI

PCC

PD

PDU

PI

PWID

RDF

Reitox

SAS

SCORE

SMART

SNE

SOCTA

SWP

TA

TDI

TEDI

THC

UK

UN

UNODC

UNSCR

WHO

multiannual strategic plan

multiannual financial framework

national early warning system

national focal point

new psychoactive substances

Operational Action Plan

organised crime group

open source information

potential candidate country

programming document

problem drug use (indicator)

performance indicator

people who inject drugs

Reitox development framework

European Information Network on Drugs and Drug Addiction

Supply reduction and new drugs unit

Sewage Analysis Core Group Europe

Synthetics Monitoring: Analyses, Reporting and Trends

Seconded national expert

Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment

standing working party

temporary agent

treatment demand indicator

Trans European Drug Information group

tetrahydrocannabinol

United Kingdom

United Nations

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

United Nations Security Council Resolution

World Health Organization

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Mission statement

Independent, science-based information is a vital resource to help Europe understand the nature 
of its drug problems and better respond to them. It was upon this premise, and in the face of 
an escalating drugs phenomenon, that the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug 
Addiction (EMCDDA) was established in 1993. Inaugurated in Lisbon in 1995, it is one of the 
European Union’s (EU’s) decentralised agencies.

Building on the EMCDDA’s Founding Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1920/2006) as amended 
(Regulation (EU) 2017/2101, as regards information exchange on, and an early warning system 
and risk assessment procedure for, new psychoactive substances), Strategy 2025 (1) defines the 
agency’s current mission and vision statements.

l  Mission

The EMCDDA exists to support evidence-based decisions and actions at EU and national levels 
by providing factual, objective, reliable and comparable information concerning drugs and 
drug addiction, and their consequences. The EMCDDA’s mission is therefore grounded in the 
consensus that sound information is a prerequisite for developing effective policies in the drugs 
area.

l  Vision

The EMCDDA’s vision is a healthier and a more secure Europe, achieved through better informed 
drug policy and action.

To do this effectively we must constantly strive to respond to the needs of our primary customers, 
who can be defined as:

■■ EU institutions;

■■ national decision-makers/policymakers; and

■■ professionals working in the drugs field.

Beyond meeting the information needs of our primary customers, to address our mandate 
we also need to engage with other stakeholders, which include academic institutions and 
researchers; the general public, civil society and those affected by drug problems; and 
international organisations and third countries.

l  Values

The EMCDDA is committed to the EU and its values. Beyond these, we have identified a set of 
core values to inform all aspects of our work, inspire our staff in their professional performance, 
inform our future policies and guide our interactions with stakeholders and partners.

Our four core values are:

■■

■■

scientific excellence;

integrity and impartiality;

■■ customer focus and service orientation; and

■■ efficiency and sustainability.

(1) 

Available at http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/work-programmes-and-strategies/strategy-2025_en

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Section I
General context

l  Responding to EU needs in 2020-22

l  Introduction

This programming document (PD) covers the period 2020-22. 
It is structured around the three main areas of work defined 
in the EMCDDA Strategy 2025, namely health, security and 
business drivers.

The concrete priorities of work are defined every year within 
these main areas, and they are presented in the annual work 
programme, which is part of the PD. For PD 2020-22, this is 
the 2020 work programme, which is presented in Section III of 
the document.

These annual priorities are embedded in the overall priorities 
defined in the EMCDDA recast Regulation, which form 
the bedrock of this PD 2020-22. These are as follows: (a) 
monitoring the state of the drugs problem, in particular using 
epidemiological indicators, and monitoring emerging trends; 
(b) monitoring the solutions applied to drug-related problems, 
providing information on best practices in the Member 
States and facilitating information exchange among them; (c) 
assessing the risks of new psychoactive substances (NPS) and 
maintaining a rapid information system; and (d) developing 
tools and instruments to help Member States to monitor and 
evaluate their national policies, and the European Commission 
to monitor and evaluate EU policies.

l  The role of the EMCDDA

As defined in the EMCDDA Strategy 2025, the agency’s three 
main customer groups are the EU institutions (European 
Parliament, Council of the EU, European Commission); national 
decision-makers/policymakers; and professionals working in 
the drugs field.

The ultimate purpose of the work performed by the EMCDDA 
is therefore to inform sound decisions in the field of drugs, at 
the levels of the EU and its Member States. The results of the 
data collection, monitoring and analysis process provide the 
evidence that policymakers and professionals from across the 
EU need to tackle the drug phenomenon effectively.

This evidence is communicated by the EMCDDA through 
various means, depending on the needs of its customers. The 
most important means are the products and services that 
the agency provides to them. These are complemented by 
a range of knowledge exchange activities, which include the 
dissemination of best practice as well as capacity-building and 
training initiatives.

l 

 Developments that will shape our work

Dynamic drug phenomenon

As our analyses show, the drug phenomenon is constantly 
evolving. Increasing numbers of overdose deaths, the 
continued availability of NPS and the rising health threat of 
highly potent synthetic opioids are only a few of the issues of 
growing concern, as highlighted by the EMCDDA’s most recent 
annual overview of the drug situation, European Drug Report 
2019: Trends and Developments (2).

NPS or ’new drugs’, in particular, remain a considerable public 
health challenge in Europe. Not covered by international 
drug controls, they encompass a broad range of synthetic 
substances, including cannabinoids, cathinones, opioids 
and benzodiazepines. By the end of 2018, the EMCDDA was 
monitoring more than 730 NPS (compared with around 350 in 
2013). In view of these developments, the role of the EMCDDA 
in coordinating and operating the EU Early Warning System 
on new psychoactive substances (EWS) and risk assessment 
has been strengthened through new legislation that became 
applicable on 23 November 2018 (see a later section of this 
General context, on ‘Key institutional developments with an 
impact on the EMCDDA’s future work’).

Innovations in drugs production are occurring in parallel with 
increasing sophistication of drug markets. These markets 
now represent one of the key threats to the security of the EU. 
Use of the internet in this context creates particular concern. 
As shown in the third EMCDDA-Europol strategic analysis, 
EU Drug Markets Report (EDMR) (3), which was published 
on 26 November 2019, the drug market is becoming ever 

(2)  Available at http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/edr/trends-
developments/2019_en 
(3)  Available at http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/joint-publications/
eu-drug-markets-report-2019_en

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more globally linked and digitally enabled, with consumers 
increasingly able to access drugs through the surface web, 
the darknet and social media applications. Furthermore, the 
internet provides not only new ways to access customers and 
suppliers, but also opportunities to enhance the efficiency and 
security of offline criminal activities.

and internationally, which could have an impact on the 
European situation. This work will be guided by the EMCDDA 
International Cooperation Framework adopted in December 
2017 by the Management Board, which sets the direction 
for the EMCDDA’s work with International partners and third 
countries.

A growing issue with a potential impact on drug use in Europe 
is the migration flow into the EU. As presented in the first 
edition of the European guide Health and Social Responses 
to Drug Problems (4), which was published by the EMCDDA in 
2017, many migrants have lower rates of substance use than 
their host communities, but some may be more vulnerable to 
substance misuse for reasons such as trauma, unemployment 
and poverty, loss of family and social support, and the move 
to a normatively lenient setting. These groups may be at risk 
of developing drug problems. There is a need, therefore, to 
increase awareness of vulnerabilities and reduce the social 
exclusion of these people. Monitoring drug use among 
migrant groups may also become necessary in the future, to 
understand the situation and support formulation of adequate 
responses.

As this example shows, the drug problems facing Europe 
are increasingly influenced by developments occurring 
internationally, which makes understanding of the global 
context critical for our strategic analyses of the EU drug 
situation. A further example is the changes in the regulatory 
framework for cannabis that are taking place in parts of the 
Americas and elsewhere, which have generated interest 
among policymakers and the public in Europe. The extent 
to which developments occurring elsewhere are directly 
transferable to the European context is unclear; however, 
the EU drug-monitoring system must remain alert to these 
developments and anticipate possible future scenarios.

Within this complex environment, a core challenge for the 
EMCDDA is to ensure that its tools and methods remain fit for 
purpose in relation to the changing nature of the European 
drug phenomenon and accompanying information needs. This 
requires regular review and revision of existing instruments, 
as well as the development of new approaches. Anticipating 
future challenges, thereby allowing the agency to develop 
a long-term plan for instrument development, will require 
investment. The agency also needs to develop more complex 
reporting and analytical models that reflect drug problems 
defined by the consumption of multiple substances, including 
not only alcohol but also medicines and a rising number of 
NPS carrying potentially severe health risks. Furthermore, 
as mentioned above, the European drug problem is more 
and more linked to, and influenced by, global developments. 
Therefore, it will become increasingly important to identify 
trends and developments occurring in neighbouring countries, 

(4) 

Available at http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/responses-guide

To achieve this, maintaining, consolidating and further 
developing the quality and comparability of the data and 
information collected through the Reitox network of national 
focal points (NFPs) and other sources of information 
remains a central priority for our work; this is, however, 
resource dependent. This work will be guided by the Reitox 
Development Framework adopted in December 2017, which 
sets the direction of travel for the Reitox network for the period 
up to 2025, and describes how this will contribute to the goals 
defined in the EMCDDA Strategy 2025. Furthermore, to keep 
pace with developments and the needs of our stakeholders, 
the EMCDDA should continue to identify and use appropriate 
complementary sources of information to keep its knowledge 
base up to date.

EU drug policy context

The need for factual, objective, reliable and comparable 
information reflects a European consensus that, in a sensitive 
and complex policy area such as drugs, effective actions have 
to be based on evidence of the nature of the problem and 
what has been shown to work, rather than on moral or value 
judgements. Moreover, cooperation, coordination and common 
action are facilitated by comparing, contrasting and sharing 
national experiences.

The EMCDDA is committed to providing the evidence and 
information resources necessary to meet these objectives and 
we are proud that, over the past two decades, our work has 
both helped to support the development of a more rational 
and effective approach to drug problems across the EU and 
facilitated a more cohesive policy dialogue on this complex and 
important issue.

In 2020-22, the EMCDDA will make an important contribution 
to implementing EU policy objectives and to providing ongoing 
high-quality expertise to its stakeholders, especially to the 
European Commission, other EU institutions and the EU 
Member States. At EU level, the EMCDDA will contribute to the 
implementation of the final year of the EU action plan 2017-
20, as required. The agency is also providing support to the 
European Commission in the final evaluation of the EU drug 
strategy 2013-20. Technical support will be also provided, 
as requested, for reflection on the EU strategy on drugs after 
2020.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22The EMCDDA, within its mandate and available resources, 
will contribute to European efforts to improve reporting at 
international level. Important developments in this area include 
the follow-up of the annual report questionnaire revision 
process and the implementation of the multiannual work plan 
of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) implementing 
the 2019 Ministerial Declaration. Work also needs to consider 
the relevant links with the UN Sustainable Development Goals 
and support the global health sector strategies on human 
immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and viral hepatitis, endorsed by 
World Health Organization (WHO) Member States to guide 
actions over the period 2016-21.

The agency will continue its close cooperation and partnership 
with WHO and the European Centre for Disease Prevention 
and Control (ECDC) by providing data for policymaking and 
intervention planning in the field of prevention of infectious 
diseases among people who inject drugs (PWID) and will 
help the European Commission in its efforts to support 
implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, by 
monitoring, reporting and reviewing progress towards their 
delivery in the EU. The EMCDDA will support countries in 
reporting on their progress towards goals and targets of 
the health sector’s response to viral hepatitis in the WHO 
European Region (progress report 2022).

In terms of security, the agency will also fulfil the obligations 
arising from the EU agenda on security 2015-20 and it will 
contribute, as required, to the EU policy cycle for organised 
and serious international crime for 2018-21, which represents 
the framework within which the EU Member States coordinate 
common priorities and operational action.

The agency will also fulfil the obligations arising from the EU 
Western Balkans strategy and support the implementation of 
the related flagship initiatives to strengthen the rule of law and 
reinforce engagement on security and migration.

Other relevant EU developments

This new programming period will run under new leadership 
at the level of the EU institutions. In 2019, a new European 
Parliament was elected, and the European Commission now 
has a new composition. These changes may affect where the 
drug phenomenon is placed on the EU policy agenda for 2020 
and beyond.

Another key development is the negotiation for withdrawal 
of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union, which 
has been now extended until 31 January 2020. Although 
the possible consequences of this withdrawal are, to a large 
extent, currently unclear, some preliminary analysis carried 
out at the level of the agency suggests that, should the UK 
not retain its membership of the EMCDDA, our scientific work 

and operational capacity would undoubtedly be affected. The 
UK is a major contributor of data to the EMCDDA, and it also 
has a large pool of high-quality experts in areas relevant to our 
activities. Finally, the UK’s departure from the EU is expected 
to have important financial implications (see the point on 
resources below).

Key institutional developments with an impact on the 
EMCDDA’s future work

In November 2018, new legislation — Regulation (EU) 
2017/2101 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
15 November 2017 amending Regulation (EC) No 1920/2006 
as regards information exchange on, and an early warning 
system and risk assessment procedure for, new psychoactive 
substances — became applicable, thus replacing Council 
Decision 2005/387/JHA. This new legislation strengthens the 
EU Early Warning System on NPS and the risk assessment 
mechanism. In addition to new tasks, it entails shorter 
deadlines for the completion of core obligations. It also 
requires additional information and new working procedures in 
the operation of the EWS and the risk assessment mechanism.

A key development with a significant impact on this 
programming period is the fourth external evaluation of the 
EMCDDA, which was carried out by the European Commission 
in 2018. The purpose of this exercise has been to evaluate 
the agency’s success in implementing the three-year strategy 
and work programme for 2016-18, as well as the previous 
strategy and work programme for 2013-15, and to formulate 
recommendations for the future. The outcome of this external 
evaluation will shape the medium- to long-term work of the 
EMCDDA.

Furthermore, a mid-term assessment of Strategy 2025 will 
take place in 2020. The exercise will measure the progress 
made by the EMCDDA in reaching the key milestones set up 
in Roadmap 2020, and determine if the agency is on track to 
achieve its long-term strategic objectives. The findings of this 
review will inform the new roadmap, to 2025, and reshape, 
as needed, our work during the second half of this new 
programming period.

A strategic analysis will be carried out in the context of 
the preparation of Roadmap 2025, and a review of the 
EMCDDA business model will be also completed during 
this programming period. These exercises will be informed 
by, among other things, the outcome of the fourth external 
evaluation of the EMCDDA, the results of the evaluations of the 
EU Drug Strategy and Action Plans, and the Futures exercise 
(see Main area 1: Health, for details).

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Resources

A key element of the implementation of this 3-year 
programming document will be the resources available to 
the EMCDDA during this period, and also to our national data 
providers in the Member States.

As presented in Section II.3, ‘Human and financial resources 
outlook for 2020-22’, in the past 6 years the EMCDDA has 
been confronted with a substantial reduction, in real terms, of 
the resources made available to it in order to perform its tasks.

During this time the agency, through the application of a series 
of measures that were meant to maximise the use of its 
reduced resources, has managed to successfully implement 
its work programmes and continue to deliver high-quality 
results (as evidenced by the last external evaluation, which 
was carried out by the European Commission in 2018). 
These measures, however, are no longer sufficient to ensure 
an adequate level of resourcing, particularly as far as the 
operational activities are concerned (i.e. the core business 
of the EMCDDA, namely the activities carried out within the 
scientific, communication and Reitox network management 
areas).

In this context, the EMCDDA has intensified its activities to 
communicate to its stakeholders the importance of the work 
carried out and the impact that insufficient funding of the 
agency will have on European drug monitoring. 

However, despite the full support received from the European 
Commission, the level of the EU contribution to be provided to 
the EMCDDA in 2020 (EUR 16 288 600) will be significantly 
lower than that requested by the agency (EUR 17 839 040).

The definition of the next EU multiannual financial framework 
(MFF), for 2021-27, will affect the EMCDDA’s resources and 
activities, as well as the operations required for planning and 
managing the resources available. No clear picture of this new 
framework was available at the time of preparing this draft PD 
2020-22.

Nevertheless, there is increasing concern that resources at 
EU level, and implicitly the EMCDDA budget beyond 2020, 
could substantially decrease as a result of the UK’s withdrawal 
from the EU. Should this scenario become reality, the 
EMCDDA would need to make important internal changes and 
significantly adjust its planning to cope with the situation.

In the light of these developments, the main challenge for the 
EMCDDA is to remain sustainable in the long term. Work to 
be carried out in 2020-22 is presented in this programming 
document.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Section II
Multiannual programming 2020-22

l   Introduction: the EMCDDA’s strategic 

approach to 2025

The EMCDDA Strategy 2025 defines two ambitious long-term 
goals: first, to contribute to a healthier Europe and, second, to 
contribute to a more secure Europe. These core goals naturally 
form the two pillars on which the strategy is built: health and 
security. They also define the two core areas of work of PD 
2020-22.

Each of the two long-term goals is articulated through four 
strategic objectives (see Figure 1 and Section II.1, ‘Multiannual 
objectives’). These objectives identify at strategic level the 
main areas of focus for taking forward work in each pillar/
main area of work. They were developed by bringing together 
an analysis of three key factors shaping the EMCDDA’s future 
work: first, the changing nature of the drug phenomenon; 
second, the challenges that these changes bring to our current 
business model; and, third, the implications of these changes 
for the needs of our customers.

FIGURE 1
The EMCDDA strategic approach

Evidence on drugs: for a healthier and more secure Europe

Goal

A healthier Europe

Goal

A more secure Europe

EMCDDA stakeholders
(customers)

ort rapid responses
w health threats

p
p
u
S

e
o n

t

            Support policy initiativ

e
s

ort rapid responses
w security threats

p
p
u
S

e
 n
o
t

            Support policy a
            operational respo

n
d

n
s
e
s

Strategic objectives
Health

P
r
o
vid

o
v

s
n

e a comprehensive                                                                
erview of drug use                                                                     
            Support interventio
            consequences of dru
            to reduce

e
s

g u

Strategic objectives
Security

o
v
e

P
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o
vid
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u

e a comprehensive                                                                
w of drug markets                                                                
             of drug-related crim
             Understand conseq

Business drivers

Institutional

Partnership

Scientific capacity

Management

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                         
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                     
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                          
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                         
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
In addition, four business drivers, with their corresponding 
objectives, have been established in Strategy 2025 and 
now form the third main area of work of PD 2020-22. These 
business drivers define the resources and processes that 
the EMCDDA must have in place, and the conditions that the 
organisation has to meet, to achieve our strategic objectives 
and attain our long-term goals. They are therefore core 
elements of our strategic approach because they pinpoint the 
key factors for successful delivery.

The long-term strategic priorities are translated into 
programmatic, operational priorities by means of the EMCDDA 
programming documents, which are prepared by the agency 
and adopted by the EMCDDA Management Board every year.

These PDs are informed by the key milestones set up in 
Roadmap 2020, which guides the medium-term planning 
efforts of the agency. The next roadmap, for 2021-25, will 
be developed and submitted to the Management Board for 
adoption in 2020. By taking stock of the progress made in 
implementing Roadmap 2020, the new roadmap will define 
the remaining key milestones that are necessary to reach for 
the agency to accomplish its goals and objectives by 2025.

Together, the long-term strategy with its roadmaps, together 
with the PDs, constitutes the EMCDDA’s integrated strategic 
and operational framework (see Figure 2). This architecture 
provides the Management Board with the assurance that the 
PDs are fully grounded in the EMCDDA’s mandate and that 
they contribute to reaching the agency’s established long-term 
organisational objectives.

FIGURE 2
The EMCDDA’s integrated strategic and operational framework

Founding Regulation (recast)

Role and mandate
of the EMCDDA

Mission

Strategy 2025

Vision, values,
goals and strategic
objectives

Roadmap 2020

Roadmap 2025

Top-level milestones

Programming Documents (PDs)

Detailed planning
instrument

2017 2018  2019

2020 2021  2022

2023 2024  2025

2018 2019  2020

2021 2022  2023

2024 2025 2026

2019 2020  2021

2022 2023  2024

2025 2026  2027

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l  Multiannual objectives

Core areas

Health (H)

Strategic objectives

H1 Maintain a state-of-the-art understanding of the extent of, and patterns and trends in, drug use, and 
their impact on public health

H2 Identify new drug-related health threats and support rapid response from the EU and its Member States

H3 Support interventions to prevent and reduce drug use, drug-related morbidity, mortality and other 
harms, and support recovery and social reintegration

H4 Support the development, implementation, monitoring and assessment of policies aimed at addressing 
the health and social consequences of drug use

Security (S)

S1 Provide a comprehensive, holistic and up-to-date understanding of the drug market in Europe

S2 Identify new drug-related security threats and support a rapid response from the EU and its Member 
States

S3 Improve understanding of the nature and consequences of drug-related crime

S4 Support policy and operational responses to the security challenges posed by drugs and drug markets 
at EU and national levels

Business drivers (B)

Business objectives

Institutional

Partnership

Scientific capacity

Management

B1 Anticipate, and respond promptly to, institutional developments and needs

B2 Strengthen the European Drug Information System through effective and mutually beneficial 
partnerships and synergies with our data providers, communities of knowledge, and relevant European and 
international bodies

B3 Have in place the scientific capacity (resources, processes and tools) to meet current analytical needs, 
and innovate to keep pace with changes in the drug situation and the corresponding institutional needs

B4 Ensure the optimal organisational structure and supporting processes, to deliver efficient and high-
quality services

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Multiannual programme

l 

 Main area 1: Health

Core monitoring

Monitoring work in the health area focuses on population-level 
surveillance of the drug situation and consequences of drug 
use alongside the monitoring of policy and practical responses 
implemented to tackle these issues, as well as their outcomes. 
These dimensions are interlinked and they feed multi-area and 
cross-indicator analyses. They are complemented by the rapid 
information collected and analysed as part of the early warning 
and health threat assessment component.

Routine monitoring of the drug situation is based on the five 
key epidemiological indicators (KIs), which aim to capture 
population-based factual and reliable information on key drug 
dimensions: GPS describes prevalence and patterns of drug 
use among the general population; PDU focuses on prevalence 
and patterns of high-risk drug use; TDI is the treatment 
demand indicator; DRD describes drug-related deaths and 
mortality among drug users; and DRID describes drug-related 
infectious diseases. Key indicator data are complemented 
by information from other sources and using a range of 
methodologies. Important among these is the European School 
Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD) as well 
as data from web surveys. Key contributions are also provided 
by expert networks working on wastewater epidemiology, 
hospital emergencies and syringe residue analysis. The 
combination of the core epidemiological monitoring and the 
complementary methods will continue to facilitate integrated 
public health overviews of the drug situation, providing 
a basis for implementation of appropriate policy and practice 
initiatives. In addition, the knowledge base provided by the KIs 
will be supported by the EMCDDA’s Reitox NFPs alongside 
contributions from national experts in relevant fields.

In 2020-22, the iterative procedure of collecting, validating, 
analysing and reviewing the data for its quality and utility will 
continue. The information collected systematically by the 
EMCDDA will be consolidated in the areas of drug demand, 
consequences and demand reduction. Emphasis will be placed 
on multi-indicator analysis, both to triangulate information 
to establish robust evidence and as a method of validating 
individual data collections.

Building on changes initiated with the review of the EDR 
reporting package in 2019, during 2020-22 changes will 
be implemented to revise and improve the annual online 
presentation of data currently published in the EMCDDA’s 
Statistical Bulletin.

Progress on the formal business needs analysis undertaken by 
an external contractor in 2019 will be tailored to the available 
human and financial resources. In 2020-22 this will be 
limited to work on the logic of data structures and developing 
the existing software tools to better meet the existing and 
developing needs of the monitoring activities of the agency. 
Implementation of changes to the monitoring software will be 
modest.

The EMCDDA has offered intensive support to the 
development and maintenance of the ESPAD school survey 
network. In line with resources, the ESPAD 2019 report will be 
published in 2020 and findings will be promoted via a range of 
channels in the period to 2022.

Building on work that started in earlier years, new technologies 
and settings (e.g. wastewater analysis, hospital emergency 
data, syringe residue analysis) alongside data collection 
from targeted locations (e.g. harm reduction facilities, drug-
checking facilities) will be integrated into the framework of the 
general monitoring activities, with the purpose of making this 
monitoring more sensitive and timely.

The data collection efforts of the agency are supported by 
complex online instruments, specifically Fonte, our main 
data collection tool; the Data Warehouse; and the European 
Database on New Drugs (EDND). Another information 
collection tool is the Reitox extranet, which supports the 
reporting by the NFPs utilising a structured commentary on 
the drug situation (the Workbooks). In 2020-22, under the 
current budget scenarios, the information and communication 
technology (ICT) tools supporting the monitoring of the 
agency will be maintained at their current level. Work will 
be undertaken on defining the data structure to encompass 
existing and new methods in preparation for software 
developments in the future.

Information will continue to be collected about the drugs 
situation in candidate and potential candidate countries (CCs 
and PCCs), through Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance 
Project 7 (IPA 7); countries from the European Neighbourhood 
Policy (ENP) area, through the project EU4Monitoring Drugs; 
and other third countries. It will continue to be integrated in 
some outputs and reports to facilitate a holistic analysis and 
to identify and anticipate health threats (see also Main area 2: 
Security, and Business driver 2: Partnership).

The EU Early Warning System and risk assessment of 
new psychoactive substances

The EMCDDA has been entrusted with a key role in monitoring 
and responding to NPS. In collaboration with our partners 
at national and EU levels, the agency operates the EU Early 

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Warning System on new psychoactive substances. Originally 
established by the Joint Action from 1997 concerning the 
information exchange, risk assessment and the control of new 
synthetic drugs, this mechanism will operate in 2020-22 under 
Regulation (EU) 2017/2101 of the European Parliament and 
of the Council of 15 November 2017 (5) amending Regulation 
(EC) No 1920/2006. This new legislative framework, adopted 
by the European Parliament on 24 October 2017, replaced 
Council Decision 2005/387/JHA as of 23 November 2018. 
The EWS will be implemented by the EMCDDA and its partners 
in the Member States (the Reitox network) in cooperation 
with Europol, and with the active contribution of the European 
Medicines Agency (EMA), the European Chemicals Agency 
(ECHA), the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the ECDC 
and the European Commission.

During 2020-22, in addition to undertaking the legal tasks 
assigned to the EMCDDA under the EU legal framework 
for NPS — which include the operation of the EWS and 
undertaking risk assessments — the work programme 
includes the consolidation of the following components of 
the EWS in order to maintain the ability of the EMCDDA to 
detect, assess, and respond to public health and social threats 
caused by NPS: the European Database on New Drugs; open 
source information (OSI) monitoring; toxicovigilance; and risk 
communication.

New trends and health threats

More generally, threat assessment and rapid reporting are 
likely to play a greater role in our work, reflecting the dynamic 
nature of the modern drug problem and the accompanying 
need for rapid and targeted health responses. Areas of concern 
here include new risk behaviours; outbreaks of drug-related 
infectious diseases or other adverse health events; and new 
consumption patterns with implications for public health. 
Improving capacity in this area requires greater attention to be 
given to the development of multi-source analytical models 
and to the use of innovative approaches to identify, track and 
monitor new drug trends.

Drug interventions

The EMCDDA also has an important responsibility to act as 
a catalyst for improving the quality and delivery of responses 
to reduce the health and social consequences associated 
with drug use. This requires the agency to keep abreast of 
new prevention, treatment and harm reduction approaches, 
and quality standards for implementation. In 2020-22 the 
agency will continue to follow up work in the public health 

(5)  http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/
PDF/?uri=OJ:L:2017:305:FULL&from=EN

priority areas defined already in the previous two programming 
documents, namely drug prevention, the reduction of 
infectious diseases associated with drug use, and drug-related 
mortality. These areas have been identified as having a major 
impact on the health of people in the EU. Hence, the EMCDDA 
is committed to continuing its work, in line with its mandate 
and within the available resources.

In 2021, the agency will publish the second edition of Health 
and Social Responses to Drug Problems: a European Guide 
(the European Responses Guide). Like the first edition, 
launched in 2017, the report will provide a state-of-the-art 
overview of responses to drug use and consequences across 
the EU and their effectiveness, as well as implications for 
action. This leading publication will underpin much of the work 
in the health responses area up until 2022. The 2021 edition 
will incorporate a range of new topical analyses, an exploration 
of the important target groups and settings for responses, and 
an expanded focus on diagnosis and implementation issues. 
The format of the new report will be adapted in line with the 
conclusions of the internal review exercise and taking into 
account the resources available.

Identifying best practice and effectiveness of interventions 
across the EU and beyond is a key area for the EMCDDA, and 
the main dissemination channel for this is the EMCDDA’s 
Best Practice Portal (BPP). In 2020-22, existing modules 
will be kept updated and new modules will be added (as 
feasible). In addition, the EMCDDA will continue to offer 
project-based support and guidance to Member States on 
the implementation of effective responses in specific areas, 
including prevention and harm reduction interventions.

In its work in this area, the agency will continue the successful 
collaboration with its partners on the prevention of infectious 
diseases among PWID, in particular with the ECDC, the 
Directorate-General (DG) for Health and Food Safety, WHO, 
the Consumer, Health, Agriculture and Food Executive Agency 
(CHAFEA) and civil society. A major focus will be maintained 
on HIV and hepatitis C and B viruses; these remain important 
public health concerns, which have significant effects on 
the lives of individuals and place a considerable burden on 
society overall. By providing data for policymaking and tools 
for intervention planning in the field of prevention of infectious 
diseases among PWID, the EMCDDA will help the European 
Commission in its efforts to support implementation of the 
Sustainable Development Goals, by monitoring, reporting and 
reviewing progress towards their delivery in the EU.

Drug prevention is an important topic for the agency, as it 
allows the identification and promotion of factors that can 
potentially reduce drug uptake at an early stage, or at least 
reduce its intensification or prevent escalation to high-risk drug 
use. Activities in this area will be consolidated in 2020-22. This 

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22includes providing support to the Member States (e.g. through 
capacity-building activities) and to key EU and international 
initiatives, and further analysis of the contextual, cultural and 
systemic determinants of implementing drug prevention. 
An important task will be maintaining the databases on 
interventions in nightlife settings and evidence-based 
prevention programmes with online training tools. Training and 
support within the prevention area will be given prominence by 
support for the roll-out of the implementation of the European 
Prevention Curriculum (EUPC) and training of trainers 
initiatives. Linked to this, during 2020-22, the agency will 
explore the options for certification of prevention programmes 
with a view to promoting high-quality practice in this area.

Facilitating the identification and adoption of best practices 
in drug responses remains an overall priority, which will be 
pursued through the development of practice-focused outputs 
on important topics. The agency will help to achieve this 
through an improved understanding of what is necessary for 
successful implementation in diverse national contexts and 
settings, with the help of experts from different disciplines. 
In 2020-22, special attention will continue to be given to 
developing resources in areas where drugs have a significant 
impact on European public health, such as prevention of drug 
use and reduction of drug-related infectious diseases and 
drug-related mortality. An initiative to encourage the provision 
of hepatitis C testing in drug treatment services was initiated 
in 2018 and will be further implemented in 2020. This includes 
elements of country-level problem mapping, provision of best 
practice models of care and knowledge development. An 
initiative focusing on the prevention of opioid-related deaths 
will continue throughout 2020, increasing preparedness at 
national level through enhanced epidemiological analyses 
and the assessment of barriers to and facilitators of the 
implementation of take-home naloxone programmes.

During this period, the EMCDDA will also continue to provide 
reliable and timely drug-related analyses for planners and 
practitioners through a range of outputs. The agency will 
produce practice-friendly briefings and guides focusing on 
a wide range of important topics, such as the implementation 
of quality standards and interventions to reduce health-related 
harms. Policymakers and professionals alike will also benefit 
from the new and regularly updated areas of the agency’s 
website on prevention, treatment, harm reduction and prisons.

Finally, the EMCDDA will continue to fulfil its role as the 
repository of information on European and national research 
projects. Support will be ensured (within the limitations of 
resources available), links to research findings will be provided 
and annually updated overviews of EU-funded and national 
drug-related research will be made available.

Drug policy

In 2020-22, the EMCDDA will support policymakers in the 
development of evidence-based and effective drug policies 
through the provision of reliable and state-of-the-art drug 
policy analysis and the development of drug policy evaluation 
tools.

The drug situation in Europe is increasingly influenced by 
developments occurring internationally, which makes the 
understanding of the global context critical to our strategic 
analyses. One key example is the changes in the regulatory 
framework for cannabis that are taking place in parts of the 
Americas and elsewhere, which have generated interest 
among policymakers and the public in Europe. The extent 
to which developments occurring elsewhere are directly 
transferable to the European context is unclear; however, the 
EU drug-monitoring system will keep abreast of changes and 
anticipate possible future scenarios.

A priority for the agency is to support EU and national policy 
initiatives with timely information and services within the 
EMCDDA’s areas of competence. In 2020-22, the EMCDDA will 
contribute to the implementation of EU policy objectives and 
will provide ongoing high-quality expertise to its stakeholders, 
especially to the European Commission, other EU institutions 
and the EU Member States.

With regard to the Commission, this work will mainly involve 
providing support to DG Migration and Home Affairs in the field 
covered by the agency’s mandate, and in cooperation with 
other DGs as necessary (e.g. DG Health and Food Safety and 
DG Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations), through 
proactive dissemination of relevant information (such as 
briefing notes and assessment reports on compliance with EU 
drug information standards), timely responses to requests, and 
participation in events and European Commission processes 
related to enlargement and neighbouring countries.

The EMCDDA will support EU institution-related activities in 
the area of drug policy, including the work of the EU Council’s 
working groups — such as the horizontal working party on 
drugs (HDG) and the Standing Committee on Operational 
Cooperation on Internal Security (COSI) — and other relevant 
Council events where appropriate and required. The EMCDDA 
will support the final evaluation of the 2017-20 EU drug action 
plan and the 2013-20 EU drug strategy, and if requested will 
contribute to the reflection on a post-2020 EU strategy on 
drugs. Furthermore, the EMCDDA will continue to support the 
EU in its policy dialogue with international bodies and third 
countries.

The EMCDDA, within its mandate and available resources, 
will support European efforts to improve reporting at global 
level. Important developments in this area include support to 

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on 
the revision of the annual report questionnaire and follow-
up to the implementation of the CND multiannual work 
plan implementing the 2019 Ministerial Declaration. It also 
needs to consider the relevant links with the UN Sustainable 
Development Goals and support the WHO regional action plan 
on hepatitis C elimination, which comes to an end in 2020.

In terms of capacity-building activities, work in 2020-22 will 
depend on the resources available. As feasible, the EMCDDA 
will continue to offer thematic workshops organised around 
emerging topics of relevance to drug policymakers and 
planners, as well as leading policy evaluation workshops aimed 
at building knowledge and expertise of those engaged in 
managing and making use of drug policy evaluations.

During 2020-22, the EMCDDA will continue to provide 
reliable and timely drug policy analysis through a range of 
policy-relevant outputs. The agency will produce high-level 
briefings and guides aimed at answering a wide range of 
policy questions including a focus on cannabis policies and 
alternatives to coercive sanctions. Furthermore, the cannabis 
news alert initiative will continue to be produced over the 
period to better serve policymakers’ needs. These news alerts 
provide policymakers with updates on cannabis policies 
and aim to provide accurate, objective short summaries of 
key events in the cannabis policy field. Policymakers and 
professionals alike will also benefit from the new and regularly 
updated web areas on drug laws and drug policies. In addition, 
in 2020 the EMCDDA will publish an Insights publication 
addressing current and future challenges in the prison and 
drugs field.

Over 2020-22, the EMCDDA will continue to monitor 
national drug strategies, coordination mechanisms, public 
expenditures, policy evaluations, national research, drug 
laws and prison. The EMCDDA will consolidate its monitoring 
efforts in the drugs and prison field as an increasingly relevant 
area for policymaking. Ongoing monitoring will be carried 
out with a focus on emerging issues in order to facilitate the 
identification of new drug policy trends. Should resources 
allow, the EMCDDA’s legal and policy correspondents network 
will continue its key role in sharing knowledge among Member 
States, and further possibilities to strengthen the network’s 
role as timely information provider on drug laws and policies 
will be explored.

An equally important priority for the agency is to provide 
support to EU and national drug policy evaluations. Evaluation 
is essential for effective policymaking, helping ensure that 
policies and programmes have the desired effect, provide 
value for money and do not have negative unintended 
consequences. The EMCDDA’s policy evaluation support 
package will be consolidated over 2020-22 and the agency 
will endeavour to provide both responses to specific requests 
and capacity-building activities. One of the priorities will be 
to provide targeted support to national requests for policy 
evaluation, building on experiences with several Member 
States in recent years.

As feasible, the EMCDDA also envisages developing tools to 
assess the costs of interventions, to support policymakers 
in their analysis of the responses to the drug phenomenon. 

l 

 Main area 2: Security

Drug markets monitoring and identification of new 
threats

The EMCDDA collects routine drug supply data through a set 
of indicators that cover the following areas: drug seizures, 
drug law offences, drug prices, drug purity/potency and 
contents of tablets, drug availability (from population surveys), 
market size estimates and drug production facilities (data 
collected by Europol). In the previous programming periods, 
these indicators have been revised in line with the Council 
Conclusions on improving the monitoring of drug supply in the 
European Union, adopted in 2013. In 2020-22, a focus will be 
maintained on the continuous improvement of the availability 
and quality of the data provided by the Member States and 
hence of our analysis, building on the progress already made.

Depending on need and available resources, capacity-building 
activities will be implemented to support the Member States. 
In order to build upon the progress achieved, it is proposed 
to organise in 2020, in conjunction with the European 
Commission, the Third European Conference on Drug Supply 
Indicators (subject to agreement with the Commission and 
resources being made available). Furthermore, a closer 
working relationship is envisaged between the core data 
providers — the NFPs — and the representatives of the 
EMCDDA Reference Group on Drug Supply Indicators. 
Good practices from the Member States in improving data 
availability, in line with the revised supply indicators, will be 
also identified and promoted within the Reitox network of 
NFPs. Ongoing developmental work on the EU-wide monitoring 
of drug-related homicide will be continued.

In addition to routine monitoring, and to increase the 
scope, coverage and timeliness of its analysis, in 2020-22 
the EMCDDA will further develop new and innovative data 
collection approaches (non-routine sources of data). These 
will include structured open source information monitoring; 
monitoring both surface-web and darknet markets; and key 
periodical reports issued by the EU or internal partners; the 
results of wastewater analysis; drug-related homicide data; 
information exchange with expert groups or individual experts; 
and EMCDDA-commissioned research (e.g. web surveys). 
Such monitoring will allow the early identification of emerging 

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22cross-border drug-related threats, which once identified will 
also be tracked closely so that an appropriate response can be 
developed, and we will work with our partner Europol on this.

In 2020-22, the EMCDDA will continue its security-related 
activities with third countries that are a priority for the EU, 
namely in the framework of the European Enlargement and 
Neighbourhood policies (see also Main area 1: Health, and 
Business driver 2: Partnership).

Understanding the nature and consequences of drug-
related crime

The trade in illicit drugs generates multibillion-euro profits 
for the groups involved in this criminal activity. The EU retail 
drug market is estimated to be worth at least EUR 30 billion 
a year (6). The immense profits generated from the trade 
in drugs fund various other criminal activities, allowing 
organised crime groups (OCGs) to thrive and develop their 
criminal enterprises at the expense of the health, prosperity 
and security of people living in the EU. The European security 
agenda highlights the need to understand the interactions 
that exist between drug-related crime and the operation of the 
drug market, on the one hand, and other areas of criminality, 
the activities of organised criminal groups and other serious 
security threats, on the other. This is a challenging area and 
one in which the EMCDDA works closely with other European 
bodies with responsibilities in these areas, in particular Europol 
and the European Union’s Judicial Cooperation Unit (Eurojust). 
Although some core monitoring tools exist, overall this remains 
a challenging area.

Improving performance in this field is important, however, and 
this was highlighted in the EMCDDA-Europol 2019 EDMR, 
which clearly suggests that threats in this area are increasing, 
in part because of the changing business models used by 
transnational organised crime groups. Europol estimates 
that more than 35 % of the 5 000 OCGs active in the EU 
are involved in the drug market (7) and some 65 % of OCGs 
involved in the drug trade are simultaneously involved in other 
criminal activities such as the trade in counterfeit goods, the 
trafficking of human beings and migrant smuggling. In addition 
to these major security threats, it is important to support the 
development of a broader understanding of the ramifications 
of the drug market, as these can represent significant hidden 
costs to society. In particular, monitoring tools focused on 
drug-related violence and acquisitive crime are needed.

http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/joint-publications/eu-drug-

(6) 
markets-report-2019_en 
(7)  EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment (Europol, 2017), 
https://www.europol.europa.eu/activities-services/main-reports/european-
union-serious-and-organised-crime-threat-assessment-2017.

Supporting EU responses to drug security challenges

One of the main contributions that the EMCDDA makes to 
a more secure Europe is that of supporting the EU policy cycle 
for organised and serious international crime. The second 
policy cycle runs from 2018 to 2021, so this PD partly covers 
that period. Therefore, in 2020-22, in line with the Council 
Conclusions on the continuation of the EU policy cycle for 
organised and serious international crime for the period 2018-
21 (27 March 2017), and under the leadership of Europol, 
the EMCDDA will contribute as required to the following 
actions concerning the priority area addressing the drug 
threats identified by the Council of the EU’s COSI: to disrupt 
the activities of OCGs involved in the wholesale trafficking 
of cannabis, cocaine and heroin to the EU; and to reduce 
the production of synthetic drugs and NPS in the EU and to 
dismantle OCGs involved in their production, trafficking and 
distribution. In addition, the EMCDDA will provide:

■■ methodological, analytical and administrative support 

to the European Commission for the drafting of the next 
multiannual strategic plan (MASP) (2022-25) and the 
operational action plans (OAPs) for 2020, 2021 and 2022;

■■

support for the implementation of the ongoing MASP 2018-
21 and of the relevant OAPs (2020, 2021 and 2022).

Furthermore, the EMCDDA will act on the findings of the 
2019 EU EDMR. This strategic analysis, prepared jointly with 
Europol, provides a comprehensive overview of new, changing 
or emerging threats, paying particular attention to the EU 
crime priorities decided in 2017. The recommendations made 
in the 2019 EDMR will be acted upon in the period 2020-22, 
will inform the 2021 Serious and Organised Crime Threat 
Assessment (SOCTA) and will influence the EU’s priorities in 
this area. The fourth edition of the EDMR is expected in 2022, 
so the necessary preparatory work will happen in 2021. This 
includes the preparation of new/revised market size estimates.

In 2020-22, the EMCDDA will also contribute as required to 
the EU drug strategy 2013-20 and its action plan 2017-20 
(the actions related to the supply area), and it will fulfil its 
obligations arising from the EU agenda on security 2015-20.

Transversal work — health and security

While the EMCDDA has clear objectives and priorities in 
each of the two main work areas, health and security, it is 
important to note that the multifaceted nature of the drugs 
problem means that these areas are interlinked and mutually 
complementary.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22The agency produces timely and high-quality information, 
together with strategic and situational analyses and threat 
assessments, to inform policy and practice.

FIGURE 3
The EMCDDA’s business drivers

In 2020-21 a review of the current European Drug Report 
(EDR) package will be carried out. During this review process, 
in 2020, a more top-level, trends-focused EDR will be released 
alongside the statistical bulletin. A new integrated EDR product 
focusing on data and analysis at both national and European 
levels will be prepared for launch in 2021. Furthermore, 
the production of the Country Drug Reports (CDRs) will be 
suspended in 2020, and a new approach for presenting 
country data, more integrated into the new EMCDDA digital 
communication model, will be launched in 2021.

Moreover, the EMCDDA will produce prompt and focused 
products to immediately disseminate critical information 
relevant to safeguarding public health and security (threat 
assessment reports). These will include (as appropriate 
and as possible) outputs related to the implementation of 
the applicable legal framework on NPS, in particular the 
EMCDDA initial reports and risk assessments; trendspotting 
case studies/reports; and joint analyses (e.g. with Europol, 
the ECDC and the European Union Agency for Fundamental 
Rights — FRA). Other joint products will be produced, as 
appropriate, and in line with resources, based on the most 
relevant topics and exploiting synergies with partners.

l 

 Main area 3: Business drivers

The success of the EMCDDA Strategy 2025 will rely on its 
capacity to provide stakeholders with services that match 
their evolving needs. This will be possible only if the agency is 
performing optimally, both substantively and operationally.

A set of four business drivers address external and internal 
factors critical for the EMCDDA’s performance: the institutional 
framework, effective partnerships, scientific capacity and the 
agency’s overall management capabilities.

These four business drivers are interlinked and jointly 
contribute to the successful delivery of our services  
(see Figure 3).

The environment for the successful
delivery of the EMCDDA’s services

Institutional

Partnership

Services

Scientific capacity

Management

Business driver 1: Institutional

The EMCDDA operates in a complex institutional environment. 
Its capacity to respond promptly to changing developments 
and needs is therefore a critical requirement for optimal 
performance.

The agency’s three main customers groups are the EU 
institutions (European Parliament, Council of the EU, 
European Commission); national decision-/policymakers; and 
professionals working in the drugs field.

EMCDDA-stakeholder relations are proactive and based on 
cooperation models aimed at generating mutual benefit. 
They have their roots in the agency’s core communication 
values, namely relevance, quality, efficiency, transparency and 
consistency. Understanding needs clearly, communicating 
effectively and using targeted delivery channels are central to 
serving our stakeholders successfully.

To ensure that the EMCDDA contributes to a healthier and 
more secure Europe, the agency’s focus is on undertaking 
activities that add value to the work of drug policymakers and 
professionals. This involves scanning the external stakeholder 
environment, understanding context and finding out what 
customers need and to what extent the products and services 
we offer meet those needs. The agency’s ‘customer needs’ 
project, identified in the EMCDDA Strategy 2025 and started 

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22in 2019, will be continued in 2020 with a set of activities using 
different methods and tools, aiming at better understanding 
of the customer needs. Better segmentation of our customer 
groups will enable us to serve them more effectively. An 
EMCDDA framework for proactively identifying and responding 
to stakeholders’ needs will be put in place by the end of 2020.

As a result of this work, projects to adapt the agencies’ 
services and products will be carried out in 2020-22, as 
necessary, reflecting the customers’ needs but maintaining 
high standards of reputation and brand management. Digital 
developments and how they have affected users’ expectations 
will also be taken into account, ensuring that they keep pace 
with new trends and emerging disruptive challenges. An 
integrated content strategy, which engages the whole agency 
in working directly towards serving the needs and expectations 
identified, will be essential. This will include staff digital 
empowerment through training and guidelines. Aligning staff 
members with agency strategy by means of ambassadorial 
activities will continue to be developed in this period.

Making sure the agency leverages the full potential of 
communication channels (web, social media, audiovisual, face 
to face, media relations, etc.) to achieve its strategic goals 
is a priority. Engaging with national and regional influencers 
and multipliers (e.g. national policymakers and Reitox NFPs) 
to convey our message in a greater number of languages 
will help broaden our multilingual reach, without increasing 
the pressure on limited internal resources. To that end, the 
EMCDDA will work in close cooperation with NFPs in order 
to explore optimal approaches and channels for reaching 
policymakers and practitioners, strengthening the capacity of 
the EMCDDA (Centre and NFPs alike) to promote and support 
evidence-based decisions.

Future reporting needs will be identified through an EMCDDA 
‘futures exercise’, which will lead to appropriate follow-up 
activities (for details, see Main area 1: Health).

Importantly, a strategic analysis will be carried out in the 
context of the preparation of Roadmap 2025, and a review of 
the EMCDDA business model will also be completed during 
this programming period. The results of these exercises will be 
presented to the EMCDDA’s Management Board in December 
2021 for adoption. They will be informed by the outcome of the 
fourth external evaluation of the EMCDDA (carried out by the 
European Commission in 2018), the results of the evaluations 
of the EU drug strategy and action plans, and the Futures 
exercise, among others.

Furthermore, as of November 2018, the new NPS legislation 
(Regulation (EU) 2017/2101 of the European Parliament and 
of the Council of 15 November 2017 amending Regulation 
(EC) No 1920/2006 as regards information exchange on, and 
an early warning system and risk assessment procedure for, 

new psychoactive substances) became applicable. This brings 
new responsibilities for the agency, which will have to be 
accompanied by appropriate resources.

Business driver 2: Partnership

The EMCDDA can be the leading EU provider of evidence on 
drugs if it develops its services in partnership with the national, 
European and international actors working in the drugs field. 
Consequently, in 2020-22 the agency will further strengthen its 
cooperation with partners, based on a few guiding principles, 
as follows:

■■ The EMCDDA’s work with partners will be guided by the 
priorities defined in Strategy 2025, and this work will be 
adjusted to reflect resources and evolving EU priorities in 
the EMCDDA’s policy areas and any future changes in the 
agency’s mandate, as appropriate.

■■

In its work with partners, the EMCDDA will act in the spirit 
of transparency and clarity about roles and responsibilities, 
aiming to obtain mutual benefit and maximise value from 
cooperation.

■■ Pursuing synergies and contributing to EU added value will 
remain a key driving factor in our activities with partners.

At national level, our key partners are the Reitox NFPs, an 
established network across the EU Member States, Norway 
and Turkey that provides a direct link to national data and 
expertise, which for more than 20 years has represented 
the backbone of the EMCDDA’s core monitoring system. 
The main priorities of the network were defined in the 
Reitox Development Framework (RDF) 2018-25. The EU 
contribution planned for the EMCDDA in 2020 will allow 
the level of the Reitox grants to be maintained in 2020; 
however, if the EMCDDA’s financing is reduced in the 
future, with consequences for the level of the Reitox grants, 
the implementation of the RDF will have to be reviewed 
accordingly. During 2020-22, the NFPs will work on the 
accomplishment of Roadmap 2020 and on the design/
adoption of a new one (Roadmap 2025). This will include the 
last steps of implementing the former roadmap (in 2020), 
the assessment of its implementation (in 2021) and the 
preparation of a new Roadmap 2025 taking into account the 
achievements in the implementation of Roadmap 2020 (in 
2021).

During 2020-22, the EMCDDA will continue to provide 
support to the EU institutions, namely to the Council of the 
European Union, the European Parliament and the European 
Commission. Furthermore, synergies with EU agencies will 
continue to be pursued, delivering greater value from the joint 
work and providing the Commission with an invaluable holistic 
analysis of the complex and interlinked issues in this area. In 
line with the priorities defined under the two strategic pillars, 

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22our main partners here are the agencies that are active in 
health, such as the ECDC, EMA, ECHA, EFSA and CHAFEA; and 
in security, namely the agencies from the Justice and Home 
Affairs (JHA) cluster, such as Europol, Eurojust, the European 
Agency for Law Enforcement Training (CEPOL), FRA and the 
European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex).

The EMCDDA will continue to monitor international 
developments and trends, including by strengthening 
information and knowledge exchange with global partners, the 
UN family in particular.

The work with external partners is also a key factor for the 
EMCDDA to increase its capacity to understand the external 
dimension of the drug phenomenon. In 2020-22, in line with 
resources, the EMCDDA will continue to develop partnerships 
and synergies with relevant international organisations and 
third countries. Its key activities will be guided by the EMCDDA 
International Cooperation Framework 2018-25 (adopted by 
the Management Board in December 2017). When engaging in 
activities outside the EU, the EMCDDA will also follow the EU’s 
global strategy for the EU’s foreign and security policy ‘Shared 
vision, common action: a stronger Europe’.

The EMCDDA has a long tradition of supporting the European 
Commission in the accession process. The agency will 
continue to help CCs and PCCs — more particularly six 
countries of the Western Balkan region: Albania, Bosnia 
and Herzegovina, Kosovo (8), Montenegro, North Macedonia 
and Serbia — prepare for their future participation in the 
work of the agency, within the framework of the technical 
assistance project funded by the Commission through IPA 7. 
The EMCDDA will also fulfil its obligations under the strategy 
for a ‘credible enlargement perspective for and enhanced EU 
engagement with the Western Balkans’ (9) and the related 
flagship initiatives, as well as the EU global strategy for the 
EU’s foreign and security policies.

Furthermore, the EMCDDA will continue implementing the 
3-year-long project EU4Monitoring Drugs (EU4MD), launched 
in 2019, with a total budget of EUR 3 million, and covering 
15 potential partner countries in the ENP policy regions. 
The potential partner countries are Algeria, Egypt, Israel, 
Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine (10) and Tunisia, 
from the Southern Partnership; and Armenia, Azerbaijan, 
Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, from the Eastern 

(8)  This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line 
with United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1244 and the 
International Court of Justice (ICJ) Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of 
independence.
(9) 
11e8-b5fe-01aa75ed71a1
(10)  This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of 
Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual positions of the Member 
States on this issue.

https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/e3f0797b-28cb-

Partnership (11).The EU4MD project will focus on the areas 
where the agency’s involvement can demonstrate significant 
added value, in particular (1) to identify, analyse and report 
effectively on ongoing, emerging and future trends in the drug 
market and their implication for security and health; and (2) 
to increase monitoring and response capacity and enhance 
regional cooperation between ENP countries and between 
these and the EU. Focusing on both the supply and health 
areas, the project will support improved monitoring of drug 
markets, the identification of new threats, the co-production 
of practical recommendations to respond better to existing 
and emerging drug problems, and the wider dissemination 
of findings to support policies, practice and a more informed 
debate on drug problems in the participating countries (see 
also Main area 1: Health, and Main area 2: Security).

These activities are crucial and they allow the promotion of 
the EU’s balanced and integrated approach and knowledge 
about drug monitoring among the EMCDDA’s key external 
partners. The information collected from these countries will 
feed into the strategic and threats assessments produced by 
the EMCDDA. Moreover, the EU’s experience in monitoring 
and responding to drugs is recognised worldwide, and the 
cooperation with the countries in the ENP area, and also 
Latin America, Central Asia and other emerging priority third 
countries for the EU, will be continued in 2020-22 through 
ad hoc support of EU-funded projects in these regions in line 
with the available human and financial resources, and taking 
into account the priority order of the EMCDDA’s work with 
third countries, as established in the International Cooperation 
Framework (adopted in December 2017).

Business driver 3: Scientific capacity

The multifaceted nature of the drugs situation requires the 
EMCDDA to have both sufficient in-house expertise and 
access to experts working elsewhere to ensure adequate 
scientific capacity for this work. As the information needs of 
the agency are changing, this also implies that it must develop 
expertise in new areas that are required to fulfil its mandate. 
The agency will continue to maintain an ongoing dialogue 
with the research and scientific community, in both the drugs 
area and related disciplines, such as addiction science and 
criminology. Among other activities, the EMCDDA will remain 
a main partner in the programme and organising committees 
of the Fourth European Conference on Addictive Behaviours 
and Dependencies, already announced for November 2021, 
and the Fifth European Conference on Addictive Behaviours 

(11) 
In July 2019 the competent authorities of Egypt wrote to the EMCDDA 
declining their participation in the project. While respecting the official position of 
Egypt in what regards activities to be carried out at national level, the EMCDDA 
will continue to seek the involvement of Egypt about the regional aspects of the 
project and strive to include the country in the regional data analysis activities.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22and Dependencies, provisionally planned to take place in 
autumn 2023.

The EMCDDA’s Scientific Committee is an important 
resource in this respect. As guardian of the EMCDDA’s 
scientific excellence, the Scientific Committee plays a key 
role in assuring and improving the quality of our work. A new 
mandate for the Scientific Committee will start in 2020, after 
the Management Board appoints the new members of the 
Committee in December 2019. Additional support will be 
provided by the EMCDDA to ensure that the Committee’s work 
and regular meetings are successful and efficient.

The ongoing commitment to improving the scientific quality 
of our work is a prerequisite for fulfilling our role as a centre 
of excellence for the collection, analysis and dissemination 
of drug-related information. The EMCDDA is an information-
intensive organisation, which bases its core tasks on adding 
value to data through an information value chain. This 
value chain — the way raw data are collected from different 
information sources and how they are stored, analysed 
and transformed for use in different types of information 
products — forms the framework for scientific quality 
management at the EMCDDA.

The work towards further strengthening the quality 
management of EMCDDA scientific activities will continue 
in 2020-22. This will be in line with the Roadmap 2020 
milestones, the new strategic roadmap 2025 and the action 
plans to follow on the recommendations of the European 
Commission’s Internal Audit Service (IAS) audits on the 
management of data collection, validation and quality 
assurance (2017) and on publications management (2018).

In addition, the development of a project management culture 
at the EMCDDA will ensure a more coordinated and efficient 
allocation and use of scientific resources to produce pertinent 
and cost-effective results (see Business driver 4: Management, 
for details). To that end, the implementation of the PM2 
methodology, which has been gradually introduced starting 
from 2018, will continue in 2020-22.

Business driver 4: Management

Optimal performance can be achieved only if it is supported 
by a healthy work environment and by good governance. The 
EMCDDA Strategy 2025 defines the priority actions to be taken 
at a management level to ensure that the organisation has the 
capacity to deliver high-quality services to its stakeholders, 
thereby achieving its strategic objectives.

These actions are focused on ensuring that the strategic 
priorities are properly resourced, and that these resources are 
used efficiently. To this end, in response to the decrease of 

the EMCDDA’s resources that are available for implementing 
core business activities (as a result of the automatic increase 
in the agency’s operating costs), the EMCDDA carried out an 
exercise to identify the actions to be implemented in order 
to mitigate the impact of the resource constraints, including 
some key outputs/results that will need to be suspended, 
delayed or scaled down to that end (for details, see Section 
II — Multiannual programming 2020-22).

In addition, the actions in this area aim to ensure that 
managerial performance is adequate at all levels, and that 
EMCDDA staff benefit from a sustainable training and 
development programme.

One crucial element for achieving corporate performance 
is the existence of a reliable planning and performance 
measurement and reporting system. This function will continue 
to play the fundamental role of ensuring that the core elements 
of the new strategy are transposed to the operational level. 
To that end, in 2020-22, the EMCDDA will continue to pursue 
the further development of the performance management 
system, ensuring that it provides senior management with 
sound and timely performance information and analysis. 
Among other things, this will involve the implementation by 
the agency of the Project Management Programme initiated in 
2018. This includes the application of a project management 
methodology (namely PM2, developed and promoted by the 
European Commission) for various areas of work, in line 
with the key milestones set up in Roadmap 2020, and the 
implementation of a management information system to 
enable more efficient planning, monitoring and reporting.

Corporate performance will also rely on effective and efficient 
management of available resources.

The definition of the next EU MFF, for 2021-27, will influence 
the EMCDDA’s resources and activities as well as the 
operations required for planning and managing available 
resources. Efficient allocation and use of these resources will 
therefore remain critical. From a financial perspective, the 
objective will be to continue to ensure effective and timely 
planning, monitoring and execution of the EMCDDA budget, in 
line with organisational priorities and existing and foreseeable 
constraints.

The EMCDDA’s human resources (HR) remain, nonetheless, 
the agency’s main capital. The 100-plus staff members 
have a very rich professional and cultural background. The 
EMCDDA employs both recognised scientists and valuable 
specialists in various support areas, and all of them contribute 
to the accomplishment of the agency’s vision and mission. To 
further develop our human capital and maximise our staff’s 
contribution to Strategy 2025, actions for staff development 
will continue to be implemented in 2020-22, on the basis of 
the available resources.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Ensuring a safe working environment and the efficient use 
of available facilities, equipment, infrastructure and utilities 
will continue to be priorities, with special attention given to 
possible further synergies with our neighbour, the European 
Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA).

ICT service delivery and service support are meant to promote 
the agency’s core developmental objectives and to guarantee 
the smooth operation of all the services provided. In line with 
the multiannual investment plan approved by the internal ICT 
Steering Committee, the ICT programmes and services will 
be developed and delivered to implement and support core 
business and corporate projects and processes, and to provide 
a continuously stable environment that supports existing basic 
and advanced services.

This is a key component of EMCDDA operations, which 
supports the fulfilment of the strategic and business 
objectives, from data collection and analysis, through 
dissemination, to business planning, monitoring, and other 
corporate support practices and tools, including requirements 
related to technical innovation and furthering of the EMCDDA 
Enterprise Architecture. ICT activities are also critical for 
ensuring business continuity and allowing the EMCDDA to 
operate in a stable and protected ICT environment.

l   Human and financial resources outlook for 

2020-22

l 

 Overview of the past and current situation

To fulfil its mission, the EMCDDA needs to stay abreast of the 
rapidly evolving drug phenomenon.

This requires the agency to increase its investments in 
acquiring complementary knowledge and new sources of 
information to keep pace with the innovations appearing 
constantly on an EU drug market that is estimated to be worth 
at least EUR 30 billion a year (12).

Within this complex business environment, however, the 
agency has for a few years been operating with resources 
that are decreasing in real terms. In terms of the EMCDDA’s 
financial resources, in line with the European Commission 
Communication to the European Parliament and the Council 
on the programming of human and financial resources for 
decentralised agencies for 2014-20 (COM(2013) 519 of 10 

(12)  European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction and Europol 
(2019), EU Drug Markets Report 2019, Publications Office of the European Union, 
Luxembourg, p.13.

July 2013), a significant reduction in the budget was instigated 
in 2014, when the EU contribution provided to the agency was 
cut by 5 %. This has had a direct impact on the EMCDDA’s 
operations, but also on the contribution provided by the agency 
to its core data providers, the NFPs in the 28 Member States, 
Norway and Turkey.

In terms of staff, to comply with the abovementioned 
communication, the EMCDDA has reduced the number of 
posts in its establishment plan by 5 %, i.e. from 80 posts 
authorised in 2015 to 76 posts authorised in 2018 and 2019 
respectively.

l 

 Resources programming for 2020-22

Financial resources

The outlook for the budget/financial resources over the 
relevant period is built mainly on the proposal presented by the 
European Commission for the EU’s 2020 contribution to the 
EMCDDA, as endorsed by the two branches of the EU Budget 
Authority within the context of the EU 2020 budget procedure.

On this basis, the 2020 budget of the EMCDDA relies on 76 
authorised posts in its establishment plan and on a total 
amount of EUR 16 288 600 for the EU’s 2020 contribution 
to the EMCDDA budget. These appropriations will enable 
the functioning of the EMCDDA and the implementation of 
its 2020 work programme, as set out in this programming 
document. The EMCDDA will also be able to keep the 
maximum EMCDDA 2020 co-financing to the Reitox national 
focal points at the same level as in 2019.

However, the amount of the EU’s 2020 subsidy only partially 
meets the EMCDDA’s request for 2020. In this context, 
the EMCDDA will be able to cope with the expected 2020 
automatic adjustment of its staff-related expenditure and with 
the increase in the rent for its premises, but it will be obliged to 
downsize some operational activities and publications initially 
planned for 2020, as presented in the later section ‘Negative 
priorities/decrease of existing tasks’.

More detailed data are provided in the tables in Annexes I  
and II.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Human resources

New tasks

The most dynamic and rapidly growing area of work for the 
EMCDDA is monitoring and responding to NPS (for details, 
see Main area 1: Health). Most of this work is focused on the 
development, management and coordination of the EWS 
and risk assessments — legal tasks for which the EMCDDA 
has been responsible since 1997. These two major activities, 
along with EU-level control measures, represent the pillars that 
underpin Europe’s response to these new substances, allowing 
the EU and the Member States to rapidly detect, assess and 
respond to the public health and social harms that they can 
cause.

New legislation that strengthens the EWS and risk assessment 
(Regulation (EU) 2017/2101 of the European Parliament and 
of the Council of 15 November 2017 amending Regulation 
(EC) No 1920/2006 as regards information exchange on, and 
an early warning system and risk assessment procedure for, 
new psychoactive substances) was adopted on 24 October 
2017, and replaces Council Decision 2005/387/JHA from 
November 2018. The 2005 legal instrument set out well-
defined and tight deadlines for all the tasks covered therein; 
the deadlines imposed by the new regulation are even stricter 
and the times allowed have been reduced by more than half, 
i.e. to two weeks for collecting data from the Reitox national 
focal points, five weeks for drafting the initial report and six 
weeks for preparing a requested risk assessment.

The new regulation requires the EMCDDA to collect 
additional information and to introduce new working 
procedures in the operation of the EWS and risk assessments. 
Appropriate resources are therefore required in order to 
ensure full compliance with the new regulation and effective 
implementation of the EU EWS and risk assessment 
mechanism.

Growth of existing tasks and additional tasks

been processed by the EWS in recent years. Since 2005, the 
EMCDDA has issued over 150 public health related alerts. Of 
great concern in this respect is that, between November 2015 
and March 2018, a record number of 13 risk assessments were 
requested by the Council of the EU (40 % of the total number 
of risk assessments conducted).

Furthermore, in recent years the EMCDDA has scaled up its 
support to the ESPAD group. This is the largest cross-national 
research project on adolescent substance use in the world; 
it covers more than 40 European countries and provides 
a valuable source of longitudinal data on drug and alcohol 
trends. Following an agreement endorsed by the EMCDDA 
Management Board in December 2011, the agency has been 
hosting ESPAD coordination since January 2013, and a joint 
EMCDDA-ESPAD work programme was developed in 2014. In 
2015, the Swedish government addressed a formal request to 
the EMCDDA to fully assume the coordination of the project. 
Though the EMCDDA Management Board and the European 
Commission have acknowledged that the agency is an 
appropriate institutional home for the study, the EMCDDA does 
not have the sustainable financial means to fulfil that role on 
a permanent basis.

Nevertheless, the EMCDDA budget for 2018 provided some 
additional resources for data collection in a number of 
participating countries as well as for coordination tasks to 
support the next ESPAD cycle. This cycle has culminated in 
the 2019 data collection round, while the production of the 
subsequent ESPAD report is planned to take place in 2020, 
resources allowing; therefore, additional budget for the years 
to come will be required to successfully accomplish this 
important task.

Efficiency gains

As far as efficiency gains are concerned, and as they result 
from the EMCDDA’s past and present performance in the 
use of assigned resources, the EMCDDA is committed to 
constantly improving the effectiveness and efficiency of its 
activities and to maximising the use of its resources.

As presented above, new tasks have been introduced by the 
legislation in the NPS area. In addition, further growth of the 
existing tasks is expected to occur in this area. This is due not 
only to the large number of NPS monitored, but also to the 
increased reports of harms associated with them. Alongside 
information on the appearance of NPS on the market, a key 
function of the EWS on NPS implemented by the EMCDDA 
and its EU partners is to identify signals of serious harms 
and respond as necessary. This requires monitoring each of 
more than 750 substances that have been reported so far. 
A growing number of reports of serious harms, often related to 
acute toxicity and leading to hospitalisation and deaths, have 

In this context, the EMCDDA has pursued action to further 
rationalise and reduce the running costs of its premises, 
namely through measures aimed at reducing energy 
consumption, to offset the impact of the extension of staff 
working time pursuant to the entry into force of the revised 
staff regulations (e.g. by installation of solar shading on glass 
areas, climate control switches on windows and an intelligent 
lighting system, or by optimisation of heating and cooling 
cycles at the EMCDDA premises). These measures have 
resulted in a substantial reduction in the energy consumption 
(by about 10 % in 2016 compared with previous years), which 
has been maintained ever since.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Cooperation and synergies with EMSA have been intensified 
beyond those resulting from the implementation of the 
agreement in force between the EMCDDA and EMSA to 
share use of common areas in the compound where their 
headquarters are seated (namely the canteen, underground 
parking and conference facilities). Further cooperation 
and synergies have been developed, in a common effort 
to proactively exploit the opportunities provided by the 
geographical proximity of the two agencies, while safeguarding 
the autonomous legal personality and capacity assigned 
to each agency by the EU legislature. These developments 
concern in particular the joint procurement of shared services 
to increase critical mass and obtain better conditions (e.g. 
for the canteen and cafeteria, travel agency, interim staff and 
medical services), the joint organisation of training activities of 
common interest for the staff of both agencies, and the sharing 
of some services/bodies, such as the EMCDDA medical officer 
and the invalidity and disciplinary committees. Following up 
on the economies achieved with the common implementation 
of a business continuity facility with EMSA, the EMCDDA is 
committed to extending the agreement.

As the new digital workplace programme develops, the 
EMCDDA will seek to match technological developments and 
the achievement of further economies by updating its current 
infrastructure architecture. Progress in this area will depend, 
however, on the availability of resources.

Negative priorities/decrease of existing tasks

Starting in its 2014 work programme, the EMCDDA has 
introduced a prioritisation exercise, which is carried out 
annually in the context of the planning exercise. This is based 
on the classification of activities in the work programme across 
three priority levels, from level 1 (L1), the highest priority (‘must 
do’), to level 3 (L3), the lowest priority (see Section III.1 — 
Executive summary). The work programme also sets different 
targets for these different levels: 100 % for L1 outputs/results; 
80 % for L2; and 50 % for L3.

As presented in the following section, ‘Conclusions on 
evolution of resources compared to the Commission 
Communication 2014-2020’, in the past 6 years the EMCDDA 
has been confronted with a substantial reduction, in real terms, 
of the resources available to it in order to perform its tasks.

During this time the agency, through the application of a series 
of measures that were meant to maximise the use of its 
reduced resources, has managed to successfully implement 
its work programmes and continue to deliver high-quality 
results (as evidenced by the last external evaluation, which 
was carried out by the European Commission in 2018). 
These measures, however, are no longer sufficient to ensure 
an adequate level of resourcing, particularly as far as the 

operational activities are concerned (i.e. the core business 
of the EMCDDA, namely the activities carried out within the 
scientific, communication and Reitox network management 
areas).

In this context, the EMCDDA has intensified its activities 
to communicate to its stakeholders the importance of the 
work carried out and the impact that insufficient funding 
of the agency will have on European drug monitoring. 
However, despite the full support received from the European 
Commission, the level of the EU contribution to be provided to 
the EMCDDA in 2020 (EUR 16 288 600) will be significantly 
lower than that requested by the agency (EUR 17 839 040). 
Furthermore, although the discussions on the new MFF, for 
2021-27, were still ongoing at the time of preparation of this 
PD, it is likely that the level of the EU’s contribution to the 
EMCDDA will not increase significantly (unless new tasks are 
formally established for the agency in the future), so it will not 
cover the automatic increase in the agency’s costs, which will 
only increase the pressure on the core business deliveries.

The main challenge for the EMCDDA is therefore to remain 
sustainable in the long term. The years 2020 and 2021 will 
be particularly important in this context: a new roadmap (to 
2025) will be defined in 2020 and work on developing a new 
EMCDDA business model is planned to be completed in 2021.

In addition, a series of actions will be implemented in 2020 
with the objective of mitigating the impact of the resource 
constraints and allowing the agency to dedicate the required 
effort to the preparation of the key strategic initiatives 
described above.

In this regard, the EMCDDA will establish an internal 
developmental group to look at a set of digitally enabled and 
high-quality integrated outputs, in line with our stakeholders’ 
evolving needs and the changing drug situation, and reflecting 
best practices in the modern communication world. As 
appropriate, the Reitox NFPs will take part in the reflection, 
as agreed at the meeting of the Reitox heads of national focal 
points that took place in November 2019.

Furthermore, a more top-level, trends-focused European Drug 
Report will be released in 2020. The production of the Country 
Drug Reports will be suspended in 2020, and a new approach 
for presenting country data, more integrated into the new 
EMCDDA digital communication model, will be launched in 
2021.

In addition, the European Responses Guide, which had been 
initially planned for publication in 2020, will be reviewed in 
terms of content and format, and delayed to 2021.

Overall, the investments in studies will decrease, leading to the 
preparation of a smaller number of outputs.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22The support to the ESPAD activities will be commensurate with 
resources.

In terms of drug-monitoring tools, while the EMCDDA will seek 
to protect developmental areas (i.e. new methods and data 
sources for drug monitoring), work on the established tools 
will mainly involve the maintenance of these tools. Naturally, 
the activities in this area will be closely coordinated with the 
national focal points, which are also experiencing cuts in their 
resources.

Although important progress has been made in the area of 
threat identification and reporting, considerable effort is still 
required in order to finalise and put in place a new integrated 
framework. Therefore, the completion of this key milestone will 
be taken over to Roadmap 2025.

Importantly, in 2020-22, under the current budget scenarios, 
the ICT tools supporting the monitoring of the agency will be 
maintained at their current level. Work will be undertaken on 
defining the data structure to encompass existing and new 
methods in preparation for software developments in the 
future.

Conclusions on evolution of resources compared to the 
Commission Communication 2014-2020

The EMCDDA has fully met the goals set in Commission 
Communication 2014-2020.

The agency has done its best, and will continue to do its best, 
to deal with the growth of tasks and needs described above 
by maximising the use of existing resources. The request for 
necessary supplementary resources will target the residual 
supplementary needs that cannot be met through options for 
redeploying existing resources.

In a context where the EMCDDA has been able, with 
substantial efforts, to maximise the use of its limited resources 
and successfully perform its mission, as acknowledged by 
the relevant institutional stakeholders and confirmed by 
the outcome of its last external evaluation (in 2018), these 
elements should be taken into account:

■■

■■

In 2014-20 the EU budget contribution to the EMCDDA 
was initially reduced by about 5 % (in 2014, compared with 
2013) and the EMCDDA was required to further reduce 
by 10 % the posts authorised in its establishment plan 
(substantially exceeding the 5 % reduction required for each 
EU institution).

In this context, during 2014-20 the EMCDDA budget needs 
for staff-related expenditure have increased by about 19 % 
compared with 2013. About two thirds of this increase 
has been determined by successive annual automatic 
adjustments required by the relevant EU legislation 
(EU staff regulations), in particular for staff’s automatic 
progression to the next step and for the annual adjustment 
of the EU staff’s remuneration (which encompasses the 
variation of the applicable correction coefficient).

■■ This increase, along with the automatic increase of 

budget needs for essential services and utilities to be 
contracted for the functioning of the EMCDDA premises 
and operations (as required by the applicable legislation 
and contracts), has entailed a substantial reduction, in real 
terms, of the resources available to the EMCDDA, namely 
for its operations.

■■ Despite the measures taken by the EMCDDA to develop 

its effectiveness and efficiency, this situation has critically 
affected its capacity to effectively operate and deliver in 
accordance with its mandate.

■■ This situation is likely to continue to affect the EMCDDA 

budget in the coming years and future exercises. 
Any possible intervention aimed at addressing the 
aforementioned constraints and risks should consistently 
take this perspective into account.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Section III
EMCDDA work programme 2020

l   Executive summary

This is the first annual work programme of the EMCDDA’s 
PD for 2020-22. Its structure mirrors the architecture of the 
EMCDDA Strategy 2025, as presented in Section II above.

The financial resources required for this work programme will 
be provided by the EMCDDA budget for 2020. In accordance 
with the relevant provisions, the EMCDDA budget becomes 
definitive when adopted by the Management Board and after 
final adoption of the general budget of the EU, in which the 
amount of the contribution to the agency will be fixed. For 
planning purposes and without prejudice to the decisions 
to be taken by the relevant EU authorities, the 2020 work 
programme has been drafted based on the proposal presented 
by the European Commission for the EU’s 2020 contribution 
to the EMCDDA, as endorsed by the two branches of the EU 
Budget Authority within the context of the EU’s 2020 budget 
procedure.

In this context, the EMCDDA will rely on a 2020 contribution 
from the EU amounting to EUR 16 288 600 and on 76 
authorised posts in its establishment plan for 2020.

The 2020 work programme applies a prioritisation approach 
for the expected outputs/results, which is based on three 
levels, presented below:

L1

L2

L3

L1 tasks are ‘must do’ tasks, which are time bound and critical 
for the agency to fulfil its institutional obligations. These tasks 
cannot be scaled down, removed from the work programme 
or postponed to future years without compromising the core 
performance of the agency.

L2 tasks are necessary to achieve the key commitments and 
fulfil the strategic objectives set out in Strategy 2025. In the 
event of resource constraints generated by external or internal 
factors, however, these tasks could potentially be scaled 
down or delayed without affecting the ability of the agency to 
deliver its L1 results in the current work programme.

L3 tasks are mostly developmental tasks, or new analyses, 
which are necessary for the agency to maintain an up-to-date 
understanding of the European drug situation in the medium 
term; however, in the event of resource constraints, they could 
potentially be scaled down or postponed without significant 
impact on the ability of the agency to deliver its L1 and L2 
results in the current work programme. Some L3 tasks also 
refer to desirable and valuable activities such as joint 
initiatives with third parties; these appear viable within the 
current planning framework, but could be postponed or 
cancelled if resources prove to be insufficient.

l  Activities

l 

 Main area 1: Health

Goal: Contribute to a healthier Europe

Core monitoring

In 2020, ongoing work will be carried out to ensure annual core 
data collection and management activities. Key to achieving 
this will be the support provided, as required, to the main 
national data providers, the Reitox NFPs in the Member States, 
Norway and Turkey. Central to this core monitoring are the five 
KIs (GPS, PDU, TDI, DRD, DRID). GPS describes prevalence 
and patterns of drug use among the general population; 
PDU focuses on prevalence and patterns of high-risk drug 
use; TDI is the treatment demand indicator; DRD describes 
drug-related deaths and mortality among drug users; and 
DRID describes drug-related infectious diseases. It is intended 
that the integration of core epidemiological monitoring and 
complementary methodologies (see below, ‘New trends and 
health threats’) will facilitate the development of a reliable 
knowledge basis to facilitate evidence-informed public 
health policy development. The EMCDDA’s core monitoring 
in the responses area (prevention, treatment, harm reduction 
and prisons) will also be maintained and developed (within 
available resources).

The EMCDDA will implement a new conceptual framework 
for data collection in line with Roadmap 2020. This will be 
informed by the analysis of data received by the EMCDDA, 
results of the systemic review, the review of the performance 
of individual tools and the gap analysis, which are planned to 
be carried out by the end of 2020. A number of data collections 
in areas outside the key indicators, such as wastewater 
analysis, hospital emergencies, analysis of syringe residues, 
drug checking and drug consumption rooms, alongside the 
monitoring of drug-related interventions, will be incorporated 
into the new conceptual framework. Emphasis will be placed 
on multi-indicator analysis, both to triangulate information 
to establish robust evidence and as a method of validating 
individual data collections.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Analytical work will be further developed to inform key 
EMCDDA outputs, in particular the EDR package, which 
will be subject to review. In 2020, a more top-level, trends-
focused EDR will be released alongside the statistical bulletin. 
Furthermore, because of the resource constraints and the need 
to review the use of the EDR and ensure better integration into 
the new EMCDDA digital communication model, the Country 
Drug Reports will be suspended in 2020, with a new approach 
to presenting country-specific data planned to be launched in 
2021.

Following the 2019 ESPAD data collection and data validation, 
the preparation of the 2019 ESPAD report will start in early 
2020, including analysis, drafting of the report, and the 
editorial and publication procedure, with a launch later in the 
year. The final format chosen for the report will depend on the 
availability of additional resources in the EMCDDA’s budget for 
2020. It is expected that the main ESPAD report launch will be 
accompanied or followed by a number of national reports and 
launches.

Support to EU priority third countries will continue under the 
framework of the technical assistance projects IPA 7 and 
EU4MD. For details, see also Main area: Security, and Business 
driver 2: Partnership.

in order to maintain the EMCDDA’s ability to detect, assess and 
respond to public health and social threats caused by NPS.

Where requested, risk assessments on NPS will be 
conducted under the auspices of the EMCDDA’s extended 
Scientific Committee. This activity carries important resource 
implications and risks associated with the lack of such 
resources. In recent years, this concern has become greater 
as a result of the related amount of information generated by 
both the increased number of substances monitored and the 
increased number of reported serious adverse events and 
other harms to health.

Another key task in this area will be to continue to maintain 
the next-generation replacement of the EDND, operational as 
of 2019. The EDND is the main information and monitoring 
system of the EWS and acts as Europe’s information hub 
on NPS. It allows secure electronic submission of data by 
the national early warning systems (NEWS), and provides 
data management and search functionalities to users. It also 
supports communication and information exchange with 
partners.

Provisions of Article 28(c) of the pharmacovigilance legislation 
will continue to be implemented in close cooperation with  
the EMA.

The EU Early Warning System and risk assessment of new 
psychoactive substances

New trends and health threats

In 2020, the EMCDDA, together with its partners in the 
Member States (the Reitox network of EWS correspondents), 
Europol, EMA and new EWS partners the ECHA, EFSA 
and ECDC, will carry on ensuring continuous and robust 
implementation of the EWS as provided for by Regulation (EU) 
2017/2101 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
15 November 2017 amending Regulation (EC) No 1920/2006 
as regards information exchange, early warning system 
and risk assessment procedure on NPS applicable as of 23 
November 2018. The shorter deadlines stipulated by this new 
legislation will ensure even faster responses to emerging NPS 
and the harms associated with them.

In accordance with the new legal framework, the reporting 
and monitoring tools and instruments necessary for reporting 
event-based data within the information exchange mechanism, 
including the reporting forms, will be automated, interlinked 
and aligned. The standard operating procedures, and EWS and 
risk assessment (pilot phase) operating guidelines adapted to 
the new legislative instrument, will be implemented in 2020.

During 2020, key components of the EWS — such as 
toxicovigilance, open source information monitoring, signal 
management and risk communication — will be consolidated 

To improve the timeliness of reporting, it is crucial that new 
and flexible monitoring tools complement the EMCDDA’s 
core monitoring system. In 2020, the agency will therefore 
strengthen its system for monitoring and understanding new 
and emerging trends in drug use, drug-related harms and drug 
markets.

To that end, the EMCDDA will continue key activities aimed 
at better integrating new methods and tools with existing 
monitoring routines and incorporate these methods into an 
overall conceptual framework for data collection. Subject to 
the availability of funding, this will include the publication of 
findings from a range of projects, such as Sewage Analysis 
Core Group Europe (SCORE) wastewater monitoring campaign 
and the European Syringe Collection and Analysis Project 
Enterprise (ESCAPE). The potential for OSI to generate useful 
and accessible information on key public health issues, 
including adverse health events such as drug-related deaths, 
will continue to be investigated.

Monitoring hospital emergencies data will also be further 
developed and the geographical coverage of the data will be 
improved. This will mainly involve consolidating and if possible 
enlarging the sentinel European Drug Emergencies Network 
(Euro-DEN), making best use of the data provided by the 

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22workbooks, and carrying out cross-indicator analyses with the 
DRD indicator.

trainers’ system (initiated in 2019) and local translations of the 
Curriculum itself. The EMCDDA will support the development 
and implementation of online training of trainers modules.

Trendspotter studies will continue to be undertaken on 
emerging trends and developments, and support offered 
to national capacity building and supervision. In tandem 
a communication model for rapid reporting will be piloted.

Equally important are the EMCDDA’s joint risk assessments 
on emerging threats, including close collaboration between 
the EMCDDA and ECDC on the monitoring of all incoming 
information on the evolution and epidemiology of drug-related 
infectious diseases and outbreaks.

Drug interventions

In 2020 a new edition of the European Responses Guide will 
be produced (for publication in 2021). This will continue to 
underpin much of the work undertaken in the area of health 
and social responses to drug-related problems. The format 
of the new report will be adapted taking into account the 
conclusions of the internal review of reporting tools and 
publications, and the resources available.

Identifying best practice and effectiveness of interventions 
across the EU and beyond is a key area for the EMCDDA. The 
main dissemination channel for this area is the BPP. In 2020, 
existing modules will be kept updated and new modules will be 
added, in parallel with the development of the 2021 European 
Responses Guide. Better integration of criminal justice-
related issues such as alternatives to coercive sanctions and 
responding to drug problems within a prison setting will be 
pursued. In line with resources, focused outputs will also be 
developed to support practice on key areas.

In the prevention area, the BPP databases on interventions in 
nightlife settings (Healthy Nightlife Toolbox) and the Xchange 
registry on evidence-based prevention programmes will be 
maintained and updated with new entries. The BPP will be 
expanded to include local environmental prevention strategies 
and evidence-based harm reduction programmes in the areas 
of preventing the spread of drug-related infectious diseases 
and overdose deaths. Cooperation with essential networks will 
continue to be consolidated and formalised, as appropriate.

This area also encompasses capacity building and training; 
production of targeted outputs and tools; and knowledge 
sharing by means of conferences and other practice-oriented 
events. Training for professionals will include Reitox academies 
in EU Member States and third countries. In addition, the 
European Drugs Summer School will take place in 2020.

In the treatment area, the agency will ensure that information 
about the evidence base for a range of interventions, including 
treatment for stimulant drugs, is regularly updated. Work 
will continue on the analysis of treatment outcomes for the 
improvement of quality and coverage of interventions. In 
addition, a toolkit supporting the estimates of the costs of 
treatment will be made available to support decision-makers 
with challenges related to allocation of resources.

In 2020, the EMCDDA will continue to promote good practices 
in harm reduction including the integration of evidence-based 
practices, interventions and policies into routine healthcare 
and public health settings. Dependent on resources, it 
will compile results on effectiveness and impact, equity, 
sustainability and transferability of interventions relevant to 
the core public health areas of the EMCDDA, and supplement 
them with real life implementation experiences. The web 
resources will continue to be developed in areas of particular 
importance for public health, such as hepatitis C and drug 
overdose prevention.

In 2020-22, the EMCDDA will support the evaluation of 
progress made at European level towards the elimination of 
viral hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030, by monitoring 
the achievement of PWID-specific 2020 targets in the first 
action plan for the health sector response to viral hepatitis in 
the WHO European Region. This includes the assessment of 
epidemiological trends (2015-20) and the evaluation of the 
results of EMCDDA’s work on promoting of hepatitis C virus 
(HCV) testing in treatment settings; HCV capacity-building 
materials and experiences from implementation of national/
regional/local training activities will be consolidated.

In the area of preventing drug-related deaths, work will 
continue to focus on overdose prevention, including the 
development of thematic training material. Based also on the 
topical analysis on take-home naloxone developed in 2019, 
a high-level thematic seminar/event targeting policymakers is 
envisaged, resources permitting.

Network building is important in this area, including 
partnerships with key scientific, professional and civil society 
networks to enable both the collection and the dissemination 
of EMCDDA best practice materials in the context of the 
expanded BPP and Xchange databases.

Drug policy

The European Prevention Curriculum will continue to be 
implemented in a number of countries through a ‘training of 

In 2020, the EMCDDA will continue to support policymakers in 
the development of evidence-based and effective drug policies 

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22through the provision of reliable and state-of-the-art drug 
policy analysis and the development of policy evaluation tools.

The EMCDDA will also continue to contribute to the 
implementation of EU policy objectives and provide ongoing 
high-quality expertise to its key institutional customers: the EU 
institutions and the EU Member States.

At the level of the EU institutions, the agency will further 
support sound policymaking through high-quality technical 
input to requests, events, processes and relevant institutional 
meetings, as appropriate and when required. In particular, 
support will be provided to Croatia and Germany, the hosts of 
the EU Presidency during 2020. Of particular importance is our 
responsibility with respect to the EU drug strategy. This is the 
final year of the EU drugs strategy 2013-20, and the EMCDDA 
will support the European Commission with the evaluation of 
the strategy, as well as with the reflection on the EU strategic 
framework on drugs after 2020 if requested.

The EMCDDA will also provide technical support, upon 
request, to the EU institutions and the Member States for their 
activities in international fora (e.g. at the CND and follow-up 
to the implementation of the CND multiannual work plan 
implementing the 2019 Ministerial Declaration).

In 2020, the EMCDDA will continue to provide reliable 
and timely drug policy analysis through a range of policy-
relevant outputs, including a report on the sale of low-
tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) cannabis products and a report 
on alternatives to coercive sanctions. The cannabis news alert 
aims to provide accurate, objective short summaries of key 
events in the cannabis policy field inside and outside the EU. 
In recent years news alerts have been sent out on legalisation 
of recreational cannabis use in the Americas, low-THC 
products being marketed in different EU Member States and 
new regulatory approaches in the EU. Developments in these 
fields will be closely followed and news updates prepared and 
published as appropriate.

Furthermore, the agency will continue to produce high-level 
briefings and guides aimed at answering policy-relevant 
questions in the fields of cannabis policy and alternatives to 

coercive sanctions. In addition, policymakers and professionals 
alike will benefit from the new and regularly updated web areas 
on prisons, drug laws and drug policies. The EMCDDA will also 
publish an Insights publication addressing current and future 
challenges in the prison and drugs field.

In 2020, the EMCDDA will continue to monitor national drug 
strategies, coordination mechanisms, public expenditures, 
policy evaluations, drug-related national research and drug 
laws. Ongoing monitoring will be carried out with a focus on 
emerging issues, thereby enabling the agency to proactively 
identify emerging drug policy trends. The annual meeting of 
the legal and policy correspondents will be organised, as a way 
of further improving the sharing of knowledge and expertise 
among Member States. Topics addressed during the meeting 
will be driven by the pertinent needs of Member States or the 
EMCDDA, to maximise the practical value to the network as 
well as the agency.

In addition to the agency’s support to the final evaluation of 
the EU drugs strategy, the EMCDDA will continue to provide 
support to national drug policy evaluations in 2020. The 
agency’s policy evaluation package includes both reactive 
responses to specific requests and proactive capacity-building 
activities. In terms of the services provided to the Member 
States, one of the priorities will be to provide targeted support 
to national requests for policy evaluation.

Key resources for EU and national policymakers alike will be 
available on the agency’s dedicated web area, which provides 
access to the EMCDDA’s seven-step guide to support the 
commissioning and managing of drug policy evaluation. The 
EMCDDA also envisages developing tools to assess the costs 
of interventions, to support policymakers in their analysis of 
the responses to the drug phenomenon, as well as an in-
depth review on current and future challenges in the prison 
and drugs field. In terms of capacity-building activities, within 
the available resources the EMCDDA will offer thematic 
workshops organised around emerging trends in drug policies 
and continue the policy evaluation workshops, started in 
2018, aimed at building the knowledge of those engaged in 
managing and making use of drug policy evaluations.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Strategic objective H1:

Maintain a state-of-the-art understanding of the extent of drug use, its patterns and trends, and their impact on public health

Expected outcomes

■■ Implementation of core monitoring tools optimised and new processes for monitoring drug demand developed, to respond to the needs of 

contemporary drug patterns

■■ Comprehensive understanding of the EU drug situation through improved quality and availability of data
■■ Improved ability to capture the developments in the international drug situation

Key performance indicators (KPIs) (13)

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the technical assistance projects with third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

H1.1. Strengthen the core monitoring system: a) 
critically review and develop, as needed, the 
data collection tools to ensure they remain fit for 
purpose; b) support national reporting capacity 
necessary for routine reporting

■■ Annual core data available to inform analysis and outputs:

 – Incoming data validated and processed in a timely manner (L1)

 – Annual Reporting Package 2021 adopted by the NFPs (L1)

 – Established reporting tools maintained (L2)

 – Activities to support NFP data collection efforts, in line with the Reitox Development 
Framework, including quality assurance and appropriate follow-up to the 2018 five-KI 
assessment exercise (L2)

■■ Annual overview of the European drug situation:

 – European Drug Report 2020 published (L1)

 – Statistical Bulletin 2020 published on the EMCDDA website (L1)

 – Analysis and reporting of 2019 ESPAD data collection — ESPAD report (activities 
dependent on the external deliveries and the available EMCDDA resources) (L2)

 – Proposal of a new conceptual framework for data collection, incorporating core monitoring, 

complementary data collections and new methods (L2)

■■ Analysis and reporting on important developments in drug trends, practice and policies (L2 or 

L3 — to be defined in the internal management plan 2020):

 – Prevalence, incidence, estimates and trends of different forms of drug use (including 

general population and high-risk use estimates, and drug use among different groups and in 
different settings)

 – Harms caused by or associated with the use of illicit drugs, and their public health impact at 

individual, community and population levels

 – Drug-related interventions in Europe, type of provision, availability and coverage (prevention, 

treatment, harm reduction)

 – Ongoing multi-source and transversal analyses conducted to support products and 

services, based on traditional and new epidemiological methods, on topics of public health 
relevance (e.g. opioid multi-indicator analysis, NPS epidemiology and others)

 – Data submission and analytical expert meetings organised in line with resources (L2)

■■ Data management tools (Fonte, Data Warehouse) operational:

 – Fonte and drugs Data Warehouse maintained to support the annual drugs data collection 

and analysis (L1)

 – A proposal for data management, structure and storage to support the analysis of the data 

(L3)

H1.2. Identify and develop new flexible and 
timely monitoring tools and approaches to 
ensure the monitoring system reflects 
contemporary drug patterns and their 
implications for public health

■■ Publish findings from the European Web Survey on Drugs project (EMCDDA Insights) (L2)

■■ Review the existing web survey questionnaire and adapt for use in IPA 7 countries and other 

international projects (L3)

■■ Ongoing analysis of the role of drug consumption rooms in monitoring drug use, risk 

behaviours and market changes (L3)

(13)  Full list of KPIs can be found in Annex 7.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Action areas

Outputs/results

H1.3. Better understand the implications for 
public health of the developing international 
drug problem, with special attention to the 
countries bordering the European Union, and 
within the agency’s mandate

■■ IPA 7 project outputs (health area), in line with the project logical framework (logframe) (L2 or 

L3 — to be defined in the internal management plan 2020)

■■ EU4Monitoring Drugs project outputs (health area), in line with the project logframe (L2 or 

L3 — to be defined in the internal management plan 2020)

■■ Exchange of information on emerging drug issues maintained with monitoring centres outside 

the EU (L3)

H1.4. Identify future reporting needs through 
a ‘futures exercise’ and appropriate follow-up 
activities

■■ Policy workshop involving main decision-makers from national, European and international 

levels (L2)

■■ Futures exercise outputs to inform the second EMCDDA Strategy 2025 roadmap (L2)

Strategic objective H2:

Identify new drug-related health threats and support rapid response from the EU and its Member States

Expected outcomes

■■ Effective implementation of the EU Early Warning System on new psychoactive substances (EWS) and the EU risk assessment mechanism on 

NPS

■■ Health-related emerging trends and threats captured and reported in a timely manner
■■ Maintain capacity of the EU and its Member States to rapidly respond to new drug-related health threats

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
4. Implementation of the EWS and risk assessment mechanism on NPS
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the technical assistance projects with third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

H2.1. Ensure the successful operation of the EU 
Early Warning System on New Psychoactive 
Substances (EWS)

■■ EWS and information exchange mechanism (supporting tools, processes and activities) 

operating under the new legal basis in place in 2020:

 – ongoing management of the EWS and information exchange mechanism, in compliance 

with the provisions of the applicable legislative framework (L1)

 – guidelines, procedures, processes and tools relative to the EWS adapted to the new 

legislative framework and implemented (as required) (L1)

 – initial reports prepared as required (L1)

 – EDND maintained and regularly updated (L1)

 – EWS final reports (L2)

■■ Annual meeting of the EWS Network organised (L2)

■■ Toxicovigilance and risk communication implemented (L1)

■■ Technical support to national early warning systems (NEWS) and forensic and toxicological 

networks (L2)

■■ Maintain OSI monitoring for EWS purposes (L2)

■■ Dissemination of knowledge on NPS through EWS updates and participation in scientific and 

technical events (L2)

■■ EWS update (L2)

■■ Data exchange with international bodies (UNODC/SMART and WHO Expert Committee on 

Drug Dependence) to support prioritisation, scheduling discussions and information exchange 
activities (L3)

■■ Support to building EWS in priority third countries (projects IPA 7 and EU4MD, in line with 

resources) (L2)

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Action areas

Outputs/results

H2.2. Ensure timely and high-quality 
implementation of the risk assessment on NPS

H2.3. Develop innovative approaches to 
identifying and reporting on new trends, and 
enhance the EMCDDA’s capacity for timely data 
collection and analysis

H2.4. Conduct threat assessments and rapid 
reporting exercises of new drug-related health 
threats in order to facilitate appropriate 
responses (in collaboration with partners, as 
appropriate)

■■ Risk assessment mechanisms (supporting tools, processes and activities) operating under the 

new legal basis in place:

 – risk assessment reports prepared as required (L1)

 – guidelines, procedures, processes and tools relative to the risk assessment adapted to the 

new legislative framework and piloted (L1)

 – operating guidelines on risk assessment of NPS, in line with the new legislative framework, 

published (L1)

■■ Information exchange with EMA, including formal notifications and public health-related risk 

communications, and responses to formal information requests, in line with Article 28(c) of the 
EU pharmacovigilance legislation (L1)

■■ Publish online data and supporting analysis from the 2019 SCORE group wastewater-

monitoring campaign (L2)

■■ Analyse and publish the results of Euro-DEN network on hospital emergencies (L2)

■■ Publish online data and supporting analysis from the 2019 ESCAPE project analysing syringe 

residues (L2)

■■ Continue to evaluate the ability of OSI to generate useful public health information e.g. on 

drug-related deaths (L3)

■■ Publish online data and supporting analysis from drug-checking facilities across Europe within 

the Trans European Drug Information group (TEDI) and beyond (L3)

■■ EU trendspotter studies prepared and national trendspotter studies supported as resources 

permit (L2)

■■ Communication model for threat and rapid reporting proposed (L3)

■■ Cooperation with ECDC including risk assessment country missions in the EU Member States, 

upon request and depending on available resources (L2)

■■ In-depth assessment of drug-related harms and responses (based on needs and resources) 

(L2)

■■ Publish and channel results of threat assessments and rapid reporting on health threats to 

interested groups (L3)

■■ A trendspotting methodology available for threat assessment in the priority third countries (in 
the framework of the EU4MD and IPA 7 projects (should the top-up proposal be approved by 
the European Commission), in line with the project logframes) (L2)

Strategic objective H3:

Support interventions to prevent and reduce drug use, drug-related morbidity, mortality and other harms, and support recovery and social 
reintegration

Expected outcomes

■■ Optimisation of tools to monitor drug interventions
■■ Better and more informed policy and practice on effectiveness of interventions in drug demand reduction within the EU
■■ Availability of effective interventions to prevent and reduce drug use, drug-related morbidity, mortality and other harms

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Action areas

Outputs/results

H3.1. Follow developments from basic 
research, applied research and 
implementation science to maintain state-of-
the-art understanding of what constitute 
effective interventions to both established and 
emergent drug-related problems

■■ BPP — kept updated with new contents (L1)

■■ BPP — Inventory of European Guidelines and Standards kept up to date (L2)

■■ BPP — Revised Evaluation Instruments Bank kept up to date (L2)

■■ Ongoing provision of tools to support programme implementation (L2)

■■ Options for process for certification of prevention programmes reviewed (L2)

■■ Availability of a toolkit with guidelines for estimating the cost of providing drug-related health 

interventions (L3)

■■ Development of a model to measure and benchmark treatment outcomes (L3)

■■ Update the EMCDDA web page on national research (L3)

■■ Appropriate follow-up of the Council Conclusions on Minimum Quality Standards:

 – Selected minimum quality standards continue to be operationalised e.g. in the prevention 

and harm reduction areas (L2)

 – Ongoing collection of tools for self-accreditation of quality standards (L2)

 – Guide for implementing standards published (L3)

■■ Reporting tools maintained for:

 – Established areas (see Action area H1.1) (L2)

 – New settings and developmental areas (e.g. prisons, naloxone, drug consumption rooms) (L3)

■■ Data analysis (state-of-the-art monitoring necessary for European-level assessment of the 

responses to the drug situation) (L2)

H3.2. Strengthen, maintain and develop the 
monitoring tools required for describing the 
delivery of drug-related interventions: a) in 
established areas and settings; b) in new 
settings and developmental areas

H3.3. Facilitate knowledge transfer, the 
adoption of best practice, and successful 
implementation, by developing state-of-the-art 
resources for professionals and supporting 
and developing training and capacity-building 
activities

■■ European Responses Guide package prepared (for publication in 2021) (L1)

■■ Reitox academies to improve NFPs’ capacity to collect, analyse and report health data, 

implemented in line with resources (L2)

■■ Capacity development activities for the IPA 7 project beneficiaries, in line with the project 

logframe (L2)

■■ Capacity development activities for the EU4Monitoring Drugs project partners, in line with the 

project logframe (L2)

■■ European Drugs Summer School (L2)

■■ Knowledge transfer activities (e.g. face-to-face workshop, online webinars) for selected 

interventions dependent on need and resources (L3)

■■ Databases on interventions in nightlife settings (Healthy Nightlife Toolbox), club health and the 

Xchange registry on evidence-based prevention programmes maintained and updated with new 
entries (L2)

■■ Expansion of Xchange database model in new areas e.g. harm reduction (L2)

■■ EMCDDA contribution to key drug-related events to support practitioners (L2)

■■ EUPC disseminated and training of trainers provided (in line with resources) (L2)

■■ Comparative analysis of access, quality and prevention of diversion of opioid substitution 

treatment in Europe (L3)

■■ Scientific support to knowledge transfer activities organised by countries (L3)

■■ Development of the Costs of Treatment toolkit (L3)

■■ Implementation of the third year of the multiannual harm reduction initiative (L3)

■■ Ongoing implementation of the DRD prevention initiative (L3)

■■ EMCDDA paper club series involving regular visiting experts exchanges with EMCDDA and 

non-EMCDDA staff on new evidence developments (L3)

■■ EMCDDA hepatitis C resource web pages available and maintained (L2)

■■ EMCDDA web pages on preventing DRD available and maintained (L2)

■■ Joint ECDC/EMCDDA guidance on prevention and control of blood-borne viruses among PWID 

updated (for publication in 2021) (L3)

■■ Existing and new consumer protection models (e.g. drug-checking models, harm reduction 

equipment) identified and described (resource dependent) (L3)

■■ New technologies in the field of healthcare provision to drug users, specialists and non-

specialists (e.g. e-learning, m-health) followed (resource dependent) (L3)

■■ Follow-up on topics linked with public health and drug priorities in prison settings e.g. infectious 

disease prevention, NPS-related problems, preventing overdose on release (resource 
dependent) (L3)

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H3.4. Provide additional information resources 
to support decision-making and programme 
development in areas particularly important 
for public health, or where innovations are 
becoming available or the knowledge base is 
rapidly changing (such as hepatitis 
C treatment, overdose prevention, new 
pharmacotherapies, e-health and 
interventions targeting hard-to-reach 
populations) or where new evidence reviews 
have become available

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Strategic objective H4:

Support the development, implementation, monitoring and assessment of policies aimed at addressing the health and social consequences of drug 
use

Expected outcomes

■■ Optimisation of tools to monitor drug policies and legislation
■■ Increased capacity of EU and national policymakers to address the health and social consequences of drug use, with evidence provided by, and 

support from, the EMCDDA

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

H4.1. Support, as requested, EU and national policy 
initiatives within the EMCDDA’s areas of 
competence, with particular attention given to the 
implementation of the EU drug strategy and its 
action plans

■■ Input to EU institution-related activities within established priorities and available 

resources:

 – support EU institution-related activities in the area of drug policy (HDG, national drugs 

coordinators, etc.) (L1)

 – support the EU in its policy dialogue with international bodies and third countries (L1)

 – support the implementation of the 2017-20 EU drug action plan (L1)

 – support final evaluation of the EU drug strategy 2013-20 (L1)

 – contribute to the reflection on an EU strategy on drugs after 2020, if requested (L1)

 – support other policy initiatives within areas relevant to the EMCDDA (L2)

 – technical cooperation with the UN system, including data validation and support to the 
revision of the annual report questionnaire, and support the EU in the implementation 
of CND multiannual work plan resulting from the 2019 Ministerial Declaration (L2)

■■ Input to Member State-related activities within established priorities and available 

resources (L1)

■■ EMCDDA contribution to key drug-related events to support policymakers, in line with 

resources (L2)

H4.2. Monitor and report on key policy 
developments, occurring nationally, at EU level and 
internationally, to facilitate an informed and 
up-to-date dialogue

■■ Reporting tools in the policy area maintained for established areas (legal framework, 
national drug strategies, evaluation, coordination, public expenditures, prisons) (L2)

■■ Reporting tools in the policy area set up and improved for developmental areas (e.g. 

alternatives to coercive sanctions, cannabis regulatory frameworks) (L3)

■■ Policy and law web areas maintained and regularly updated (L2)

■■ Cannabis news alert system further developed (L2)

■■ Low-THC cannabis products (L2)

■■ In-depth review on current and future challenges in the prison and drugs field (EMCDDA 

Insights) published (L2)

■■ Annual meeting of the legal and policy correspondents organised (L2)

■■ Thematic workshops organised around emerging trends in drug policies, as required and 

in line with resources (L3)

H4.3. Maintain and develop resources to support 
policy formulation and evaluation (in close 
coordination with the support to policy provided in 
the supply area)

■■ Portfolio of tools and services to support policy development, implementation and 

evaluation in the Member States and priority third countries — online policy evaluation 
toolkit maintained and regularly updated (L2)

■■ Workshop organised for national policymakers and planners on policy evaluation 

approaches (L2)

■■ Support provided to national drug policy evaluations, if requested and within available 

resources (L2)

■■ Model for utilisation of epidemiological indicators to support cannabis policy evaluation 

under review (L3)

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Resources necessary for the implementation of the activities 
in this area

Budget (EUR)

EMCDDA: 5 532 341

IPA 7 (14)

EU4MD (16)

Human resources (full-time 
equivalent — FTE)

35.35

1 (15)

1 (17)

l  Main area 2: Security

Goal: Contribute to a more secure Europe

Drug markets monitoring and identification of new threats

The drug market in Europe is continuously evolving, and 
providing a comprehensive understanding of this market 
requires ongoing effort to improve our core monitoring 
system, but also to modernise our data collection 
approaches. Importantly, the agency must keep abreast of 
developments in the international drug situation, for example 
cocaine production in Latin America or opium production 
in Afghanistan, which have a direct impact on the EU drug 
phenomenon.

To that end, in 2020, work on improving the quality and 
availability of supply data will continue, in close collaboration 
with our data providers at national level, the Reference Group 
on Drug Supply Indicators and our partner Europol.

Following the launch of the third EMCDDA-Europol EU Drug 
Markets Report in 2019, in 2020 we will focus on filling some 
of the information gaps identified in that analysis.

In terms of new sources of data and innovative monitoring 
approaches, the agency will continue to develop its capacity 
for OSI monitoring, in particular in relation to improving 
the timeliness of data and on drug supply on the rapidly 
developing and dynamic darknet markets.

Concerning activities to monitor developments outside the 
EU, in 2020 the EMCDDA will enter the second year of the 
implementation of the project EU4Monitoring Drugs, the 
capacity-building project that helps 15 ENP potential partner 

countries (18) identify, assess and respond to cross-border 
drug-related health and security threats. Furthermore, similar 
to the work carried out under the health pillar, the EMCDDA 
will continue to support the transfer of its monitoring tools 
and methodologies to CCs and PCCs, on security-related 
issues, as well as the gradual integration of supply-related data 
from these countries in EMCDDA publications, as the quality 
improves. This knowledge transfer will be undertaken in the 
framework of the IPA 7 technical assistance project funded by 
the European Commission, covering the period of July 2019 
to June 2022 and in line with the EMCDDA’s international 
cooperation framework adopted by the Management Board in 
December 2017 (see also Main area 1: Health, and Business 
driver 2: Partnership).

Identifying new drug-related security threats and transmitting 
this information rapidly so that appropriate responses can be 
developed is a key requirement if Europe is to keep pace with 
the growing security challenges emerging in this area. Threat 
assessments and ad hoc briefings on important security 
topics will be conducted in close collaboration with Europol. 
These will be initiated by EMCDDA or Europol, at the request 
of stakeholders, or in the framework of the EU policy cycle for 
organised and serious international crime.

Understanding the nature and consequences of drug-
related crime

One of the strategic objectives of the EMCDDA in this area is to 
improve understanding of the drug-related crime phenomenon. 
Routine monitoring in this area has been limited to drug law 
offences, so expansion to include other crimes related to the 
drugs trade is required. This is a developmental area, and 
progress will be incremental and dependent on the availability 
of resources. In 2020, in consultation with the NFPs, the 
agency will continue to develop the drug-related homicide 
data monitor based on the groundwork already completed. In 
addition, synergies will be pursued with partners (e.g. Eurostat) 
to improve our data collection linked to other types of drug-
related crime, such as acquisitive crime, illegal firearms and 
terrorism.

Support EU responses to drug security challenges

In the EU policy area, the EMCDDA will contribute as required 
to the priority area addressing the drug threats identified 
by COSI: to disrupt the activities of OCGs involved in the 
wholesale trafficking of cannabis, cocaine and heroin to the 

(14)  The budget is presented under Main area 3: Business drivers, and in Annex I.
(15)  This concerns the scientific staff recruited to work for the project, in the 
health area.
(16)  The budget is presented under Main area 3: Business drivers, and in Annex I.
(17)  This concerns the scientific staff recruited to work for the project, in the 
health area.

(18) 
In July 2019 the competent authorities of Egypt wrote to the EMCDDA 
declining their participation in the project. While respecting the official position of 
Egypt in what regards activities to be carried out at national level, the EMCDDA 
will continue to seek the involvement of Egypt about the regional aspects of the 
project and strive to include the country in the regional data analysis activities.

36 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22EU; and to reduce the production of synthetic drugs and NPS 
in the EU and to dismantle OCGs involved in their production, 
trafficking and distribution. In addition, the agency will provide 
methodological, analytical and administrative support to the 
European Commission for the drafting of the OAP for 2021, 
and will implement its tasks under the OAP 2020.

This contribution will include the delivery of training for law 
enforcement in partnership with CEPOL and Europol, in line 
with the EU Strategic Training Needs Assessment carried out 
by CEPOL (resource dependent). This knowledge transfer 
element is a key added value at EU level. In addition, the 
EMCDDA will continue close cooperation with key EU agencies 
active in the area of JHA, in particular Europol, Eurojust and 
Frontex.

Strategic objective S1:

Provide a comprehensive, holistic and up-to-date understanding of the drug market in Europe

Expected outcomes

■■ Implementation of optimised supply-related monitoring tools and new processes for monitoring drug supply developed, to respond to the needs 

of the contemporary drug market

■■ Comprehensive understanding of the EU drug market through improved quality and availability of data and analysis
■■ Improved ability to capture the developments in the international drug situation

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the technical assistance projects with third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

S1.1. Strengthen the core monitoring system: improve 
quality and coverage in the implementation of supply and 
supply reduction indicators in the Member States and 
their supporting tools, networks and processes

■■ Analysis and outputs based on the available drug market data (e.g. on darknet 

marketplaces; drug-related homicide; trafficking in human beings; emerging drug 
supply models and associated violence and exploitation of vulnerable groups) (L2 or 
L3 — to be defined in the internal management plan 2020)

■■ Review of workbooks on markets and crime, and feedback provided to NFPs (L2)

■■ Support the NFPs’ capacity to collect, analyse and report drug supply data, in line 

with the Reitox development framework and available resources (L2)

■■ Analysis of data on drug production — synthetic drugs (L2)

■■ Analysis of data on drug production — cannabis (L3)

■■ Analysis of data on drug production — cocaine (L3)

■■ Studies commissioned to address information gaps identified in the 2019 EDMR, in 

preparation for EDMR 2022 (subject to resources) (L3)

■■ Organise in conjunction with the European Commission, the third EU Conference on 

Drug Supply Indicators (subject to support being provided by the EC and to 
availability of resources) (L2)

■■ Ongoing review of performance of individual drug supply-monitoring tools (L2)

■■ OSI monitoring maintained (L2)

■■ Ongoing monitoring of drug supply on darknet markets implemented (subject to 

resources) (L2)

S1.2. Develop new and innovative data collection 
approaches to increase the scope and coverage of 
analysis, and provide a cost-effective and practical 
solution to supplement existing core data collection 
systems in this area (e.g. open source intelligence; 
internet monitoring; web surveys)

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Action areas

Outputs/results

S1.3. Improve understanding of the impact on the 
European drug market of developments in the 
international drug situation, with particular attention 
given to the countries bordering the EU

■■ Strategic analysis of the Western Balkan countries’ drug markets: outputs from 

project IPA 7, in line with the project logframe (L2 or L3 — to be defined in the internal 
management plan 2020)

■■ Strategic analysis of the European and neighbouring countries’ drug markets: outputs 
from EU4Monitoring Drugs project, in line with the project logframe (L2 or L3 — to be 
defined in the internal management plan 2020)

■■ Analysis of OSI carried out to improve understanding of the impact of drugs produced 
in the EU on the rest of the world, and the impact on the EU of drugs produced and 
seized outside the EU and destined for sale on the EU market (subject to resources) 
(L2)

■■ Dissemination of EMCDDA analyses at events (L2)

S1.4. Support a better strategic understanding of the 
drivers of innovation in synthetic drug production and 
their impact, including routes of synthesis and source 
chemicals, and contribute to the European system on 
drug precursor monitoring, together with the European 
Commission and Europol

■■ Analysis of synthetic drug production (from the European Reporting Instrument on 

Sites related to Synthetic Production (ERISSP) and seizures and stopped shipments 
of drug precursors) (L3)

■■ Information exchange and collaboration with partners (in particular with Europol and 
the European Commission) on drug precursors, and contribution to key activities in 
the drug precursor area (L3)

Strategic objective S2:

Identify new drug-related security threats and support a rapid response from the EU and its Member States

Expected outcomes

■■ Security-related emerging trends and threats captured and reported in a timely manner
■■ Increased capacity of the EU and its Member States to rapidly respond to new and re-emerging drug-related security threats

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the technical assistance projects with third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

S2.1. Provide threat assessments related to transversal 
security threats linked to the production and supply of 
drugs

S2.2. Identify and communicate the threats associated 
with NPS with respect to sourcing, production, transit and 
marketing, and ensure vigilance and follow-up on threats 
related to the emergence of newly controlled NPS on the 
drug market

S2.3. Improve capacity to monitor innovation in the drug 
market and its impact, with special attention given to the 
development of online drug markets and darknet drug 
sales

■■ Joint threat assessments with Europol (L2)

■■ Briefing notes on emerging threats provided to EU and national policymakers (as 

appropriate) (L2)

■■ Results of monitoring of market-related information on NPS derived from the EU EWS 

analysed and integrated into EMCDDA outputs (L3)

■■ Threat identification and analysis based on the results of the darknet monitoring (L3)

38 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Strategic objective S3:

Improve understanding of the nature and consequences of drug-related crime

Expected outcomes

■■ Better understanding of drug-related crime and its link with other serious crimes such as terrorism, illegal firearms trafficking and illegal migration
■■ Improved comprehension of wider societal impact of drug markets and drug-related crime

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the technical assistance projects with third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

S3.1. Improve the monitoring of drug-related crime and 
associated responses and countermeasures and their 
impact (subject to resources)

■■ Framework for monitoring drug-related acquisitive crime conceptualised (L3)

■■ Analysis of responses to drug-related violent crime conducted (L3)

■■ Information exchange and engagement with drug-related crime expert group 

(European Commission) (L3)

■■ Data collection protocol on drug-related homicide monitoring (non-routine data) (L3)

■■ Provision of training on drug markets, crime and supply reduction based on the 2019 

EDMR (L2)

■■ Capacity development activities for the IPA 7 project beneficiaries, in line with the 

project logframe (L2)

■■ Capacity development activities for the EU4Monitoring Drugs project beneficiaries, in 

line with the project logframe (L2)

Note: this action area was covered by the work carried out to prepare the 2019 EU Drug 
Markets Report (see Action area S 1.1)

S3.2. Contribute to an improved understanding of the 
links and interactions that exist between drugs and 
serious criminality, including security threats, such as 
illegal financial flows, corruption, trafficking in other illicit 
cargoes and terrorism

S3.3. Support the development of a broader conceptual 
framework on the wider societal impact of drug markets 
and drug-related crime, including environmental impact, 
implications for community safety and possible 
unintended negative consequences of interventions

Strategic objective S4:

Support policy and operational responses to the security challenges posed by drugs and drug markets at EU and national levels

Expected outcomes

■■ Improved law enforcement capacity to prevent and investigate drug-related crime, based on knowledge, skills and expertise acquired through 

training and sharing of best practices

■■ Enhanced capacity of policymakers at EU and national levels to combat drug-related security threats

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

39 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Action areas

Outputs/results

S4.1. Support the EU policy cycle for organised and 
serious international crime and provide expertise on the 
EMPACT drug priority areas (through threat assessments, 
provision of expertise, and training). A priority task for the 
EMCDDA is to maintain an overview of EU drug markets, 
their ramifications and responses

S4.2. Increase the effectiveness and the impact of EU 
actions in the security area including by a) strengthening/
establishing networks of field experts, academics, law 
enforcement officials, etc. and b) defining criteria for 
identifying, understanding and prioritising emerging 
threats (including external, current and future) stemming 
from drug market activity, integrating uncertainty, 
projected trends and scenario planning

S4.3. Develop capacity for supporting the evaluation, 
upon request, of law enforcement responses to drug 
supply interventions (in close coordination with policy 
support provided to health interventions)

■■ Expertise provided to the implementation of the 2017-20 EU drug action plan (supply 

reduction actions) (L1)

■■ Expertise provided in support of the European agenda on security 2015-20 (L1)

■■ Support for the EU policy cycle for organised and serious international crime, in particular 

through appropriate tasks with the OAPs on drug priorities and the development of 
multiannual strategic plans, as well as through contribution to SOCTA (L1)

■■ Delivery of training by provision of expertise at events organised by CEPOL (L2)

■■ Participation in key events, such as the Europol Drug Programme Board and SOCTA 

meetings (L2)

■■ EMCDDA Secure Information Exchange Network Application (SIENA) system 

continuous operations and update to support secure exchange of information with 
EUROPOL (L2)

■■ Annual meeting and proceedings of the Reference Group on Drug Supply Indicators 

organised (L2)

■■ Expert technical meetings held, building on network of supply experts and the 

reference group subject to availability of resources (L3)

■■ Follow-up on the scoping exercise to better understand the impact of supply 

reduction (carried out in 2019) (L3)

■■ Engagement with professionals working in wastewater monitoring for application in 

supply reduction measurement (L3)

Resources necessary for the implementation of the activities 
in this area

Budget (EUR)

Human resources (FTE)

EMCDDA: 3 283 295

IPA 7 (19)

EU4MD (21)

13.95

1 (20)

2 (22)

l  Main area 3: Business drivers

Business driver 1: Institutional

During the year the EMCDDA will continue to implement 
the action plan to follow up on the recommendations of the 
fourth external evaluation of the agency, as adopted by the 
Management Board in 2019.

A strategic analysis will be carried out in the context of the 
preparation of Roadmap 2025 and a review of the EMCDDA 
business model will be also performed (for completion in 
2021). These exercises will be informed by the outcome of 

(19)  The budget is presented under Main area 3: Business drivers, and in Annex I.
(20)  This concerns the scientific staff recruited to work for the project, in the 
security area.
(21)  The budget is presented under Main area 3: Business drivers, and in Annex I.
(22)  This concerns the scientific staff recruited to work for the project, in the 
security area.

the fourth external evaluation of the EMCDDA (carried out by 
the European Commission in 2018), and the results of the 
evaluations of the EU drug strategy and action plans and the 
Futures exercise, among other things.

In this complex institutional context, the agency will seek to 
improve its understanding of the evolving needs of its key 
stakeholders/customers. Further to the research and pilot 
activities undertaken in 2018 and 2019, work will be carried 
out in 2020 (activities using different methods to gather 
customers’ feedback, mappings, persona development and 
customer journey activities following the service design 
approach). The main deliverable of the project, the framework 
for proactively identifying and responding to customers’ 
needs, including a set of tools and methods, processes, 
recommendations and framework metrics, will be finalised by 
the end of 2020 (Roadmap 2020 deliverable).

On the basis of the outcome of this project, the EMCDDA 
portfolio of products and services will be analysed and 
suggestions will be made for adaptation according to the 
customers’ needs. Communication and dissemination 
activities will be further optimised and measured for their 
effectiveness. Ongoing website developments will continue 
to offer the EMCDDA’s audiences access to interactive 
products and tools. The agency’s digital transformation project 
will ensure that the changes and opportunities provided by 
developing digital technologies are leveraged in a strategic and 
prioritised way.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Furthermore, the agency will increase its work with drug 
specialised communicators (e.g. journalists, bloggers), and will 
target relevant portals (e.g. EU Health for uptake of EMCDDA 
evidence in the health field).

The agency will also endeavour to anticipate the developments 
in the EU drug situation, through the futures exercise planned 
to be completed in 2020 (see Main area 1: Health).

These interlinked and mutually reinforcing efforts will allow 
the EMCDDA to prepare for future scenarios and position itself 
as a leading provider of evidence on drugs, for a healthier and 
a more secure Europe.

These developments in the communication area will be 
accompanied by a staff digital empowerment programme, 
including appropriate training and guidelines.

In line with the business continuity plan of the EMCDDA, 
training on crisis communication will also be provided to the 
agency’s staff.

Business objective B1:

Anticipate, and respond promptly to, institutional developments and needs

Expected outcomes

■■ Increased capacity of the EMCDDA to meet stakeholders’ needs through tailored products and services, which are provided through optimised 

communication channels

■■ The EMCDDA is organised to respond to the recommendations emerging from the fourth external evaluation of the agency and other relevant 

institutional and political developments

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
6. Organisational efficiency
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

B1.1. Continue to analyse the external 
environment and how it relates to current 
and future stakeholder needs

B1.2. Configure services to ensure they 
are timely and are delivered professionally 
and in a form coherent with our 
stakeholders’ needs

B1.3. Prepare the agency for ongoing and 
potential future revisions of its mandate, in 
line with the recommendations of the 
external evaluation performed in 2018, 
and the conclusions of the evaluation of 
EU Drugs Strategy and Action Plan

■■ Efficient support provided to the EMCDDA Management Board in performing its governance role 

(L1)

■■ 2020 customer needs analysis conducted (follow-up to the project implemented in 2018-19) (L2)

■■ Framework and associated procedures for proactively identifying and responding to stakeholders’ 

needs (processes, tools, recommendations, metrics) delivered by the end of 2020 (L2)

■■ Methods and instruments tested to better understand the needs of drug professionals (e.g. 

stakeholder/focus group meetings, user testing, surveys) (L2)

■■ EMCDDA portfolio of products and services analysed and adjusted based on outcome of customer 

needs assessment project (L2)

■■ Communication and dissemination activities (including through digital channels: website, social 

media, audiovisual) are optimised and measured for their effectiveness (L2)

■■ Web system functional and further developed as required (L2)

■■ Availability of multilingual products (subject to resources) (L2)

■■ Action plan to follow up on the recommendations arising from the fourth external evaluation of the 

EMCDDA (follow-up action plan) implemented (L1)

■■ Strategic analysis and review of the EMCDDA business model (L1)

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Business driver 2: Partnership

In line with its strategic priorities, in 2020 the EMCDDA will 
continue its information and knowledge exchange with its 
European and global partners.

The main partners of the EMCDDA in the Member States, 
Norway and Turkey, and the agency’s core data providers, 
are the Reitox NFPs. The substantive activities involving the 
contribution of the NFPs are presented in Main area 1: Health, 
and Main area 2: Security.

As far as the Reitox network management is concerned, 
2020 will be very important because it will be the last year of 
Roadmap 2020, during which the Centre and the NFPs will 
take the last steps agreed in 2017 to enhance the visibility, 
usefulness and ultimately sustainability of the NFPs at national 
level, and as a network at European level.

The accreditation system initiative will be further reinforced 
in 2020. The interested NFPs will be supported in the 
application of the self-assessment tool, which was piloted in 
2017 and implemented in 2019 through a collaborative effort 
coordinated by the EMCDDA, with input from the NFPs. In 
addition to Reitox, the EMCDDA needs to work directly with 
a number of expert networks, as well as with specialist data 
providers and research collaborations (for details, see Main 
area 1: Health, and Main area 2: Security).

During the year the EMCDDA will also continue its cooperation 
with EU agencies working in the health area, such as the ECDC 
and EMA, as well as with agencies from the JHA cluster, such 
as Europol, Eurojust, CEPOL and Frontex.

Information and knowledge exchange will be also consolidated 
with global partners (mainly the UN family — the UNODC, 
WHO and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS 
(UNAIDS) — but also other partners, such as the Pompidou 
Group), in line with the existing working arrangements, 
emerging annual priorities and available resources.

In 2020, the cooperation for the preparation of CCs and 
PCCs for EU accession will continue, for six beneficiary CCs 
and PCCs, primarily through the IPA 7 technical assistance 
project, which started in July 2019 and will last until June 
2022. The activities planned will range from the day-to-day 
support for data collection and monitoring, through capacity 
building and direct support for specific studies, to negotiation 
of working arrangements with the interested countries, thus 
bringing them closer to the EMCDDA. It will also serve to 
enhance the capacity of the IPA 7 beneficiaries to monitor drug 
markets, and will contribute to improving national and regional 
responses to cross-border health and security threats.

It will also be the second year of implementation of the 
EU4Monitoring Drugs project, the largest technical assistance 
project ever implemented by the EMCDDA, and the second 
such project to be implemented by the EMCDDA in ENP-
South and ENP-East countries. The EU-funded project aims to 
enhance the capacity of 15 ENP potential partner countries (23) 
to monitor drug markets and thereby contribute to improving 
national and regional responses to contemporary security 
and health threats in those countries/regions. The project 
will allow the EMCDDA to improve its knowledge base, by 
creating an analysis and response platform to tackle the 
dynamic links between drugs, security and health threats. This 
project focuses on the areas where EMCDDA involvement can 
demonstrate significant added value and in particular to (1) 
identify, analyse and report effectively on ongoing, emerging 
and future trends in the drug market and their implication for 
security and health; and (2) increase monitoring and response 
capacity and enhance regional cooperation between ENP 
countries and between them and the EU (see also Main area 1: 
Health, and Main area 2: Security).

In 2020, within the available resources the EMCDDA will 
continue cooperating with other third countries in the 
framework of regional EU-funded projects with Central Asian 
and Latin American countries, as well as on an ad hoc basis 
with other third countries.

(23) 
In July 2019 the competent authorities of Egypt wrote to the EMCDDA 
declining their participation in the project. While respecting the official position of 
Egypt in what regards activities to be carried out at national level, the EMCDDA 
will continue to seek the involvement of Egypt about the regional aspects of the 
project and strive to include the country in the regional data analysis activities.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Business objective B2:

Strengthen the European Drug Information System through effective and mutually beneficial partnerships and synergies with our data providers, 
communities of knowledge and relevant European and international bodies and cooperation with third countries

Expected outcomes

■■ Efficient coordination of the Reitox network to ensure improved reporting capacity of the NFPs and good performance in the implementation of 

the grant agreements

■■ Enhanced synergies with EU and international bodies working in drug-related areas
■■ Increased EU capacity to address drug threats in EU priority third countries

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA monitoring system
5. Implementation and management of the Reitox grant agreements
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the technical assistance projects with third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

B2.1. Develop, jointly with the national focal 
points, and guided by EMCDDA Strategy 
2025, the new Reitox network development 
framework, and support its implementation 
by the NFPs

■■ Reitox network support and coordination

 – NFPs provided with further support towards the implementation of the Reitox development 

framework 2018-25, namely to improve their capacity to report health and security data, in line 
with its respective roadmap for 2020 and the available resources (L2)

 – Preparatory work for the final assessment of Roadmap 2020 and definition of a possible 

Roadmap 2025 (L2)

 – Biannual meetings of the heads of national focal points (HFPs) (L1)

 – Technical meetings (as appropriate and in line with resources) (L2)

 – Interested countries supported in the implementation of the Reitox accreditation system (L2)

 – NFPs provided with quality feedback, technical assistance and institutional support (where 

required) (L2)

■■ Grant agreements management

 – 2020 grant agreement deliverables (financial and narrative reports) provided in line with the 

applicable rules and regulations (L2)

 – 2019 grant agreement final deliverables (financial and narrative reports) controlled and final 

payments executed (L2)

 – 2019 grant agreement audit reports prepared, further to the audit missions carried out in 

selected countries (depending on budget availability), and made available to the European 
Court of Auditors (upon request) (L2)

 – 2021 grant agreements and related documents prepared and updated (L2)

■■ Drug expert networks maintained, including in key indicator areas and other data collection 

sources (e.g. ESPAD, SCORE, Euro-DEN, Xchange) (L2)

■■ Experts from priority third countries associated with and participating in relevant drug experts 

networks (projects IPA 7 and EU4MD) (L2)

■■ Reference paper on the articulation of different networks at EU and national levels (update of the 
‘Charter of good communication between the EMCDDA, the NFPs and national experts’ adopted 
by the HFPs in May 2010) (L3)

■■ International cooperation framework implemented in line with the defined annual priorities and 

the available resources (L2)

■■ Joint work programmes with partner European and international organisations implemented in 

line with the EMCDDA strategic priorities for 2020 (L2)

■■ New working arrangements with partners, as appropriate (L2)

■■ Efficient management of the IPA 7 project (L2)

■■ Efficient management of the project EU4Monitoring Drugs (L2)

■■ Support to the European Commission (upon request and coverage of expenses by EU 

programmes, and available EMCDDA resources) in the implementation of EU drug-related 
regional programmes, such as CADAP, COPOLAD, EU Act project, Cocaine route project (L2)

43 / 81

B2.2. Strengthen national drug expert 
networks and develop, if necessary, new 
networks to ensure that the agency has 
sufficient expertise to accomplish the 
strategy’s objectives

B2.3. Strengthen cooperation with EU and 
international partners in line with work 
priorities defined by Strategy 2025 and 
emerging needs of stakeholders

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Business driver 3: Scientific capacity

The multifaceted nature of the drugs situation requires the 
EMCDDA to have both sufficient in-house expertise and 
access to experts working elsewhere to ensure adequate 
scientific capacity for this work. In 2020, the agency will 
continue the ongoing dialogue with the research and scientific 
community, in both the drugs area and related disciplines, such 
as addiction science and criminology. As feasible, the EMCDDA 
will also provide expertise in further developing data collection 
mechanisms and guidance in steering committees and 
advisory boards of external scientific partners (e.g. WHO and 
UNODC coordination group on epidemiological data on drugs; 
the work of WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence; 
WHO-UNODC Expert Consultation on New Psychoactive 
Substances; ECDC Advisory Boards on HIV and hepatitis; or 
Europol Programme Board on drug supply reduction).

The Scientific Committee will start a new mandate in 2020 
(2020-22). This will be the first full mandate of the Scientific 
Committee after the adoption of the new legal framework 
for information exchange on, and an early warning system 
and risk assessment procedure for, new psychoactive 
substances, which has implications for how risk assessments, 
one of the main formal tasks of the Scientific Committee, 
are implemented. To this end, a list of experts to extend the 

Scientific Committee for the purpose of risk assessments was 
established in 2019.

The members of the Scientific Committee will adopt a formal 
opinion on the EMCDDA PD 2021-23 and will continue to 
provide input on the agency’s main projects and scientific 
publications, in line with the guiding principles for the review of 
selected EMCDDA publications. They will also contribute to the 
HDG’s annual dialogue on research.

In 2020, the EMCDDA will continue to ensure the quality of its 
analyses and outputs across all key areas of work. Efforts will 
focus on implementing the action plans that were put in place 
to address the recommendations of the relevant IAS audits.

The allocation and use of scientific resources will be optimised, 
including through the progressive implementation of PM2, the 
project management methodology selected for the EMCDDA, 
to key scientific projects (see Business driver 4: Management, 
for details).

Last but not least, the EMCDDA will start the preparatory work, 
as one of the main partners in the programme committee and 
organising committee, for the Fourth European Conference on 
Addictive Behaviours and Dependencies, already announced 
for November 2021.

Business objective B3:

Have in place the scientific capacity (resources, processes and tools) to meet current analytical needs, and innovate to keep pace with changes in 
the drug situation and the corresponding institutional needs

Expected outcomes

■■ Scientific capacity optimised through efficient use of resources and improved coordination of core activities
■■ The scientific quality of the EMCDDA’s work is consolidated through appropriate quality assurance measures, and provision of support and 

guidance by the Scientific Committee

■■ Communication and exchange with external monitoring and scientific bodies and centres of excellence

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
6. Organisational efficiency
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence (knowledge) through a number of channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence/knowledge by policymakers

Action areas

Outputs/results

B3.1. Maintain and develop the EMCDDA’s scientific 
capacity and ensure it reflects the expertise required for 
the agency to fulfil its mandate

■■ Efficient support provided to the EMCDDA Scientific Committee in performing its 

advisory role (L1)

■■ Scientific articles in high-impact journals (L2)

■■ Internal digital information service, updating on developments in the drugs field, in 

place (L2)

44 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Action areas

Outputs/results

B3.2. Strengthen the quality management of scientific 
activities by optimising the allocation and use of scientific 
resources through clear prioritisation, adoption of more 
flexible working practices and the use of external 
resources where cost-efficient (for the purpose of 
streamlining this area, the previous actions B3.2 and B3.3 
have been merged into a single action)

B3.3. Strengthen dialogue and cooperation with the 
scientific community and centres of excellence in the 
drugs field to ensure that the EMCDDA maintains 
a state-of-the-art understanding of developments in its 
areas of competence

■■ Project management approach progressively implemented for selected projects in 

scientific areas (e.g. PM2 methodology — see also Business driver 4) (L2)

■■ Internal scientific coordination mechanisms in place and communication tools 

maintained (L2)

■■ Framework for standard product management maintained and IAS publications 

management audit action plan implemented (L2)

■■ Quality assurance priorities for scientific activities implemented (L2)

■■ Facilitate the integration of relevant projects into the scientific work programme (e.g. 

IPA7, EU4MD) (L2)

■■ Maintain an active presence in EU-ANSA activities (L2)

■■ Preparatory work for Lisbon Addictions 2021 implemented as necessary (L2)

■■ Support provided to the EU contribution to the revision and standardisation of 

reporting tools (L2)

■■ Presentations and/or exhibition stands at scientific and technical events (L2)

■■ Follow-up of EU-funded drug-related research where relevant (resource dependent), 
including the Scientific Committee’s contribution to the HDG Annual Dialogue on 
Research (L2)

■■ Participating and providing expertise in steering committees and advisory boards of 

external scientific partners (subject to resources) (L2)

■■ 2020 edition of the EMCDDA Scientific Award organised (subject to resources) (L3)

Business driver 4: Management

The EMCDDA will ensure that the optimal organisational 
structure and supporting processes are in place, and that their 
performance is regularly reviewed and developed to maintain 
a business environment corresponding to the long-term 
requirements of the EMCDDA Strategy 2025.

In 2020, one of the key objectives of this business driver will 
be to ensure that the implementation of the activities planned 
across the different areas of the annual work programme 
is supported by effective and efficient management of the 
available resources, which will become critically important 
should the pessimistic budget scenario materialise.

The internal management mechanisms (e.g. the Strategic 
Committee, the Heads of Unit meetings, the Editorial Board, 
the ICT Steering Committee) will be maintained to enable 
sound decision-making on the EMCDDA’s operational priorities 
and allocation of resources.

The EMCDDA will ensure the efficient implementation of the 
annual work programme, which is part of the PD 2020-22, and 
the timely delivery to the EMCDDA’s stakeholders of the next 
PDs: for 2021-23 and for 2022-24 (preliminary draft).

The performance management system will be maintained and 
further developed. The two projects initiated in 2018 under 
the umbrella of the Project Management Programme, namely 
PM2@EMCDDA (development of the project management 
framework) and Matrix@EMCDDA (development of 
a management information system), will be implemented in 

line with their specific implementation plans and the available 
resources.

The first roadmap that was defined as part of Strategy 2025 
will end in 2020; therefore, an assessment of the degree to 
which its key milestones have been achieved will be carried 
out, to support the mid-term review of the strategy. The results 
of this assessment will inform the preparation of the second 
roadmap, for the period 2021-25.

The priorities concerning the budget and the financial 
management-related operations will focus on effective and 
timely planning, monitoring and execution of the EMCDDA 
budget, and on optimising all related processes. A key 
target will be to maintain the excellent level of performance 
achieved in the budget execution in previous years. Efficiency 
of all related processes will be pursued, namely by making 
increased use of digital solutions. Procedures and tools for 
sound management of financial resources will be adjusted 
in a timely fashion, in line with relevant financial rules, to 
effectively support the business and contribute to ensuring the 
implementation of the EMCDDA Strategy 2025.

The EMCDDA will continue to strengthen its internal control 
measures in line with the applicable internal standards 
for effective management and control. In 2020, the 
recommendations arising from the audits performed at the 
EMCDDA as well as from the fourth external evaluation (carried 
out in 2018) will be closely followed up on and implemented in 
line with the action plans adopted by the Management Board.

45 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22The management of human resources will encompass the 
sound management of existing processes, as required by 
the applicable staff regulations and their implementing 
rules. Special attention will be paid to the implementation of 
the electronic tools put in place for staff appraisal and time 
management and to the development of actions for staff 
training, subject to available resources, to continue supporting 
the effective implementation of the EMCDDA’s strategy.

Action will be pursued to ensure a safe working environment 
as well as to guarantee the efficient use of the EMCDDA’s 
premises and infrastructure, with special attention paid to 

controlling utilities-related costs and to possible synergies 
with EMSA, in particular for the management of the shared 
premises and services, including in the ICT area.

ICT service delivery and service support will continue to 
promote the agency’s core developmental objectives and to 
guarantee the design and smooth operation of all the services 
provided, in line with priorities set up by the ICT Steering 
Committee, and the principles of sound management of 
resources and risk. This area will, however, be severely affected 
in the event of diminishing resources.

Business objective B4:

Ensure that the organisational structure and supporting processes are optimal, to deliver efficient and high-quality services

Expected outcomes

■■ Good performance by the EMCDDA in implementing the annual programming instrument
■■ Sound management of the EMCDDA’s resources, in compliance with applicable rules and procedures and in line with organisational needs
■■ Safe and environmentally friendly workplace, which prevents work accidents, promotes use of renewable energy and avoids waste of resources
■■ Optimal level of operability of the EMCDDA’s ICT systems

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
6. Organisational efficiency
7. Work programme delivery

Action areas

Outputs/results

B4.1. Put in place the new organisational 
structure and other measures necessary 
for successful implementation of Strategy 
2025

■■ Management mechanisms (e.g. Strategic Committee, the Heads of Unit meetings, the Editorial 

Board meeting, the ICT Steering Committee) operational to enable sound decision-making on the 
EMCDDA’s operational priorities and allocation of resources (L1)

■■ Activities in the areas of data protection, internal control mechanisms and risk management 

implemented in line with the existing EU regulations and practices (L2)

B4.2. Further improve cost-effectiveness 
and optimal allocation of resources, 
reflecting the priorities identified in 
Strategy 2025

■■ Roadmap 2020: evaluation of the implementation (L2)

■■ Preparation of Roadmap 2025 (L1)

■■ Planning instruments and processes

 – PD 2020-22 published (L1)

 – Draft PD 2021-23 finalised, taking into account the results of the consultation of key EMCDDA 

stakeholders and partners, and submitted to the Management Board for adoption (L1)

 – Preliminary PD document 2022-24 prepared and submitted to the Management Board for 

adoption (L1)

 – EMCDDA 2021 draft budget (DB) and 2022 preliminary draft budget (PDB) timely prepared and 

submitted for adoption by Management Board (L1)

 – 2020 management plan in place (L2)
–  PM2@EMCDDA project implemented in line with resources (L2)

 – EMCDDA corporate management information system (project Matrix@EMCDDA) implemented in 

line with the phased implementation plan, subject to resources (L2)

■■ Financial resources management

 – Sound management of the EMCDDA’s financial resources, in compliance with applicable rules 

and procedures (L1)

 – Effective execution of accounting operations and timely preparation of the EMCDDA’s annual 

accounts (L1)

 – Annual procurement plan timely prepared, successfully implemented and effectively monitored (L2)

 – Further development of financial and procurement-related electronic workflows (L3)

46 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Action areas

B4.2. Further improve cost-effectiveness 
and optimal allocation of resources, 
reflecting the priorities identified in 
Strategy 2025

Outputs/results

■■ Facilities support services

 – Efficiency in using available facilities, equipment, infrastructure and utilities (L2)

 – Provision of a safe, secure and environment-friendly working place, namely health and safety risks 

identified, security risk assessment delivered and followed up, and environmental report delivered (L2)

■■ ICT support services

 – Operability of the EMCDDA’s ICT systems and core services maintained (L1)

 – Technical changes implemented to provide a continuous stable environment and allow adequate 

reaction to risks and threats, in line with the approved ICT annual investment plan (L2)

 – Steering identification and revolution of business requirements, planning and delivery of technical 

services, processes and products supporting the implementation of the EMCDDA’s core objectives (L2)

■■ Synergies and efficiency gains

 – Synergies with other EU bodies, including through participation in interagency networks and 

interinstitutional framework contracts, and sharing technical services (with EMSA in particular) (L2)

B4.3. Strengthen performance 
management at all levels

■■ General Report of Activities 2019 prepared, submitted to the Management Board for adoption and 

published online by 15 June 2020, in line with the recast EMCDDA Regulation (L1)

■■ Quarterly performance monitoring reviews carried out, to inform sound management decisions (L2)

■■ High level of budget execution (commitment and payment appropriations), in line with annual 

targets (L2)

■■ Mid-term budgetary forecasts prepared (L2)

■■ Timely and effective follow-up to observations/recommendations from external audits, as required 

and agreed (L2)

■■ Timely report on measures taken in the light of the observations accompanying the annual discharge 

(L2)

B4.4. Improve people management and 
implement a sustainable staff training and 
development programme to ensure the 
EMCDDA has the committed, skilled and 
motivated human resources it requires to 
achieve its long-term objectives

■■ Sound management of EMCDDA human resources, in accordance with applicable rules and in line 

with organisational needs (L1)

■■ Staff development programme in place, including 2020 training plan (L2)

■■ Level of the vacancy rate below 5 % (in line with KPI 2: Staff capacity — performance indicator 2.1: 
Occupation rate (implementation of the establishment plan), and conditional upon resources (L2)

Resources necessary for the implementation of the activities  
in this area

Budget (EUR)

Human resources (FTE)

EMCDDA: 8 203 703

IPA 7: 345 464.49

EU4MD: 1 007 366.56

50.7

1 (24)

2 (25)

(24)  Non-scientific staff recruited for the project.
(25)  Non-scientific staff recruited for the project.

47 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22ANNEXES

l   Annex I 

Estimated budget allocation for the implementation of the EMCDDA 2020 work programme

The amounts indicated below reflect the proposal presented 
by the European Commission for the EU’s 2020 contribution 
to the EMCDDA, as endorsed by the two branches of the EU 
Budget Authority within the context of the EU’s 2020 budget 
procedure. On this basis, the EMCDDA’s 2020 budget relies on 
the following revenue:

■■ EUR 16 288 600.00 to be provided by the EU’s 2020 

contribution to the EMCDDA;

■■ EUR 439 095.00 to be provided by Norway for its 

participation in the EMCDDA activities.

In addition, following the ratification of the agreement between 
the European Union and Turkey on the participation of the 

latter in the work of the EMCDDA (which entered into force on 
1 June 2014):

■■ EUR 291 644.00 to be provided by Turkey for its 

participation in the EMCDDA activities.

Table A1 presents the estimated allocation of the EMCDDA’s 
2020 budget appropriations for the implementation of the 
EMCDDA’s 2020 work programme.

Resources to implement the technical assistance projects with 
third countries (namely IPA 7 and EU4MD) are also indicated in 
Table A2.

TABLE A1
Main areas (MAs)

Work programme 
areas

MA 1: Health

MA 2: Security

MA 3: Business 
drivers

TOTAL

Main actors for 
implementation/
cost objects

HEA, SAS, SDI, 
RTX&EP, COM, ICT, 
DIR/EXO

SAS, SDI, HEA, 
RTX&EP, COM, ICT, 
DIR/EXO

DIR/EXO, SDI, 
COM, RTX&EP, 
ADM, ICT, HEA, SAS

Allocated human resources (FTE/year)

Allocated budget resources — non-
assigned appropriations (EUR)

O

TA

CA

SNE

Total HR

Total budget

2.65

23.20

9.50

0.60

9.95

2.40

5.75

29.85

15.10

9

63

27

0

1

0

1

35.35

13.95

50.70

100

5 532 341

3 283 295

8 203 703

17 019 339

Note: This table presents the FTEs corresponding to posts filled or engaged, as of 31 December 2019.
Abbreviations: FTE, full-time equivalents; WP, work programme; O, officials; TA, temporary agents; CA, contract agents; SNE, seconded national experts; HR, human 
resources.

TABLE A2
Technical assistance projects with third countries: resources covered by the projects’ budgets

Project

IPA 7

EU4MD

TOTAL

Allocated human resources (a)

O

TA

CA

SNE

TOTAL HR

Allocated budget resources — 
assigned appropriations (EUR)

-

-

-

-

-

-

3

5

8

-

-

-

3

5

8

1 000 000

3 000 000

4 000 000

Note: These are the total budgets of the projects, covering the entire duration of implementation of these projects, namely July 2019 to June 2022 for the IPA 7 project, 
and 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2021 for the EU4MD project.
(a) Only staff recruited for the projects and paid from the corresponding assigned appropriations.

48 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex II  

Human and financial resources (tables 2020-22)

TABLE A3
Expenditure

Expenditure

Title 1

Title 2

Title 3

Total expenditure

Expenditure

Title 1
Staff expenditure

N (2019)

Commitment
appropriations

Payment
appropriations

N+1 (2020)

Commitment
appropriations

Payment
appropriations

10 809 640

1 411 830

3 746 831

15 968 302

10 809 640

1 411 830

3 746 831

15 968 302

11 470 017

1 802 490

3 746 832

17 019 339

11 470 017

1 802 490

3 746 832

17 019 339

Commitment appropriations

Executed 
budget N–1 
(2018)

Budget 
N (2019)

Draft budget N+1 (2020)

Agency request

Budget 
forecast

VAR 
N+1/N

Envisaged N+2
(2021)

Envisaged N+3
(2022)

10 414 513

10 809 640

11 470 017

12 242 037

12 727 172

Salaries and allowances

10 319 714

10 761 140

11 425 017

12 128 037

12 613 172

8 658 641

9 142 725

9 853 243

10 257 599

10 667 916

1 661 073

1 618 415

1 571 774

1 870 438

1 945 256

17 447

3 500

0

14 000

14 000

77 352

45 000

45 000

100 000

100 000

1 379 759

1 411 830

1 802 490

2 300 811

2 306 889

611 855

838 601

1 229 261

1 475 004

1 483 482

564 918

415 775

415 775

607 456

607 456

101 873

55 860

50860

96 360

96 360

77 478

85 964

85 964

85 806

85 806

3 323

5 050

5 050

8 080

8 080

- of which establishment 
plan posts

- of which external 
personnel

Expenditure relating to 
staff recruitment

Mission expenses

Socio-medical 
infrastructure

Training

External services

Receptions and events

Title 2
Infrastructure and 
operating expenditure

Rental of buildings and 
associated costs (a)

Information and 
communication 
technology

Movable property and 
associated costs

Current administrative 
expenditure

Postage/
telecommunications

Meeting expenses

Running costs in 
connection with 
operational activities

Information and 
publishing

Studies

49 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Expenditure

Other infrastructure and 
operational activities

Title 3
Operational 
expenditure

Information and 
publishing

Studies

Reitox grants

Mission expenses

Meeting expenses

Receptions and events

Total expenditure 
without IPA 7 and 
EU4MD (LIN) projects

Expenditure on IPA and 
EU4MD (LIN) projects, 
total

Expenditure related to 
IPA projects

Expenditure related to 
EU4MD (LIN) projects

Commitment appropriations

Executed 
budget N–1 
(2018)

Budget 
N (2019)

Draft budget N+1 (2020)

Agency request

Budget 
forecast

VAR 
N+1/N

Envisaged N+2
(2021)

Envisaged N+3
(2022)

20 312

10 580

15 580

28 105

28 105

4 340 249

3 746 832

3 746 832

4 403 004

4 403 004

551 482

430 000

430 000

580 000

580 000

749 233

387 844

387 844

2 078 433

2 140 000

2 140 000

313 947

645 447

1 707

260 000

525 487

3 500

260 000

525 487

3 500

675 784

675 784

2 063 000

2 063 000

318 220

762 500

3 500

318 220

762 500

3 500

16 134 521

15 968 302

17 019 339

18 945 852

19 437 065

2 197 414

1 007 367

1 000 000

1 197 414

1 007 367

795 219

0.00

795 219

0.00

0.00

0.00

TOTAL EXPENDITURE

16 134 521

18 165 716

18 026 706

19 741 071

19 437 065

(a) Including possible repayment of interest; detailed information as regards building policy provided in Table A13 in Annex V.

Expenditure

Title 1
Staff expenditure

Payment appropriations

Executed budget 
N–1

Budget N

Draft budget N+1

Agency request

Budget 
forecast

VAR 
N+1/N

Envisaged 
N+2

Envisaged N+3

10 380 355

10 809 640

11 470 017

12 242 037

12 727 172

Salaries and allowances

10 312 751

10 761 140

11 425 017

12 128 037

12 613 172

- of which establishment 
plan posts

- of which external 
personnel

Expenditure relating to 
staff recruitment

Mission expenses

Socio-medical 
infrastructure

Training

External services

Receptions and events

Title 2
Infrastructure and 
operating expenditure

Rental of buildings and 
associated costs (a)

Information and 
communication 
technology

8 658 642

9 142 725

9 853 243

10 257 599

10 667 916

1 654 109

1 618 415

1 571 774

1 870 438

1 945 256

10 151

3 500.00

0

14 000

14 000

57 453

45 000

45 000

100 000

100 000

1 093 716

1 411 830

1 802 490

2 300 811

2 306 889

522 065

838 601

1 229 261

1 475 004

1 483 482

409 750

415 775

415 775

607 456

607 456

50 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Expenditure

Movable property and 
associated costs

Current administrative 
expenditure

Postage/
telecommunications

Meeting expenses

Running costs in 
connection with 
operational activities

Information and 
publishing

Studies

Other infrastructure and 
operational activities

Title 3
Operational 
expenditure

Information and 
publishing

Studies

Reitox grants

Mission expenses

Meeting expenses

Receptions and events

Total expenditure 
without IPA 7 and 
EU4MD (LIN) projects

Expenditure on IPA and 
EU4MD (LIN) projects, 
total

Expenditure related to 
IPA projects

Expenditure related to 
EU4MD (LIN) projects

Payment appropriations

Executed budget 
N–1

Budget N

Draft budget N+1

Agency request

Budget 
forecast

VAR 
N+1/N

Envisaged 
N+2

Envisaged N+3

70 281

55 860

50 860

96 360

96 360

72 646

85 964

85 964

85 806

85 806

2 442

5 050

5 050

8 080

8 080

16 532

10 580

15 580

28 105

28 105

4 342 682

3 746 831

3 746 832

4 403 004

4 403 004

590 826

430 000.00

430 000

580 000

580 000

737 328

2 087 040

324 043

602 012

1 433

387 844

2 140 000

260 000

525 487

3 500

387 844

2 140 000

260 000

525 488

3 500

675 784

675 784

2 063 000

2 063 000

318 220

762 500

3 500

318 220

762 500

3 500

15 816 753

15 968 302

17 019 339

18 945 852

19 437 065

2 197 414

1 007 367

1 000 000

1 197 414

1 007 367

795 219

0.00

795 219

0.00

0.00

0.00

TOTAL EXPENDITURE

15 816 753

18 165 716

18 026 706

19 741 071

19 437 065

(a) Including possible repayment of interest; detailed information as regards building policy provided in Table A13 in Annex V.

TABLE A4
Revenue

Revenues

EU contribution

Other revenue

Total revenues

N (2019)

Revenues estimated by the agency

N+1 (2020)

Budget forecast

15 286 600

694 339

15 980 939

16 288 600

730 739

17 019 339

51 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Revenues

General revenues

Executed 
budget 
2018

Budget 
2019

Draft budget 2020

Agency 
request

Budget 
forecast

VAR 
2019/2018 
(%)

Envisaged 
in 2021

Envisaged 
in 2022

1 Revenue from fees and charges
(including balancing reserve from previous 
year’s surplus)

2 EU contribution

15 445 600

15 286 600

16 288 600

18 106 000

18 573 800

- Of which assigned revenues deriving from 
previous years’ surpluses

3 Third countries contribution
(incl. EEA/EFTA and candidate countries)

- Of which EEA/EFTA
(excl. Switzerland)

215 189

189 764

22 251

691 393

684 166

730 739

414 843

410 462

439 095

839 852

863 265

515 668

530 704

- Of which candidate countries

276 550

273 704

291 644

324 184

332 560

4 Other contributions

Ad hoc grants (Art. 7 FFR)

Delegation agreements (Art. 8 FFR)

5 Administrative operations

- Of which interest generated by funds paid 
by the Commission by way of the EU 
contribution (Art. 58 FFR), internal assigned 
revenue etc.

6 Revenues from services rendered 
against payment

7 Correction of budgetary imbalances

34 399

10 173

2 808

2 808

TOTAL REVENUES

16 174 200

15 980 939

17 019 339

18 945 852

19 437 065

TABLE A5 
Budget outturn and cancellation of appropriations

Budget outturn

Revenue actually received (+)

Payments made (–)

Carry-over of appropriations (–)

Cancellation of appropriations carried over (+)

Adjustment for carry-over of assigned revenue appropriations from 
previous year (+)

Exchange rate differences (+/–)

Total

2016

2017

2018

15 481 464.63

16 168 797.96

–15 090 448.03

–15 370 324.15

–848 092.94

–968 942.02

18 278.73

18 245.88

651 383.96

342 257.97

2 602.23

–271.84

215 188.58

189 763.80

16 169 482.64

–16 009 621.65

–455 152.67

27 093.70

292 360.54

–1 911.27

22 251.29

52 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex III 

Human resources outlook and staff evolution

TABLE A6
Staff population and its evolution; overview of all categories of staff

Actually 
filled at 
31.12.2017

Authorised 
under EU 
budget 2018

Actually filled 
at 
31.12.2018 (a)

Authorised 
under EU 
budget 2019

Actually 
filled at 
31.12.2019

In draft 
budget for 
2020

Envisaged 
in 2021

Envisaged 
in 2022

6

3

0

42

21

0

72

4

9

13

3

29

1

6

4

0

45

21

0

76

8

10

13

3

34

1

6

3

0

43

21

0

73

8

9

14

3

34

1

6

4

0

45

21

0

76

8

9

14

3

34

1

6

3

0

42

21

0

72

8

8

15

3

34

1

6

4

0

45

21

0

76

9

8

15

3

35

1

6

4

0

45

21

0

76

9

8

15

3

35

1

6

4

0

45

21

0

76

9

8

15

3

35

1

102

3

111

4

108

4

111

4

107

2

112

2

112

2

112

2

Staff population

Officials AD

AST

AST/
SC

AD

AST

AST/
SC

TA

Total

CA GF IV

CA GF III

CA GF II

CA GF I

Total CA

SNE

Structural 
service providers

TOTAL

External staff for 
occasional 
replacement

(a) Offer letters are counted as posts filled.
Note: AD: administrator; AST: assistant; CA: contract agent.

53 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22TABLE A7
Multiannual staff policy plan 2020-22

Category and 
grade

Establishment 
plan in EU 
budget 2018

Filled as of 
31.12.2018 (a)

Modifications 
2018 in 
application of 
flexibility rule

Establishment 
plan in voted 
EU budget 
2019

Modifications 
2020 in 
application of 
flexibility 
rule (b)

Establishment 
plan in draft 
EU budget 
2020

Establishment 
plan 2021

Establishment 
plan 2022

Officials

TA Officials

TA Officials

TA Officials

TA Officials

TA Officials

TA Officials

TA Officials

TA

1

–1

–1

1

0

1

–1

1

1

2

1

4 11

1 11

13

6

1

3

1

3

5

6

2

2 10

7

7

2

6 45

6 43

0

1

1

2

3

7

7

4

1

3

2

3

7

4

1

1

1

1

1

1

3

1

4 10

1 11

12

7

1

1

3

9

1

3

1 10

1 11

8

1

1

1

1

3

9

1

3

1 10

1 11

8

1

1

1

1

3

9

1

3

1 10

1 11

8

1

1

–1 –1

–1

1 –1

1

1

1

6 45

0

0

6 45

6 45

6 45

1

1

2

1

2

7

7

4

1

1

2

1

2

6

6

5

1

1

1

2

1

2

4

4

6

4

1

1

2

1

2

4

4

6

4

–1

–1

1

1

4 21

3 21

0

0

4 21

0

0

4 21

4 21

4 21

AD 16

AD 15

AD 14

AD 13

AD 12

AD 11

AD 10

AD 9

AD 8

AD 7

AD 6

AD 5

Total AD

AST 11

AST 10

AST 9

AST 8

AST 7

AST 6

AST 5

AST 4

AST 3

AST 2

AST 1

Total AST

AST/SC 6

AST/SC 5

AST/SC 4

AST/SC 3

AST/SC 2

AST/SC 1

Total AST/SC

TOTAL

10 66

9 64

0

0

10 66

0

0

10 66

10 66

10 66

(a) Offer letters are counted as posts filled.
(b) Article 38 of the Framework Financial Regulation was applied following a screening exercise.

54 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex IV 

Human resources policies

l  Recruitment policy

The selection procedures applied by the EMCDDA comply 
with the relevant EU provisions, namely Article 12 of the 
Conditions of employment of other servants of the EU (CEOS) 
for the recruitment of temporary and contract agents and the 
principles and standards laid down for officials in Annex III of 
the staff regulations.

The key phases of the selection procedure for the recruitment 
of temporary and contract agents can be summarised as 
follows:

■■ A vacancy notice is published on the EMCDDA website 

and on the European Personnel Selection Office website, 
and a communication is sent to all other EU institutions 
and agencies, to all focal points of the Reitox network 
and to all members of the EMCDDA Management Board 
and Scientific Committee, and, where appropriate, 
advertisements are placed in the local and specialised 
press and web pages.

■■ The vacancy notice sets out eligibility and selection criteria, 
indicating type and duration of contract and recruitment 
grade.

■■ A selection committee is appointed, usually composed 
of five members. The selection committee includes 
a representative from the EMCDDA Staff Committee and 
takes into account gender balance and broad geographical 
representation. External members are invited in cases 
where specific expertise is required to carry out the 
selection process appropriately. The names of the selection 
committee members are now published in the vacancy 
notice in full respect of Regulation 45/2001 as requested 
by the European Ombudsman.

■■ Applicants are first screened on the basis of their 

application file (application form, curriculum vitae and 
the further supporting documents required) in order to 
identify the candidates who best match the published 
requirements.

■■ Selected candidates are interviewed on the basis of 

predefined questions that are presented to all candidates 
interviewed. The procedure includes a compulsory written 
test. The interview and test cover assessment of the 
specific abilities and technical qualifications required 
for the selection process concerned; knowledge of EU 
institutions and particularly of the EMCDDA’s activities; 
general skills and language abilities of the candidate.

■■ The selection committee drafts a list of the most suitable 

candidates together with a possible proposal to the 

authority authorised to conclude the contract (AHCC) and/
or to establish a reserve list for recruitment purposes.

■■ A reserve list may be established by the AHCC, who 

can, prior to this, choose to have a further interview with 
concerned candidates.

■■ The result of the selection process is communicated to the 

selected candidates.

■■ All steps of the procedure and all decisions made are 

reported and documented.

The procedures described above comply with the 
implementing rules on the recruitment and use of temporary 
and contract agents adopted by the EMCDDA with the 
agreement of the European Commission pursuant to Article 
110 of the staff regulations.

When recruiting officials, the EMCDDA complies with the 
relevant provisions of the staff regulations, namely with 
Article 29 and Annex III. The EMCDDA organised two internal 
competitions in 1999 and 2002. These competitions were 
carried out in cooperation with the European Commission.

Other vacant posts for EMCDDA officials have been filled 
through interinstitutional transfer processes in accordance 
with the applicable provisions of the staff regulations.

The EMCDDA envisages that it will continue to draw on the 
assistance that the European Personnel Selection Office 
can provide in this field, including using its reserve lists, as 
required. This has already been the case for hiring officials and 
contract agents.

Grade and function group corresponding to the tasks 
and level of the post

In line with the relevant provisions of the staff regulations and 
CEOS and within the limits set by the budget adopted and 
the establishment plan, the EMCDDA applies by analogy the 
rules applied by the European Commission for the grading of 
officials, temporary agents and contract agents. The EMCDDA, 
as a basic rule, recruits temporary agents at grades ranging 
from AST 1 to AST 4 for function group AST and from AD 5 to 
AD 8 for function group AD.

Recruitment at grades AD 9 to AD 11, and in exceptional cases 
at AD 12, is limited to filling middle management positions or 
to particular cases where a higher grade is essential to ensure 
a recruitment of high quality. In the latter case, the grade must 
be justified by the high level of expertise required, the specific 
conditions of the labour market concerned and/or the fact that 
a lower grade would not be attractive to the target population 
of potential candidates.

55 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Duration of employment

(a) Officials and temporary agents on long-term 
employment (long-term staff)

Upon recruitment, EMCDDA temporary and contract agents 
engaged to address long-term or permanent tasks are offered 
a contract of 5 years. In accordance with Articles 8 and 85 of 
the CEOS, this contract may be renewed for a further 5 years. 
In the event of a second renewal, agents are engaged for an 
indefinite period.

EMCDDA temporary and contract agents on short-term 
employment recruited to address time-bound tasks or 
temporary needs are engaged for the period required to fulfil 
the tasks concerned. In principle, the contract may be renewed 
just once for a definite period.

The EMCDDA Director is employed as a temporary agent for 
a 5-year term, this term being renewable. This is in accordance 
with the relevant provisions of the EMCDDA’s Founding 
Regulation.

The EMCDDA employs officials and temporary agents on 
long-term employment to carry out its scientific, technical and 
administrative tasks of a permanent or long-term nature. These 
tasks can be summarised as follows:

■■

■■

tasks directly relating to the implementation of the 
EMCDDA’s core activities as defined by its Founding 
Regulation;

tasks relating to the management and functioning of the 
EMCDDA, aimed at providing technical and administrative 
support to its core business.

Temporary agents on long-term employment are offered 
a 5-year contract at the time they are contracted. In 
accordance with Articles 8 and 85 of the CEOS, this contract 
may be renewed for a further 5 years. In the event of a second 
renewal, agents are engaged for an indefinite period.

Profile of staff, and type and duration of employment 
required to fulfil the agency’s mission and tasks

The use of officials is necessary for a number of reasons:

■■ Retaining proven talent and enhancing career opportunities 

For the majority of its activities, the EMCDDA requires 
scientifically and/or technically qualified staff with highly 
specialised knowledge and extensive experience — particularly 
in those fields linked to its core activities. Specialisation is 
inherent to the agency. The EU’s skill base of available and 
competent staff is limited. In some areas of activity only one 
staff member is involved in running the service.

Furthermore, given the ground-breaking nature of many of 
its activities, the agency needs to cultivate a workforce that 
combines sector knowledge and insight in its specialised field 
of expertise (drugs and drug addiction) with a track record of 
innovation, cooperation and knowledge transfer. Staff therefore 
need to be prepared to nurture agency-wide skills, and must 
possess the professional latitude and flexibility to work 
‘horizontally’ on other projects that might benefit from their 
area of expertise.

The EMCDDA’s staff policy must therefore rise to the 
challenges faced by all ‘centres of excellence’: to attract 
strong talent, to build on strong previous work, to retain valued 
expertise and, ultimately, to ensure business continuity. A key 
aspect in meeting these challenges is that the agency must 
have at its disposal the means to offer staff appropriate job 
security and career prospects, with a long-term or permanent 
outlook.

for EMCDDA temporary staff.

■■ Sourcing skills from other EU bodies: enabling transfers 

of officials from other EU institutions and bodies, in order 
to fill posts of a sensitive character or requiring specific 
professional expertise that is available in these institutions 
and bodies. In particular, the option of officials is important 
for sourcing the scientific, technical and administrative 
skills common to all EU institutions and bodies; it is 
also useful to attract suitably qualified candidates who 
are on reserve lists following successful completion of 
competitions at other EU institutions.

■■ Expertise exchange with other EU bodies: that is, the 

possibility of offering options for external mobility, by way of 
secondment or transfer. This option takes into account the 
limited possibilities provided for temporary agents in the 
context of their current fixed-term contracts, while providing 
incentives to younger staff, who are given the chance to 
plan their career in the wider context of all EU institutions 
and bodies.

■■ Maximising resources: to profit from the specific experience 
and knowledge acquired for carrying out highly specialised 
tasks.

All posts for officials and temporary agents authorised in the 
EMCDDA’s current establishment plan are posts of permanent 
or long-term nature (long-term employments), with the post of 
the Director being a specific case.

56 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22(b) Temporary agents on short-term employment (short-
term staff)

At the time of writing, all EMCDDA contract agent positions 
have been identified as long-term employment.

The EMCDDA may also employ temporary agents on short-
term employment to fulfil specific scientific, technical and 
administrative operating needs of limited duration. The 
duration of the contract is determined by the limited duration 
of the tasks. In principle, the contract may be renewed just 
once for a definite period:

■■

■■

■■

■■

to ensure the delivery of time-bound tasks, that is for 
the execution of technical assistance projects financed 
by specific appropriations provided by Community 
programmes (for example, PHARE, CARDS, IPA);

to ensure the temporary replacement of staff in case of 
medium- or long-term absences;

to cope with temporary peaks in workload;

to fulfil highly specific temporary operational needs 
requiring highly specific and high-level technical or 
scientific expertise.

(c) Contract agents on long-term employment (long-term 
staff)

The EMCDDA employs contract agents on long-term 
employment for its scientific, technical and administrative 
tasks of a permanent or long-term nature. In accordance with 
the function groups (FGs) and grades defined by Article 80 of 
the CEOS, the EMCDDA’s contract staff are typically assigned 
to tasks aimed at providing administrative, linguistic, scientific 
and drafting support to the work of officials or temporary 
agents within FGs I, II and III. The use of contract staff in FG 
IV is limited to those situations where it is necessary to recruit 
very specific and high-level technical or scientific expertise.

Currently the tasks that EMCDDA contract staff are requested 
to carry out under the supervision of officials or temporary 
staff entail a lower level of responsibility. Some restrictions on 
contract staff have been established with regard to:

■■

■■

functions and tasks relating to the execution of the 
EMCDDA budget, where a large measure of discretion 
implying strategic choices is involved;

functions relating to the representation of the EMCDDA 
in institutional relations with its partners, such as EU 
institutions, national authorities and international 
organisations, in accordance with the regulation 
establishing the EMCDDA.

Contract agents on long-term employment are offered a 5-year 
contract upon recruitment. In accordance with Articles 8 and 
85 of the CEOS, this contract may be renewed for a further 5 
years. In the event of a second renewal, agents are engaged for 
an indefinite period.

(d) Contract agents on short-term employment (short-term 
staff)

The EMCDDA may also employ contract agents on short-
term employment to cope with specific scientific, technical 
and administrative operating needs of a limited duration, 
similar to the one assigned to temporary agents on short-term 
employment. In principle, the contract may be renewed just 
once for a definite period.

Some restrictions apply to the use and the nature of the duties 
of the contract agents on short-term employment as detailed 
above.

(e) Seconded national experts

The objective the EMCDDA follows with the recruitment 
of seconded national experts (SNEs) is to benefit from the 
high level of their professional knowledge and experience, in 
particular in areas where such expertise is not readily available.

The complete legal framework for recruitment of SNEs at the 
EMCDDA is to be found in the Decision of the Management 
Board of the EMCDDA on the adoption of rules on the 
secondment of national experts at the EMCDDA (DEC/
MB/10/02) of 5 May 2010 (which adopts by analogy the 
European Commission Decision of 12 November 2008, laying 
down rules on the secondment to the Commission of national 
experts and national experts in professional training). SNEs 
are recruited following a similar procedure to the one used 
for the recruitment of temporary staff and the guidelines for 
such a procedure are publicly published on the EMCDDA job 
vacancies web page.

 Appraisal of performance and reclassifications/
promotions

l 

Since 1998, the EMCDDA has carried out annual exercises 
for staff appraisal, promotion of officials, assignment of 
temporary agents to a post corresponding to a higher grade 
and classification of contract agents in the subsequent higher 
grade. The rules and procedures applied by the EMCDDA 
comply with the relevant provisions of the staff regulations and 
the CEOS.

In this context, the EMCDDA applies tools and processes for 
its long-term staff that reflect those applied by the European 
Commission. This means:

57 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22■■ For staff appraisal: an annual exercise focusing on the staff 
member’s performance. This includes dialogue between the 
actors involved, the possibility of appeal and definition of 
the staff member’s training needs.

■■ For promotion of officials, for assignment of temporary 

agents to a post corresponding to a higher grade and for 
classification of contract agents in the subsequent higher 
grade: a merit-based annual exercise with 2 years in the 
current grade as a minimum condition for eligibility. This 
includes a focus on the comparative assessment of the 
merits of eligible staff, mainly taking into account the result 
of the appraisal exercise.

The EMCDDA’s rules and procedures in this field were revised 
in 2009, by decision of the EMCDDA Management Board and 
with the agreement of the European Commission, on the basis 
of common model decisions resulting from preparatory works 
carried out by the agencies and the European Commission. 
After the entry into force on 1 January 2014 of the latest 
reform of the staff regulations/CEOS, the EMCDDA revised the 
appraisal of performance rules and procedures on the basis of 
common model decisions prepared by the standing working 
party (SWP) set up for this purpose by the Commission’s 
relevant services and the network of the decentralised EU 
agencies. The EMCDDA Management Board adopted rules 
that follow the model worked out by the SWP, which was 
adopted by ex ante agreement by the European Commission 
and entered into force for the first time in 2016.

Taking into account the current policy at the EMCDDA for staff 
promotion and assignment to a higher grade (reclassification), 
the EMCDDA estimates a promotion and reclassification 
rate that is in line with Annex IB and Annex XIII of the staff 
regulations. Regarding the legal framework for promotions 
and reclassification, the SWP finalised the work and proposed 
a model to all agencies. The EMCDDA adopted the rules 
proposed by the European Commission and started applying 
them after the 2017 exercise. Table A8 presents the actual 
figures on promotion/reclassification for full information.

TABLE A8
Reclassification of temporary staff/promotion of officials

Category and 
grade

Staff in 
activity at 
01.01.2017

How many 
staff 
members 
were 
promoted/ 
reclassified in 
2018 (*)

Average number 
of years in grade 
before 
reclassification/ 
promotion

Officials

TA Officials

TA

1

3

2

1

3

4

7

1

6

11

5

1

2

6 41

1

3

1

3

6

6

1

1

1

1

1

4

1

6

1

1

1

2

0

1

1

3 21

2

5

AD 16

AD 15

AD 14

AD 13

AD 12

AD 11

AD 10

AD 9

AD 8

AD 7

AD 6

AD 5

Total AD

AST 11

AST 10

AST 9

AST 8

AST 7

AST 6

AST 5

AST 4

AST 3

AST 2

AST 1

Total AST

AST/SC 1

AST/SC 2

AST/SC 3

AST/SC 4

AST/SC 5

AST/SC 6

Total AST/SC

TOTAL

9 62

2 11

(*) Number of staff reclassified/promoted to the new grade.

4

3

3.5

5

4

3

5.5

58 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22TABLE A9
Reclassification of contract staff

Function 
group

Grade

Staff in 
activity at 
01.01.2017

How many 
staff 
members 
were 
reclassified 
in 2018 (*)

Average 
number of 
years in 
grade of 
reclassified 
staff 
members

18

17

16

15

14

13

12

11

10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

CA IV

CA III

CA II

CA I

Total

1

1

1

2.58

3

4

1

2

1

3

2

3

6

3

2

1

3

27

3

(*) Number of staff reclassified at the new grade

l  Mobility policy

(i) Mobility within the EMCDDA

(ii) Mobility among EU agencies

Most of the EMCDDA’s staff is composed of temporary 
agents, as is the case with the staff of most other EU 
agencies. Interagency mobility has to date been achieved 
by the recruitment of staff previously employed at other 
agencies by applying the standard selection procedures used 
for all candidates. So far, the EMCDDA has recruited seven 
temporary agents who were previously engaged by other EU 
agencies. Seven of the EMCDDA’s former temporary agents 
have been engaged by other EU agencies.

As from 2014 and with the entry into force of the new staff 
regulations, the legal framework has changed. Because of the 
introduction of a new category of temporary agents (Article 2f 
CEOS) and the introduction of Article 55 CEOS, the continuity 
of career for temporary agents is ensured. The EMCDDA 
has already recruited the first temporary agent from another 
agency using the abovementioned articles.

(iii) Mobility between the EMCDDA and the EU institutions

So far, mobility of staff members between the EMCDDA and 
the EU institutions has been achieved through:

■■

■■

transfer of officials from the institutions to the EMCDDA 
(seven officials from the European Commission and one 
from the Council have been concerned so far);

transfer of officials from the EMCDDA to the EU institutions 
(six officials to the European Commission and one official 
to the Committee of the Regions);

■■ engagement as temporary agents of officials on 

secondment from EU institutions who have been successful 
in an EMCDDA selection process for temporary agents (12 
officials from the European Commission; 2 officials from 
the European Parliament).

So far, mobility of staff members within the EMCDDA has been 
achieved using the following:

■■

internal publication of calls for expression of interest;

■■ external publications of calls for selection, which also 

welcome applications from internal candidates;

■■

redeployment or reassignment of staff in the interest of the 
service;

■■ mutual exchange of staff between different units, where 
there is agreement between the heads of unit concerned.

l  Gender and geographical balance

The gender balance among EMCDDA staff overall in 2018 
was once again slightly in favour of women. Table A10 below 
provides a visual representation of the numbers of female 
and male staff per contract type (officials/temporary agents/
contract agents) with an indication of the function group (AD/
AST). The same information is provided regarding seconded 
national experts.

59 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22TABLE A10
Gender balance at 31 December 2018

Contract type

Function group

Female

Male

Total

AD

AST

AD

AST

CA IV

CA III

CA II

CA I

Officials

Subtotal

Temporary agents

Subtotal

Contract agents

Subtotal

SNEs

Subtotal

TOTAL

0

3

3

22

10

32

4

6

11

0

21

0

0

56

6

0

6

21

11

32

1

3

1

3

8

1

1

47

TABLE A11
Management gender balance at 31 December 2018

Positions
(HoU upwards only)

Senior management (Director)

Middle management (heads of unit)

Female

Male

% female

0

2

1

6

TABLE A12
Geographical balance at 31 December 2018

Officials

Temporary 
agents

SNEs

Contract agents

Total

Nationality

AD

AST

AD

AST

CA I

CA II

CA III

CA IV

Nationality

Belgian

British

Bulgarian

Czech

Dutch

French

German

Greek

Irish

Italian

Latvian

Luxembourgish

Polish

Portuguese

Romanian

Spanish

Total

1

1

1

1

2

6

3

7

3

1

5

4

4

4

1

1

1

6

1

2

3

3

1

1

2

1

1

1

1

8

2

3

43

21

2

1

1

1

7

12

1

4

4

9

1

1

1

1

1

10 Belgian

9 British

4 Bulgarian

1 Czech

1 Dutch

7 French

7 German

1 Greek

5 Irish

10 Italian

1 Latvian

2 Luxembourgish

4 Polish

33 Portuguese

2 Romanian

6 Spanish

5

103

3

3

1

1

6

3

9

43

21

64

5

9

12

3

29

1

1

103

0

22

%

9.71

8.74

3.88

0.97

0.97

6.80

6.80

0.97

4.85

9.71

0.97

1.94

3.88

32.04

1.94

5.83

100.00

60 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l  Schooling

There is no European or accredited school that can be 
attended free of charge in the area where the EMCDDA has 
its seat, and education is available only in English, French, 
German, Portuguese and Spanish on a private basis, which is 
more expensive than the cost staff members can cover with 
the double education allowance laid down under Annex VII of 
the staff regulations. Because of this, staff members of the 
EMCDDA are penalised for not being able to give their children 
an education in their mother tongue.

It is evident that the staff of the EMCDDA are not treated 
equally to other EU personnel when one considers that: (i) the 
staff members of EU institutions, including some agencies, 
enjoy free access to European schools (school fees and 
transport included), where available, on condition that they 
have a contract of at least 1 year; (ii) the average annual cost 
covered by the EU budget per pupil attending a European 
school is approximately EUR 11 840 (26) while the maximum 
reimbursement for education allowance, laid down by the staff 
regulations for covering the costs of attendance of a pupil 
per year of any school where no European school is available, 
is approximately EUR 5 953; (iii) European schools provide 
multilingual tuition in all languages of the EU-15 and most of 
the EU-27, and offer the European Baccalaureate recognised 
in all Member States.

Given that the EMCDDA is called upon to recruit officials 
and temporary staff of the highest ability, efficiency and 
integrity from the broadest possible geographical basis among 
nationals of Member States, as laid down in Article 27 of the 
staff regulations and Articles 12 and 82 of the Conditions 

of employment for temporary officials and contract staff, 
a measure is needed to bring the working conditions to 
which the staff of the EMCDDA are subject into line with staff 
working for the European Union in a location where European 
schools exist. Local solutions based on existing best practice 
should have been found to school staff children — solutions 
that reconcile the work and private life of EMCDDA staff by 
facilitating the schooling of their children.

While awaiting a more structural solution resulting from the 
work performed by the management of the European schools 
and in line with the ‘Guidelines on staff policy in the European 
regulatory agencies’ as adopted by the European Commission 
on 16 December 2005 (C(2005)5304), since the school 
year 2009/10 the EMCDDA has negotiated and concluded 
agreements with educational establishments in the area of 
Lisbon to provide schooling services for the children of its 
staff and ensure the direct payment of the eligible costs for 
educational services as described in the staff regulations.

A staff member who benefits from this system does not receive 
the education allowance provided for in Article 3 of Annex VII 
to the staff regulations, and the relevant rights/entitlements 
are suspended for the period when he/she benefits from the 
system. The payment of expenses incurred by EMCDDA staff 
for the abovementioned eligible education costs is limited to 
a maximum ceiling of EUR 11 076 per child, per annum, which 
is, as mentioned above, the annual average cost covered by the 
EU budget per pupil attending a European school. The ceiling 
mentioned shall be revised annually pursuant to the relevant 
information provided by the Annual Report of the Secretary-
General to the Board of Governors of the European Schools.

(26)  Annual Report of the Secretary-General to the Board of Governors of the 
European Schools — Presented to the Board of Governors of the European 
Schools at its meeting 8, 9 and 10 April 2014, in Sofia. Ref.: 2014-01-D-23-fr-2.

61 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex V 

Buildings

TABLE A13
Current building(s)

Type of building

Name, location and type of building

Other comment

Office building, rented
EMCDDA headquarters: 
Praça Europa 1, Cais do Sodré, Lisbon

Surface area (in square metres)
Of which office space
Of which non-office space

6 520 + 61 parking spaces
5 846
674

Annual rent (EUR)

955 889.96

Type and duration of rental contract

Rental for 25 years with option to buy

Host country grant or support

The host county supported the 
installation by providing the office 
furniture for the headquarters

Present value of the building

Not applicable

l  Building project in the planning phase

No new building projects have been planned.

 Building projects submitted to the European 
Parliament and the Council

l 

No further building projects have been submitted to the 
European Parliament and the Council.

Pursuant to an agreement with the Portuguese State, in 
2009 an area of 673.25 square metres (located in the 
Relogio building of the EMCDDA premises) was sublet to the 
latter for the use of the Jacques Delors European 
Information Centre (since 2009). This sublease covered the 
period between May 2009 and March 2012, when the 
Delors Centre left the areas occupied, pursuant to the 
decision taken by the relevant Portuguese authorities.
Between 2012 and 2016 some private and public entities 
expressed an interest in the sublease but they were not able 
to present any offer.
In early 2016 the company Bensaude S.A. concluded the 
contract for the sublease of parts of the Relogio building. 
The date of effect of this contract is 1 May 2016 and it has 
an initial duration of 5 years, which may be extended for 
a further period of 5 years.

643 square metres office space are subleased

Pursuant to the agreement reached in 2015 with the 
landlord for the payment of the rent for the lease of the 
current premises in the following years, the annual amount 
of this rent to be borne by the EMCDDA was adjusted as 
follows:
EUR 305 421.96 for 2018
EUR 589 689.96 for 2019
EUR 955 889.96 for 2020
EUR 1 072 089.96 from 2021 until the end of the 25-year 
lease contract in force without prejudice to the annual 
indexation of the rent as required by relevant legislation

62 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex VI 

Privileges and immunities

TABLE A14
Agency privileges

Agency privileges

Privileges granted to staff

Protocol of privileges and immunities/
diplomatic status

Education/day care (*)

The Portuguese Government granted the 
EMCDDA diplomatic status by means of the 
conclusion of a seat agreement on 26 June 
1996 (Protocol between the Portuguese 
Government and the EMCDDA regarding the 
functioning of the agency in Portugal and the 
installation of its headquarters in Lisbon). 
Through this agreement, which entered into 
force in May 1998, the Portuguese 
Government applies the Protocol on the 
Privileges and Immunities of the European 
Communities to the EMCDDA, exempting the 
agency from payment of all national, regional or 
municipal rates and taxes as regards the fixed 
assets it owns or rents, as well as from 
customs duties and from any other taxes, 
prohibitions or restrictions on goods of any kind 
that it imports or exports in the exercise of its 
official business (VAT, etc.).

The Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of 
the European Communities is applicable to 
EMCDDA staff. The Protocol concluded 
between the Portuguese Government and the 
EMCDDA regarding the functioning of the 
agency in Portugal and the installation of its 
headquarters in Lisbon grants the EMCDDA 
staff the privileges and immunities, exemptions 
and facilities recognised by the Portuguese 
State to members of a comparable category of 
the diplomatic corps in Portugal. As 
a consequence, EMCDDA staff members are 
entitled to purchase furniture and/or household 
aids VAT free. This exemption does not cover 
expenditure for food supplies and beverages, 
property works, including materials, water, gas, 
electricity, food and beverages services, hotels 
or similar services, fixed-line telephone services. 
Limited exemption is granted from the payment 
of the Portuguese tax and VAT on the purchase 
and registration of vehicles.

There is no European or accredited school that 
can be attended free of charge in the area 
where the EMCDDA has its seat. As per the 
memorandum of understanding signed in 2004 
by the Portuguese Government, the EMCDDA 
and EMSA concerning the common premises 
of the two agencies in Lisbon, the Portuguese 
Government committed itself to do its utmost 
(jointly with EMSA and EMCDDA) to find the 
best possible solution for providing schooling 
for the children of EMSA and EMCDDA staff. In 
this context it agreed to pursue either the 
establishment of a European school in Lisbon 
or the signature of partial agreements between 
the European School Board and the main 
international schools in the Lisbon area. 
However, difficulties have been encountered in 
the implementation of this solution.

VAT, value added tax.
(*) See also ‘Schooling’ in Annex IV.

63 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex VII 

Monitoring and evaluation

l  External evaluations

In line with Article 23 of the EMCDDA’s Founding Regulation 
recast, the European Commission shall initiate an external 
evaluation of the agency every 6 years and forward the 
evaluation report to the European Parliament, the Council and 
the Management Board of the EMCDDA.

The fourth external evaluation of the EMCDDA was carried 
out by the European Commission during 2018. The exercise 
evaluated the success of the implementation of the 3-year 
strategy and work programme for 2016-18, as well as of the 
previous strategy and work programme for 2013-15. The final 
report was presented to the EMCDDA Management Board 
in December 2018, further to which a follow-up action plan 
was developed by the agency in 2019 (see also Main area 3: 
Business driver 1, Institutional).

l  Internal monitoring and evaluation system

In 2017 the EMCDDA started an important exercise to align its 
strategic planning activities with the recently adopted Strategy 
2025 and ensure they fit within the new integrated strategic 
and operational framework of the agency (see Figure 2 above).

As part of this process, a redefinition of the areas of work 
within the EMCDDA’s Programming Document 2019-21 was 
performed, so that it reflects the structure of Strategy 2025. 
In this context, a review of the performance framework of the 
agency was initiated. The process benefited from an exchange 

of experience with Eurofound, an EU agency similar to the 
EMCDDA in terms of mandate and size of its operations.

As a result, and following the ‘theory of change’ approach, 
a new model has been designed (see Figure A1). It identifies 
a limited number (10) of KPIs, which will be used to measure 
effectiveness in delivering the desired outputs and efficiency in 
using the resources allocated to that end.

They are complemented by higher level KPIs, at outcome and 
impact levels. While the EMCDDA will ensure high-quality 
delivery of its products and services, in line with its mandate 
and resources, their uptake by the agency’s key stakeholders 
(outcome) and any consequent changes to EU drug policies 
and legislation (first-level impact) are, however, beyond the 
control of the EMCDDA.

In Figure A1, this is reflected by means of the ‘accountability 
ceiling’, which shifts gradually from high, in the areas of inputs, 
processes and outputs, to low, as we approach the impact 
area.

In order to measure the 10 composite KPIs, smaller and 
more specific performance indicators (PIs) and additional 
performance data (metrics) have been put in place (see Table 
A16). They will build on the experience and knowledge gained 
in implementing the EMCDDA performance framework to date 
and will be further refined in order to make sure they are fit for 
purpose in the new framework.

Therefore, the framework presented in this PD 2020-22 
represents work in progress and it will be further elaborated, 
fine-tuned and tested in 2019. For a comprehensive picture, 
an overview of the main areas, strategic objectives, high-
level expected results (outcomes) and KPIs included in this 
programming document is provided in Table A15.

64 / 81

PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22FIGURE A1 
The EMCDDA performance model

EMCDDA
Mission

Input

Activities
(process)

Output

Outcome

1st level
impact

EMCDDA
Vision

Lowest

9. Uptake of the 
EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge)
through a number 
of channels

10. Uptake of the 
EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge)
by policymakers 

A healthier and 
more secure 
Europe through 
better-informed 
drug policy and 
action

To provide the
EU and its
Member States
with a factual
overview of
European 
drug problems
and a solid
evidence base
to support
the drugs 
debate

Accountability ceiling

Highest

1. Budget 
execution

2. Staff 
capacity

3. Implementation
of the EMCDDA
monitoring system

7. Work
programme
delivery

8. Efficient
implementation
of the technical
assistance 
projects with
third countries

4. Implementation
of the EWS and
risk assessment
mechanism

5. Implementation
and management
of the RTX grant
agreements

6. Organisational
efficiency

TABLE A15
Overview of the main areas, strategic objectives, high-level expected results (outcomes) and KPIs

Strategic 
objectives

Main area 1: Health

1.  Maintain 
a state-of-the-art 
understanding of 
the extent, patterns 
and trends in drug 
use, their impact on 
public health

Action areas

Outcomes

KPIs

Implementation of core monitoring 
tools optimised and new processes for 
monitoring drug demand developed, 
to respond to the needs of 
contemporary drug patterns
Comprehensive understanding of the 
EU drug situation through improved 
quality and availability of data
Improved ability to capture the 
developments in the international drug 
situation

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the 
technical assistance projects with 
third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

1.1.  Strengthen the core monitoring 
system: a) critically review and develop, as 
needed, the data collection tools to ensure 
they remain fit for purpose; b) support 
national reporting capacity necessary for 
routine reporting
1.2.  Identify and develop new flexible and 
timely monitoring tools and approaches to 
ensure the monitoring system reflects 
contemporary drug patterns and their 
implications for public health
1.3.  Better understand the implications for 
public health of the evolving international 
drug problem, with special attention to the 
countries bordering the European Union, 
and within the agency’s mandate
1.4.  Identify future reporting needs through 
a futures exercise and appropriate 
follow-up activities

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Strategic 
objectives

2.  Identify new 
drug-related health 
threats and support 
rapid response from 
the EU and its 
Member States

3.  Support 
interventions to 
prevent and reduce 
drug use, drug-
related morbidity, 
mortality and other 
harms, and support 
recovery and social 
reintegration

4.  Support the 
development, 
implementation, 
monitoring and 
assessment of 
policies aimed at 
addressing the 
health and social 
consequences of 
drug use

Action areas

Outcomes

KPIs

2.1.  Ensure the successful operation of the 
EWS
2.2.  Ensure timely and high-quality 
implementation of the risk assessment on 
NPS
2.3.  Develop innovative approaches to 
identifying and reporting on new trends, 
and enhance the EMCDDA’s capacity for 
timely data collection and analysis
2.4.  Conduct threat assessments and rapid 
reporting exercises of new drug-related 
health threats in order to facilitate 
appropriate responses (in collaboration 
with partners, as appropriate)

3.1.  Follow developments from basic 
research, applied research and 
implementation science to maintain 
state-of-the-art understanding of what 
constitutes effective interventions to both 
established and emergent drug-related 
problems
3.2.  Strengthen, maintain and develop the 
monitoring tools required for describing the 
delivery of drug-related interventions: a) in 
established areas and settings; b) in new 
settings and developmental areas
3.3.  Facilitate knowledge transfer, the 
adoption of best practice, and successful 
implementation, through development of 
state-of-the-art resources for professionals 
and supporting and developing training and 
capacity-building activities
3.4.  Provide additional information 
resources to support decision-making and 
programme development in areas 
particularly important for public health, or 
where innovations are becoming available 
or the knowledge base is rapidly changing 
(such as HCV treatment, overdose 
prevention, new pharmacotherapies, 
e-health and interventions targeting 
hard-to-reach populations) or where new 
evidence reviews have become available

4.1.  Support as requested EU and national 
policy initiatives within the EMCDDA’s areas 
of competence, with particular attention 
given to the implementation of the EU drug 
strategy and its action plans
4.2.  Monitor and report on key policy 
developments, occurring nationally, at EU 
level and internationally, to facilitate an 
informed and up-to-date dialogue
4.3.  Maintain and develop resources to 
support policy formulation and evaluation 
(in close coordination with the support to 
policy provided in the supply area)

Effective implementation of the EWS 
and the EU risk assessment 
mechanism on NPS
Health-related emerging trends and 
threats captured and reported in 
a timely manner
Increased capacity of the EU and its 
Member States to rapidly respond to 
new health-related drug-related 
threats

Optimisation of tools to monitor drug 
interventions (established and new)
Better and more informed policy and 
practice on effectiveness of 
interventions in drug demand 
reduction within the EU
Increased availability of effective 
interventions to prevent and reduce 
drug use, drug-related morbidity, 
mortality and other harms

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
4. Implementation of the EWS and 
risk assessment mechanism on 
NPS
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the 
technical assistance projects with 
third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

Optimisation of tools to monitor drug 
policies and legislation
Increased capacity of EU and national 
policymakers to address the health 
and social consequences of drug use, 
with evidence provided by, and 
support from, the EMCDDA

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Strategic 
objectives

Main area 2: Security

1.  Provide 
a comprehensive, 
holistic and 
up-to-date 
understanding of 
the drug market in 
Europe

2.  Identify new 
drug-related 
security threats and 
support a rapid 
response from the 
EU and its Member 
States

3.  Improve 
understanding of 
the nature and 
consequences of 
drug-related crime

Action areas

Outcomes

KPIs

1.1.  Strengthen the core monitoring 
system: improve quality and coverage in the 
implementation of supply and supply 
reduction indicators in the Member States 
and their supporting tools, networks and 
processes
1.2.  Develop new and innovative data 
collection approaches to increase the 
scope and coverage of analysis, and provide 
a cost-effective and practical solution to 
supplement existing core data-collection 
systems in this area (e.g. open source 
intelligence; internet monitoring and web 
surveys)
1.3.  Improve understanding of the impact 
on the European drug market of 
developments in the international drug 
situation, with particular attention given to 
the countries bordering the EU
1.4.  Support a better strategic 
understanding of the drivers of innovation in 
synthetic drug production and their impact, 
including routes of synthesis and source 
chemicals, and contribute to the European 
system on drug-precursor monitoring, 
together with the European Commission 
and Europol

2.1.  Provide threat assessments related to 
transversal security threats linked to the 
production and supply of drugs
2.2.  Identify and communicate the threats 
associated with NPS with respect to 
sourcing, production, transit and marketing, 
and ensure vigilance and follow-up on 
threats related to the emergence of newly 
controlled NPS on the drug market
2.3.  Improve capacity to monitor innovation 
in the drug market and its impact, with 
special attention given to the development 
of online drug markets and darknet drug 
sales

3.1.  Improve the monitoring of drug-related 
crime and associated responses and 
countermeasures and their impact
3.2.  Contribute to an improved 
understanding of the links and interactions 
that exist between drugs and serious 
criminality, including security threats, such 
as illegal financial flows, corruption, 
trafficking in other illicit cargoes and 
terrorism
3.3.  Support the development of a broader 
conceptual framework on the wider societal 
impact of drug markets and drug-related 
crime, including environmental impact, 
implications for community safety and 
possible unintended negative 
consequences of interventions

Implementation of supply-related 
monitoring tools optimised and new 
processes for monitoring drug supply 
developed, to respond to the needs of 
contemporary drug patterns
Comprehensive understanding of the 
EU drug market through improved 
quality and availability of data and 
analysis
Improved ability to capture the 
developments in the international drug 
situation

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the 
technical assistance projects with 
third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

Security-related emerging trends and 
threats captured and reported in 
a timely manner
Increased capacity of the EU and its 
Member States to rapidly respond to 
new drug-related security threats

Better understanding of drug-related 
crime and its link with other serious 
crimes such as terrorism, illegal 
firearms trafficking and illegal 
migration
Improved comprehension of wider 
societal impact of drug markets and 
drug-related crime

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the 
technical assistance projects with 
third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the 
technical assistance projects with 
third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Strategic 
objectives

4.  Support policy 
and operational 
responses to the 
security challenges 
posed by drugs and 
drug markets at EU 
and national levels

Action areas

Outcomes

KPIs

Improved law enforcement capacity to 
prevent and investigate drug-related 
crime, based on knowledge, skills and 
expertise acquired through training 
and sharing of best practices
Enhanced capacity of policymakers at 
EU and national levels for combating 
drug-related security threats

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

4.1.  Support the EU policy cycle for 
organised and serious international crime 
and provide expertise on the European 
Multidisciplinary Platform against Criminal 
Threats drug priority areas (through threat 
assessments, provision of expertise and 
training). A priority task for the EMCDDA is 
to maintain an overview of EU drug markets, 
their ramifications and responses
4.2.  Increase the effectiveness and the 
impact of EU actions in the security area 
including through a) strengthening/
establishing networks of field experts, 
academics, law enforcement officials, etc. 
and b) defining criteria for identifying, 
understanding and prioritising emerging 
threats (including external, current and 
future) stemming from drug market activity, 
integrating uncertainty, projected trends 
and scenario planning
4.3.  Develop capacity for supporting the 
evaluation, upon request, of law 
enforcement responses to drug supply 
interventions (in close coordination with 
policy support provided to health 
interventions)

Main area 3: Business drivers

B1. INSTITUTIONAL
Anticipate, and 
respond promptly 
to, institutional 
developments and 
needs

B2. PARTNERSHIP
Strengthen the 
European Drug 
Information System 
through effective 
and mutually 
beneficial 
partnerships and 
synergies with our 
data providers, 
communities of 
knowledge, and 
relevant European 
and international 
bodies

B1.1. Ongoing analysis of the external 
environment and how it relates to current 
and future stakeholder needs
B1.2. Configure services to ensure they are 
timely, and are delivered professionally and 
in a form coherent with our stakeholders’ 
needs
B1.3. Prepare the agency for ongoing and 
potential future revisions of its mandate, in 
line with the recommendations of the 
external evaluation performed in 2018, and 
the conclusions of the evaluation of the EU 
drugs strategy and action plan

B2.1. Develop, jointly with the national focal 
points, and guided by EMCDDA Strategy 
2025, the new Reitox network development 
framework, and support its implementation 
by the NFPs
B2.2. Strengthen national drug expert 
networks and develop, if necessary, new 
networks to ensure the agency has 
sufficient expertise to accomplish the 
strategy’s objectives
B2.3. Strengthen cooperation with EU and 
international partners in line with work 
priorities defined by Strategy 2025 and 
stakeholders’ emerging needs

Increased capacity of the EMCDDA to 
meet stakeholders’ needs through 
tailored products and services, which 
are provided through optimised 
communication channels
The EMCDDA organised to respond to 
the recommendations emerging from 
the fourth external evaluation of the 
agency and other relevant institutional 
and political developments

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
6. Organisational efficiency
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

Efficient coordination of the Reitox 
network to ensure improved reporting 
capacity of the NFPs and good 
performance in the implementation of 
the grant agreements
Enhanced synergies with EU and 
international bodies working in 
drug-related areas
Increased EU capacity to address drug 
threats in EU priority third countries

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
3. Implementation of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system
5. Implementation and 
management of the Reitox grant 
agreements
7. Work programme delivery
8. Efficient implementation of the 
technical assistance projects with 
third countries
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Strategic 
objectives

B3. SCIENTIFIC 
CAPACITY
Have in place the 
scientific capacity 
(resources, 
processes and 
tools) to meet 
current analytical 
needs, and innovate 
to keep pace with 
changes in the drug 
situation and the 
corresponding 
institutional needs

B4. MANAGEMENT
Ensure the optimal 
organisational 
structure and 
supporting 
processes, to deliver 
efficient and 
high-quality 
services

Action areas

Outcomes

KPIs

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
6. Organisational efficiency
7. Work programme delivery
9. Uptake of the EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) through a number of 
channels
10. Uptake of the EMCDDA 
evidence/knowledge by 
policymakers

1. Budget execution
2. Staff capacity
6. Organisational efficiency
7. Work programme delivery

B3.1. Maintain and develop the EMCDDA’s 
scientific capacity and ensure it reflects the 
expertise required for the agency to fulfil its 
mandate
B3.2. Optimise the allocation and use of 
scientific resources through clear 
prioritisation, adoption of more flexible 
working practices and the use of external 
resources where cost-efficient
B3.3. Strengthen the quality management 
of scientific activities
B3.4. Strengthen dialogue and cooperation 
with the scientific community and centres 
of excellence in the drugs field to ensure 
that the EMCDDA maintains a state-of-the-
art understanding of developments in its 
areas of competence

B4.1. Put in place the new organisational 
structure and other measures necessary for 
successful implementation of Strategy 
2025
B4.2. Further improve cost-effectiveness 
and optimal allocation of resources, 
reflecting the priorities identified in Strategy 
2025
B4.3. Strengthen performance 
management at all levels
B4.4. Improve people management and 
implement a sustainable staff training and 
development programme to ensure the 
EMCDDA has the committed, skilled and 
motivated human resources it requires to 
achieve its long-term objectives

Scientific capacity optimised through 
efficient use of resources and 
improved coordination of core 
activities
Scientific quality of the EMCDDA’s 
work further enhanced through 
appropriate quality assurance 
measures, and provision of support 
and guidance by the Scientific 
Committee
Communication and exchange with 
external monitoring and scientific 
bodies and centres of excellence 
strengthened

Good performance by the EMCDDA in 
implementing the annual 
programming instrument
Sound management of the EMCDDA’s 
resources, in compliance with 
applicable rules and procedures and in 
line with organisational needs
Safe and environmentally friendly 
workplace, which prevents work 
accidents, promotes use of renewable 
energy and avoids waste of resources
Optimal level of operability of the 
EMCDDA’s ICT systems

Note: The core KPIs for each strategic objective are presented in bold text.

TABLE A16
KPI architecture

Category

Key performance 
indicators (KPI)

Performance indicators (PIs) and 
metrics

PI targets/
metrics definition

Strategic 
objectives

Input

1. Budget execution 1.1. Commitment appropriations

Minimum 95 % of the total commitment appropriations

All

2. Staff capacity

1.2. Cancellation rate of payment 
appropriations

2.1. Occupation rate 
(implementation of the 
establishment plan)

2.2. Staff turnover

Maximum 5 % of cancelled payment appropriations

At least 95 % of the establishment plan posts (officials, 
temporary agents) filled at the end of the year (in line with 
resources)

All

Maximum 4 % of staff leaving EMCDDA during the year, out 
of the total number of staff (officials, temporary agents, 
contract agents)

2.3. Average number of training 
days per staff member

Minimum of 3 days

Activities 
(process)

3. Implementation 
of the EMCDDA 
monitoring system

3.1. Input to the monitoring system 
via national reporting

National reporting guidelines agreed at the HFP meeting 
each autumn

H1, H2, H3, 
H4, S1, S2, 
S3, S4, B2

3.2. Availability of statistical outputs Statistical Bulletin published on the public website annually 

3.3. Feedback provided to NFPs on 
workbooks

alongside the EDR

Feedback by the HFP meeting in spring

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Category

Key performance 
indicators (KPI)

Performance indicators (PIs) and 
metrics

PI targets/
metrics definition

4.1. Formal notifications on NPS 
and public health-related warnings 
issued to the EWS network

In line with the deadlines and criteria defined by Regulation 
EU 2017/2101 (amending Regulation EC 1920/2006) and 
the applicable standard operating procedures

Strategic 
objectives

H2

4. Implementation 
of the EWS and risk 
assessment 
mechanism on NPS

5. Implementation 
and management of 
the Reitox grant 
agreements

4.2. Formal reports (EMCDDA initial 
reports on NPS, and risk 
assessment reports) submitted to 
stakeholders (as appropriate)

5.1. Quality organisation of the HFP 
meetings

5.2. Execution rate (commitments) 
of the grant agreements budget

5.3. Timeliness of processing of the 
payment requests

6. Organisational 
efficiency

6.1. Effectiveness of the Director in 
providing support to the MB for 
performing its tasks

6.2. Effectiveness of the Director in 
providing support to the SC in 
performing its tasks

6.3 Degree of implementation of 
internal audit recommendations

6.4. Timely delivery of the 
documents supporting the strategic 
planning and programming cycle 
(programming documents and 
General Report of Activities) (as 
required by the EMCDDA Founding 
Regulation Recast)

a) 100 % of the supporting documents made available to 
the NFPs two weeks prior to the meetings (except for 
documents related to events occurring within this time 
frame)

B2

b) Conclusions and action points disseminated within four 
weeks after the closing of the meetings

95 % of the available funding is committed for NFP grants

B1, B3, B4

85 % of the balance payment requests, submitted complete 
and on time, are successfully checked and paid by 30 June 
of year N+1

a) 100 % of the supporting documents for the MB meetings 
uploaded on the MB extranet at least two weeks before the 
meetings (except for documents related to events occurring 
within this time frame)

b) Draft minutes sent to the Chair within a maximum of 20 
working days from the close of the MB meetings

a) 100 % of the supporting documents for the SC meetings 
uploaded on the SC extranet at least two weeks before the 
meetings (except for documents related to events occurring 
within this time frame)

b) Draft minutes of the meetings sent to the Chair within 
a maximum of two weeks from the close of the meetings

100 % of the internal audit recommendations (‘critical’ and 
‘very important’) implemented by the deadline set out in the 
follow-up action plan endorsed by the MB

All documents delivered by deadline

6.5. Average time of recruitment 
processes

Maximum of 4 months from the expiry date of the vacancy 
notice to appointment decision

6.6. Number of accidents at 
workplace

6.7. Efficiency in using available 
facilities, equipment and 
infrastructure

6.8. Availability of the ICT systems

No accidents

No increase in utility costs (compared with 2019)

a) Office supporting infrastructure availability: system 
availability greater than 95 %, office hours (maximum of 103 
hours of accumulated down time over the year)

b) Corporate supporting infrastructure availability (websites, 
web applications, Fonte, databases, email, security): system 
runs on a 24/7 basis with an overall availability annual target 
of minimum 99 % availability (maximum of 88 hours of 
annual accumulated down time)

6.9. Efficiency in implementing ICT 
projects

Deviation between planned and consumed ICT resources 
(defined as FTEs of ICT staff) for core projects

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Category

Output

Key performance 
indicators (KPI)

Performance indicators (PIs) and 
metrics

PI targets/
metrics definition

7. Work programme 
delivery

7.1. Degree of implementation of 
the 2019 work programme

a) 100 % of the expected outputs/results listed as L1 
achieved

Strategic 
objectives

All

8. Efficient 
implementation of 
the technical 
assistance projects 
with third countries

b) 80 % of the expected outputs/results listed as L2 
achieved

c) 50 % of the expected outputs/results listed as L3 
achieved

8.1. Efficient implementation of the 
IPA 7 project

a) Minimum 80 % of the project’s expected results achieved 
(in line with the commitments expressed by the partner 
countries)

B2, H1, H2, 
S1, S2, S3

8.2. Efficient implementation of 
EU4Monitoring Drugs project

a) Minimum 80 % of the annual milestones achieved

b) Minimum 70 % of the annual budget committed

b) Minimum 85 % of the total budget committed

Outcome

9. Uptake of the 
EMCDDA evidence 
(knowledge) 
through a number 
of channels

9.1. Audience reached through the 
website

9.2. Responsiveness of the 
EMCDDA to the needs of key 
institutional stakeholders (EU 
institutions and Member States)

9.3. Contribution to major scientific 
and practice drug events

Number of unique visitors

a) Number of institutional meetings attended

b) Number of requests for input/advice from key 
institutional stakeholders responded to

c) Number of the requests to visit the EMCDDA received 
from EU institutions and national authorities from EU 
Member States fulfilled

a) 100 % of the events attended (resource dependent)

b) Presentations delivered at 75 % of events

9.4. Publishing of scientific articles 
in peer-reviewed journals

Impact score 30 or higher (impact score = journal impact 
factor × number of scientific articles published in 2019)

9.5. Training provided by the 
EMCDDA

a) Number of people trained (by categories of training: 
Reitox academies; summer school; training with partners, 
e.g. CEPOL)

b) Minimum 80 % satisfaction rate (average score 
calculated based on all the training evaluation reports) with 
the Reitox academies

9.6. General public requests

Number of public enquiries answered

9.7. Audience reached through 
social media

a) At least 5 % increase in social media followers
b) An average engagement rate above the industry standard

9.8 Audience reached through 
newsletters

9.9 Audience reached through 
videos

a) At least 5 % increase in subscribers to email lists
b) An average opening and click rate above industry 
standard

a) At least 5 % increase in subscribers
b) Audience retention rate above 50 %
c) Increase of 5 % in total video views

9.10. Media reached

Number of media requests answered

9.11. Visitors at the EMCDDA

Number of visitors received (by categories: policy; practice; 
academia; general public)

H1, H2, S1, 
S2, S3, B2

H1, H2, H3, 
H4, S1, S2, 
S3, S4, B1, 
B2, B3

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Strategic 
objectives

H1, H2, H3, 
H4, S1, S2, 
S3, S4, B1, 
B2, B3

Category

Impact

Key performance 
indicators (KPI)

Performance indicators (PIs) and 
metrics

PI targets/
metrics definition

10. Uptake of the 
EMCDDA 
evidence/
knowledge by 
policymakers

10.1. Council implementing 
decisions to subject NPS to control 
measures and criminal penalties 
throughout the EU (within the 
mechanism established by 
Regulation EU 2017/2101)

10.2. EU policy cycle for organised 
and serious international crime for 
the period 2018-21: implementation 
OAP 2019; support to the European 
Commission and the Member 
States for formulating OAP 2020

10.3. EU SOCTA informed by the 
EMCDDA (including through EDMR 
2019)

10.4. Other EU and national policies 
and legislation, and UN documents, 
informed by the evidence produced 
by the EMCDDA

10.5. Other evidence of uptake of 
the EMCDDA knowledge by 
policymakers (to be defined)

Defined by needs

Defined by needs

Defined by needs

Defined by needs

Defined by needs

Note: For efficiency reasons, when reporting to our stakeholders a selection of the most relevant PIs will be made, while the remaining PIs will be used for internal 
monitoring purposes only.
MB, Management Board; SC, Scientific Committee.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex VIII 

Risk factors identified for delivery of the 2020 work programme

Risk factors identified for delivery of the 
2020 work programme

Likelihood of risk and respective impact on the 2020 work programme

External risks with a direct link to specific fields of the annual work programme

1. Insufficient funding of the 2020 EMCDDA 
budget

2. Lack of adequate resources for National 
Focal Points (NFPs) in the Member States, 
which will affect their capacity to comply with 
reporting obligations towards the EMCDDA. 
This risk could be compounded by insufficient 
funding for core data collection in Member 
States (see 3, immediately below)

3. Reduction of the reporting capacity of 
Member States, due to either lacking or 
reduced availability of core data with adequate 
quality levels

Freezing of EU funding for the EMCDDA budget was implemented for 2014, 2015 and 2016, at the 
level of EUR 14 794 000; this amount was some EUR 756 000 lower than for 2013. For 2017 and 
2018, an aggregate increase of around EUR 651 000 was granted. Therefore, all in all, the value of 
the EU contribution for 2018 was EUR 105 000 lower than for 2013. Moreover, the amount of the 
EU contribution for 2019 was EUR 15 286 600, i.e. EUR 263 400 below the 2013 level.
In line with the proposal presented by the European Commission (EC) for the EU’s 2020 
contribution to the EMCDDA, as endorsed by the two branches of the EU Budget Authority within 
the context of the EU’s 2020 budget procedure, a contribution of EUR 16 288 600 will be provided 
to the EMCDDA for implementing its work programme 2020. This amount only partially meets the 
EMCDDA’s request for 2020. In this context, the EMCDDA will be able to cope with the expected 
automatic adjustment of its staff-related expenditure in 2020 and with the increase in the rent for 
its premises, but it will be obliged to downsize some operational activities and publications initially 
planned for 2020, as reflected in this 2020–22 programming document.
In this context, the amount of the EU’s 2020 contribution will pose risks to resourcing some 
planned operational activities, such as those entailed by the required enhancement of the 
EMCDDA’s role in the coordination and development of ESPAD.
A high level of risk to the EMCDDA’s activities exists, as it encompasses serious erosion in real 
terms of the value of its budget, thereby affecting the agency’s capacity to cope effectively with 
the increasing operational needs and the resulting pressure on the agency’s resources (see risks 2 
to 5, below). Moreover, the looming end (in 2020) of the current building rental discounts may 
render the impact of this risk even more serious.

All core monitoring activities could be affected, with the following main consequences: (a) 
lessened capability to identify new drug threats and developments; (b) undermining of established 
and valid time series data; and (c) reduced ability to properly report to the EMCDDA’s key partners.
The EMCDDA’s own budget constraints have led to a decrease in its grants to the NFPs in 2014. 
A review of the present national reporting package has been carried out and should continue, 
involving regular reviews of core data needs, timely feedback to the NFPs on their performance 
and compliance with reporting obligations towards the EMCDDA. A further cut, as discussed in the 
autumn of 2019, would require an assessment of its impact on the NFPs, and most likely the 
adoption of measures by the Centre, including adapting accordingly the national reporting 
package for the NFPs.
The budgetary situation in certain Member States has also led to cuts in funding of their NFPs. In 
that regard, budget revisions were performed by certain national authorities in 2016 and they were 
maintained in 2017. While in the past 2 years some Member States have consistently increased or 
maintained their financial contributions, the risk of further budgetary constraints at national level 
still exists, in particular in certain Member States. Should this risk materialise in 2020, it could 
trigger corresponding reductions of the co-financing provided by the EMCDDA, which would have 
obvious negative consequences for the NFPs concerned. This risk can be therefore assessed as 
medium to high, depending on the concrete situation in Member States.

The timeliness and comprehensiveness of reporting by Member States on new threats and drug 
developments have been affected; moreover, some comparative data have been unavailable, 
which has not allowed useful analysis at European level.
Although the EMCDDA has introduced a code of statistical best practices, the impact of this risk 
can be considered medium to high and should in principle be confined to some Member States. 
Closer attention ought to be paid to reporting biases and statistical approaches adopted across 
the Member States, in order to ensure the credibility of data received. In addition, monitoring of 
and feedback to the Member States on their reporting performance is ongoing and should be 
further developed in order to allow corrective action to be taken, wherever required: key 
epidemiological indicators assessment with feedback to NFPs has been and will continue to be 
done every 3 tears. Finally, the evaluation of the reporting capacity of Member States could be 
included in systemic reviews, where advisable.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Risk factors identified for delivery of the 
2020 work programme

4. Supplementary specific requests from EU 
institutions to provide technical support for the 
implementation of European Commission 
programmes and actions, particularly regarding 
implementation of Council Decision 2005/387/
JHA on NPS

5. Supplementary requests from Member 
States and third parties to provide expertise in 
specific domains

Likelihood of risk and respective impact on the 2020 work programme

Supporting drug policy and technical cooperation (with EU institutions) could be affected. The 
same applies regarding the undertaking of prompt action aimed at addressing issues arising from 
harmful NPS.
In view of the high impact of harms related to NPS appearing over a short time period, monitoring 
through the EWS and, in particular, risk assessments have placed a disproportionate burden on 
the work programme; yet legal obligations regarding performance of risk assessments along the 
lines established by Regulation (EU) 2017/2101 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
15 November 2017, amending Regulation (EC) No 1920/2006 as regards information exchange 
on, and an early warning system and risk assessment procedure for, new psychoactive 
substances, need to be complied with.
The additional work required by the above-mentioned new legislation on NPS has not been 
matched by a corresponding increase in the resources of the Centre; therefore, a significant risk 
exists that the relevant activities will not be sufficiently covered.
Although not legally binding, concerns also exist about requests related to new activities in the 
security area.
For the reasons above, the risk level is within the medium to high range.

It has been increasingly demanding to deal with the level of requests. Further increase in demand 
for this type of expertise would need additional scientific resources dedicated to it and to be 
considered in view of other work programme priorities; in this respect, there is a serious concern 
over the work overload being created in response to the number of requests addressed to the 
EMCDDA.
The risk level is presently seen as medium although on the rise.

External events that might have an impact on the implementation of the annual work programme as a whole

6. Natural catastrophes: earthquakes (leading 
to possible tsunamis), landslides or floods

7. Terrorist attacks

The location of the EMCDDA facilities, bordering the Tagus river, raises a potential risk of being 
affected by any of these natural catastrophes. The likely consequences of a major earthquake are 
hardly predictable and appropriate measures would have to be taken in order to deal with the 
resulting damage. A collapse of the building caused by earthquakes, although not very likely, 
cannot be ruled out.
As regards the Tagus flooding, some information available leads us to believe that the potential risk 
here would be low. On the other hand, it is conceivable that a combination of heavy rain with high 
tides could cause flooding of the underground car park. Further mitigating measures to deal with 
this risk ought to be agreed with and taken by the landlord of the EMCDDA buildings.
A very comprehensive insurance contract covering, inter alia, adverse effects from earthquakes, 
landslides and floods has been signed and renewed.
A business continuity plan for the agency as a whole was approved in 2013 and regularly updated 
ever since: this will help mitigate these risks and their consequences. Moreover, intensive 1-day 
earthquake emergency training was provided to security wardens; in addition, all staff have been 
informed on how to act if an earthquake were to occur.

Any activity of the EMCDDA could be affected. Events in some European countries, although 
isolated, raise serious issues concerning possible collateral effects emerging from radicalisation of 
young people and further home-grown terrorism. A series of mitigating measures have been taken, 
notably adequate insurance policies of premises; reinforced building protection against bomb 
blasts and small-calibre bullets; and scanning of suspicious mail. Moreover, the main entrances at 
the EMCDDA premises have been redesigned in order to create a second barrier to possible 
intruders; the security level at the immediate entrance area to the garage has been upgraded in 
order to prevent or deter entrance by a vehicle of would-be terrorists.
Further risk mitigation measures were implemented in 2017, notably setting up of an access 
card-based system allowing pre-selection of persons enabled to enter the buildings; installation of 
bullet-proof glass entrances; and equipping outside windows with mirror film.
Installation of vehicle blockers or bollards at the entrances of Praça Europa in order to prevent 
unverified access of vehicles remains under consideration, in coordination with EMSA.
All in all, the risk of terrorist attacks is presently assessed as low.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Risk factors identified for delivery of the 
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Internal risks

8.1 ICT governance risks, notably linked to 
suboptimal licensing and assets management 
procedures

8.2 ICT technical risks, notably linked to:
(a) software configuration management 
problems resulting from installations of 
software not being properly planned;
(b) inconsistent application of patching 
procedures, compounded by insufficient 
documentation of interventions and system 
updates;
(c) security violations, due to some lack of 
adequate procedures, policies and 
documentation in the ICT area

9. Unexpected departure of or increasing 
difficulties in attracting new staff, which could 
have a negative impact on the EMCDDA’s 
capability to comply with its core objectives 
and mission

Likelihood of risk and respective impact on the 2020 work programme

A large number of mitigating measures to deal with this risk have been implemented, namely the 
use of suitable tools in supporting sound asset management and reliability of licensing; 
implementation of the services catalogue on the basis of the new Services Request Management 
Tool; and automatic monitoring of installed software by means of central tools (Landesk and 
Nexthink).
Some additional measures and actions are expected to further reduce the residual risk level, 
which is currently medium: completing the formalisation of services in the catalogue; and 
enhancing planning and control of license and asset utilisation.
A serious constraint exists regarding the resources allocated for the ICT activities and investments. 
In this regard, a further reduction of the agency’s budget due to the automatic increase of some 
expenditures could put at risk the smooth running, maintenance and update of the EMCDDA’s ICT 
systems.

Most relevant mitigating measures have already been implemented, such as:
(a) setting up of an automatic monitoring system to deal with installed configurations; 
configuration audit exercises; implementation of technical tools addressing management of 
software configuration issues; conception of a ‘documentation tree’ as the basis in the production 
of a documentation set covering risk management, security and governance in ICT; and 
introduction of a ticketing tool, aimed at dealing with technical configuration issues;
(b) ad hoc testing of potential consequences emerging from patching procedural weaknesses and 
systematic registration of interventions performed; setting up of a definitive software library, 
indicating software versions in use and patches installed; extension of the scope of Windows 7 in 
order to include the configuration of patching capabilities; documentation of the processes used 
for patching in desktops; definition and practical application of specific guidelines and procedures 
for patching in servers; and carrying out of a comprehensive patching exercise in 2018;
(c) installation of network management software combined with an update of the firewall software; 
introduction of modules for intrusion detection and prevention; increased protection against 
malware and virus threats; definition of a process to control the creation, modification and 
revocation of user accounts and access profiles; approval of an information system security policy 
framework aimed at articulating the different levels of regulation on information security; review of 
user generic accounts; enhancement of the information security policy in key areas such as 
network security, change management and applications; penetration testing over the EDND, 
performed in 2018, with reassuring results; and introduction of a security incident management 
procedure.
Furthermore, a comprehensive set of additional measures has been planned in order to further 
reduce present risk levels: (a) establishment of standard documentation on the EMCDDA’s 
technical ICT infrastructure; (b) alignment of software configurations and use of patching 
capabilities also on Citrix servers; and (c) contracting and carrying out telecom security-related 
services, as well as external audits on sensitive areas of the EMCDDA’s core business (for instance 
Fonte data collection application), implementing further security best practices regarding, inter 
alia, diffusion of system administrator passwords, and, periodical review of user access rights and 
of all user generic accounts.
In view of the above, these ICT technical risks are presently assessed as medium.

Given the highly specialised and technical nature of much of the agency’s work, finding suitable 
replacements can be a time-consuming task. Redeployment could prove to be unfeasible, as it 
would require the existence of a pool of staff members with very comprehensive skills and 
expertise in the areas at stake.
The present organisation of the Scientific Coordination has provided some back-up arrangements 
for all staff concerned, while allowing a wider decentralisation of responsibilities in this key area. 
Even so, these might turn out to be insufficient, notably in the event of long-term absence of key 
staff, which could hinder the EMCDDA’s core operations.
Investment in human resources ensures that arising needs are treated with minimum delay in 
most cases; a recruitment tool was developed by the EMCDDA with a view to further accelerating 
recruitment procedures. Job profiles have been designed with a view to recruiting staff for 
transversal tasks and facilitating sharing of knowledge and expertise within small working groups. 
A stable contract with key staff, notably in scientific areas, has been pursued and ought to be 
reinforced.
Notwithstanding the mitigation measures already taken and planned, the risk level has been 
assessed as medium. Bleak prospects for staff promotions and reclassifications, mostly due to 
constraints on the EMCDDA budget, will not help either.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Risk factors identified for delivery of the 
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10. Delays in the implementation of Regulation 
(EU) 2018/1725 of the EP and of the Council of 
23 October 2018, on the protection of natural 
persons with regard to personal data 
processing

Likelihood of risk and respective impact on the 2020 work programme

Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018, on 
the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union 
institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, repealing 
Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC, represents the most important 
change in personal data protection in 20 years. Due to the extreme workload of the EMCDDA and 
the current budget and human resources limitations, the EMCDDA risks suffering some delays in 
the full implementation of the above-mentioned regulation across all areas. In order to cope with 
the risks mentioned, the EMCDDA intends to make an additional effort by devoting the needed 
resources and expertise to provide the data controllers with the necessary assistance to be fully 
compliant. Furthermore, the EMCDDA intends to engage in a series of training sessions, which 
already started to take place during 2018 using online tools, to develop the necessary internal 
know-how to take the measures to avoid suffering the imposition of heavy penalties that could 
further limit its already scarce resources.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex IX 

Procurement plan 2020

Pursuant to the applicable financial regulation, this annex 
indicates the procurements for non-administrative activities 
that have been envisaged for the implementation of the 
EMCDDA 2020 work programme the value of which is equal to 
or greater than EUR 60 000, to be covered by appropriations 
entered into Title 3 of the relevant EMCDDA budget.

No such procurements have been envisaged for the 
implementation of the 2020 work programme. In the event that 
such procurements are launched during 2020, the EMCDDA 
Management Board will be duly and promptly informed.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex X 

Organisation chart 2020

Data Protection Officer
(1 O shared with RTX)

Director
Alexis Goosdeel (DIR)
(TOTAL 4: 4 TA)

Scientific coordination (SDI)
(TOTAL 4: 1 O, 3 TA)

Executive office (EXO) 
TOTAL 7: 1 O, 3 TA, 3 CA 

Unit
Public health
(HEA)
(TOTAL 5: 1 O, 2 TA, 
2 CA) 

Unit
Risks to public safety 
and security (SAS)
(TOTAL 3: 1 TA, 2 CA)

Sector

Support to policy

(TOTAL 5: 4 TA, 1 CA)

Sector
Action on new drugs
(TOTAL 6: 3 TA, 3 CA)

Sector
Trends and analysis
(TOTAL 9: 6 TA, 3 CA)

Sector
Support to practice
(TOTAL 7: 1 O, 4 TA, 2 CA)

Sector
Markets, crime and
supply reduction
(TOTAL 7: 3 TA, 3 CA, 
1 SNE)

Unit
Reitox and
external partners (RTX)
(TOTAL 6: 4 TA (1 TA 
shared with HEA), 1 CA 
and 1 O (the 
EMCDDA DPO)) 

Sector
International cooperation
(TOTAL 3: 1 O, 2 TA, 
3 CA (1 CA shared with 
ADM)

Unit
Communication
(COM)
(TOTAL 9: 1 O, 7 TA, 
1 CA)

Unit
Information and
communication
technology (ICT)
(TOTAL 5: 3 TA, 2 CA)

Unit
Resources management
and administrative 
services (ADM)
(TOTAL 2: 1 O, 1 CA)

Sector
Media relations
and marketing
(TOTAL 1: 1 TA)

Sector
Service delivery
(TOTAL 4: 4 TA)

Sector
Infrastructure and
logistics
(TOTAL 4: 2 TA, 2 CA)

Sector
Human resources
management
(TOTAL 5: 2 TA, 3 CA)

Sector
Financial management
(TOTAL 8: 1 O, 5 TA, 2 CA)

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22l   Annex XI 

List of the beneficiaries of Reitox grants (national focal points)

■■ BELGIUM: Sciensano, Brussels

■■ BULGARIA: National Centre of Public Health and Analysis 

(NCPHA), Sofia

■■ CZECHIA: Úřad vlády České republiky (Office of the 

■■ LUXEMBOURG: Ministère de la Santé, Direction de la 

Santé, Service Epidémiologie et Statistique, Luxembourg

■■ HUNGARY: Emberi Erőforrások Minisztériuma (Ministry of 

Human Capacities — EMMI), Budapest

Government of the Czechia), Prague

■■ MALTA: Ministry for the Family, Children’s Rights and Social 

■■ DENMARK: Danish Health Authority, Copenhagen

Solidarity (MFCS), Valletta

■■ GERMANY: Institut für Therapieforschung (Institute for 

■■ NETHERLANDS: Stichting Trimbos Instituut, Utrecht

Therapy Research), Munich

■■ AUSTRIA: Gesundheit Österreich GmbH (Austrian Public 

■■

IRELAND: Health Research Board (HRB), Dublin

Health Institute), Vienna

■■ ESTONIA: Tervise Arengu Instituut (National Institute for 

Health Development — NIHD), Tallinn

■■ POLAND: Krajowe Biuro Do Spraw Przeciwdziałania 

Narkomanii (National Bureau for Drugs Prevention), Warsaw

■■ GREECE: Εθνικό Κέντρο Τεκμηρίωσης και Πληροφόρησης 
για τα Ναρκωτικά (University Mental Health Research 
Institute — ΕΚΤΕΠΝ), Athens

■■ PORTUGAL: Serviço de Intervenção nos Comportamentos 

Aditivos e nas Dependências (SICAD), Lisbon

■■ ROMANIA: Agenţia Natională Antidrog (National Anti-drug 

■■ SPAIN: Delegación del Gobierno para el Plan Nacional 

sobre Drogas (Government Delegation for the National Plan 
on Drugs — GDNPD), Madrid

■■ FRANCE: Observatoire Français des Drogues et des 

Toxicomanies (French Monitoring Centre for Drugs and 
Drug Addiction), Saint-Denis

■■ CROATIA: Hrvatski Zavod Za Javno Zdravstvo (Croatian 

Institute of Public Health), Zagreb

■■

ITALY: Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri — Dipartimento 
per le Politiche Antidroga (Presidency of the Council of 
Ministers — Department for Antidrug Policies), Rome

■■ CYPRUS: Cyprus National Addictions Authority (CNAA), 

Nicosia

■■ LATVIA: Slimību profilakses un kontroles centra (Centre for 

Disease Prevention and Control of Latvia), Riga

■■ LITHUANIA: Narkotikų, Tabako ir Alkoholio Kontrolés 

Departhamentas (Drug, Tobacco and Alcohol Control 
Department), Vilnius

Agency), Bucharest

■■ SLOVENIA: Inštitut za Varovanje Zdravja Republike 

Slovenije (National Institute of Public Health of the Republic 
of Slovenia — NIJZ), Ljubljana

■■ SLOVAKIA: Ministerstvo zdravotníctva Slovenskej republiky 

(Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic — MZ SR), 
Bratislava

■■ FINLAND: Terveyden Ja Hyvinvoinnin Laitos (Finnish 
Institute for Health and Welfare — THL), Helsinki

■■ SWEDEN: Folkhälsomyndigheten (Public Health Agency of 

Sweden), Östersund

Contact details of all national focal points are available at: 
www.emcdda.europa.eu/about/partners/reitox-network

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22Technical assistance projects

l   Annex XII 
l 

 IPA 7 project (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 
Kosovo (27), Montenegro, North Macedonia and 
Serbia)

This project (identified as EMCDDA-IPA 7 project) aims to 
further integrate the IPA beneficiaries (Albania, Bosnia and 
Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and 
Serbia) into the activities of the EMCDDA and the Reitox 
network. The execution of the project started on 1 July 2019 
and will cover an initial period of 24 months, with a probable 
extension of 12 months (to be updated once the European 
Commission has sent the contract addendum in October or 
November 2019). The appropriations allocated from the EU 
budget for the execution of the whole project will amount 
to in total EUR 550 000 (or EUR 1 000 000 if the 12-month 
extension is confirmed).

 EU4Monitoring Drugs project (ENP South and East 
countries)

l 

The EU4Monitoring Drugs project started on 1 January 2019 
and runs for a period of 3 years (2019-21). The potential 
partner countries are 15 out of the 16 Eastern and Southern 
neighbourhood countries of the EU: Algeria, Armenia, 
Azerbaijan, Belarus, Egypt (28), Georgia, Israel, Jordan, 
Lebanon, Libya, Moldova, Morocco, Palestine (29), Tunisia, 
Ukraine. The project aims to enhance the capacity of the 
beneficiaries to monitor drug markets and thereby contribute 
to improving responses to contemporary security and health 
threats in the neighbourhood countries and in the EU. The total 
budget is EUR 3 million.

(27)  This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line 
with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of 
independence. 

(28) 
In July 2019 the competent authorities of Egypt wrote to the EMCDDA 
declining their participation in the project. While respecting the official position of 
Egypt in what regards activities to be carried out at national level, the EMCDDA 
will continue to seek the involvement of Egypt about the regional aspects of the 
project and strive to include the country in the regional data analysis activities.
(29)  This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of 
Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual positions of the Member 
States on this issue.

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PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22PROGRAMMING DOCUMENT 2020–22

Recommended citation

European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (2020), EMCDDA Programming 
document 2020-22, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg.

TD-AX-20-001-EN-N

About the EMCDDA

The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) is the central 
source and confirmed authority on drug-related issues in Europe. For over 20 years, it has 
been collecting, analysing and disseminating scientifically sound information on drugs and 
drug addiction and their consequences, providing its audiences with an evidence-based 
picture of the drug phenomenon at European level.

The EMCDDA’s publications are a prime source of information for a wide range of 
audiences including: policymakers and their advisors; professionals and researchers 
working in the drugs field; and, more broadly, the media and general public. Based in 
Lisbon, the EMCDDA is one of the decentralised agencies of the European Union.

Related publications

I EMCDDA Programming document 2019-21
I EMCDDA Strategy 2025

These and all other EMCDDA publications are available from  
www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications

Legal notice: Neither the EMCDDA nor any person acting on behalf of the EMCDDA is responsible for
the use that might be made of the information contained in this publication.

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union 
Print:  doi:10.2810/007482 I ISBN 978-92-9497-462-4
Web:  doi:10.2810/535932 I ISBN 978-92-9497-463-1 I ISSN 2443-8111

© European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, 2020
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

This publication is available only in electronic format.

EMCDDA, Praça Europa 1, Cais do Sodré, 1249-289 Lisbon, Portugal
Tel. (351) 211 21 02 00 I info@emcdda.europa.eu
emcdda.europa.eu I twitter.com/emcdda I facebook.com/emcdda

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