CELEX: 51991PC0395
Language: en
Date: 1991-11-14
Title: Amendment to the proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION ( EEC ) REGARDING THE " EC INVESTMENT PARTNERS " FINANCIAL INSTRUMENT for Asian, Latin American and Mediterranean Countries

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                               C0M(91) 395 fina
                                               Brussels, 14 November 1991
                       Amendment to the proposal for a
                           COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC)
         REGARDING THE "EC INVESTMENT PARTNERS"" FINANCIAL INSTRUMENT
m&\         for Asian, Latin American and Mediterranean Countries
           (presented by the Commission pursuant to Article 149(3)
                              of the EEC-Treaty)
 ---pagebreak--- During its session of 14 June 1992, the European Parliament has
examined   the  Commission   proposal  on  a   Council  regulation
concerning the "EC Investment Partners" financial instrument for
Asian, Latin American and Mediterranean countries COM (90) 575
and has approved unanimously the draft report proposed by its
Development Commission.
This report provides for same amendments to the original  text.
The present proposal taices into consideration the amendments that
the Commission has a has accepted during the session of 14 June
1991 .
 ---pagebreak---                                    - A ^v-> -
                            Amendment to the proposal for a
                                 COUNCIL RFfilllAJlQN           (£Ec)
         REGARDING THE "EC INVESTMENT PARTNERS" FINANCIAL INSTRUMENT
            for Asian, Latin American and Mediterranean Countries
    Initial proposal of the Commission                                    Amendments
      of the European Communities (1)
                                              First recital
Whereas the Community          ie fostering                Whereas the Community is fostering
financial, technical          and economic                 financial, technical and economic
cooperation with the          countrlee of                 cooperation                  with    developing
Asia and Latin America         and with the                countrlee;
Mediterranean region;
                                             Second recital
Whereas the        Council has adopted                     Insert        after    fifth     recital
guidelines         on     new      forms         of
cooperation          to     benefit             the
Mediterranean      region, on the one
hand, and Asia     and Latin America, on
the other;
                                               Fifth r e c i t a l
 Whereas certain benefits can be                            Whereas              joint      ventures           and
 derived from cooperation between                            investment             by    EC firms            with
 Community firms and e n t e r p r i s e s i n              developing countries can provide
 the developing countries given t h a t                     certain            benefits      to     developing
 i t i s an excellent v e h i c l e for the                  countries              including:          capital
 transfer of know-how and a c a t a l y s t                  transfer;            know-how;        employment;
 for the provision of further a i d ;                        t r a i n i n g              and        s k i l l s
                                                             t r a n s f e r , enhanced p o s s i b i l i t y    of
                                                             exports and supply of l o c a l needs;
            OJ No.  C H I ,  JU.  \ . 19<i] ,   p.
 ---pagebreak---                                                 Eight    recital
Whereas the r é s u l t e a t t a i n e d t h u o            Whereas             the              made        of    the
far bear w i t n e s s t o t h e c o n s i d e r a b l e     f a c i l i t i e s t h u s f a r bears w i t n e s s t o
potential               of     this      financial           t h e c o n s i d e r a b l e p o t e n t i a l of t h i o
instrument                in     achieving        the        financial            instrument i n a c h i e v i n g
aforementioned o b j e c t i v e ;                           t h e aforementioned o b j e c t i v e ;
                                                Ninth    recital
Whereas            the       continuation         and        Whereas              the      continuation             and
e x t e n s i o n of ECIP f o r a           further          e x t e n s i o n o f ECIP for a                   further
five-year             trial      period    from        1     three-year t r i a l period i s necessary
January 1992 i s t h e r e f o r e n e c e s s a r y         t o confirm t h e u t i l i t y                 of    this
t o meet           t h e new needs o f             the        Instrument                  and       refine          it s
c o u n t r i e s of L a t i n America, A s i a and          application in order to meet the new
t h e Mediterranean;                                         needs of the countries of Latin
                                                             America, Asia and the Mediterranean;
                                                    Article 1
For          a    five-year         trial    period           For         a     three-year          trial        period
starting on 1 January 1992, and as                            starting on 1 January 1992, and as
part of its economic cooperation                              part of its economic cooperation
with the countries of Latin America,                          with the countries of Latin America,
Asia and the Mediterranean, the                               Asia and the Mediterranean, the
Community             shall operate         special           Community             shall      operate          special
cooperation                shcemes      aimed        at       cooperation                 shcemes          aimed      at
 promoting investment by economic                             promoting            investment by economic
 operators               in     the    Community,             operators                in     the         Community,
 particularly in the shape of joint                           particularly in the shape of joint
 ventures with local operators in the                         ventures with local operators in the
 countries eligible.                                          countries eligible.
                                    Article 3(1), second subparagraph
 On the other hand, in the case of                            On the other hand, in the case of
  facilities 2, 3 and 4 set out in                             facilities 2, 3 and 4 set out in
 Article 2, Community funds shall be                          Article 2, application for, and
 provided exclusively through the                              provision of. Community funds shall
  financial institutions defined in                            be made exclusively through the
 Article 4 below; this shall apply to                          financial institutions defined in
 institutions within the Community                            Article 4 below; this shall apply
 and to those from an eligible non-                            to institutions within the Community
 Community country that have signed a                          and to those from an eligible non-
 framework              agreement       with       the         Community country that have signed a
 Community.                                                    framework              aqreemont             with     the
                                                               Community.
 ---pagebreak---                                  Article 3(2)
2- With regard to facility 3 set out       2. With regard to facility 3 eet
in   Article    2,   the   financial       out in Article 2, the financial
institutions must provide an amount        institutions must provide an amount
at least equal to that provided by         at lease equal to that provided by
the Community.                             the Community.    Priority shall pe
                                           given to regueete from email and
                                           medium-sized enterprises.
                                   Article 4
The financial institutions shall be        The financial institutions shall be
selected by the Commission from            selected by the Commission, in the
among development banks, commercial        lighc    of  the   opinion of     the
banks, merchant banks and investment       committee, foreseen in Article 7 bis
promotion bodies.
                       Article 4, second paragraph (new)
                                           Framework agreements signed by the
                                           Commission    shall   make   express
                                           provision for the Court of Auditors
                                           to have the power, as laid down in
                                           Article 206a of the Treaty, to
                                           monitor the activities of        such
                                            institutions which are related to
                                            financial projects financed by the
                                           Community budget.
                         Article 5, introductory phrase
 Four types of criteria shall       be      The Commission shall ensure that the
 applied   by   the   Commission    in      projects are selected on the basis
 selecting the projects;                    of the following four types of
                                            criteria, and in the light of the
                                            appropriations    adopted   by    the
                                            budgetary authority:
 ---pagebreak---                                      Article 5(2)
2- The contribution to development              2. The contribution to development
in terms of:                                    in terms of:
    creation of added value                             Impact on the local economy
    creation of local jobs                              creation of added value
    promotion of local entrepreneurs            ici    encouragement             of     local
    transfer of technology                              entrepreneurs
     transfer of know-how                       iAl     transfer           of   technology      and
     impact on the balance of payments                  know-how, and enhancement o f
     favourable         i.npact   on  the               techniques ^.T.ployed
     environment                                i*l     t r a i n i n g and e k i l l s acguisition
     manufacture and supply to the                      by l o c a l managers and workforce
     local market of products that              ill e f f e c t s on women
     have been difficult to obtain or           JLal creation of local jobs in
     are of a lesser quality;                           conditions that do not exploit
                                                        the people employed
                                                  IL impact on the balance of
                                                         payments
                                                 ill    favourable impact on the environment
                                                  ( j ) manufacture and supply to the
                                                         local market of products that
                                                         have been difficult to obtain
                                                         or are of a lesser quality.
                                      Article 5(3)
 3 . Compatibility with the s e c t o r a l ,     3 . Compatibility with the s e c t o r a l ,
 and geographical aspects of                      geographical, environmental, s o c i a l ,
 Community policy.                                human r i g h t s and development aspects
                                                  of Community p o l i c y .
                                        Article 6
  Countries e l i g i b l e shall be those        Countries e l i g i b l e shall be those
  that have concluded a cooperation or            t h a t have concluded a cooperation or
  association       agreement with      the       association              agreement with        the
  Community                                       Community.             The Commission and the
                                                  European Investment Bank consult each other
                                                  in order                to ensure that t h e i r
                                                  actions              in    relation      to    th e
                                                  Mediterranean reqlon are coherent
                                                  and complementary t avoiding overlap._
 ---pagebreak---                      Article 7, second paragraph          (new)
                                              The Commission shall report on the
                                              possibility of creating a separate
                                              ECIP     fund     with     legal      identity,
                                              managed by the Commission or the
                                              European        Investment         Bank.     and
                                              subject to review by the Court of
                                              Auditors, which would be the vehicle
                                               for    egulty      holdings      and     equity
                                              loans, to which repayments would be
                                              returned.
                              Article 7a      (new)
                                   1. The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee
                                   established by Council Regulation (EEC) article n*
                                   on financial and technical assistance to and economic
                                   cooperation with the developing countries of Latin America
                                   and Asia, and by Council Regulation (EEC) Article n*
                                   on cooperation with the Mediterranean countries.
                                   2. The Committee shall deliver Its opinion on the choice of
                                   financial partners, the general approach to direct equity
                                   holdings, and other matters relating to ECIP referred to it
                                   by the Commission.
                                   3. Concerning matters pointed out in paragraph 2 above, the
                                   representative of the Commission shall submit to the committee
                                   a draft of the measures to be taken. The Committee shall deliver
                                    Its opinion on the draft within a time limit which the chairman
                                   may lay down according to the urgency of the matter. The opinion
                                   shall be delivered by the majority laid down In Article 148 (2)
                                   of the Treaty In the case of decisions which the Council Is
                                   required to adopt on a proposal from the Commission. The votes of
                                    the representatives of the Member States within the committee
                                   shall be weighted in the manner set out In that Article. The
                                   chairman shall not vote.
                                   The Commission shall adopt measures which shall apply immediately.
                                    However, If these measures are not in accordance with the opinion
                                   of the committee, they shall be communicated by the Commission to
                                    the Council forthwith. In that event :
                                    The Commission shall defer application of the measures which it has
                                    decided for a period to be laid down in each act adopted by the
                                    Council, but which may In no case exceed three months from the date
                                    of communication.
                                    The Council, acting by a qualified majority, may take a different
                                    decision within the time limit referred to In the previous paragraph.
                                   Article 8
The Commission shall send to      the           The Commission        shall send to the
European  Parliament   and  to    the           European      Parliament       and     to    the
Council an annual progress     report           Council an annual progress report,
and  an  appraisal   report  at   the           notably on the projects selected,
halfway stage and at the end of t h e           the appropriations granted and the
five-year period.                               repayments to the Community budget.
                                                and    an    appraisal      report      at   the
                                                halfway stage and at the end of the
                                                three-year period.
 ---pagebreak--- Article 8a (new)
           The Commission shall consider and
           report to Parliament and Council on
           the feasibility of extending this
           programme,   funded under existing
           Lome arrangements, to ACP countries.
Article 8b (new)
           Subject to its conclusions based on
           the annual and appraisal reports,
            and an Independent evaluation, the
           Commission shall propose not later
            that   1 January    1994 a draft
            Regulation  setting  up a 5-year
            renewable programme of the ECIP
            type.
 ---pagebreak---                                         9
                                                                     ISSN 0254-1475
                                                              COM(91) 395 final
                                                      DOCUMENTS
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                                 Catalogue number : CB-ÇO-91-455-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-77-76671-9
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