CELEX: 51998PC0697
Language: en
Date: 1998-12-02
Title: Amended proposal for a Council Decision establishing the second phase of the Community vocational training action programme "Leonardo da Vinci"

19.1.1999            EN                Official Journal of the European Communities                                 C 14/9
                                                               II
                                                       (Preparatory Acts)
                                                 COMMISSION
              Amended proposal for a Council Decision establishing the second phase of the Community
                                vocational training action programme ‘Leonardo da Vinci’Ø(Î)
                                                        (1999/C 14/07)
                                                   (Text with EEA relevance)
                                            COM(1998) 697 final — 98/0196(SYN)
              (Submitted by the Commission pursuant to Article 189a(2) of the EC Treaty on 2 December 1998)
              (Î)ÙOJ C 309, 9.10.1998, p. 9.
                                                                   TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
           TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                            BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European              Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community and in particular Article 127 thereof,                   Community and in particular Article 127 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,                 Having regard to the proposal from the CommissionØ(Î),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and                   Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and
Social Committee,                                                  Social CommitteeØ(Ï),
Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in             Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in
Article 189c of the Treaty in cooperation with the                 Article 189c of the Treaty in cooperation with the
European Parliament,                                               European ParliamentØ(Ð),
 (1)ÙWhereas the Treaty establishing the European                  Unchanged
      Community stipulates that the latter’s action shall,
      inter alia, contribute to the development of quality
      education and training; whereas this was resolutely
      reiterated by the Amsterdam Treaty signed on 2
      October 1997, which states that the Community’s
      objective is also to promote the highest possible
      level of knowledge for its peoples through a wide
      access to education and through a continuous
      updating of knowledge;
                                                                   (Î)ÙOJ C 309, 9.10.1998, pp. 9-22.
                                                                   (Ï)ÙOpinion of the Economic and Social Committee ESC
                                                                       1308/98, 15.10.1998.
                                                                   (Ð)ÙOpinion of the European Parliament of 5.11.1998 (PE
                                                                       273.780).
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                                                                  TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
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  (2)ÙWhereas, by Decision 94/819/ECØ(Î), the Council               (2)ÙWhereas, by Decision 94/819/ECØ(Î), the Council
      set up an action programme to implement a                         set up an action programme to implement a
      Community vocational training policy; whereas it is               Community vocational training policy; whereas it is
      appropriate, on the basis of the acquired experience              appropriate, on the basis of the acquired experience
      of that programme, to ensure its extension, taking                of that programme, to ensure its extension, taking
      into account the results obtained to date;                        into account the results obtained to date;
  (3)ÙWhereas the extraordinary European Council on                 (3)ÙWhereas the extraordinary European Council on
      Employment held in Luxembourg on 20 and 21                        Employment held in Luxembourg on 20 and 21
      November 1997 adopted a coordinated employment                    November 1997 adopted a coordinated employment
      strategy in which lifelong education and training                 strategy in which lifelong education and training
      have a fundamental role to play in implementing                   have a fundamental role to play in implementing
      guidelinesØ(Ï) for the Member States’ employment                  guidelinesØ(Ï) for the Member States’ employment
      policies in order to enhance employability, adapta-               policies in order to enhance employability, adapta-
      bility, and the culture of entrepreneurshipØ(Ð) and to            bility, and the culture of entrepreneurshipØ(Ð) and to
      promote equal opportunities;                                      promote equal opportunities;
                                                                    (3a)ÙWhereas lifelong learning will have to be provided
                                                                          for persons of all ages and all occupational
                                                                          categories, because of technological and demo-
                                                                          graphic change;
  (4)ÙWhereas the Commission in its Communication                   (4)ÙWhereas the Commission in its communication
      ‘Towards a Europe of knowledge’Ø(Ñ) set out                       ‘Towards a Europe of knowledge’Ø(Ñ) set out
      guidelines on the creation of a European education                guidelines on the creation of a European education
      area capable of achieving the objective of lifelong               area capable of achieving the objective of lifelong
      education and training, defining six types of                     education and training, defining six types of
      measures to be developed at the Community level,                  measures to be developed at the Community level,
      all focusing on transnational cooperation and                     all focusing on transnational cooperation and
      designed to bring added value to the action taken                 designed to bring added value to the action taken
      by the Member States, in full respect of the                      by the Member States, in full respect of the
      principle of subsidiarity, and in a context of                    principle of subsidiarity and whereas in order to
      simplified procedures;                                            make it easier for the target publics to have access
                                                                        to the programme, it has decided to simplify the
                                                                        application and selection procedures;
(Î)ÙOJ L 340, 29.12.1994, p. 8.                                   (Î)ÙOJ L 340, 29.12.1994, p. 8.
(Ï)ÙOJ C 30, 28.1.1998, p. 1.                                     (Ï)ÙOJ C 30, 28.1.1998, p. 8.
(Ð)ÙCommunication from the Commission to the Council              (Ð)ÙCommunication from the Commission to the Council
    ‘Fostering entrepreneurship in Europe: priorities for the         ‘Fostering entrepreneurship in Europe: priorities for the
    future’ (COM(1998) 222 final 2, of 21 April 1998).                future’ (COM(1998) 222 final 2, 21 April 1998).
(Ñ)ÙCommunication from the Commission to the Council, the         (Ñ)ÙCommunication from the Commission to the Council, the
    European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee            European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee
    and the Committee of the Regions — Towards a Europe of            and the Committee of the Regions — Towards a Europe of
    knowledge, COM(97) 563 final, 12 November 1997.                   knowledge, COM(97) 563 final, 12 November 1997.
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                                                                    TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
            TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                            BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
  (5)ÙØWhereas the White Paper) ‘Teaching and learning                (5)ÙWhereas the White Paper ‘Teaching and learning
       — Towards the learning societys’Ø(Î) states that the                — Towards the learning society’Ø(Î) states that the
       emergence of the learning society entails                           emergence of the learning society entails
       encouraging the acquisition of new knowledge and                    encouraging the acquisition of new knowledge and
       to this end providing motivation to learn at every                  to this end providing motivation to learn at every
       opportunity; and whereas the Green Paper                            opportunity; and whereas the Green Paper
       ‘Education, training, research: the obstacles to                    ‘Education, training, research: the obstacles to
       transnational mobility’Ø(Ï) highlighted the ad-                     transnational mobility’Ø(Ï) highlighted the ad-
       vantages mobility brings to people and competi-                     vantages mobility brings to people and competi-
       tiveness in the Union;                                              tiveness in the Union;
  (6)ÙWhereas there is a need to promote active citi-                 (6)ÙWhereas measures under this programme should
       zenship, to strengthen the links between measures                   serve the purpose of developing quality, fostering
       pursued under this programme, and to step up the                    innovation and promoting the European dimension
       fight against exclusion in all its forms, including                 in vocational training systems and practices with a
       against racism and xenophobia; whereas special                      view to encouraging lifelong learning; whereas
       attention should be focused on removing all forms                   attention should be paid in the implementation of
       of inequality and on promoting equal opportunities                  this programme to fighting against exclusion in all
       for women and men;                                                  its forms, including racism and xenophobia, and
                                                                           whereas special attention should be focused on
                                                                           removing all forms of discrimination and inequality
                                                                           and on promoting equal opportunities for women
                                                                           and men;
  (7)ÙWhereas the European Parliament and the Council                 (7)ÙWhereas the European Parliament and the Council
       in their decisions on education and youth have                      of the European Union in their decisions on
       established Community action programmes for the                     education and youth have established Community
       education and youth fields respectively, which                      action programmes for the education and youth
       contribute, together with the training programme,                   fields respectively and which contribute along with
       to implementing a knowledge policy;                                 the Leonardo da Vinci programme to promoting a
                                                                           Europe of knowledge;
  (8)ÙWhereas it is necessary, in order to reinforce the              (8)ÙWhereas it is necessary, in order to reinforce the
       added value of Community action to ensure, at all                   added value of Community action for the
       levels, a coherence and a complementarity between                   Commission, in conjunction with the Member
       the actions implemented in the framework of this                    States, to ensure a coherence and a complemen-
       Decision and the Community interventions, in                        tarity at all levels between the actions implemented
       particular in the domains of cultureØ(Ð), audiovisual               in the framework of this Decision and the
       media, the completion of the single market                          Community interventions, in particular in the
                                                                           domains of cultureØ(Ð), research and development,
(Î)ÙCommission’s White Paper: ‘Education and training:              (Î)ÙCommission’s White Paper: ‘Education and training:
    Teaching and learning — Towards the learning society’,              Teaching and learning — Towards the learning society’,
    Office for Official Publications of the European                    Office for Official Publications of the European
    Communities, Luxembourg, 1996.                                      Communities, Luxembourg, 1996.
(Ï)ÙCommission’s Green Paper: ‘Education, training, research:       (Ï)ÙCommission’s Green Paper: ‘Education, training, research:
    the obstacles to transnational mobility’, COM(96) 462 final,        the obstacles to transnational mobility’, COM(96) 462 final,
    2 October 1996.                                                     2 October 1996.
(Ð)ÙProposal for a Parliament and Council Decision establishing     (Ð)ÙProposal for a Parliament and Council Decision establishing
    a single financing and programming instrument for cultural          a single financing and programming instrument for cultural
    cooperation (Programme Culture 2000) (OJ C 211,                     cooperation (Programme Culture 2000) (OJ C 211,
    7.7.1998, p. 18).                                                   7.7.1998, p. 18).
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       the environment, consumer            protection, the              audiovisual media, the completion of the single
       information society, SMEs,            social policies,            market, the environment, consumer protection, the
       employment and public health;                                     information society, SMEs, social policies,
                                                                         employment and public health;
                                                                    (8a)ÙWhereas the SMEs and the craft trades, on
                                                                          account of their role in maintaining and creating
                                                                          jobs and in developing training, should be involved
                                                                          more closely in the implementation of the
                                                                          programme;
  (9)ÙWhereas the Commission’s proposals for reforming              (9)ÙWhereas the Commission’s proposals for reforming
       the Structural FundsØ(Î), particularly the European               the Structural FundsØ(Î), particularly the European
       Social Fund, and the Community initiatives                        Social Fund, and the Community initiatives
       stemming therefrom, are based on objectives                       stemming therefrom, are designed to enhance
       designed to support the adaptation and modern-                    employability and to promote a skilled, trained and
       isation of policies and systems relating to education,            adaptable workforce;
       training and employment;
(10)ÙWhereas the Commission, in conjunction with the              (10)ÙWhereas the Commission, in conjunction with the
       Member States, is seeking to secure coherence                     Member States, is seeking to secure coherence and
       between the actions under this programme and                      complementarity between the actions under the
       Community action of a structural nature; whereas                  present programme and Community action of a
       the Commission, in partnership with both sides of                 structural nature, particularly by facilitating the
       industry, is endeavouring to develop cooperation                  transfer and dissemination on a wider scale,
       between this programme and the activities of the                  through the Community Structural Funds, of inno-
       Community social dialogue;                                        vatory approaches and methods developed under
                                                                         this programme; and whereas the Commission, in
                                                                         partnership with the social partners, is endeav-
                                                                         ouring to develop cooperation between this
                                                                         programme and the activities of the Community
                                                                         social dialogue;
(11)ÙWhereas provision should be made to open up this             Unchanged
       programme to participation by the associated
       Central and East European countries, in
       accordance with the conditions established in the
       relevant agreements, notably the Association
       Agreements and the additional Protocols to these
       agreements, to Cyprus on the same terms as those
       applied to the EFTA/EEA countries as well as to
       Turkey and Malta according to procedures to be
       agreed with those countries;
(Î)ÙProposal for a Council Regulation (EC) laying down            (Î)ÙProposal for a Council Regulation (EC) laying down
    general provisions on the Structural Funds (OJ C 176,             general provisions on the Structural Funds (OJ C 176,
    9.6.1998, p. 1).                                                  9.6.1998, p. 1).
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                                                                TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
          TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                         BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
(12)ÙWhereas this programme should be monitored and             (12)ÙWhereas this programme should be monitored and
     continually assessed in cooperation between the                 continually assessed in partnership between the
     Commission and the Member States in order to                    Commission and the Member States in order to
     allow for readjustments, particularly in the                    allow for readjustments, particularly in the
     priorities for implementing the measures;                       priorities for implementing the measures; whereas
                                                                     this assessment should include an external
                                                                     evaluation by independent organisations;
                                                                (12a)ÙWhereas, in the context of the European
                                                                       employment strategy, investment in vocational
                                                                       training has been recognised as making an
                                                                       essential contribution to the Community’s global
                                                                       competitiveness and its social cohesion, by
                                                                       promoting a highly skilled workforce and
                                                                       providing employment opportunities for all;
                                                                (12b) Whereas the political priority given to vocational
                                                                       training should result in a substantial increase in
                                                                       the resources allocated to this programme;
(13)ÙWhereas in accordance with the principle of subsi-         (13)ÙWhereas in accordance with the principle of subsi-
     diarity and the principle of proportionality as set             diarity and the principle of proportionality as set
     out in Article 3b of the Treaty, the objectives of the          out in Article 3b of the Treaty, the objectives of the
     action envisaged concerning the implementation of               action envisaged concerning the implementation of
     a vocational training policy at Community level                 a vocational training policy at Community level
     cannot be adequately realised by the Member States              cannot be adequately realised by the Member States
     given the complexity of training partnerships and               given the complexity of training partnerships and
     can therefore, because of the transnational di-                 can therefore, because of the transnational di-
     mension of the Community actions and measures,                  mension of the Community actions and measures,
     be best realised at Community level; whereas this               be best realised at Community level; whereas this
     Decision is limited to the minimum required to                  Decision is limited to the minimum required to
     achieve these objectives and does not exceed what               achieve these objectives and does not exceed what
     is necessary to this end,                                       is necessary to this end; whereas it is up to the
                                                                     Member States to develop and strengthen
                                                                     arrangements for the programme’s target publics in
                                                                     order to make the Community’s action more
                                                                     effective,
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:
                          Article 1
             Establishment of the programme
1.ÚÙThis Decision establishes the second phase of the           Unchanged
action programme for the implementation of a
Community vocational training policy ‘Leonardo da
Vinci’, hereinafter referred to as ‘this programme’.
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2.ÚÙThis programme shall be implemented in the period
starting on 1 January 2000 and ending on 31 December
2004.
3.ÚÙThis programme shall contribute to the                       3.ÚÙThis programme shall contribute to the promotion
Community’s knowledge policy through the implemen-               of a Europe of knowledge through the building up of a
tation of a European education area fostering the devel-         European education area fostering cooperation on
opment of lifelong education and training. It shall permit       lifelong learning. It shall permit the building up of the
the development of the knowledge and skills likely to            knowledge and skills capable of enhancing employability
foster the full exercise of citizenship.                         and fostering active citizenship.
4.ÚÙThis programme shall support and supplement                  Unchanged
action taken by and within the Member States, while
fully respecting their responsibility for the content and
organisation of vocational training, and their cultural
and linguistic diversity.
                          Article 2
                  Aims of the programme
1.ÚÙThe implementation of this programme is based on             1.ÚÙWithin the policy framework defined in Article 1,
objectives, in support of and as a supplement to policies        this programme shall pursue the aims of developing
and actions undertaken by and in the Member States,              quality, fostering innovation and promoting the
and designed as a matter of priority:                            European dimension in national vocational training
                                                                 systems and practices. It shall in particular:
(a)Ùto improve and strengthen the social and occupa-             (a)Ùimprove and strengthen the social and occupational
     tional integration of young people, particularly                 integration of young people and people in initial
     through work-linked training and apprenticeship;                 training by helping them to to acquire and gain
                                                                      access to the skills and competences necessary to
                                                                      increase their employability through work-linked
                                                                      training and apprenticeship.
                                                                      The emphasis in this context will be on innovative
                                                                      approaches to counselling, guidance and teamwork,
                                                                      with a view to acquiring social competences and
                                                                      facilitating social and occupational integration;
(b) to expand and develop access to quality continuing           (b) expand and develop access to quality continuing
     training and access to lifelong skills, particularly in          training and the acquisition of qualifications and
     order to consolidate technological and organisational            skills throughout life which facilitate the adaptability
     innovation, and investment in training;                          of workers and enterprises, in order to encourage
                                                                      technological and organisational developments;
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(c) support the vocational training systems to assist those      (c) promote entrepreneurship, relating in particular to
     in difficult circumstances owing to inadequate or                new sources of employment, by encouraging
     outdated skills, to find employment and to better                exchanges and joint activities between training insti-
     insert themselves in the labour market.                          tutions (including universities) and between these
                                                                      and enterprises, particularly SMEs.
                                                                      Priority shall be given to measures identifying and
                                                                      developing systems and products which facilitate
                                                                      access to training for people vulnerable to exclusion
                                                                      or those whose position on the labour market has
                                                                      been seriously undermined.
2.ÚÙIn implementing these objectives, the Commission             2.ÚÙIn implementing these objectives, the Commission
and the Member States shall ensure that action under             and the Member States shall ensure that action under
this programme is consistent with the Community’s other          this programme is consistent with the Community’s other
actions and policies, particularly with regard to                actions and policies, particularly with regard to
employment, to the removal of inequality, to equal               employment, to the removal of all forms of social
opportunities for women and men, and to social policy.           discrimination and inequality, to equal opportunities for
                                                                 women and men, particularly by incorporating this
                                                                 concern in all initiatives, through positive action, and in
                                                                 the area of social policy.
                           Article 3
                     Community actions
The aims of this programme shall be pursued through              The aims of this programme as stated      in Article 2 shall
actions supported by the following Community                     be pursued by means of actions based      on the following
measures, the operational content and the application            Community measures, the operational        content and the
procedures of which are described in Annex A, and                application procedures of which are       described in the
which can be used in combination:                                Annex to this Decision:
(a)Ùsupport for the mobility of people undergoing                (a)Ùsupport for the mobility of people undergoing initial
     vocational training;                                             or further vocational training in Europe, of trainers,
                                                                      human resource and training managers, in order to
                                                                      develop and create fresh opportunities for work-
                                                                      linked training;
(b) promotion of virtual mobility in the context of              (b) promotion of the use of and access to information
     vocational training, particularly by promoting access            and communication technologies in the field of
     to educational multimedia;                                       vocational training;
(c) support for the development of European level coop-          (c) support for the development of European level coop-
     eration networks permitting mutual exchange of                   eration networks permitting mutual exchange of
     experience and good practice;                                    experience and good practice;
(d) promotion of language skills and understanding of            (d) promotion of language skills and understanding of
     different cultures;                                              different cultures;
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(e) support for innovatory pilot projects based on trans-       (e) support for innovatory pilot projects based on trans-
     national partnerships designed to develop innovation           national partnerships designed to develop innovation
     and quality in vocational training in order to create          and quality in vocational training in order to create
     training products, instruments of skills accreditation         training products, instruments of skills accreditation
     or in order to test out any new approach;                      or in order to test out any new approach; promotion
                                                                    and expansion of scientific research following on
                                                                    from innovatory projects;
(f) the constant improvement of the Community terms             (f) the constant improvement of the Community terms
     of reference through support for the dissemination of          of reference through:
     good practice and through the observation and
     dissemination of innovation.                                   —Ùthe observation and analysis             of    national
                                                                        vocational training policies,
                                                                    —Ùthe observation and dissemination           of    good
                                                                        practice and innovation,
                                                                    —Ùextensive exchange of information,
                                                                    —Ùthe collection, analysis, evaluation and dissemi-
                                                                        nation of comparable Community statistical data
                                                                        on vocational training.
                                                                    Priority shall be given to projects combining two or
                                                                    more different measures. As a matter of principle all
                                                                    projects relating to measures mentioned under (a),
                                                                    (b), (c) and (e) should include measures listed under
                                                                    (d) as part of their preparatory and follow-up action.
                          Article 4
                  Access to the programme
Under the conditions and in accordance with the defi-           Unchanged
nitions and arrangements for implementation specified in
the Annex, participation in this programme shall be open
to all public and/or private bodies and institutions
involved in vocational training as defined Annex A, and
in particular:
(a)Ùtraining establishments, centres and bodies at all
     levels, including universities and higher education
     establishments;
(b) research centres and bodies;
(c) companies and consortia, particularly SMEs or               (c) companies and consortia, particularly SMEs and the
     public or private sector establishments, including             craft sector or public or private sector establishments,
     those involved in training;                                    including those involved in training;
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(d) trade     organisations,    including    chambers      of    Unchanged
     commerce;
(e) organisations of both sides of industry at all levels;       (e) social partners and their organisations at all levels;
(f) local and regional bodies and organisations;                 Unchanged
(g) associations.                                                (g) associations, including NGOs.
                          Article 5
Implementation of the programme and cooperation with
                     the Member States
1.ÚÙThe Commission shall ensure the implementation of            Unchanged
the Community actions covered by this programme in
accordance with the Annexes.
2.ÚÙIn cooperation with the Member States, the
Commission shall take the steps described in point 8 of
Annex A to make the best use of what has been achieved
through the action undertaken under the first phase of
the Leonardo da Vinci programme and the Community
initiatives on training.
3.ÚÙMember States shall take appropriate action to               3.ÚÙMember States shall take appropriate action to
secure nationally the coordination, organisation and the         secure nationally the coordination, organisation and the
follow-up needed for the attainment of the objectives of         follow-up in terms of monitoring and evaluation needed
this programme, involving all the parties concerned by           for the attainment of the objectives of this programme.
vocational training in accordance with national practice.        They shall involve all the parties concerned by vocational
                                                                 training, in accordance with national practice and shall
                                                                 take the steps necessary to optimise synergy with other
                                                                 Community programmes.
To that end, they shall set up an integrated management          They shall accordingly put in place an integrated
structure for the operational implementation of the              management structure for the operational implemen-
programme’s actions and shall ensure that appropriate            tation of the programme’s actions. They shall also ensure
information and publicity is provided on actions                 that appropriate information and publicity is provided on
co-financed by the programme.                                    actions cofinanced by the programme.
4.ÚÙEach Member State shall endeavour to take the                4.ÚÙEach Member State shall endeavour to take the
necessary steps to ensure the efficient running of this          necessary steps to ensure the efficient running of the
programme and to take appropriate measures to remove             programme and to take appropriate measures to remove
any obstacles to access to this programme.                       any obstacles to access to this programme, particularly
                                                                 for underprivileged people.
5.ÚÙThe Commission, in conjunction with the Member               Unchanged
States, shall ensure the transition between those actions
developed within the framework of the preceding
‘Leonardo’ programme in the field of vocational training
and those to be implemented under this programme.
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                          Article 6
                       Joint actions
As part of the process of building up a Europe of               As part of the process of building up a Europe of
knowledge, the measures of this programme may be                knowledge, and in conformity with the provisions of
implemented as joint actions with other Community               Article 7 of the Decision, the measures of this
actions forming part of the knowledge policy,                   programme may be implemented as joint actions with
particularly Community programmes in the area of                other Community programmes and actions which are
education and youth-related matters.                            part of the knowledge policy, particularly in the area of
                                                                education, youth-related matters, research and new tech-
                                                                nologies.
                          Article 7
                         Committee
1.ÚÙThe Commission shall be assisted by a committee             Unchanged
composed of the representatives of Member States and
chaired by the representative of the Commission.
2.ÚÙThe representative of the Commission shall submit
to the Committee a draft of the measures to be taken as
regards:
(a)Ùthe arrangements for implementing the programme,
    including where appropriate the annual plan of work
    for the implementation of the programme’s actions;
(b) the criteria applicable for establishing the indicative
    breakdown of funds among the Member States for
    the purpose of the actions to be managed on a
    decentralised basis;
(c) the arrangements for evaluating the programme.
3.ÚÙThe 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.
4.ÚÙThe 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.
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In that event,
—Ùthe Commission may defer application of the
    measures which it has decided for a period of up to
    one month from the date of the communication;
—Ùthe Council, acting by a qualified majority, may take
    a different decision within the time limit referred to
    in the first indent.
5.ÚÙThe Commission may consult the Committee on
any other matter concerning implementation of the
programme.
In that event, the Commission representative 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, if necessary by
taking a vote.
The opinion shall be recorded in the minutes; in
addition, each Member State shall have the right to ask
to have its position recorded in the minutes.
The Commission shall take the utmost account of the
opinion delivered by the Committee. It shall inform the
Committee of the manner in which its opinion has been
taken into account.
                         Article 8
                  The two sides of industry
Without prejudice to the procedure described in Article         Unchanged
7(3) and (4), the Commission may consult the
Committee on any matter concerning the application of
this Decision.
Whenever such consultation takes place, representatives
of both sides of industry, appointed by the Commission
on the basis of proposals from both sides of industry at
Community level, and equal in number to that of the
representatives of the Member States, shall participate in
the work of the Committee as observers.
They shall have the right to request that their position be
recorded in the minutes of Committee meetings.
 ---pagebreak--- C 14/20             EN                Official Journal of the European Communities                               19.1.1999
                                                                TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
          TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                         BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
                         Article 9
            Consistency and complementarity
1.ÚÙThe Commission shall, in conjunction with the               1.ÚÙThe Commission shall, in conjunction with the
Member States, ensure the overall consistency with other        Member States, and leaving the intrinsic and specific
Community policies and actions. There shall be coordi-          nature of each programme intact, ensure overall
nation between the activities of this programme and the         consistency and coordination with other Community
other Community actions, in particular those covered by         policies and actions, particularly those which contribute
the knowledge policy.                                           to the Europe of knowledge in the area of education,
                                                                training, youth, research and development, and inno-
                                                                vation.
The Commission shall ensure in conjunction with the             The Commission shall ensure in conjunction with the
Member States consistency between implementation of             Member States consistency and synergy between
this programme and the other Community actions                  implementation of this programme and the other
relating to training in the domain of culture and the           Community actions relating to training in the domain of
audiovisual sector, the completion of the internal market,      culture, research and development, the audiovisual
the information society, environment, consumer                  sector, the completion of the internal market, the
protection, SMEs, social policies, employment, and              information society, environment, consumer protection,
public health.                                                  SMEs, social policies, employment, and public health.
The Commission shall ensure an efficient link-up                The Commission shall, with help from the European
between this programme and the programmes and                   Training Foundation, ensure an efficient link-up between
actions in the area of vocational training undertaken as        this programme and the programmes and actions in the
part of the Community’s external relations.                     area of vocational training undertaken as part of the
                                                                Community’s external relations.
2.ÚÙThe Commission and the Member States shall                  2.ÚÙThe Commission and the Member States shall
ensure that the measures of this programme are, as part         ensure that the measures of this programme will, as part
of the implementation of the coordinated employment             of the implementation of the coordinated employment
strategy, consistent with the orientations established          strategy, contribute to the attainment of the objectives
annually for the employment guidelines and in                   set in the European employment guidelines and to the
conjunction with the other actions contributing to the          preparation of national action plans.
implementation of the action plans.
3.ÚÙThe Commission and the Member States shall                  3.ÚÙThe Commission and the Member States shall
ensure consistency and complementarity between action           ensure consistency and complementarity between action
taken under this programme and Community action                 taken under this programme and Community action
under the Structural Funds.                                     under the Structural Funds. They shall in particular
                                                                facilitate the transfer and dissemination on a wider scale,
                                                                through the Community Structural Funds, of innovatory
                                                                approaches and methods developed under this
                                                                programme.
4.ÚÙWhen       implementing      this  programme,       the     Unchanged
Commission in close conjunction with both sides of
industry at Community level will endeavour to develop
the social dialogue at Community level, particularly by
providing support at all levels, including sectoral levels,
and by disseminating its results.
 ---pagebreak--- 19.1.1999           EN               Official Journal of the European Communities                                C 14/21
                                                               TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
           TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                        BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
5.ÚÙThe Commission shall secure the assistance of the
European Centre for the Development of Vocational
Training (Cedefop) in implementing this programme, in
accordance with the arrangements set out in Council
Regulation (EEC) No 337/75Ø(Î). Subject to the same
conditions and in the areas which lend themselves to it,
coordination shall be established under the auspices of
the Commission with the European Training Foundation
as specified by Regulation (EEC) No 1360/90Ø(Ï).
6.ÚÙThe Commission shall keep the Advisory
Committee on Vocational Training regularly informed
of the progress of this programme.
                          Article 10
Participation of the associated Central and East               Participation of the associated Central and East
     European countries, Cyprus, Turkey and Malta              European countries, EFTA countries which belong to the
                                                                            EEA, Cyprus, Turkey and Malta
1.ÚÙThis programme shall be open to the participation          1.ÚÙThis programme shall be open to the participation
of the associated Central and East European countries          of the associated Central and East European countries
(CEECs) in accordance with the conditions laid down in         (CEECs) in accordance with the conditions fixed in the
the Europe Agreements or in existing or anticipated            Europe Agreements or in existing or anticipated
additional Protocols governing the participation of these      additional Protocols governing the participation of these
countries in Community programmes. This programme              countries in Community programmes. This programme
shall also be open to the participation, funded by             shall also be open to the participation of the countries of
additional appropriations, of Cyprus under the same            the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) which
rules as those applied to the countries of the European        belong to the European Economic Area (EEA). This
Free Trade Association (EFTA) which belong to the              programme shall also be open to the participation,
European Economic Area (EEA) according to the                  funded by additional appropriations, of Cyprus
procedures to be agreed with this country. This                according to the procedures to be agreed with this
programme shall also be open to participation by Turkey        country. This programme is also open to participation by
according to the procedures to be established with that        Turkey according to the procedures to be established
country.                                                       with that country.
2.ÚÙThis programme shall also be open to participation         2.ÚÙThis programme shall also be open to participation
by Malta according to the procedures to be agreed with         by Malta according to the procedures to be agreed with
that country.                                                  that country.
                          Article 11
                 International cooperation
The Commission shall strengthen its cooperation with           Under this programme, the Commission shall strengthen
non-Community countries and with the relevant inter-           its cooperation with non-Community countries and the
national organisations.                                        relevant international organisations. The activities
                                                               covered by this article and the funding arrangements will
                                                               be decided in accordance with the procedures set out in
                                                               Article 7 of this Decision.
(Î)ÙOJ L 39, 13.2.1975, p. 1.
(Ï)ÙOJ L 131, 23.5.1990, p. 1.
 ---pagebreak--- C 14/22             EN               Official Journal of the European Communities                                19.1.1999
                                                               TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
           TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                        BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
                        Article 12                             Monitoring and evaluation
                Monitoring and evaluation
1.ÚÙThe Commission shall continually monitor this              1.ÚÙThe Commission shall continually monitor this
programme in conjunction with the Member States.               programme in cooporation with the Member States.
This monitoring shall be effected through the reports          This monitoring shall be effected through the reports
referred to in paragraph 3 and through specific activities.    referred to in paragraph 3 and through specific activities.
2.ÚÙThe Commission shall evaluate this programme               2.ÚÙThe Commission shall evaluate this programme
periodically in conjunction with the Member States. The        periodically in cooperation with the Member States. The
evaluation shall seek to appraise the effectiveness of the     evaluation shall seek to appraise the relevance, effec-
actions implemented, by reference to the objectives set        tiveness and impact of the actions implemented, by
out in Article 2.                                              reference to the objectives set out in Article 2.
The evaluation shall also examine the complementarity          The evaluation shall also examine the complementarity
between actions under this programme and those                 between action under this programme and that pursued
pursued     under    other    Community       programmes,      under other Community programmes, particularly action
particularly actions supported by the European Social          supported by the European Social Fund.
Fund.
In accordance with criteria established using the              There shall be regular external evaluations of the results
procedure described in Article 7(2), there shall be peri-      of the Community actions in accordance with criteria
odical external evaluations of the results of the              established using the procedure under Article 7(2).
Community actions.
3.ÚÙMember States shall submit to the Commission by            3.ÚÙMember States shall submit to the Commission by
31 December 2002 and 30 June 2005, respectively,               31 December 2002 and 30 June 2005, respectively,
reports on the implementation and the impact of this           reports on the implementation, the impact and the effec-
programme, and on the vocational training systems and          tiveness of this programme with respect to the aims set
arrangements which exist in the Member States.                 out in Article 2, and on the vocational training systems
                                                               and arrangements which exist in the Member States.
                                                               Specific mention will be made of the measures taken to
                                                               combat all forms of discrimination and to promote
                                                               equality of opportunity between men and women and
                                                               their impact in terms of participation in the programme.
4.ÚÙThe Commission shall submit to the European                4.ÚÙThe Commission shall submit to the European
Parliament, the Council and the Economic and Social            Parliament, the Council and the Economic and Social
Committee:                                                     Committee:
—Ùan interim report on the implementation of this              —Ùan interim report, no later than 30 June 2003, on the
    programme no later than 30 June 2003,                          qualitative and quantitative aspects of programme
                                                                   implementation,
—Ùno later than 31 December 2005, a final report on            —Ùno later than 31 December 2005, a final report on
    the implementation of this programme.                          the implementation of this programme.
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                                                                     TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
            TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                            BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
                             Article 13
                         Entry into force
This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its               Unchanged
publication in the Official Journal of the European
Communities.
                            ANNEX A
         COMMUNITY ACTIONS AND MEASURES
Section I — General principles
1.ÙThe aims set out in Article 2 of this Decision will be imple-     Unchanged
   mented by means of transnational partnerships which submit
   proposals for action on the basis of the Community measures
   described in Article 3.
2.ÙEach proposal submitted by a transnational partnership will       2.ÙEach proposal submitted by a transnational partnership will
   be part of the implementation of one of the objectives of the        pursue one of the objectives of the programme and will
   programme, indicating the measure(s) proposed.                       indicate the measure(s) it intends to implement in order to
                                                                        achieve its aims.
3.ÙA Community call for proposals will define the priorities for     3.ÙA Community call for proposals will define the priorities
   the objectives, the timetable, the conditions of submission,         under each objective, the timetable, the conditions of
   the common eligibility criteria, particularly in terms of trans-     submission, the common eligibility criteria, particularly in
   nationality and selection.                                           terms of transnationality and evaluation and selection
                                                                        procedures.
   This call for proposals will remain valid for three years for        This call for proposals will remain valid for three years for
   the first phase of the programme. A second call for proposals        the first phase of the programme. A second call for proposals
   will be drawn up at the half-way stage of the programme on           will be drawn up at the half-way stage of the programme on
   the basis of the interim assessment referred to in Article 12(4)     the basis of the interim assessment referred to in Article 12(4)
   of this Decision.                                                    of this Decision.
   The Community call for proposals will be published by the            The Community call for proposals will be published by the
   Commission after consultation with the Programme                     Commission after consultation with the Programme
   Committee.                                                           Committee.
4.ÙThe proposals for action must set out clearly the aims estab-     4.ÙThe proposals for action must set out clearly the aims estab-
   lished, the results anticipated and the partners associated in       lished, the results anticipated, the mechanisms for evaluating
   the other Member States, as well as the nature and level of          the actual results and the partners associated in the other
   participation of these partners, including their financial           Member States, as well as the nature and level of partici-
   contribution and the timetable of work.                              pation of these partners, including their financial
                                                                        contribution and the timetable of work.
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                                                                    TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
            TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                           BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
5.ÙThe proposals can be sent in at any time during the period of    Unchanged
   validity of the overall call for proposals. Proposal selection
   by the Commission will take place at least once yearly in
   accordance with the procedures defined below.
                                                                    5a.ÙArticle 2(2) provides that the selected projects must respect
                                                                        the principle of equality of opportunity and avoid any kind
                                                                        of exclusion. Where appropriate, positive measures may be
                                                                        implemented in specific areas. The special needs of the
                                                                        disabled shall as a matter of principle be taken into account
                                                                        in setting the level of subsidies.
                                                                    5b. Projects with a more pronounced Community dimension,
                                                                        i.e.:
                                                                        (a)Ùproposals from established European organisations,
                                                                        (b)Ùproposals from European networks set up to utilise and
                                                                              disseminate the results of pilot actions conducted trans-
                                                                              nationally,
                                                                        (c)Ùproposals to test through European cooperation inno-
                                                                              vatory themes identified in the call for proposal,
                                                                        (d)Ùproposals submitted in relation to Action 6 in Section II
                                                                              of this Annex (Community vocational training reference
                                                                              material)
                                                                        will be selected directly by the Commission on the basis of
                                                                        the procedure set out in Section IIIØB of this Annex.
Section II — Actions
1. PHYSICAL MOBILITY
Support for transnational physical mobility programmes for
people undergoing training and for trainers and training
organisers
Community support shall be provided for the following actions:      Community support shall be provided for the following actions:
(a)Ùpreparation and implementation of transnational pro-            (a)Ùpreparation and implementation of transnational pro-
    grammes of placement and exchange for young people                  grammes of placement and exchange for people undergoing
    undergoing initial vocational training, studying or who have        initial vocational training, including workers and people
    just finished studying: including students and qualified            available on the labour market in accordance with the
    young people, young workers or young people available on            national laws and practices, and programmes which are part
    the labour market in accordance with the national laws and          of European pathways for work-linked training and appren-
    practices, particularly programmes which are part of                ticeship within the meaning of Council Decision 98/.Ø.Ø./EC,
    European pathways for work-linked training and appre-               as well as preparation and implementation of transnational
    ticeship within the meaning of Council Decision 98/.Ø.Ø./EC.        programmes of placement and exchange for any persons
                                                                        undergoing vocational training who are not covered by the
                                                                        above categories and who are participating in a programme
                                                                        of lifelong learning, career redirection or reintegration.
 ---pagebreak--- 19.1.1999              EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                      C 14/25
                                                                     TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
            TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                            BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
    Placements for young people may be short term (two weeks             Placements may be short term (two weeks to three months)
    to three months) and in such cases are designed essentially          or long term (three months to a maximum of 12 months)
    to familiarise them with the occupational and cultural               depending on the aims of the proposal of which they are
    context of another Member State. Long term placements                part. Long-term placements can be carried out in two or
    (three months to a maximum of 12 months) are intended                more periods. The skills acquired during such experience
    primarily for young people who already have initial occupa-          shall be validated by the competent authority on the basis of
    tional training or a work experience. Long-term placements           common and transparent principles.
    can be carried out in two or more periods.
    The transnational placement programmes for young people              The transnational placement programmes for people
    undergoing training which involve SMEs and craft industry            undergoing training which involve SMEs and craft industry
    as host bodies will receive special treatment in the                 as host bodies will receive special treatment in the
    conditions described below.                                          conditions described below.
(b) The organisation of transnational programmes of exchanges        (b) The organisation of transnational programmes of exchanges
    between companies on the one hand and on the other                   between companies on the one hand and on the other
    training organisations or universities and targeting human           training organisations or universities and targeting human
    resources managers in the business sector, and training              resources managers in the business sector, and training
    programme planners and managers (particularly trainers and           programme planners and managers (particularly trainers and
    mentors), advisers and occupational guidance specialists and         mentors), advisers and occupational guidance specialists and
    economic and social circles. Study visits for vocational             economic and social circles. Study visits for vocational
    training organisers on the themes defined by the                     training organisers on the themes defined by the
    Commission can be provided by Cedefop on behalf of the               Commission can be provided by Cedefop on behalf of the
    Commission in the conditions to be decided on after                  Commission in the conditions to be decided on after
    receiving the opinion of the Programme Committee.                    receiving the opinion of the Programme Committee.
    As a general rule, placements and exchanges as well as               As a general rule, placements and exchanges as well as
    study visits for these categories will last between one week         study visits for these categories will last between one week
    and a maximum of six weeks.                                          and a maximum of six weeks.
    The transnational placement and exchange programmes                  The transnational placement and exchange programmes
    may be multiannual and last up to three years.                       may be multiannual and last up to three years. They will
                                                                         include provisions ensuring full access for any disabled
                                                                         participants.
Demonstration actions
As part of the Physical mobility measure, pilot demonstration        Unchanged
actions will be given support and will relate to the organisation
and implementation of multiannual transnational placement
programmes organised among regions and/or sectors in
European work-linked training and apprenticeship networks.
Funding
The Community’s financial contribution to the transnational          The Community’s financial contribution to the transnational
placement and exchange programmes defined above may not              placement and exchange programmes defined above may not
exceed ECU 5Ø000 per beneficiary for a placement or an               exceed EUR 5Ø000 per beneficiary for a placement or an
exchange — the maximum amount of this contribution corre-            exchange — the maximum amount of this contribution corre-
sponding to the maximum duration indicated above.                    sponding to the maximum duration indicated above.
For this measure, the Commission may allocate to each Member         For this measure, the Commission may allocate to each Member
State an annual global grant the amount of which will                State an annual global grant the amount of which will
be defined in accordance with the procedures described in            be defined in accordance with the procedures described in
Annex C.                                                             Annex C.
 ---pagebreak--- C 14/26                EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                     19.1.1999
                                                                     TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
             TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                            BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
10Ø% of this allocation is set aside, in accordance with             Up to 10Ø% of this allocation shall be set aside to help potential
procedures agreed on with the management structure                   promoters with no or only limited experience in Community
concerned, to help potential promoters of programmes to              programmes to prepare their proposals. The sum allowed for
prepare their proposals. The sum allowed for this purpose may        this purpose may not exceed EUR 500 per promoter.
not exceed ECU 500 per promoter.
                                                                     The procedures for allocating this type of grant shall be decided
                                                                     in accordance with Article 7(2).
In line with the same procedure, and within the same allocation,     In line with the same procedure, and within the same allocation,
a sum will be granted to transnational programmes undertaken         a sum will be granted to transnational programmes undertaken
in the SMEs and the craft industry and lasting a minimum of          in the SMEs and the craft industry and lasting a minimum of
three weeks. This sum is designed to facilitate the pedagogic,       three weeks. This sum is designed to facilitate the pedagogic,
cultural and linguistic follow-up of young people placed in a        cultural and linguistic follow-up of people placed in a host
host company in another Member State and may not exceed              company in another Member State and may not exceed EUR
ECU 250 per placement, with a ceiling of ECU 25Ø000 per              250 per placement, with a ceiling of EUR 25Ø000 per company.
company. This amount is in addition to that set aside for the        This amount is in addition to that set aside for the body of the
body of the original Member State for the management and             original Member State for the management and monitoring of
monitoring of transnational placement programmes.                    transnational placement programmes.
2.ÙVIRTUAL MOBILITY                                                  Unchanged
Support for actions to promote the new information and
communication technologies and designed to develop virtual
mobility
Community support is available for transnational actions to
develop the use of new ICT in training actions and products to
promote, inter alia, access for people undergoing training to
new tools, services and products in training which use the new
ICT, to support the development of European distance training
networks through the new ICT (multimedia products, websites,
network transmission, etc.) and to try out new training
approaches stemming from new work situations (e.g. tele-
working).
These projects may last for a maximum of two years.
Demonstration actions
Under the measure Virtual mobility, Community demonstration
actions on experimental pilot actions to promote the new ICT
will be supported and specifically targeted partly towards the
development of European arrangements for guidance/coun-
selling/training in business-related services, particularly with a
view to building up a virtual European area of training and job
seeking.
Funding
The Commission’s financial contribution to the transnational         The Commission’s financial contribution to the transnational
virtual mobility projects may be up to 75Ø% of eligible expen-       virtual mobility projects may be up to 75Ø% of eligible expen-
diture, with a ceiling of ECU 300Ø000 per project and per year.      diture, with a ceiling of EUR 300Ø000 per project and per year.
 ---pagebreak--- 19.1.1999               EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                        C 14/27
                                                                      TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
             TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                             BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
In no case may the project partners’ own resources be derived         In no case may the project partners’ own resources be derived
from other Community funding.                                         from other Community funding.
3. INNOVATORY PILOT PROJECTS
Support for transnational pilot training projects to develop
aptitude to innovation, its transfer and entrepreneurship, and the
development of innovation and its transfer in training
Community support is available for the design, development,           Community support is available for the design, development,
testing and assessment of European transnational pilot projects       testing and assessment of European transnational pilot projects
to develop and/or disseminate innovation in training and to           to develop and/or disseminate innovation in training and to
develop aptitude to innovation and its transfer. These projects       develop aptitude to innovation and its transfer. These projects
may relate to the dissemination and transfer to other Member          may relate to the dissemination and transfer to other Member
States of the results of innovatory approaches in training,           States of the results of innovatory approaches in training,
developed and validated in another Member State. They may             developed and validated in another Member State. They may
relate to the development of quality in training and to occupa-       relate to the development of quality in training and to occupa-
tional guidance in the context of lifelong training. They may         tional guidance in the context of lifelong training. They may
also relate to the promotion of new methods of training as part       also relate to the promotion of new methods of training
of new configurations of work organisation and the devel-             stemming from new forms of working and work organisation,
opment of new forms of working, e.g. teleworking.                     for example teleworking, tested under Action 2.
Projects under this measure may last a maximum of two years.          Projects under this measure may last a maximum of two years.
Demonstration actions                                                 Unchanged
Under ‘Innovatory pilot projects’, there will be support for
experimental demonstration actions relating to:
—Ùthe implementation at European level of new forms of
    accreditation of skills, with emphasis on recognising skills and
    expertise learned on the job,
—Ùstepping up the fight to head off exclusion through ‘second
    chance’ training arrangements for the different publics
    affected, especially in the problem urban districts, in order to
    reintegrate young and adult unemployed persons, particularly
    the long-term unemployed, and those who have no qualifi-
    cations.
Funding
The Community may contribute up to 75Ø% of eligible expen-            The Community may contribute up to 75Ø% of eligible expen-
diture for the transnational pilot projects, with a ceiling of ECU    diture for the transnational pilot projects, with a ceiling of EUR
200Ø000 per year and per project.                                     200Ø000 per year and per project.
Under no circumstances may the project partners’ own                  Under no circumstances may the project partners’ own
resources derive from other Community funding.                        resources derive from other Community funding.
 ---pagebreak--- C 14/28                 EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                     19.1.1999
                                                                      TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
             TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                            BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
4. COMMUNITY NETWORKS                                                 Unchanged
Support for Community networks of Community expertise and
dissemination
Community support is available for setting up and organising
Community networks of cooperation in training, bringing
together in the Member States at the regional or sectoral level
the public and private players concerned including researchers,
in the area of vocational training and designed (i) to assemble,
distil and build on European expertise and innovatory
approaches on a priority theme of common interest, (ii) to
improve the analysis and anticipation of skills requirements, (iii)
to disseminate the results throughout the EU in the appropriate
circles.
Projects under this measure may last a maximum of three years.
Demonstration actions
Under ‘European networks’, there will be support for experi-
mental demonstration actions relating to the development and
networking of multiplayer training consortia organised regionally
or sectorally and involving in particular the local authorities,
local chambers of commerce, trade organisations for employers
and employees, and research and training centres, including the
universities, and fulfilling the role of centres providing services,
advice and information on access to validated training methods
and products.
Funding
The Community may contribute up to 75Ø% of eligible expen-            The Community may contribute up to 75Ø% of eligible expen-
diture for the organisation of European networks, with a              diture for the organisation of European networks, with a
minimum of ECU 150Ø000 per year and per network and a                 minimum of EUR 150Ø000 per year and per network and a
ceiling of ECU 500Ø000 per year, this ceiling applicable only in      ceiling of EUR 500Ø000 per year, this ceiling applicable only in
the case of proposals for transnational networks seeking to           the case of proposals for transnational networks seeking to
develop an integrated set of experimental measures opening on         develop an integrated set of experimental measures opening on
to validated and transferable training products. The financial        to validated and transferable training products. The financial
contribution to ‘multiplayer training consortia’ will be restricted   contribution to ‘multiplayer training consortia’ will be restricted
to ECU 50Ø000 per year and per operation, representing a              to EUR 50Ø000 per year and per operation, representing a
maximum of 50Ø% of the eligible operational costs.                    maximum of 50Ø% of the eligible operational costs.
Under no circumstances may the project partners’ own                  Under no circumstances may the project partners’ own
resources be derived from other Community funding.                    resources be derived from other Community funding.
5. LANGUAGE SKILLS
Support for actions to promote language and cultural skills in
training
Community support is available for transnational pilot projects       Community support is available for transnational pilot projects
to develop language skills linked to the promotion of the social      to develop language skills in a vocational training context.
and occupational integration of young people and a higher level       Language skills can be considered as key skills in the context of
of employability and adaptability of workers. Language skills         the knowledge-based society.
can be considered as key skills in the context of the
knowledge-based society.
 ---pagebreak--- 19.1.1999              EN                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                      C 14/29
                                                                    TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
            TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                           BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
The point of these projects is to design, test and validate, assess The point of these projects is to design, test and validate, assess
and disseminate teaching material tailored to the specific needs    and disseminate teaching material tailored to the specific needs
of each occupational area and economic sector, including            of each occupational area and economic sector, including
through the use of language audits, and also innovatory             through the use of language audits, and also innovatory
teaching methods based on language self-tuition and the             teaching methods based on language self-tuition and the
dissemination of their results.                                     dissemination of their results.
Proposals for linguistic and cultural support may also be           Proposals for linguistic and cultural support may also be
submitted under other actions and measures, particularly in         submitted under other actions and measures, particularly in
order to improve language and cultural skills amongst the           order to improve language and cultural skills amongst the
trainers and mentors responsible for the pedagogic supervision      trainers and mentors responsible for the pedagogic supervision
of young people taking part in transnational physical mobility      of young people taking part in transnational physical mobility
programmes.                                                         programmes.
Community support is also available for transnational               Support is also available for the development of language skills
programmes and exchanges between the business sector on the         and provision of cultural competences as part of a transnational
one hand and the specialised language training establishments or    exchange experience.
training bodies on the other. The exchanges relate to trainers
and mentors in the area of language skills.
The maximum duration of the projects under this measure is          The maximum duration of the projects under this measure is
usually two years.                                                  two years.
Funding
The Community may contribute up to 75Ø% of eligible expen-          The Community may contribute up to 75Ø% of eligible expen-
diture, with a ceiling of ECU 150Ø000 per project and per year.     diture, with a ceiling of EUR 150Ø000 per project and per year.
Under no circumstances may the project partners’ own                Under no circumstances may the project partners’ own
resources be derived from other Community funding.                  resources be derived from other Community funding.
6.ÙCOMMUNITY TERMS OF REFERENCE                                     6.ÙCOMMUNITY TERMS OF REFERENCE ON VO-
                                                                       CATIONAL TRAINING
Support for actions to establish, update and disseminate            Support for actions to observe and analyse national training
Community terms of reference which can be used to compare           policies, to disseminate good practice and innovation, to
training systems                                                    establish, update and disseminate comparable Community data
                                                                    on training, and for extensive exchanges of information
Community support is available for actions undertaken on a          Unchanged
transnational basis and making a contribution through surveys,
analyses and/or studies, to establishing comparable data on
vocational training systems and arrangements in the Member
States or likely to produce quantitative and/or qualitative
information in support of policies and enhance training practices
for lifelong training. Eurostat and Cedefop are closely
associated with the production of statistical instruments within
the procedures currently in place notably those defined by
Council Regulation (EC) No 322/97 on Community statistics,
taking into account the Council Decision on the statistical
programme 1998 to 2002. In the same connection, the
Community will support the introduction of arrangements to
observe innovatory practices in lifelong training, particularly
with regard to access to continuing training, in close
conjunction with both sides of industry at the various levels.
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             TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                          BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
The maximum duration of projects under this measure is three
years.
The Commission will ensure that these terms of reference are
disseminated as widely as possible in different ways, particularly
in order to make them available to public and private decision-
makers in vocational training.
Demonstration actions
Under the measure ‘Community terms of reference’ and as a
follow-up to its report on the implementation of the Council
recommendation of June 1993 on access to continuing training,
the Commission, in close conjunction with both sides of industry
and in cooperation with Cedefop, will propose support for an
arrangement to observe good practice on access to training, the
development and the transparency of qualifications and skills,
particularly at branch and company level.
Funding
The Community’s financial contribution will be between 50Ø%         The Community’s financial contribution will be between 50Ø%
and 100Ø% of eligible expenditure, with a ceiling of ECU            and 100Ø% of eligible expenditure, with a ceiling of EUR
500Ø000 per year and per project.                                   500Ø000 per year and per project.
Under no circumstances can the project partners’ own resources      Under no circumstances can the project partners’ own resources
be derived from other Community funding.                            be derived from other Community funding.
7. JOINT ACTIONS                                                    Unchanged
1.ÙFor the joint actions described in Article 6 of this Decision,
    Community support may be provided for joint actions with
    other actions under the knowledge policy, particularly
    Community education and youth programmes designed to
    widen access to knowledge.
2.ÙCoordination of the programmes can be achieved by
    common calls for proposals. The Commission intends in
    particular to develop a joint information and observation
    arrangement with regard to good practice in the field of
    knowledge, and joint actions on education and training
    multimedia.
3.ÙAppropriate steps, a significant one being the setting up of
    European knowledge centres, will be taken to ensure
    regional and local contact and interaction between the
    players taking part in this programme and in education and
    youth-related programmes. This will contribute to the
    implementation of a policy of lifelong learning in the regions
    and local districts concerned.
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                                                                      TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
            TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                             BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
8. ACCOMPANYING MEASURES
To attain the objectives set out in Article 2 of the Decision,        To attain the objectives set out in Article 2 of the Decision,
Community support is available for:                                   Community support is available for:
—Ùcoordination and monitoring activities by the Member States         —Ùcoordination, integration, monitoring and evaluation
    as described in Article 5 of this Decision,                           activities by the Member States as described in Articles 5, 9
                                                                          and 12 of this Decision,
—Ùinformation, monitoring, organisation assessment and                —Ùinformation, monitoring, organisation assessment and
    dissemination activities by the Member States and the                 dissemination activities by the Member States and the
    Commission to facilitate access to the programme and                  Commission to facilitate access to the programme and
    consolidate the transfer of methods, products and tools               consolidate the transfer of methods, products and tools
    designed, and of the results obtained by the Community                designed, and of the results obtained by the Community
    measures, including through telematics links and databanks,           measures, including through telematics links and databanks,
—Ùin carrying out the programme the Commission can have               —Ùin carrying out the programme the Commission can have
    recourse to technical assistance organisations the financing          recourse to technical assistance organisations the financing
    of which may be provided for within the overall envelope              of which may be provided for within the overall envelope
    for the programme. It can, under the same conditions, have            for the programme. It can, under the same conditions, have
    recourse to experts. Furthermore, the Commission will be              recourse to experts. Furthermore, the Commission will be
    able to organise seminars, colloquia or other meetings of             able to organise seminars, colloquia or other meetings of
    experts, likely to facilitate the implementation of the               experts, likely to facilitate the implementation of the
    programme. The Commission can also take forward                       programme. The Commission can also take forward
    information, publication and dissemination actions.                   information, publication and dissemination actions.
                                                                      The respective roles and tasks of the European technical
                                                                      assistance office and the national management structures must
                                                                      be clearly defined.
Section III — Selection procedures
III A — Decentralised selection procedure
1.ÙThe decentralised selection procedure will be applied to all       1.ÙThe decentralised selection procedure shall be applied to all
   Community actions and measures and comprises the                      Community actions and measures, with the exception of
   following stages.                                                     those referred to in Section I, paragraph 5b of this Annex,
                                                                         and comprises the following stages:
2.ÙUnder the rules defined in the general call for proposals,
   proposals are to be submitted by the coordinators of trans-
   national projects at the management structure designated by
   the Member State.
3.ÙThe management structure will assess the proposals on the
   basis of specifications established at Community level, using
   the definitions given in Annex C.
4.ÙEvery year, on the basis of this assessment at a date to be        4.ÙEvery year, on the basis of this assessment at a date to be
   decided by the Commission following consultation with the             decided by the Commission following consultation with the
   Committee, Member States will submit to the Commission                Committee, Member States will submit to the Commission
   (and to the other Member States for information) their                (and to the other Member States for information) their
   overall proposal in the form of a report, presenting, the             overall proposal in the form of a report, presenting the
   results of the general call for proposals, by objective and by        information and publicity measures taken to facilitate partici-
   measure, the assessment procedure and the technical back-up           pation in the programme, the results of the general call for
   given to promoters as well as a descriptive and reasoned list         proposals, by objective and by measure, the assessment
   of proposals likely to be retained in order of priority.              procedure and the parties involved in this assessment, and the
                                                                         technical back-up given to promoters as well as a descriptive
                                                                         and reasoned list of proposals likely to be retained in order
                                                                         of priority.
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                                                                      TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
              TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                            BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
5.ÙThe Commission will examine each report and liaise                 5.ÙThe Commission will examine each report and liaise
    accordingly with the Member State concerned.                          accordingly with the Member States concerned, with a view
                                                                          to assessing and ensuring the transnational and innovative
                                                                          nature of projects. In this context the Commission may rely
                                                                          on the assistance of independent experts.
6.ÙAt the end of the examination, the Commission will submit          6.ÙAt the end of the examination, the Commission will submit
    to the Committee a proposal on how the year’s budgetary               to the Committee a proposal on how the year’s budgetary
    resources to be allocated on a decentralised basis should be          resources to be allocated on a decentralised basis should be
    distributed by measure and by Member State, and will obtain           distributed by measure and by Member State, and will obtain
    its opinion in accordance with the procedures set out in              its opinion in accordance with the procedures set out in
    Article 6 of the Decision.                                            Article 7 of the Decision.
7.ÙAfter receiving the opinion of the Committee, the
    Commission will determine the final amount to be allocated
    to each Member State and the list of proposals accepted per
    measure.
8.ÙThe process on stages 5, 6 and 7 must not take more than
    two months.
III B — Centralised selection procedure
The centralised selection procedure applies to the Community          The centralised selection procedure applies to actions with
demonstration actions for each measure and in particular              a more pronounced Community dimension, as defined in
concerns the proposals submitted by European organisations,           Section I, paragraph 5b of this Annex.
networks set up to utilise, disseminate and propagate the results
of transnational projects on a Community theme, and actions,
projects or demonstration networks having an experimental
character as defined in Section II.
  (i)ÙUnder the general call for proposals setting out the              (i)ÙUnder the general call for proposals setting out the
       priorities, project coordinators must submit a pre-proposal           priorities, project coordinators must submit a pre-proposal
       to the Commission and, for information, to the                        to the Commission and, for information, to the
       management structure in their Member State.                           management structure in their Member State.
 (ii)ÙThe Commission, in consultation with the programme               (ii)ÙThe Commission, in consultation with the programme
       Committee, will examine all the pre-proposals and make a              Committee, will examine all the pre-proposals and make a
       selection. The project coordinators will be informed of the           selection. The project coordinators will be informed of the
       outcome of this preselection.                                         outcome of this preselection.
(iii)ÙThe coordinator for each project selected at the close of       (iii)ÙThe coordinator for each project selected at the close of
       this first phase will forward the final proposal to the               this first phase will forward the final proposal to the
       Commission within three months and, for information, to               Commission within three months and, for information, to
       the management structure of his/her Member State.                     the management structure of his/her Member State.
(iv) The Commission, with the assistance of a group of inde-          (iv) The Commission, with the assistance of a group of inde-
       pendent experts appointed by the Commission after                     pendent experts appointed by the Commission after
       consulting the Member States and the circles concerned,               consulting the Member States and the circles concerned,
       particularly both sides of industry, will undertake a trans-          particularly the social partners, will undertake a trans-
       national appraisal of the proposals received and establish a          national appraisal of the proposals received and establish a
       short list of actions for a European knowledge programme.             short list of actions for a European knowledge programme.
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                                                                       TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
              TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                             BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
 (v) The Commission will seek the opinion of the Committee              (v) The Commission will seek the opinion of the Committee
       on this short list and finalise, in accordance with the               on this short list and finalise, in accordance with the
       arrangements set out in Article 7 of this Decision, the               arrangements set out in Article 7 of this Decision, the
       European knowledge programme.                                         European knowledge programme.
(vi) The Commission will establish the final list of proposals         (vi) The Commission will establish the final list of proposals
       selected and inform the Committee. It will set out the                selected and inform the Committee. It will set out the
       conditions for monitoring these experimental projects.                conditions for monitoring these experimental projects.
                              ANNEX B
Overall budget breakdown
1.ÙAt the beginning of the operation, and no later than 1 March        Unchanged
    every year, the Commission will submit to the Committee an
    ex ante breakdown of budget resources by type of measure,
    by procedures and taking into account, to this end, the
    objectives set out in Article 2 of the present Decision and will
    seek its opinion. The Commission will on this basis define an
    indicative budget for each Member State for the implemen-
    tation of the measures covered by the decentralised selection
    procedure.
2.ÙFor the first year of programme implementation and only for
    the transnational programmes of placements and exchanges
    described in measure B1 and defined below undertaken
    before 1 October 2000, the Member States must submit to
    the Commission an operational plan no later than 31 March
    2000. The Commission will on this basis allocate to each
    Member State an amount on the basis of which it can go
    ahead with transnational programmes. The amounts not used
    up within this allocation at 1 September 2000 will be incor-
    porated in the final amount of the global grant as shown in
    the procedure described in Section II below.
Procedure for determining amounts for transnational placement
and exchange programmes
The transnational placement and exchange programmes for                The transnational placement and exchange programmes for
young people undergoing initial training must be presented to          persons participating in initial vocational training, lifelong
the Commission for examination and approval by 31 March                learning, or career redirection or reintegration must be
every year. They must indicate clearly for each programme by           presented to the Commission for examination and approval by
group of beneficiaries:                                                31 March every year. They must indicate clearly for each
                                                                       programme by group of beneficiaries:
—Ùthe target publics of the programmes,                                —Ùthe target publics of the programmes,
—Ùthe content and objectives in terms of skills and/or qualifi-        —Ùthe content and objectives in terms of skills and/or qualifi-
     cations,                                                              cations,
—Ùthe duration of training and/or work learning experience in          —Ùthe duration of training and/or work learning experience in
     a training establishment and/or company,                              a training establishment and/or company,
—Ùthe partners associated in the other Member State or States          —Ùthe partners associated in the other Member State or States
     if the training periods take place consecutively in several,          if the training periods take place consecutively in several,
—Ùthe arrangements for validating or recognising skills and/or         —Ùthe arrangements for validating or recognising skills and/or
     qualifications acquired in the training system of the original        qualifications acquired in the training system of the original
     Member State in which the beneficiaries are pursuing their            Member State in which the beneficiaries are pursuing their
     training.                                                             training.
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                                                                     TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
             TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                           BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
For each category of public targeted by these programmes, the        For each category of public targeted by these programmes, the
Commission will allocate a global grant established on the basis     Commission will allocate a global grant established on the basis
of calculation criteria defined within the procedure described in    of calculation criteria defined within the procedure described in
Article 7 of this Decision, taking into account:                     Article 7 of this Decision, taking into account:
—Ùthe population,                                                    —Ùthe population,
—Ùthe GDP per capita in each Member State in terms of                —Ùthe GDP per capita in each Member State in terms of
    purchasing power parities,                                           purchasing power parities,
—Ùthe geographical distance and the costs of transport,              —Ùthe geographical distance and the costs of transport,
—Ùwhenever possible, the weight of the target public concerned       —Ùwhenever possible, the weight of the target public concerned
    in relation to the overall population,                               in relation to the overall population,
—Ùthe overall unemployment figure and the level of long term         —Ùthe overall unemployment figure and the level of long term
    unemployment.                                                        unemployment.
In any event, the application of these criteria cannot result in     In any event, the application of these criteria cannot result in
the exclusion of any Member State from funding of the trans-         the exclusion of any Member State from funding of the trans-
national placement and exchange programmes described above.          national placement and exchange programmes described above.
The overall grant is allocated to each Member State on the basis     The overall grant is allocated to each Member State on the basis
of the abovementioned operational plan which must set out            of the abovementioned operational plan which must set out
clearly:                                                             clearly:
—Ùthe arrangements for managing financial aid,                       —Ùthe arrangements for managing financial aid,
—Ùthe steps to be taken to assist placement and exchange             —Ùthe steps to be taken to assist placement and exchange
    organisers to identify potential partners,                           organisers to identify potential partners,
—Ùappropriate measures to be taken in the interests of sound         —Ùappropriate measures to be taken in the interests of sound
    preparation (particularly in terms of teaching and language          preparation (particularly in terms of teaching and language
    preparation), organisation and follow-up of placements and           preparation), organisation and follow-up of placements and
    exchanges.                                                           exchanges, including accessibility measures to ensure equal
                                                                         opportunities and address potential discrimination.
                            ANNEX C
                          DEFINITIONS
For the purposes of this Decision and taking account of the          Unchanged
differences which exist between the systems and arrangements in
the Member States:
(a)ÙØ‘initial vocational training’ means any form of initial
     vocational training, including technical and vocational
     teaching and apprenticeship, which gives young people
     access to a vocational qualification recognised by the
     competent authorities in the Member State in which it is
     obtained;
(b) ‘work-linked training’ means vocational training at all
     levels, including higher education, which leads to a
     certificate or a qualification recognised by the competent
     authorities of the Member State concerned, and involving
     structured periods of work-linked training in a training
     establishment and a company as separate and comple-
     mentary forums of training;
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                                                                    TEXT AS MODIFIED FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS PROPOSED
            TEXT PROPOSED BY THE COMMISSION                           BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ON 5 NOVEMBER 1998
(c) ‘continuing vocational training’ means any vocational
    training undertaken by a worker in the Community during
    his working life;
(d) ‘lifelong training’ means the training opportunities offered
    to any individual throughout their lives to enable them to
    continually update their knowledge and skills for the
    purposes of his career;
(e) ‘vocational guidance’ means the provision of advice and
    information on the choice of an occupation and changes of
    occupation, both through vocational education and training
    and through individual information initiatives;
(f) ‘company’ means all companies in the public or private
    sector whatever their size, legal status or the economic
    sector in which they operate, and all types of economic
    activities, including the social economy;
(g) ‘worker’ means all persons, whether in work or not,
    including the self-employed, who have links with the labour
    market;
(h) (i)Ù‘both sides of industry at national level’ means
          employers’ and workers’ organisations in conformity
          with national laws and/or practices;
    (ii)Ù‘both sides of industry at Community level’ means
          employers’ and workers’ organisations taking part in
          the social dialogue at the Community level;
(i) ‘training body’ means any type of public, semi-public or
    private establishment which, in accordance with national
    laws and/or practices, design or undertake vocational
    training, further training, refresher training or retraining,
    irrespective of the designation given to it in the Member
    States;
(j) ‘university’ means any type of higher education institution
    which, in accordance with national laws and/or practices,
    offer higher level qualifications or diplomas, whatever such
    establishments may be called in the Member States;
(k) ‘local and regional partners’ means any player in regional
    and local life, local authority, association, local chambers
    of commerce and associations, consortia, advisory bodies,
    the media, participating in local or regional cooperation
    activities which include training;
(l) ‘apprenticeship and open and distance training’ means any
    form of flexible vocational training involving:
    —Ùthe use of ICT techniques and services in traditional or
         modern form,
    and
    —Ùsupport in the form of individualised advice and
         mentoring;
(m) ‘European training pathways’ means any period of initial or
    continuing vocational training undertaken in a Member
    State other than that in which the person concerned is
    pursuing his/her training;
(n) ‘Community terms of reference’ means all the analyses,
    studies, surveys and identification of good practice which
    make it possible to locate, at Community level, the relative
    position of the various Member States and the progress
    made on a given subject or in a given area.