CELEX: 51997PC0347
Language: en
Date: 1997-07-23
Title: Amended proposal for a European Parliament and Council Decision establishing the Community action programme 'European voluntary service for young people'

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                     Brussels, 23.07.1997
                                     COM(97) 347 final
                                     96/0318 (COD)
                  Amended proposal for a
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND COUNCIL DECISION
       establishing the Community action programme
       "European voluntary service for young people"
(presented by the Commission pursuant to Article 189 a (2)
                     of the EC-Treaty)
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                             EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
Following the opinion of the European Parliament dated 12 June 1997, the Commission is
presenting to the Council, pursuant to Article 189 A (2) of the Treaty on European Union,
an amended proposal for a Decision. In general, the Commission's amended proposal
retains the same structure and aims as the initial proposal, but with more detail in some
aspects. The text mainly comprises two types of amendments:
-        one batch provides additional information and clarification in relation to the initial
         proposal;
-        a second batch improves the proposal in so far as they specify activities involving
         third countries and introduce an element of flexibility with regard to age groups.
Of the 40 amendments proposed by the European Parliament, 22 were partially or
completely rej ected and 18 were approved ( 14 of which were; slightly amended).
The Commission has not accepted the principle of defining a European status for young
volunteers and of coordinating tax systems and social protection, nor of integrating national
civilian services into European voluntary service, thereby respecting the principle of
subsidiarity.
Although very aware of the amount proposed by the European Parliament, the Commission
has not accepted the increased budget for the first two years of the programme, in so far as
the current financial perspectives must be respected.
Finally, with regard to comitology, the Commission has not accepted the proposal for an
advisory committee, as it considers that experience has demonstrated the usefulness of a
mixed committee for this type of programme; neither has it accepted other amendments
concerning procedures to be followed by the committee which are not contained in the
Decision of 13 July 1987. While respecting commitments made in the context of the
"modus vivendi", the Commission is keeping exactly to the text of the Decision.
The Commission has accepted the principle of developing the policy of cooperation in the
youth field, of the submission, before 31 December 1997, of a report discussing priorities
up to the year 2000, the importance of coherence and coordination with the "Youth for
Europe" programme, participation of young people from third countries in programme
activities in their country of origin and within the European Union, the taking into account
of specific aspects for voluntary service in the developing countries, the importance of
linguistic and cultural preparation, sufficient information and awareness-raising for
volunteers with regard to their rights and obligations, and a degree of flexibility with regard
to the upper age limit. It has slightly altered the amendments relating to these various
aspects.
 ---pagebreak---                   Amended proposal for a
 EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT «AND COUNCIL DECISION
       establishing the Community action programme
       "European voluntary service for young people"
(presented by the Commission pursuant to Article 189 a (2)
                     of the EC-Treaty)
                           -  JLC\-^
 ---pagebreak---      Initial proposal bv the Commission         Amended proposal following the opinion
                                                     oftheEPof12.Iune1997
      PROPOSAL FOR A DECISION
   OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
          AND OF THE COUNCIL
     establishing the Community Action
                 Programme
  "European voluntary service for young
                    people"
 THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN
UNION,
 1.Having regard to the Treaty establishing
the European Community, and in particular
Article 126 thereof,
2.Having regard to the proposal from the-
Commission ,
3.Having regard to the opinion of the
Economic and Social Committee ,
4.Having regard to the opinion of the
Committee of the Regions ,
Acting in accordance with the procedure
referred to in Article 189b of the Treaty ,
1.Whereas the _ Essen European Council,
meeting on 9-10 December 1994, and the
Cannes European Council, meeting on 26-
27 June 1995, stressed the need to undertake
                                             3-
 ---pagebreak---    new actions to promote the social and
   occupational integration of young people in
   Europe;
   2.Whereas the conclusions of the Florence
   European Council (21-22 June 1996)
   stressed the importance of helping young
   people to become integrated into active life
   and, in this respect, noted with interest the
   idea of a European voluntary service;
   3. Whereas the Council requested the
  Commission to propose practical measures
  to promote transnational cooperation in the
  field of voluntary service ;
  4. Whereas the Council, in its Jlesolution of
  5 October 1995 on cooperation with third
  countries in the youth field, stressed the
  need to step up cooperation, particularly
  with regard to voluntary service, with third
  countries with which the Community has.
  concluded association and cooperation
  agreements;
  5.Whereas the European Council of 25-26
  June 1984 asked Member States to take
  steps to encourage young people to take part
  in projects organised by the Community
  outside its frontiers, and whereas they
  recommended that Member States take on
  board as one of the objectives of their social
  policies the incorporation of social
  protection for development volunteers or the
  correction of shortcomings;
  6.Whereas the Parliament has also expressed
  its support, on many occasions, for the
  development of a voluntary service at
  Community level, in particular in its
             Conclusions of the Council and the Ministers of Youth of 30 November on the promotion of voluntary service periods for young
people, OJ C348 of 9.12.1994.
             Council Resolution of 5 October 1995 on cooperation with third countries in the youth field (OJ No C296 of 10.11.1995)
                                                                   4-
 ---pagebreak---  Resolution of 22 September 1995 on the
 establishment of European civilian service7;
                                                 6a. Whereas the policy of cooperation in thp.
                                                 youth field as a field of informal educating
                                                 has now become ' supplementary to the,
                                                 education policy laid down in the Treaty and
                                                 requires development;
7.Whereas voluntary service activities also
exist in a range of forms in several Member
States and a number of non-governmental
organisations are wording in this field;
8. Whereas, despite these experiences,
transnational voluntary service actions
remain limited;
                   <!
9.Whereas- it is necessary to create new
opportunities for the transfer and application
of experience and good practice and to
promote new partnerships;
10.Whereas the pilot action launched in          10.Whereas the pilot action launched in
January 1996 and still in progress is            January 1996 and still in progress is
designed inter alia to test the arrangements     designed inter alia to test the arrangements
for decentralised implementation of long         for decentralised implementation of long
term voluntary service activities looking        term voluntary service activities looking
ahead to the multi-annual programme              ahead to the multi-annual programme
envisaged, and whereas the initial results of    envisaged, and whereas the initial results of
this pilot action are described in an interim    this pilot action are described in an interim
progress report;                                 progress report carried out on the basis of
                                                 the specific budget heading created for this
                                                 purpose in the 1996 budget:
 11. Whereas an independent ex ante
evaluation for a "multi-annual programme of
voluntary service has been carried out in
accordance with the principles put in place
by the Commission for the second phase of
its SEM 2000 ('sound and efficient
                                  g
management') programme ;
         B4-1127/95 (PE 193.734).
         SEC(95)1814/5.
                                              -5
 ---pagebreak--- 12.Whereas this interim report, already
provides a basis for the programme's legal
and financial structure, and a framework for
its administrative management; and whereas
the Commission will scrutinise the results of
the pilot action at the half-way stage (second
progress report) before taking full stock of
the final results upon completion of the pilot
action for the purpose of the discussions to
be held as part of the co-decision procedure
on the proposal for a decision and will, if
need be, submit amendments to its proposal,
particularly in relation to activities in non-
EU countries;
13. Whereas there are a series of legal 13. Whereas there are significant legal
obstacles to the development of voluntary obstacles to transnational mobility for young
service:                                         people, and these obstacles can be removed,
                                                 particularly through measures to be taken at
                                                 national level with regard to social
                                                 protection and tax schemes applicable to the
                                                 allowances and expenses which young
                                                 people receive during their voluntary service
                                                 for travel, accommodation or subsistence,
                                                 and through increased cooperation between
                                                 the Member States:
 14. Whereas      this    Decision    therefore
establishes a Community framework which
is intended to overcome these obstacles and
to promote the development of transnational
voluntary service activities;
 15. Whereas participation in voluntary           15. Whereas participation in voluntary
service activities, by young people is an        service activities by young people is an
educational experience that may promote          educational experience that may promote
 their integration into active life;             their integration into active life and promote
                                                 awareness of a true European citizenship:
                                                  15a. Whereas the establishment of European
                                                 voluntary service should be carried out in
                                                  coherence with other Community actions for
                                                  young people, particularly in the context of
                                                  the "Youth for Europe" programme, and it is
                                                  therefore important to ensure their
                                                  complementarity:                     .
                                                6-
 ---pagebreak---  16.Whereas it is necessary to reinforce the
 links between the actions undertaken by this
 programme and those pursued within the
 framework of social policy, particularly
 action on training and access to employment
 for young people supported under the
 European Social Fund (both mainstream and
the 'Employment-Youthstart' Community
Initiative), the fight against racism and
xenophobia, and cooperation with third
countries;
 17.Whereas, in order to facilitate this
transition into active life, complementary
links need to be established between
European voluntary service and local
employment initiatives;
 18.Whereas voluntary service may help to
meet new social needs and may also reveal
new kinds of professions and activities;
 19.Whereas participation in the voluntary
service actions covered by this Decision
takes place on a purely voluntary basis,
since these activities are non-profit-making
and the volunteer/host project relationship
can in no case be assimilated with the
employee/employer relationship;
20. Whereas young volunteers taking part in
this programme will have adequate means of
subsistence and will not, therefore, represent
a burden to the host country;
21.Whereas European voluntary - service         21. Whereas European voluntary service
activities are not a substitute for military    activities are not a substitute for military
service, for the alternative service formulae   service, for the alternative service formulae
provided in particular for conscientious        provided in particular for conscientious
objectors or for the compulsory civilian        objectors or for the compulsory civilian
service that exist in Member States and are     service that exist in Member States, and
not a substitute for potential or existing paid must not haVe me effect of restricting or
employment; whereas they are also no            substituting for potential or existing paid
substitute for potential or existing paid jobs: jobs;
22.Whereas all young people resident in a
 ---pagebreak---  Member State may apply to take part in
European voluntary service, without
discrimination;
23.Whereas the participation of young
nationals of third countries legally resident
in a Member State also needs to be
promoted;
24. Whereas       implementation     of this
programme must be based on decentralised
structures designated by Member States in
close cooperation with the national
authorities responsible for youth questions,
with a view to ensuring that Community
action supports and complements national
activities whilst respecting the principle of
subsidiarity, as defined in Article 3b of the
Treaty;
25.Whereas in its Communication of 13
June 1995 on "A European strategy for
encouraging       local development        and
employment initiatives" , the Commission
notes that local development and
employment initiatives are spreading
throughout the European Union as they are
found to provide a genuine response to
current aspirations;
26.Whereas European voluntary service
activities directly involve local and regional
authorities, bearing in mind the role they
will play in direct support for projects as
well" as in the development of local
information and in following up young
people at the end of their service;
27.Whereas the social partners should play
an important role in the development of a
European voluntary service not only to
avoid any activity that is a substitute for
potential or existing employment but also to
         C0M(95)273.
 ---pagebreak--- build on the experience acquired in order to
help young people to become integrated into
active life;
                                              27a. Whereas the voluntary sector should
                                              also play an important role in enabling the
                                              participation in these programmes of those
                                              voung people in the greatest difficulties:
                                              27b. Whereas there should be ongoing
                                              monitoring to take full account of the
                                              opinions of the social partners and the
                                              voluntary sector:
                                              27c. Whereas the Commission and the
                                              Member States are keen to encourage
                                              cooperation      with     non-governmental
                                              organisations in the youth and social fields,
                                              the environment, culture and the fight
                                              against various forms of exclusion:
28.Whereas the Agreement on the European
Economic Area             sets out enlarged-
cooperation in the field of education,
training and youth between the European
Community and its Member States, on the
one hand, ,and the countries of the European
Free Trade Association and the European
Economic Area, on the other hand, and that
Article 4 of Protocol 31 states that the
countries of the European Free Trade
Association and the European Economic
Area shall take part, from 1 January 1995, in
all Community programmes in the field of
education, training and youth that are
already in force or have been adopted;
29.Whereas the programme "European
voluntary service for young people" is open
to the participation of the associated
countries of Central and Eastern Europe, in
accordance with the conditions set out in the
Additional Protocols to the Association
Agreements on participation in Community
      10
         OJLlof3.1.1994,p3.
 ---pagebreak--- programmes to be concluded with those
countries; whereas this programme is open
to the participation of Cyprus and Malta on
the basis of additional appropriations under
the same rules as apply to the EFTA
countries, in accordance with procedures to
be agreed with those countries;
                                               29a. Whereas the acquisition of active
                                               citizenship and of formative experience on
                                               the one hand, and the contribution of young
                                               people to cooperation between -the
                                               Community and third countries on the other,
                                               are important objectives of the "Voluntary
                                               service for young people" programme:
                                               29b. Whereas the quality of voluntary
                                               service will depend to a large extent on
                                               linguistic and cultural preparation activities:
30. Whereas       the    Association     and
Cooperation agreements provide            for
exchanges of young people;
31. Whereas this Decision establishes for the
full duration of the programme a financial
framework which constitutes the preferential
point of reference for the budget authority
during the annual budgetary procedure
within the meaning of Point 1 of the Joint
Declaration of 6 March 1995 by the
European Parliament, the Council and the
Commission;
3 2. Whereas the Community's financial
perspective is valid up until 1999 and will
have to be revised for the period beyond that
date;
                                                32a. Whereas, in the light of the conclusion
                                                of the third phase of the "Youth for Europe"
                                                programme on 31 December 1999 and of
                                                the first phase of the pilot action "European
                                                voluntary service for young people", the
                                                Commission is to present to the European
                                                Parliament      and     the     Council.,    bv
                                              10
 ---pagebreak---                                                 31 December 1997. a report diseasing the
                                                priorities of the policy of cooperation in the
                                                youth field between now and the year 2000:
33.Whereas an agreement on a modus
vivendi between the European Parliament,
the Council and the Commission concerning
the implementing measures of the acts
adopted pursuant to the procedure referred
to in Article 189b of the Treaty took place
on 20 December 1994;
HAVE DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:
                   Article 1
     Establishment of the programme
  "European voluntary service for young
                   people"
1.     This Decision establishes the.
       Community         action   programme
       "European voluntary service for
       young people", as described in the
       Annex and hereinafter referred to as
       the      "programme",      concerning
       European voluntary service activities
       for young people within the
       Community and in third countries.
       The programme is adopted for the
       period from 1 January 1998 to 31
       December 2002.
2.     This programme comes within the                  This programme comes within the
       context of the general objectives of a           context of the general objectives of a
       cooperation policy in the youth field            cooperation policy in the youth field
       as set out in the programme Youth                as set out in the programme Youth
       for Europe (Article 1, paragraph 2).              for Europe (Article 1, paragraph 2).
       It is intended, while respecting equal            It is intended, while respecting equal
       opportunities for men and women, to              opportunities for men and women, to
       encourage mobility among young                    encourage mobility among young
        Europeans as part of an active                   Europeans as part of an active
       citizenship, to give them the chance              citizenship, to give them the chance
        of an educational experience in a                of an educational experience in a
                                              11
 ---pagebreak---      variety of sectors of activity, to        variety of sectors of activity, to
     promote their active contribution ÎQ      promote their active contribution, to
     the construction of Europe and            the ideals of democracy, tolerance
     cooperation between the European          and      cohesion    of     European
     Community and third countries             integration and to cooperation
    through their participation in             between the European Union and
    transnational activities of benefit to     third countries through          their
    the community.                             participation     in    transnational
                                               activities of benefit       to the
                                               community.
                Article 2
Framework, objectives and resources
    This programme, based on increased
    cooperation between the Member
    States, offers young Europeans a
    recognised educational experience,
    at transnational level, involving both
    the acquisition of skills and abilities
    and the demonstration of responsible
    citizenship in order to help them to
    become integrated into active life.
    In accordance with the general
    objective set out in Article 1, the
    specific      objectives    of     this
    programme shall be as follows:
    a)       to step up participation by
             young people resident in a
             Member State in long-term
             or short-term transnational
             activities of benefit to the
             community,      within     the
             Union and in third countries;
    b)       to promote an educational
             experience accredited at the
             European level;
    c)       to encourage a spirit of
             initiative and enterprise
             among young people in order
             to* promote their integration
                                            12
 ---pagebreak---          into active life and their
         contribution.      to        the
         development         of       the
         objectives of the programme;
ci)     to promote access to the
        programme for all young
        people;
For this purpose, and in accordance
with the general objective set out in
Article 1, and the specific objectives
described in the previous paragraph,
the~ main elements of this
programme shall be as follows:
a)      to support long-term or
        short-term        transnational
        activities of benefit to the
        community,       within       the
        Union and with third
        countries;
b)      to support networks of
        innovative           initiatives,
        particularly in the social,
        environmental and cultural
        fields and with regard to the
        fight against different forms
        of exclusion;
c)      to support projects that help
        to build on the experience
        acquired and are intended to
        further the follow-up of these
        young people;
d)      to develop, and support the           d) to develop and support the
        preparation,        particularly         preparation,      particularly
        linguistic and intercultural,            linguistic and intercultural,
        and the supervision of young             and the supervision of young
        volunteers, in particular                volunteers, "mentors" and
        long-term           volunteers,          European project leaders so
        "mentors" and European                   that the young volunteers can
        project leaders so that the              benefit from high-quality
        young volunteers can benefit             actions connected with the
                                          13-
 ---pagebreak---              from high-quality actions
             connected       with       the
            objectives of the programme;
   e)       to support the quality of all
            the programme's activities,
            the development of their
            European dimension and to
            contribute to cooperation in
            the youth field by supporting
            Mernber States' endeavours
            to improve services and
            measures linked to European
            voluntary              service,
            particularly           through
            measures to provide young
        ;   people with information on
            the objectives        of the
            programme and through
            studies     and     continuing
            evaluation through which the
            operation and guidelines of
            the programme can be
            brought into line with the
            needs of target groups.
               Article 3
        Financial provisions
1. The financial framework for the
   implementation of the programme
   during the period 1998-1999 shall be
   ECU 60 million, in keeping with
   current .. financial      perspectives.
   Proposals shall be put forward in
   accordance with the procedure set
   out in Article 10 in order to
   determine the financial framework
   for the final three years of the
   programme (2000-2002).
2. The budget authority shall determine
   the appropriations available for each
    financial year within the limits of the
    financial perspective.
                                            14
 ---pagebreak---                     Article 4
  Positive action to facilitate access to the
                  programme
 1.      Special attention shall be paid to
         ensuring that all young people can
         have access, without discrimination,
         to the programme's activities.
2.      The Commission and the Member
         States shall ensure that special
        efforts are made for young people
        who experience the most difficulties
         in being included in existing action
        programmes at both Community and
        national, regional and local levels,
        due to cultural, social, physical,
        economic or geographical reasons.
        These efforts shall be proportional to
        the problems encountered by this
        target group.
                   Article 5
    Participation by associated countries
This programme shall be open to the
participation of the associated countries of
central and eastern Europe (CCEE) in
accordance with the conditions set out in the
Europe agreements and the Additional
Protocols to the Association Agreements on
participation in_ Community programmes
that have been or are to be concluded with
those countries. This programme shall be
open to the participation of Cyprus and
Malta on the basis of additional
appropriations under the same idles as apply
to the EFT A countries, in accordance with
the procedures to be agreed with those
countries.
                   -Article 6
                                               15
 ---pagebreak--- Links with other Community actions and
     cooperation with the relevant
       international organisations
1.     The Commission and the Member             The Commission and the Member
       States shall ensure that the              States shall ensure that the
      programme is compatible with and           programme is compatible with and
      complementary to other actions             complementary - including from a
      undertaken for young people by the         budgetary point of view - to other
      Member States and the Community.           actions undertaken for young people
                                                by the Member States and the
                                                 Community. In this context, the
                                                Member States involved may
                                                examine procedures enabling young
                                                people from third countries to take
                                                part in activities arising from this
                                                programme both within their country
                                                of origin and within the European
                                                Community.
      They shall promote cooperation
      relating to this programme to allow
     . complementarity of the programme
   • with the relevant international
      organisations, in particular the
      Council of Europe.
                  Article 7
   Cooperation with Member States
      The Commission and the Member             The Commission and the Member
      States shall take the necessary           States shall take the necessary
      measures to develop the structures        measures to develop the structures
   " set up_ at European, national,             set up at European, national,
      regional and local level for achieving    regional and local level for achieving
      the objectives of the programme, for      the objectives of the programme, for
      facilitating the access of young          facilitating the access of young
      people and other partners at local        people and other partners at local
      level to the programme, for               level to the programme, for
      evaluating and monitoring the             evaluating and monitoring the
      actions set out in the programme and      actions set out in the programme and
      for applying consultation and             for applying consultation and
      selection mechanisms.                     selection mechanisms. They shall
                                                ensure that volunteers are given
                                                sufficient information and made
                                           - 16
 ---pagebreak---                                                    sufficiently aware at 'European,
                                                   national and local level of their
                                                   rights and obligations and shall
                                                   make an active contribution to
                                                   ensuring complementarity between
                                                   transnational activities and local
                                                   voluntary actions.
2.       Each Member State shall endeavour
         to adopt the measures necessary to
         ensure that the young people
         participating in the programme do
         not encounter obstacles, especially
         as regards the right of residence in
         the host Member State for the period
         of the voluntary service and the
         maintenance of their entitlements, in
         particular those lhiked to their social
         protection.
                    Article 8
                   Validation
Young volunteers shall receive a European
certificate, drawn up by the Commission in
cooperation with the Member States,
attesting to their participation in European
voluntary service and the experience and
skills that they have acquired during this
period.
                    Article 9
                  Committee
1.       The Commission shall implement
         this programme in accordance with
         this Decision.
2.       In the performance of this task, the
         Commission shall be assisted by a
         committee composed of two
         representatives appointed by each
         Member State and chaired by the
         representative of the Commission.
                                              -17-
 ---pagebreak--- 3,    The      representative      of     the
      Commission shall submit to the
     committee, in accordance with the
     procedure set out in paragraph 4, a
     draft of the measures to be taken in
     respect of:
              the committee's internal rules
              of procedure;
             the annual plan of work for
             the implementation of the
             actions of the programme;
             the general balance between
             all the sections of the
             programme;
             the criteria for determining
             indicative allocation of funds
             among the Member States;
             the       procedures         for
             monitoring and evaluating
             the programme.
4.   The Committee shall deliver its
     opinion on the draft measures
     referred to in point 3 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 shall be weighted in the
     manner set out in that Article. The
     chairman shall not vote.
     The Commission shall adopt
     measures      which      shall   apply
     immediately. However, if these
     measures are not in accordance with
                                            -l:
 ---pagebreak---  the opinion of the committee, they
 shall be communicated by the
 Commission        to the      Council
 forthwith. In that event:
 a)      the Commission may defer
         application of the measures
         which it has decided for a
         period of two months from
         the      date     of     that
         communication;
b)      the Council, acting by a
        qualified majority, may take
        a different decision within
        the time limit referred to in
        pointa).
The Commission may consult the
committee on any other matters
relating to the implementation of this
programme.
The       representative    of     the
Commission shall submit to the
committee a draft of the measures to
be taken. The committee shall
deliver its opinion on the draft
within a time limit which the
Chairman may lay down according
to the urgency of the matter, 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.
                                       19
 ---pagebreak---                     Article 10
          Monitoring and evaluation
 1.      On implementation of this Decision,
         the Commission shall take the
         necessary measures to ensure the
         monitoring         and       continuous
         evaluation of the programme, taking
         account of the general objective
         referred to in Article 1, the specific
         objectives defined in the Annex, the
         provisions laid down in Article 4
         and any input provided by the
        committee set up under Article 9.
2.      During the course of the second year
        of this programme, the Commission
        shall present to the European
        Parliament and to the Council an
        evaluation report which will serve to
        define any. new implementing
        guidelines and methods, and a new
        budget framework for the final three
        years of the programme.
3.      In the light of the evaluation report
        referred to in paragraph 2 and the
        proposals made by the Commission,
        the European Parliament and the
        Council       shall     envisage     the
        possibility     of      adjusting    the
        programme, extending some actions
        or making provision for new actions.
                   Article 11
This Decision shall enter into force on the
date of its publication in the Official Journal.
Done at           ,
For the European Parliament
         For the Council
The President
                                                 20-
 ---pagebreak---           The President
                    ANNEX
In order to promote mobility among young
people within the framework of active
citizenship, their practical participation in
the creation of European solidarity and their
integration into active life, the Community
shall support European voluntary service
activities within the Union and in third
countries, projects to, follow up these
activities    and     European      cooperation
measures to develop their quality and their
European dimension.
The basic principles on which the
Community action is based are as follows:
         local partnerships between the
         various     public/private    partners
         involved in the integration of young
         people into active life;
         transnational partnerships between
         host projects - validated by the
         Member States and the Commission
         - and sending projects;
         guarantees from the point of view of
         the preparation and supervision of
         young volunteers and their physical
         conditions, insurance and social
         protection;
         the inclusion, within host projects, of
         "mentors" having an important role
         to play in the supervision of young
         volunteers and in the validation of
         the skills acquired and the
         preparation of measures following
         up the experience;
         validation of       the    educational
         experience;
                                                 21
 ---pagebreak---         follow-up for young volunteers and
        the enhancement of the skills that
        they have acquired.
In order to meet these basic objectives, the
Community is organising the current
programme which is made up of five main
sections. These five sections are interlinked
and are flexible enough to meet the needs of
the young people concerned in the most
appropriate way.
SECTION 1 - INTRA-COMMUNITY
1.      The Community shall support long-           The Community shall support long-
        term (in principle for six months to        term (in principle for six months to
        one year) and short-term (in                one year) and short-term (in
        principle from three weeks to three         principle from three weeks to three
        months)       transnational • projects      months)       transnational    projects
        allowing young people - aged                allowing young people - with
        between 18 and 25 - resident in a           priority given to those aged between
        Member State to play an active part          18 and 25. but without excluding the
        in activities which help to meet the        possibility, in some exceptional and
        needs of society in a wide range of         justified cases, of taking into
        fields     (social,     environmental,      consideration applications from
        cultural, etc.) and which are likely to     young people above this age limit -
        have a direct impact on the well-           resident in a Member State to play
        being of the populations of the host        an active part in activities which
        communities. The aim of these               help to meet the needs of society in a
        projects shall be to provide young          wide range of fields (social,
        people from the Union with an               environmental, cultural, etc.) and
        educational experience and to bring         which are likely to have a direct
        them into contact with other cultures        impact on the well-being of the
    " and experience new ideas and                  populations of the host communities.
        projects in an intercultural context.        The aim of these projects shall be to
                                                     provide young people from the
                                                     Union      with     an     educational
                                                     experience and to bring them into
                                                     contact with other cultures and
                                                     experience new ideas and projects in
                                                     an intercultural context.
         The assistance awarded under this
         section should not exceed 50% of
         the total expenditure incurred,
                                                22-
 ---pagebreak---       subject to point 3.
3.   In accordance with Article 4,
     paragraph 2, of the Decision, efforts
      shall be made to help young people
     facing cultural, social, economic,
     physical or geographical difficulties.
     These efforts must be proportional to
     the difficulties that participation in
     existing action programmes raises
     for this target group. In this context,
     financial assistance greater than the
     50% set out in point 3 may be
     awarded,       or    support,    where
     appropriate, for other activities likely
     to facilitate participation by this
     target group, including preparation
     and follow-up actions.
4.   Assistance shall be awarded to:
LONG-TERM ACTIVITIES
5.   Long-term activities shall place the
     emphasis on the acquisition of
     appropriate       experience       from
     European voluntary service projects
     and on the follow-up of young
     volunteers' activities.
6.   The Commission shall certify, at
     European level, the skills acquired
     from this formative experience and
     from the follow-up of young
   - volunteers at the end of these
     activities.
PREPARATION AND SUPERVISION
7.   Actions intended (particularly as
     regards      language,    intercultural
     development, etc.) to build on the
     European dimension of activities, to
     prepare young long-term volunteers
     prior to departure and to promote
     their integration during these
                                            -23-
 ---pagebreak---        activities and at the end of European
       voluntary service.
8.     Actions (particularly training in
       setting up projects etc..) to promote
      the development of follow-up
      projects for young volunteers at the
      end of their European voluntary
      service.
                                            *
SHORT-TERM ACTIVITIES
9.    The Community shall support short-
      term transnational projects intended
      to make young people genuinely,
      aware of the potential of actions
      linked to the principle of active
      citizenship, the impact that these
      activities may have on their lives and
      to familiarise all the partners with
      the concept of active citizenship.
10.   These projects will initially involve
      groups of young people. Support for
      individual participation in a host
      project may be envisaged depending
      on the length of the project, its
      nature or the profile of the young
      volunteer.
SECTION 2 - THIRD COUNTRIES
1.    The Community shall support long-        The Community shall support long-
      term (in principle 6-12 months) and      term (in principle 6-12 months) and
    - short-term (in principle from three      short-term (in principle from three
      weeks to three months) transnational     weeks to three months) transnational
      projects allowing young people -         projects allowing young people -
      aged between 18 and 25 - resident in     with priority given to those aged
      a Member State to play an active         between 18 and 25. but without
      part in third countries in activities    excluding the possibility, in some
      which meet the needs of society in a     exceptional and justified cases, of
      wide range of fields (social,            taking       into        consideration
      environmental, cultural, etc.) and       applications from young people
      which are likely to have a direct        above this age limit - resident in a
      impact on the well-being of the          Member State to play an active part
      populations of the host communities.     in third countries in activities which
                                           -24
 ---pagebreak---       Thé aim of these projects shall be to         meet the needs of society "in a wide
     provide young people with an                   range       of       fields     (social,
      educational experience and to bring        »  environmental, cultural, etc.) and
     them into contact with other cultures          which are likely to have a direct
     and experience new ideas and                   impact on the well-being of the
     projects in an intercultural context.          populations of the host communities.
                                                    The aim of these projects shall be to
                                                    provide young people with an
                                                    educational experience and to bring
                                                    them into contact with other cultures
                                                    and experience' new ideas and
                                                    projects in an intercultural context.
                                               la.  With regard more specifically to
                                                    voluntary service activities in the
                                                    developing         countries.       the
                                                   •Community shall support activities
                                                   respecting the aims and scope for
                                                   cooperation between the European
                                                   Union and the developing countries
                                                   as      defined      in      cooperation
                                                   agreements, other agreements and
                                                   the relevant regulations. These
                                                   activities may be open to young
                                                   volunteers aged over 25 in the case
                                                   of projects justified by a specific
                                                   transfer of know-how to the
                                                   countries concerned or by particular,
                                                   duly justified conditions. Long-term
                                                   projects     may       in    exceptional
                                                   circumstances be extended to two
                                                   years.
2.   The appropriations awarded under
   - this Section shall in principle cover
     the costs of the activities of young
     people residing in the Member
     States.
3.   Assistance shall be awarded for':
LONG-TERM ACTIVITIES
4.   Long-term activities shall place the
     emphasis on the acquisition of
     appropriate       experience      from
                                           -25
 ---pagebreak---        European voluntary service projects
      and from the follow-up of young
      volunteers' activities.
5.    The Commission shall certify, at
      European level, the skills acquired
      from this formative experience and
      from the follow-up of young
      volunteers at the end of these
      activities.
PREPARA TIONAND SUPER VISION
6.    Actions making it possible to lay or
      consolidate the foundations needed
      for the development of transnational
      European voluntary service projects
      with third countries, in particular
      long-term activities.
7.    Actions intended (particularly as
      regards      language;    intercultural
      development, etc.) tô build on the
      European dimension of activities, to
      prepare young long-term volunteers
      prior to departure and to promote
      their integration during these
      activities and at the end of European
      voluntary service.
8.    Actions (particularly training in
      setting up projects etc..) to promote
      the development of follow-up
      projects for young volunteers at the
   "' end of their European voluntary
      service.
SHORT-TERM ACTIVITIES
9.    The Community shall support short-
      term transnational projects intended
      to make young people genuinely
      aware of the impact that these
      activities may have on their lives and
      to familiarise all the partners with
      the concept of active citizenship.
                                              26
 ---pagebreak---  10.  These projects will initially involve
      groups of young people. Support for
      individual participation in a host
      project may be envisaged depending
      on the length of the project, its
      nature or the profile of the young
      volunteer.
SECTION         3           INNOVATIVE
NETWORKS
 1.   Assistance shall be awarded for
      actions coordinated by innovative
      networks, particularly in the social,
     environmental and cultural fields
!     and with regard to the fight against
     different forms of exclusion.
2.   This      assistance     shall    cover
      innovative networks of initiatives
      both within the Union and with third
      countries.
3.    Support for these innovative
     networks shall be intended to help,
     on the one hand, these networks to
     develop        practical       European
     voluntary service activities and, on
      the other hand, to help these
      networks to take on a European
      voluntary service dimension.
SECTION 4 - DEVELOPING A SENSE
OF INITIATiyE AND ENTERPRISE
 1.   Assistance may be awarded for
      projects intended to build, in a
      concrete way, on the experience that
      young people have acquired from
      European voluntary service and thus
      to promote their integration into
      active life.
 2.   This assistance will allow young
      volunteers to develop their sense of
                                             27
 ---pagebreak---        initiative and enterprise by helping
       them to:
                launch         complementary
                training projects;
                develop voluntary service
                initiatives that follow on
                from the activities that they
                have undertaken;
                launch economic activities,
                including business creation.
3.    Special attention should be paid to
      the commitment of (public and/or
      private) partners to these projects in
      order to support, help and sponsor
      young       people's     strategies     of
      integration into active life.
SECTION 5 -           COMPLEMENTARY.
MEASURES
5.1   Preparation and supervision
1.    In addition to actual voluntary
      service activities, assistance will also
      be awarded for actions intended to
      underpin the work of "mentors" and
      European project leaders. These
      actions shall concern activities
      supported at intra-Community level
      as well as in third countries. They
    - are intended, on the one hand, to
      ensure that the content of the
      formative experience is of high
      quality and, on the other hand, to
      help to develop              certification
      methods.
2.    The term "mentors" means people
      supporting and supervising young
      volunteers         during      European
      voluntary service activities within
      hosting projects and those who act as
                                                 28-
 ---pagebreak---          contact points for young volunteers
         and projects within relay structures
        at national, regional or local level.
Special attention shall be paid to projects
having little or no experience of
transnational activities.
Mentors
        Activities intended to prepare and
        support mentors from the point of
        view of their tasks of supporting and
        supervising young volunteers during
        transnational     voluntary     service
        activities.
                                     i
European project leaders
4.     Activities intended to develop the
       ability of European project leaders
       effectively to carry out their
       administrative tasks in a European
       context (financial and administrative
       management and follow-up of
       European projects, legal aspects,
       etc.).
5.2     Partnerships
1.     The Community shall support
       activities to promote partnerships at
       local/national/regional      level
       between public and private partners -
       geared towards European voluntary
       service and leading potentially to
       transnational partnerships.
2.     Assistance shall be awarded for
       activities to facilitate and promote
       the      creation   of transnational
       partnerships                    between
       local/regional/national partnerships
       wishing to work together within the
       framework of this programme either
       within the Union or with third
                                               29
 ---pagebreak---         countries.
3.      Special attention shall be paid to
        local projects/initiatives which have
        little or no experience of or
        opportunity for contacts at European
       level.
5.3    Research,        information      and
evaluation
1.     Support for activities to launch
       awareness, information and advisory
       systems at local, regional, national
       and transnational level to promote
       and support the objectives of the
       programme.
2.     In the particular area of studies and
       evaluation connected with the
       objectives of the programme, the
       Community will concentrate its
       efforts on the analysis and
       dissemination of data and the
       promotion         of       Community
       cooperation in this field. The
       Commission will, in cooperation
       with the Member States, monitor
       and evaluate this programme in an
       ongoing way in order, when
       necessary, to bring it into line with
       needs           arising         during
       implementation.
                                              30
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                                                                   ISSN 0254-1475
                                                           COM(97) 347 final
                                              DOCUMENTS
EN                                                            16 06 05 04
                                    Catalogue number : CB-CO-97-338-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-78-21971-1
Office for Official Publications of the European Communities
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