CELEX: 51994PC0551
Language: en
Date: 1994-12-05 00:00:00
Title: Recommendation for a COUNCIL DECISION authorizing the Commission to sign an Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European Community and Canada

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                                      COM(94) 551 final
                                                      Brussels, 05.12.1994
                              Recommendation for a
                                 COUNCIL DECISION
                     authorizing the Commission to sign an
   Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European
   Community and Canada
                          (presented by the Commission)
 ---pagebreak---                              EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1. Scientific and technological cooperation between the European Community and Canada began
   in 1959 with the signature of an agreement between the European Atomic Energy Community
   and the Canadian Government for cooperation in peaceful uses of atomic energy.
   In September 1976 a Framework Agreement for commercial and economic cooperation
   between the European Communities and Canada was concluded. This Agreement provided also
   for and encouraged technological and scientific exchanges between both parties, leading to the
   signature of various specific agreements covering selected areas of mutual interest.
   In 1989 Canada requested the opening of negotiations for the conclusion of a specific
   agreement on science and technology which would cover research areas falling under both the
   EEC and EURATOM Treaties. After further exploratory discussions with the Canadian
   authorities, and while waiting for negotiating directives for a cooperation agreement with
   Australia in the area of science and technology, the Commission asked Council on
    18 December 1992 for negotiating directives for an agreement on scientific and technological
   cooperation between the European Economic Community, the European Atomic Energy
   Community and Canada (doc. SEC(92)2359).
   During subsequent deliberations in the Council it was decided to limit the scope of the
   envisaged Agreement to activities falling under the EEC Treaty, and this for both legal and
   procedural reasons. On 19 April 1993 Council authorized the Commission to negotiate the
   agreement in question.
3. The negotiations resulted in the attached draft agreement, including its annex on the
   dissemination and utilization of information and management, allocation and exercise of
   intellectual property rights.
   The draft Agreement provides for :
   - the participation of persons and legal entities, including the Parties themselves, universities,
      research institutes, and other bodies or undertakings, in research projects conducted by
      Canada or the Community in a restricted number of research areas;
   - the shared use of research facilities;
   - visits and exchanges of scientists, engineers and other appropriate personnel;
   - the exchange of information;
 ---pagebreak---    other activities as may be jointly determined by the Joint Science and Technology
   Cooperation Committee in accordance with the applicable policies and programmes of the
   Parties;
   the endorsement by the Parties of Technology Management Plans as a condition for research
   projects to proceed, as described in the Annex to the draft Agreement;
   cooperative activities to be subject to the availability of funds and to the applicable laws and
   regulations, policies and programmes of Canada and the Community; no transfer of funds
   will take place.
As regards the management of the draft Agreement it is foreseen that participation in each
other's research projects will take place in accordance with the procedures in force for each
Party [Article 5.a. 1], which implies on the Community's side the full part to be played by the
committees of the specific programmes in the selection of projects which will be the subject
of cooperation. It should also be underlined that the Commission has been able to have the
Community's guiding principles on the dissemination and utilization of information and
management, allocation and exercise of intellectual property rights accepted by the Canadian
side.
In the light of the above mentioned considerations the Commission proposes that the Council
- decide that the Agreement be signed on behalf of the Community and
- authorize the President of the Council to appoint the persons duly empowered to sign on
behalf of the Community.
                                                                                             *
After signature by the parties, the Commission will submit to the Council a proposal for the
approval of the Agreement.
                                        x
 ---pagebreak---                   AGREEMENT
FOR SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL COOPERATION
BETWEEN CANADA AND THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
                      3>
 ---pagebreak--- THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA of the one part, and the Council of the
European Union on behalf of the European Community, of the other part,
hereinafter referred to as the "Parties";
CONSIDERING the importance of science and technology for their economic and
social development;
RECOGNISING that Canada and the European Community, herein after "the
Community", are pursuing research and technological programmes in a number
of areas of common interest, and that mutual benefits may be derived if the
Parties facilitate further cooperation;
NOTING that there has been active cooperation and information exchange in a
number of scientific or technological areas under the Canada-European
Communities Framework Agreement for Commercial and Economic Cooperation
signed in 1976;
Having regard to the Declaration on European Community-Canada Relations
adopted on November 22, 1990; and
DESIRING to establish a formal basis for cooperation in scientific and
technological research which will extend and strengthen the conduct of
cooperative activities in areas of common interest and encourage the application
of the results of such cooperation to their economic and social benefit;
HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS :
                                     ARTICLE 1
                                        Purpose
The purpose of this Agreement is to encourage and facilitate cooperation
between Canada and the Community in fields of common interest where the
Parties are supporting research and development activities to advance science
and/or technology relevant to those fields of interest.
                                        \
 ---pagebreak---                                      ARTICLE 2
                                     Definitions
For the purposes of this Agreement:
a)     "Cooperative activity" means any activity carried on under this
       Agreement, and includes joint research;
b)     "Information " means scientific or technical data, results or methods of
       research and development stemming from the joint research, and any
       other information deemed necessary by the participants engaged in
       cooperative activity, including, where necessary, the Parties themselves;
c)     "Intellectual Property" shall have the meaning defined in Article 2 of the
       Convention establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization,
       done at Stockholm, 14 July, 1967;
d)     "Joint research" means research that is financially supported by either or
       by both Parties and that involves collaboration by participants from both
       Canada and the Community;
e)     "Participant" means any person, legal entity, university, research institute
       or any other body or undertaking participating in a cooperative activity,
       including the Parties themselves.
                                     ARTICLE 3
                                      Principles
Cooperation shall be conducted on the basis of the following principles:
a)     mutual benefit;
b)     timely exchange of information which may affect the actions of
       participants in cooperative activities;
c)     within the framework of applicable laws and regulations, effective
       protection of intellectual property and equitable sharing of intellectual
       property rights, as set out in the Annex, which forms an integral part of
       this Agreement;
d)     balanced realisation of economic and social benefits by Canada and the
       Community in view of the contributions made to cooperative activities by
       the respective participants and/or Parties.
                                          5
 ---pagebreak---                                       ARTICLE 4
                                 Areas of Cooperation
a. Cooperation may be pursued in the following areas :
1)     agriculture, including fisheries;
2)     medical and health research;
3)     non-nuclear energy;
4)     environment, including earth observation;
5)     forestry;
6)     information technologies;
7)     communication technologies;
8)     telematics for economic and social development;
9)     mineral processing;
b. Other areas may be added to this list upon review and recommendation by
the Joint Science and Technology Cooperation Committee and subject to
decisions in accordance with procedures in force for each Party.
                                      ARTICLE 5
                              Modalities of Cooperation
a. Cooperation may include the following activities:
1)     participation of persons and legal entities, including the Parties
       themselves, universities, research institutions, and other bodies or
       undertakings, in research projects of Canada or the Community, in
       accordance with the procedures in force for each Party;
2)     shared use of research facilities;
3)     visits and exchanges of scientists, engineers or other appropriate
       personnel for the purposes of participating in seminars, symposia and
        workshops relevant to cooperation under this Agreement;
4)      exchange of information on practices, laws, regulations and programmes
        relevant to cooperation under this Agreement;
 5)     othe" activities as may be mutually determined by the Joint Science and
       Technology Cooperation Committee in accordance with the applicable
        policies and programmes of the Parties.
                                           é
 ---pagebreak--- b. Joint research projects shall proceed under this Agreement only after the
participants in a project have concluded a Joint Technology Management Plan,
as indicated in the Annex to this Agreement.
                                      ARTICLE 6
           Joint Science and Technology Cooperation Committee (JSTCC)
a)     This Agreement shall be administered by a Joint Science and Technology
       Cooperation Committee composed of representatives of each Party.
b)     The functions of the JSTCC shall be t o :
        1)     Promote and review the activities envisaged under the Agreement;
       2)      Make recommendations pursuant to Article 4 (b);
       3)      Authorise activities falling under Article 5 (a.5) as being
               cooperation to which this Agreement applies;
       4)      Advise the Parties on ways to enhance cooperation consistent w i t h
               the principles set out in this Agreement;
        5)     Provide a report annually to the Parties on the level, status and
               effectiveness of cooperation undertaken under this Agreement;
        6)      Review the efficient and effective functioning of the Agreement.
c)     The JSTCC shall meet approximately once a year, meetings being held
       alternately in Canada and the Community. Other meetings may be held
       as mutually agreed.
d)      Decisions of the JSTCC shall be reached by consensus. Minutes,
        comprising a record of the decisions and principal points discussed, shall
        be taken at each meeting. These minutes shall be agreed by those
       persons selected from each side to jointly chair the meetings. The JSTCC
       annual report shall be made available to the Joint Cooperation Committee
        established under the 1976 EC-Canada Framework Agreement for
        Commercial and Economic Cooperation and appropriate Ministers of each
        Party.
                                            7-
 ---pagebreak---                                      ARTICLE 7
                                      Funding
a)     Cooperative activities shall be subject to the availability of funds and to
       the applicable laws and regulations, policies and programs of Canada and
       the Community.
b)     Costs incurred by participants in cooperative activities subject to this
       Agreement shall not require any transfer of funds from one Party to the
       other.
                                     ARTICLE 8
                          Entry of Personnel and Equipment
Each Party shall take all reasonable steps and use its best efforts, within
existing laws and regulations, to facilitate entry to and exit from its territory of
personnel, material and equipment of the participant(s) engaged in or used in
cooperative activities under this Agreement.
                                     ARTICLE 9
                     Dissemination and Utilization of Information
The dissemination and utilization of information, and the management,
allocation and exercise of intellectual property rights, resulting from joint
research under this Agreement, shall be subject to the requirements of the
Annex to this Agreement.
                                     ARTICLE 10
                    Other Agreements and Transitional Provisions
a)     This Agreement shall supersede and replace those provisions of the
        Canada-European Community Framework Agreement for Commercial and
        Economic Cooperation governing existing science and technology
        collaboration.
b)      The Parties shall endeavour to bring under the terms of this Agreement
        those existing arrangements for scientific and technological cooperation
        between Canada and the Community that fall under the scope of Article
        4.
c)      Subject to paragraph 10 (a), this Agreement is without prejudice to other
        existing Agreements or arrangements between the Parties or any
        Agreement or arrangement between the Parties and third parties.
 ---pagebreak---                                       ARTICLE 11
                                 Territorial Application
This Agreement shall apply to the territory of Canada and to the territories in
which the Treaty establishing the European Community is applied and under the
conditions laid down in that Treaty. This shall not prevent the conduct of
cooperative activities on the high seas, outer space, Antarctica, or the territory
of third parties, if the participants so agree.
                                      ARTICLE 12
                           Entry into Force and Termination
a)     This Agreement shall enter into force on the date on which the Parties
        have notified each other in writing that their legal requirements for entry
        into force of this Agreement have been fulfilled.
b)     This Agreement may be amended by agreement of the Parties.
        Amendments shall enter into force on the date on which the Parties have
        notified each other in writing that their legal requirements have been
        fulfilled.
c)      This Agreement may be terminated at any time by either Party upon
        twelve months written notice. The expiration or termination of this
        Agreement shall not affect the validity or duration of any arrangements
        made under it, or any specific rights and obligations that have accrued in
        compliance with the Annex.
                                      ARTICLE 13
This Agreement is drawn up in duplicate in the Danish, Dutch, English, French,
German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish languages, each of these texts
being equally authentic.
                                             3
 ---pagebreak--- IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned have signed this Agreement.
DONE AT             , this  day of             , One thousand nine
hundred and ninety four.
FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA          FOR THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
                                   AD
 ---pagebreak---    ANNEX ON THE DISSEMINATION AND UTILIZATION OF INFORMATION
            AND MANAGEMENT, ALLOCATION AND EXERCISE OF
                        INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
I.    OWNERSHIP. ALLOCATION AND EXERCISE OF RIGHTS
1.    All research carried out pursuant to this Agreement shall be "joint research". The
      participants performing the joint research shall develop Joint Technology
      Management Plans (JTMPs) which shall contain, as a minimum, principles in
      respect of the ownership and use, including publication, of information and
      Intellectual Property (IP) to be created in the course of the joint research*.
      The JTMPs may be reviewed by the Parties and shall be approved by the
      responsible funding agency or department of the Party involved in financing the
      research, before the conclusion of any specific research and development
      cooperation contracts to which they refer. The JTMPs shall be developed taking
      into account the aims of the joint research, the relative contributions of the
      participants, the advantages and disadvantages of licensing by territory or for
      fields of use, requirements imposed by applicable laws, the need for dispute
      settlement procedures and other factors deemed appropriate by the participants.
      The rights and obligations concerning the research and information generated by
      visiting researchers in respect of IP shall also be addressed in the JTMPs.
2.    Information or IP created in the course of joint research and not addressed in a
      JTMP shall be allocated following the procedures set out in 1,1 according to the
      principles set out in that JTMP. In case of disagreement, which cannot be
      resolved by the agreed dispute resolution procedure, such unallocated information
      or IP shall be owned jointly by all the participants involved in the joint research
      from which the information or IP results, and each participant to whom this
      provision applies shall have the right to use such information or IP for his/her own
      commercial exploitation with no geographical limitation.
3.    In accordance with applicable laws, each Party shall ensure that the other Party
      and its participants may have the rights to IP allocated to them in accordance with
      the principles set out in section I of this Annex.
4.    While maintaining the conditions of competition in areas affected by the
      Agreement, each Party shall endeavour to ensure that rights acquired pursuant to
      the Agreement, and arrangements made under it, are exercised in such a way as to
      encourage in particular:
       (i)     the dissemination and use of information created, disclosed, or otherwise
               made available, under the Agreement;
       (ii)    the adoption and implementation of international standards.
      The indicative features of such JTMPs are set out in Appendix
                                                 //
 ---pagebreak--- II.     COPYRIGHT WORKS
Copyright belonging to the Parties or to their participants shall be accorded treatment
consistent with the Berne Convention (Paris Act 1971).
III.    SCIENTIFIC LITERARY WORKS
Without prejudice to Section IV, unless otherwise agreed in the JTMP, any publication of
results of the joint research shall be made jointly by the participants. In addition to the
foregoing general rule, the following procedure shall apply:
1.      In the case of publication by a Party or public bodies of that Party of scientific and
        technical journals, articles, reports, books, including video and software, arising
        from joint research pursuant to the Agreement, the other Party shall be entitled,
        with written permission from the publisher, to a world-wide, non-exclusive,
        irrevocable, royalty-free licence to translate, reproduce, adapt, transmit and
        publicly distribute such works.
2.      The Parties shall endeavour to disseminate literary works of a scientific character
        arising from joint research pursuant to the Agreement and published by
        independent publishers as widely as possible.
3.      All copies of a copyright work to be publicly distributed and prepared under this
        provision shall indicate the names of the author(s) of the work unless an author or
        authors expressly declines or decline to be named. Copies shall also bear a clearly
        visible acknowledgement of the cooperative support of the Parties.
IV.     UNDISCLOSED INFORMATION
A.      Documentary undisclosed information
 1.     Each Party or its participants shall identify at the earliest possible moment, and
        preferably in the JTMP, the information that it wishes to remain undisclosed in
        relation to this Agreement, taking into account, among other things, the following
        criteria:
                 secrecy of the information in the sense that the information is not, as a
                body or in the precise configuration or assembly of its components,
                generally known among or readily accessible by lawful means to experts in
                the field;
                the actual or potential commercial value of the information by virtue of its
                 secrecy;
                previous protection of the information in the sense that it has been subject
                 to steps that were reasonable under the circumstances by the person
                 lawfully in control, to maintain its secrecy.
                                                   /i
 ---pagebreak--- 2.      Participants shall not normally be required to provide undisclosed information to
        the Parties. Should the Parties become aware of such information, they shall
        respect the privileged nature thereof, and it shall not be further disclosed by,
        within, or between the Parties, without the written consent of the participant(s) to
        whom the information belongs. These limitations shall automatically terminate
        when such information is disclosed by the owner, without restriction, to experts in
        the field.
3.      Each Party shall ensure that undisclosed information, communicated between them
        under the Agreement, and its ensuant privileged nature is readily recognizable as
        such by the other Party, for example, by means of an appropriate marking or
        restrictive legend. This also applies to any reproduction of the said information,
        in whole or in part.
4.      Undisclosed information communicated under the Agreement, and received from
        the other Party, may be disseminated by the receiving Party to persons within or
        employed by the receiving Party and other concerned departments or agencies of
        the receiving Party authorized for the specific purposes of the joint research
        underway, provided that any undisclosed information so disseminated shall be
        pursuant to a written agreement of confidentiality and shall be readily recognizable
        as such, as set out above.
5.      With the prior written consent of the Party providing undisclosed information
        under the Agreement, the receiving Party may disseminate such undisclosed
        information more widely than otherwise permitted in Paragraph 3 above. The
        Parties shall cooperate in developing procedures for requesting and obtaining prior
        written consent for such wider dissemination, and each Party will grant such
        approval to the extent permitted by its domestic policies, regulations and laws.
B. Non-documentary undisclosed information
Non-documentary undisclosed or other confidential or privileged information provided in
seminars and other meetings arranged under the Agreement, or information arising from
the attachment of staff, use of facilities, or joint projects, shall be treated by the Parties
or their participants according to the principles specified in Section IV A above, provided,
however, that the recipient of such undisclosed or other confidential or privileged
information has been made aware in advance and in written form of the confidential
character of the information to be communicated.
                                                  '3
 ---pagebreak--- C. Control
Each Party shall make its best efforts to ensure that undisclosed information received by it
under the Agreement shall be controlled as provided therein. If one of the Parties
becomes aware that it will be, or may reasonably be expected to become, unable to meet
the non-dissemination provisions of Paragraphs A and B above, it shall immediately
inform the Party likely to be affected by the dissemination. The Parties involved shall
thereafter consult to define an appropriate course of action.
                                              /q
 ---pagebreak---                                                                                   APPENDIX
                             INDICATIVE FEATURES OF A
                JOINT TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT PLAN (JTMP)
The JTMP is a specific contract to be concluded between the participants in joint research
defining their respective rights and obligations. With respect to Intellectual Property
Rights, the JTMP will normally address, inter alia: ownership, protection, user rights for
research and development purposes, exploitation and dissemination, including
arrangements for joint publication, the rights and obligations of visiting researchers and
dispute settlement procedures. The JTMP may also address foreground and background
information, the rules governing disclosure of undisclosed information, licensing and
deliverables.
                                                 '5
 ---pagebreak---                                  FINANCIAL STATEMENT
1. Title of the operation
International scientific cooperation : cooperation agreement in science and technology with
Canada.
2. Relevant budget headings
Travel costs for EC officials will be charged to the specific budget headings of the
programmes within the Community RTD framework programme.
3. Legal basis
Article 130i and m and Article 228 of the EC Treaty
4. Description of the operation
4.1.    Specific objectives of the operation
The essential objective is to stimulate RTD cooperation between the EC and Canada in terms
of research projects covered by the framework programme and in the sectors covered by the
Agreement.
4.2.    Duration
Unspecified : ongoing annual budget entry (the cooperation agreement includes a clause by
which either or both parties can give notice of terminating the agreement), but subject to
annual budget disponibilities.
5. Classification of the expenditure
5.1.    Non-compulsory expenditure
5.2.    Differentiated appropriations
6. Type of expenditure
 100 % subsidy
(Missions to Canada by Commission officials; organization of workshops, seminars and
meetings in Europe and Canada).
                                                   )G
 ---pagebreak--- 7. Financial impact
Method of calculating the total annual cost of the operation (estimate)
a. Preparatory activities, review of the cooperation : meeting of the Joint Science and
   Technology Cooperation Committee, exchange of information, visits of officials and
   experts in Canada                                                              25.000 Ecus
b.Scientific and technical workshops/meetings                                     30.000 Ecus
                                                            Total :          55.000 Ecus/year
8. Planned anti-fraud measures
Controls by officials technically responsible for the operation (scientific and budgetary
aspects).
9. Cost-effectiveness analysis
9.1.    Specific objectives, target population
-   The agreement is designed to enable the Community and Canada to profit on the basis
   of the principle of mutual benefit, from the scientific and technical progress achieved
    under their reciprocal research programmes, via the participation of the Canadian
    scientific community and industrial sector in the Community's research projects and via
   the independent and non-subsidized participation of bodies established in the Community
   in Canadian research projects;
-   beneficiaries in the EC and Canada will be the scientific communities, the industrial
    sector and the general public, thanks to the direct and indirect effects of cooperation.
                                                 ' 7-
 ---pagebreak--- 9.2.    Justification of the operation
Community budget intervention is indispensable because the planned cooperation comes
under the implementation of the framework programme, including the budgetary section :
participation by Canada in certain specific programmes and administrative expenditure on the
European side (missions by Community officials, organization of seminars in the Community
and Canada.
9.3.    Monitoring and evaluation of the operation
The cooperation agreement will be evaluated regularly by the Commission services
concerned. The evaluation will comprise the following elements :
a. Collection of information :
On the basis of data from the specific programmes of the framework programme.
b. Overall evaluation of the operation :
An evaluation of all the cooperation activities in the context of this agreement will be made
by the Commission's departments at the end of each year.
 ---pagebreak---                                                                      ISSN 0254-1475
                                                              COM (94) 551 final
                                                      DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                         15 l i
                                Catalogue number : CB-CO-94-578-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-77-83070-0
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