Article 1 Establishment
A European microfinance facility for employment and social inclusion, called the European Progress Microfinance Facility (hereinafter the Facility), is hereby established.
Article 2 Objective
1. The Facility shall provide Union resources to increase access to, and availability of, microfinance for: (a) persons who have lost or are at risk of losing their job, or who have difficulties entering or re-entering the labour market, as well as persons who are facing the threat of social exclusion or vulnerable persons who are in a disadvantaged position with regard to access to the conventional credit market and who want to start or further develop their own micro-enterprise, including self-employment; (b) micro-enterprises, especially in the social economy, as well as micro-enterprises which employ persons referred to in point (a). 2. The Facility shall provide Union resources for access to microfinance, and actively promote equal opportunities for women and men.
Article 3 Budget
1. The financial contribution from the Union budget for the Facility for the period from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2013 shall be EUR 100 million. 2. The annual appropriations shall be decided during the annual budgetary procedure, including, if necessary, by application of point 37 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 17 May 2006 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and sound financial management ( 6 ) , or by other means provided for in that Agreement. 3. The total budget for support measures referred to in point (d) of Article 4(1) shall not exceed 1 % of the budget of the Facility set out in paragraph 1 of this Article. 4. The financial contribution shall cover the full cost of the Facility, including management fees for international financial institutions referred to in Article 5(2) managing the Union contribution as well as any other eligible costs.
Article 4 Eligible actions and beneficiaries
1. The Facility shall be implemented by using the following types of actions, as appropriate: (a) guarantees and risk-sharing instruments; (b) equity instruments; (c) debt instruments; (d) support measures, such as communication activities, monitoring, control, audit and evaluation which are directly necessary for the effective and efficient implementation of this Decision and for the achievement of its objectives. 2. The Facility shall be open to public and private bodies established on national, regional and local levels in the Member States which provide microfinance to persons and micro-enterprises in the Member States. 3. In order to reach the final beneficiaries and to create competitive and viable micro-enterprises, the public and private bodies referred to in paragraph 2 shall cooperate closely with organisations engaged in representing the interests of the final beneficiaries of microcredit and with organisations, in particular those supported by the ESF, who provide mentoring and training programmes to those final beneficiaries.
Article 5 Management
1. The Commission shall manage the Facility in accordance with Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities ( 7 ) . 2. To implement the actions referred to in Article 4(1), with the exception of the support measures referred to in point (d) of Article 4(1), the Commission shall conclude agreements with international financial institutions, in particular with the EIB and the EIF, in accordance with Article 53d of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 and Article 43 of Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/2002 of 23 December 2002 laying down detailed rules for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 ( 8 ) . Those agreements shall contain detailed provisions for the implementation of the tasks entrusted to those financial institutions, including provisions specifying the need to ensure additionality and coordination with existing European and national financial instruments, and to promote a comprehensive and balanced coverage between the Member States. 3. In order to meet the objective set out in Article 2 and implement the actions set out in Article 4, the agreements referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article shall, furthermore, include an obligation on the part of the international financial institutions to re-invest the resources and proceeds, including dividends and reimbursements, in actions referred to under points (a), (b) or (c) of Article 4(1) for a period of six years after the starting date of the Facility. 4. Upon closure of the Facility, the remaining balance due to the European Union shall be repaid to the general budget of the European Union. 5. The international financial institutions referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article shall conclude written agreements with the public and private providers of microfinance referred to in Article 4(2) laying down their obligations to use the resources made available from the Facility in accordance with the objectives set out in Article 2 and to provide information for the establishment of the annual reports referred to in Article 8(1). 6. The budget for support measures referred to in point (d) of Article 4(1) shall be managed by the Commission.
Article 6 Compliance
Actions financed by the Facility shall comply with the provisions of the Treaty and of acts adopted under it.
Article 7 Protection of the Union’s financial interests
1. The Commission shall ensure that, when actions financed under this Decision are implemented, the financial interests of the Union are protected by the application of measures to prevent fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities, by effective checks and by the recovery of amounts unduly paid and, if irregularities are detected, by effective, proportional and dissuasive penalties, in accordance with Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 of 18 December 1995 on the protection of the European Communities financial interests ( 9 ) , Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 of 11 November 1996 concerning on-the-spot checks and inspections carried out by the Commission in order to protect the European Communities’ financial interests against fraud and other irregularities ( 10 ) , and Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 May 1999 concerning investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) ( 11 ) . 2. For the Union actions financed under this Decision, OLAF has the power to carry out investigations on the basis of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 and Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96, which shall apply to any infringement of a provision of Union law, including infringements of a contractual obligation stipulated on the basis of the Facility, resulting from an act or omission by an economic operator, which has, or would have, the effect of prejudicing the general budget of the European Union or budgets managed by it, by an unjustified item of expenditure. 3. All implementing measures resulting from this Decision shall include a reference to paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article and provide, in particular, for supervision and financial control by the Commission or any representative authorised by it, and by audits by the European Court of Auditors, including, if necessary, on-the-spot audits.
Article 8 Annual report
1. The international financial institutions referred to in Article 5(2) shall transmit to the Commission annual implementation reports setting out the supported activities in terms of financial implementation, distribution and accessibility of funding with regard to sectors and type of beneficiaries, applications accepted or rejected, contracts concluded, actions funded and results. 2. No later than 8 April 2011 and each year thereafter, the Commission shall present to the European Parliament and to the Council a quantitative and qualitative annual report on the activities undertaken under this Decision in the previous year. The annual report shall be based on the implementation reports referred to in paragraph 1. It shall, in particular, contain information relating to applications adopted or rejected, contracts concluded, actions funded, the total number and type of beneficiaries and the distribution of amounts geographically and per sector. The annual report shall moreover contain information on the impact and sustainability of the Facility expressed by the total number of persons and micro-enterprises which are still employed or in business at the end of the period of support provided to them through the Facility. Finally the annual report will include information on complementarity with other Union interventions, notably the ESF. 3. Following the presentation of the third annual report and on the basis of a proposal by the Commission, the European Parliament and the Council may review this Decision. 4. The annual report referred in paragraph 2 will be transmitted, for information, to the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. 5. Based on the annual report referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, the Commission shall make efforts to ensure that the Facility meets the objective set out in Article 2 and is accessible across the European Union to those who are at risk of social exclusion or who are finding it difficult to access the conventional credit market.
Article 9 Evaluation
1. The Commission shall carry out interim and final evaluations at its own initiative and in close cooperation with the international financial institutions referred to in Article 5(2). The interim evaluation shall be completed four years after the start of the Facility and the final evaluation at the latest one year after the end of the mandate(s) given to the international financial institutions referred to in Article 5(2). The final evaluation shall, in particular, examine the extent to which the Facility as a whole has achieved its objectives. 2. The results of the evaluations will be transmitted, for information, to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions.
Article 10 Entry into force
This Decision shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union .