(a) be implemented, in accordance with the association and development strategies adopted pursuant to Article 4, with due regard to the OCTs respective geographical, social and cultural characteristics, as well as their specific potential;
(b) ensure that resource flows are accorded on a predictable and regular basis;
(c) be flexible and tailored to the situation in each OCT.
2. Member States shall cooperate with the Commission to ensure sound financial management in the use of Community funds.
3. Following a partnership approach, Community activities shall be decided in close consultation between the Commission, the OCT authorities concerned and the Member State to which it is linked. Such partnership shall be conducted in full compliance with the respective institutional, legal and financial powers of each of the partners.
4. Without prejudice to the second subparagraph of Article 25(1), Community and Member States contributions shall be complementary.
5. In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, the authorities of the OCT concerned shall be responsible for implementing operations without prejudice to the powers of the Commission designed to ensure sound financial management in the use of Community funds.
Article 20. Single Programming Documents
1. Pursuant to Article 4, the OCT authorities, the Commission and the Member State to which the OCT is linked, acting in partnership, shall lay down the strategy and the priority aims on which the SPD is to be based.
2. The OCT authorities shall be responsible for:
(a) establishing their priorities on which the cooperation strategy should be based;
(b) in the framework of sectoral planning, identifying projects and programmes and establishing back-up measures to ensure the sustainability and viability of the proposed schemes;
(c) preparing project and programme dossiers;
(d) preparing, negotiating and concluding contracts;
(e) implementing and managing projects and programmes;
(f) maintaining projects and programmes and ensuring their sustainability.
3. The relevant authorities of the OCTs and the Commission shall be jointly responsible for:
(a) adopting the SPD;
(b) ensuring equality of conditions for participation in invitations to tender and contracts;
(c) monitoring and evaluating the effects and results of projects and programmes;
(d) ensuring the proper, prompt and efficient execution of projects and programmes.
4. The Commission shall be responsible for taking the financing decision on the overall allocation corresponding to the SPD, in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 24.
5. Unless otherwise provided in this Decision, all decisions requiring the approval of a party to the association shall be approved, or be deemed approved, within six months of notification by the other party.
Article 21. Scope of Financing
Within the framework of the strategy and priorities established by the OCT concerned at local or regional level, financial support may be given to operations helping to achieve the objectives set out in this Decision.
The following activities shall fall within its scope:
(a) sectoral policies and reforms as well as projects that are in coherence with them;
(b) institutional development, capacity building and integration of environmental aspects;
(c) technical cooperation programmes;
(d) humanitarian aid and emergency relief operations;
(e) additional support in the event of fluctuations in export earnings from exports of goods and services.
Article 22. Eligibility for Financing
1. The following entities or bodies shall be eligible for financial support provided under this Decision:
(a) OCTs;
(b) regional or inter-State bodies to which one or more OCTs belong and which are authorised by their relevant authorities;
(c) joint bodies set up by the Community and the OCTs to pursue certain specific objectives.
2. Subject to the agreement of the authorities of OCTs concerned, the following shall also be eligible for support:
(a) local, national and/or regional public or semi-public agencies, departments or local authorities of the OCTs and in particular their financial institutions and development banks;
(b) companies and firms of the OCTs and of regional groups;
(c) enterprises of a Member State, so as to enable them, in addition to their own contribution, to undertake productive projects in the territory of an OCT;
(d) OCT or Community financial intermediaries promoting and financing private investments in the OCTs;
(e) actors of decentralised cooperation and other non-State actors from OCTs and from the Community, to enable them to undertake economic, cultural, social and educational projects and programmes in the OCTs in the framework of decentralised cooperation, as referred to in Article 29.
Article 23. Programming and Implementation
The Commission shall adopt the implementing provisions for this Part of the Decision and for Annexes II A to D within 12 months of its entry into force, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 24 and in cooperation with the OCTs in accordance with Article 7.
It shall support the full utilisation by the OCTs of the instruments laid down in this Decision, in particular the trade and financial provisions, by providing the relevant guidelines and information within 12 months of its entry into force.
The provisions shall include in particular:
(a) the procedure for preparing the SPD and its essential elements;
(b) the procedures and criteria for the follow-up, audit, ex-ante, mid-term and ex-post evaluation, review and implementation of the SPD, including those in relation to the Commission's participation in these activities;
(c) the preparation of periodical or other reports;
(d) detailed rules for the financial corrections referred to in Article 32.
The financial and accounting procedures shall be laid down in the 9th EDF Financial Regulation.
Article 24. The EDF-OCT Committee
1. The Commission shall, where appropriate, be assisted by the Committee created by the Internal Agreement, hereinafter referred to in this Article as "the Committee".
2. When exercising the powers conferred on it by this Decision, the Committee shall be known as the "EDF-OCT Committee". The internal rules of procedure of the Committee created by the Internal Agreement shall apply to the EDF-OCT Committee.
3. The Committee shall focus its work on the substantive issues of development cooperation at OCT and regional level. In the interests of coherence, coordination and complementarity, it shall monitor the implementation of the SPDs.
4. The Committee shall give its opinion on:
(a) draft SPDs and any amendments to them;
(b) the implementing provisions for this Part of the Decision and for Annexes II A to D.
5. 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 laid down by the chairman. The opinion shall be delivered by the majority laid down in Article 21(4) of the Internal Agreement. The votes of the representatives of the Member States within the Committee shall be weighted in the manner set out in paragraph 3 of that Article. The chairman shall not vote.
6. The Commission shall adopt the measures, which shall apply immediately. However, if the measures are not in accordance with the opinion of the Committee they shall be communicated by the Commission to the Council forthwith. In that event, the Commission may defer application of the measures which it has decided on for a period of not more than three months from the date of such communication.
7. The Council, acting by the majority and in accordance with the weighting referred to in paragraph 5, may take a different decision within the period provided for in paragraph 6.
8. The Commission shall inform the Committee of the follow-up, evaluation and audit of SPDs.
Chapter 2. Resources Made Available to the OCTs Article 25 Financial Assistance
Article 25. Financial Assistance
1. The overall amount of Community financial assistance for the purposes of Chapter 1, its allocation, financing terms and arrangements and of the use of the assistance for the period from 2000 to 2007 can be found in Annexes II A to D and in Chapter 3, without prejudice to the provisions to be adopted by the Commission as laid down in Article 24.
Financial assistance under this Decision may be used to cover the total cost of both the local and foreign expenditure of projects and programmes, including financing of recurrent costs.
2. OCTs are also eligible for financing under the legislation in force in favour of the developing countries listed in Annex II E and for the Community programmes listed in Annex II F.
Chapter 3. Private Sector Investment Support
Article 26. Investment Promotion
The authorities of the OCT, Member States and the Community, recognising the importance of private investment in the promotion of their development cooperation and acknowledging the need to take steps to promote such investment, shall:
(a) implement measures to encourage participation in their development efforts by private investors who comply with the objectives and priorities of OCT-EC development cooperation and with the appropriate laws and regulations;
(b) accord fair and equitable treatment to such investors;
(c) take measures and actions which help to create and maintain a predictable and secure investment climate as well as enter into negotiations on agreements which will improve such a climate;
(d) promote effective cooperation among OCT economic operators and between them and those of the Community in order to increase the flow of capital, management skills, technology and other forms of know-how;
(e) seek to promote a greater flow of private resources between the Community and the OCTs by contributing, inter alia, to the removal of obstacles which impede OCT operators' access to international capital markets, including those of the Community;
(f) create an environment which encourages the development of financial institutions and the mobilisation of resources which are essential to capital formation and the growth of entrepreneurship;
(g) promote the development of enterprises by taking such steps as are necessary to improve the business environment and, in particular, foster a legal, administrative and incentive framework which is conducive to the emergence and development of dynamic private sector enterprises including grassroots operations;
(h) strengthen the capacity of local institutions in the OCTs to provide the range of services which can encourage greater local participation in industrial and business activity.
Article 27. Investment Support and Financing
Cooperation will provide long-term financing to help promote private sector growth and mobilise national and foreign capital to that effect. To this end, cooperation shall in particular provide:
(a) grants to cover technical and financial assistance in support of human resource development, institutional capacity building, or other forms of institutional aid linked to a specific investment; measures designed to make enterprises more competitive and build the capacity of private financial and non-financial intermediaries; measures to facilitate and promote investment and activities to improve competitiveness;
(b) advisory and consultancy services to help create an investment-friendly climate and a stock of information to help guide and encourage capital flows;
(c) grants funded by the Investment Facility referred to in Annex II C;
(d) loans from the EIB's own resources.
The conditions applicable to the Investment Facility and the abovementioned loans are laid down respectively in Annexes II B and C.
Chapter 4. Additional Support In the Event of Fluctuations In Export Earnings
Article 28. Additional Support
1. In order to mitigate the adverse effects of any short-term fluctuations in export earnings, in particular in the agricultural and mining sectors, which might jeopardise the attainment of the
Development objectives of the OCT concerned, a system of additional support shall be instituted within the financial allocation referred to in Annex II A.
2. The purpose of support in the event of short-term fluctuations in export earnings is to safeguard macroeconomic and sectoral reforms and policies that are at risk as a result of a drop in revenue and remedy the adverse effects of instability of export earnings in particular from agricultural and mining products.
3. The dependence of the OCT economies on exports, in particular in the agricultural and mining sectors, shall be taken into account in the allocation of resources referred to in Annex II D. In this context, the least developed OCTs shall receive more favourable treatment.
4. The additional resources shall be provided in accordance with the specific modalities of the support mechanism as set out in Annex II D.
5. The Community shall also provide support for market-based insurance schemes designed for OCTs seeking to protect themselves against the risk of fluctuations in export earnings.
Chapter 5. Support for other Actors of Cooperation
Article 29. Objectives and Financing
1. In order to respond to the development needs of local communities and encourage all actors of decentralised cooperation which are in a position to contribute to the autonomous development of the OCTs to put forward and implement initiatives, OCT-EC cooperation shall support such development operations within limits laid down by the OCTs concerned and by the Member States to which these OCTs are linked, and within the framework of the SPD provisions.
2. In this context, financial support shall be given to decentralised projects and microprojects as follows:
(a) The cooperation partners eligible for financial support under this Chapter shall be decentralised cooperation agents in the Community or the OCTs or other developing countries, namely: local authorities, non-governmental organisations, local traders' associations and local citizens' groups, cooperatives, trade unions, women's and youth organisations, teaching and research institutions, churches and any non-governmental associations likely to contribute do development.
This form of cooperation shall make available for the development of the OCTs the capabilities, innovative operating methods and resources of the actors of decentralised cooperation. Support will take account in particular joint actions between Community, OCT and other developing countries;
(b) Local microprojects shall have an economic and social impact on the life of the people, meet a demonstrated and observed priority need and be undertaken at the initiative and with the active participation of the local community which will benefit therefrom.
3. Projects or programmes under this form of cooperation may be a way of achieving the specific objectives of the SPD or the results of initiatives by local communities or decentralised actors.
4. The support provided for under this Chapter shall be additional or, if need be, complementary in respect of the provisions in Annex II E.
5. Contributions to the funding of microprojects and decentralised cooperation shall come from grants, in which case the contribution shall not normally exceed three-quarters of the total cost of each project. The balance shall be financed:
(a) for microprojects, by the local community concerned, in kind or in the form of services or cash and adapted to its capacity to contribute;
(b) for decentralised cooperation, by the actors of decentralised cooperation, provided that the financial, technical, material and other resources brought in by such actors is not, as a general rule, less than 25 % of the estimated cost of the project/programme;
(c) in exceptional cases where both microprojects and decentralised cooperation are concerned, by the authorities of the OCT concerned, either in the form of financial contribution or through the use of public equipment or the supply of services.
The procedures applicable to projects and programmes financed in the context of microprojects or decentralised cooperation shall be as set out in this Decision, notably with regard to the SPD implementing provisions.
Chapter 6. Support for Humanitarian and Emergency Aid
Article 30. Objectives and Means
1. Humanitarian and emergency aid shall be granted to OCTs faced with serious economic and social difficulties of an exceptional nature resulting from natural disasters or extraordinary circumstances having comparable effects. Humanitarian and emergency aid shall be maintained as long as necessary to deal with the urgent problems which arise in such situations. Humanitarian and emergency aid shall be granted solely on the basis of the needs and interests of disaster victims.
2. The aim of humanitarian and emergency aid shall be to:
(a) save human lives in crisis and post-crisis situations caused by natural disasters or extraordinary circumstances having comparable effects;
(b) help finance the transport of aid and efforts to ensure that it is accessible to those for whom it is intended, by all logistical means available;
(c) implement short-term rehabilitation and reconstruction measures in order to establish conditions as soon as possible for the people concerned to be integrated or reintegrated;
(d) respond to needs arising as a result of people being displaced, such as refugees, displaced persons and returnees following natural or man-made disasters so as to meet all the requirements of refugees and displaced persons wherever they may be for as long as is necessary and facilitate their voluntary resettlement;
(e) help the OCTs to develop or perfect systems of disaster prevention and preparedness, including prediction and early-warning systems, with a view to reducing the consequences of disasters.
3. Similarly aid may be granted to OCTs taking in refugees or returnees to meet acute needs not covered by emergency assistance.
4. Aid provided for by this Article shall be financed from the Community budget. However, it may exceptionally be financed from the allocations laid down in Annex II A, in addition to the funding from the budget heading concerned.
5. Humanitarian and emergency aid operations shall be undertaken at the request of the OCT affected, the Commission, the Member State to which the OCT is linked, international organisations or local or international non-governmental organisations. Such aid shall be administered and implemented under procedures that facilitate rapid, flexible and effective operations.
Chapter 7. Implementation Procedures
Article 31. Technical Assistance
1. On the initiative of or on behalf of the Commission, studies or technical assistance measures may be financed in order to ensure the preparation, monitoring, evaluation and supervision necessary for implementing this Decision.
Such studies or technical assistance measures shall be financed by the overall grant allocation.
2. On the initiative of the OCT, studies or technical assistance measures may be financed in relation to the implementation of the activities contained in the SPD, subject to the Commission's opinion.
Such studies or technical assistance measures shall be financed from the allocation of the OCT concerned.
Article 32. Financial Control
1. The OCT concerned shall bear primary responsibility for the financial supervision of the operation. This shall be carried out, where appropriate, in coordination with the Member State to which the OCT is linked in accordance with the applicable national legislation.
2. The Commission shall be responsible for:
(a) ensuring that management and control systems exist and function properly in the OCT concerned so as to ensure that the Community funds are used correctly and effectively;
(b) in the event of irregularities, sending recommendations or requests for corrective measures to remedy those irregularities and rectify any management shortcomings found.
3. The Commission, OCT and, where appropriate, the Member State to which it is linked, shall cooperate on the basis of administrative arrangements at annual or biannual meeting to coordinate programmes, methodologies and the implementation of controls.
4. With regard to financial corrections:
(a) the OCT shall be responsible in the first instance for detecting and correcting financial irregularities;
(b) however, in the event of shortcomings by the OCT concerned, the Commission shall take action, if the OCT fails to remedy the situation and attempts at conciliation are unsuccessful, to reduce or withdraw the balance of the overall allocation corresponding to the SPD financing decision.
Chapter 8. Transition from Previous European Development Funds (EDFs) to the 9th EDF
Article 33. Implementing the Previous EDFs and the Transitional Phase
1. Commitments made in the framework of the 6th, 7th and 8th EDFs before the entry into force of this Decision shall continue to be executed following the rules applicable to those EDFs. Resources from the sixth, seventh and eighth EDFs which were allocated to OCTs before the entry into force of this Decision shall remain allocated to them. These resources shall continue to be used in accordance with the relevant provisions of Decision 91/482/EEC, which shall remain applicable for such purposes, until the entry into force of the Internal Agreement establishing the 9th EDF.
Until the Internal Agreement establishing the 9th EDF comes into force, the officials responsible for managing and implementing European Development Fund resources, namely the EDF Chief Authorising Officer, the OCT Local Authorising Officer and the Commission's Head of Delegation, shall remain responsible for the management and implementation tasks assigned to them by Council Decision 91/482/EC.
2. Any balances remaining from previous EDFs on the date of entry into force of the Internal Agreement establishing the 9th EDF, as well as any amounts that shall be decommitted at a
Later date from ongoing projects under these Funds, shall be transferred to the 9th EDF and used in accordance with the conditions laid down in this Decision.
Any resources thus transferred to the 9th EDF that previously had been allocated to the indicative programme of an OCT or region shall remain allocated to that OCT or to regional cooperation.
Any other remaining balances not allocated to an indicative programme shall be transferred to the non-committed amount of the 9th EDF. The overall amount of this Decision, supplemented by the transferred balances from previous EDFs, shall cover the period 2000-2007. This paragraph shall apply in particular to any remaining balances of the overall amounts referred to in Articles 118 and 142 of Decision 91/482/EEC concerning, respectively, the stabilisation of export earnings from agricultural commodities (Stabex) and the special financing facility (Sysmin).
Part II. Economic and Trade Cooperation
Article 34. Objective
1. The objective of economic and trade cooperation shall be to promote the economic and social development of the OCTs, in particular by establishing close economic relations between them and the Community as a whole.
The implementation of such cooperation must be consistent with the objectives of the other common policies.
2. Furthermore, the Community undertakes to support the effective integration of the OCTs in the global economy and the development of their trade in goods and services to regional and world markets.
Chapter 1. Arrangements for Trade In Goods
Article 35. Free Access for Originating Products
1. Products originating in the OCTs shall be imported into the Community free of import duty.