Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-09-04-Speech-1-126"
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"en.20000904.8.1-126"2
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". – Let me thank Mr Dell'Alba and the Development and Cooperation Committee very sincerely for their excellent work on the Commission proposal on the future of the European Community Investment Partners. Let me commence with a bit of background.
The ECIP instrument operated successfully for 12 years, from 1988 to 1999. More than 2 500 actions were approved in that period for a total amount of over EUR 290 million involving 1 400 joint ventures and EUR 4.3 billion in investment.
From 1991, the Commission sent annual reports on the implementation and on the results of ECIP to Parliament and to the Council, of which the last covered operations in 1999. Parliament also received the independent evaluation report that was completed in December 1999, but, as honourable Members will know, from 1997 ECIP began to run into trouble. The lack of sufficient staff to ensure the smooth management of an ever-increasing number of actions resulted in delays in the implementation of the programme, which in turn caused growing discontent among its beneficiaries. These difficulties were compounded by the introduction of more stringent financial procedures needed to guarantee the proper use of the resources managed by the Commission. They are typical of the problems we face, namely insufficient resources to do the job wedded to overly restrictive practices and procedures.
The Commission decided not to extend the instrument beyond 31 December 1999. This was a painful decision, but, I am sure, the right one – and to reappraise the instrument in order to prepare a redesigned programme. This will allow better coordination with other similar European Union instruments and ensure improved management and financial procedures in the light of the new Commission guidelines on development policy and the management of external aid.
Mr Dell'Alba's report contains extremely helpful suggestions in this respect. The approval of the proposed regulation will make possible the continued sound management of existing ECIP projects and their orderly closure and winding-down as they reach completion.
As far as the suggested amendments are concerned, the Commission agrees with Amendment Nos 1 and 2, which correspond with our views on the need to reassess, improve and redesign the existing financial instruments for the support of private investment. As regards Amendment No 3, the Commission agrees with the principle behind it but is not in a position to provide the legislative proposals requested by Parliament by the end of this year. We are presently engaged in a comprehensive review of all our existing financial instruments. We need to be candid. We need more time to present a properly thought through and fundamentally revised programme.
The Commission therefore proposes to evaluate all the options by June of next year and then make proposals. The honourable gentleman has been generous, courteous and understanding. He therefore deserves the assurance from me that the timetable I have set out is one we intend to observe, and I hope he will accept our determination to present our proposals within that sort of time-scale in good faith. I wish we could act more rapidly, but to do the job properly we need a bit more time.
Let me finish by thanking the European Parliament for the support which the House has given to the proposed regulation on ECIP. It will allow the Commission to bring this programme to an end in a responsible manner and to launch renewed and improved initiatives for promotion of the private sector in developing countries. I am sure that we will have other future opportunities that will enable me to explain to some honourable Members why I do not equate that with nineteenth century imperialism."@en1
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