Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-03-31-Speech-3-278"

Predicate	Value (sorted: default)
rdf:type	lpv_eu:Speech2
dcterms:Date	"2004-03-31"^^xsd:date2
dcterms:Is Part Of	lp_eu:Budgetisation of the EDF2
dcterms:Language	"fi"^^xsd:language2
lpv:document identification number	"en.20040331.13.3-278"2
lpv:hasSubsequent	lp_eu:2004-03-31-Speech-3-2792
lpv:speaker	lp:Kyösti Virrankoski2
lpv:spokenAs	unknown; Suomen Keskusta (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3 member; Delegation to the EU-Romania Joint Parliamentary Committee (2002-02-07--2004-07-19)3 substitute; CONT (2002-01-17--2004-07-19)3 substitute; Delegation to the EU-Estonia Joint Parliamentary Committee (2002-02-07--2004-04-30)3 member; BUDG (2002-01-17--2004-07-19)3 member; ELDR (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3
lpv:translated text	". Mr President, firstly I would like to thank and congratulate the rapporteur for an excellent report and for the fact that most of the amendments put forward by the Committee on Budgets have been included in it. The European Development Fund came from the desire on the part of the Member States to help regions in Asia, the Caribbean and the Pacific develop. At present all EU Member States participate in the funding, although the way they do differs slightly from how they contribute proportionately to the European Union budget. The management of the European Development Fund is confusing. The agreement on the fund has to be ratified by all EU countries and two thirds of the recipient countries. This generally takes years. As a result there have been delays in its implementation and fluctuations in the degree of financing. The funds are managed by the Commission, but the authorities in the ACP countries implement the projects. One problem is the weak administrative capacities of the recipient countries. There is poor parliamentary control. The European Parliament grants discharge, but it is difficult to clarify administrative procedures and clear accounts. A consequence of this confused system of management is inefficiency. Because each development fund is meant to be used in its entirety, the result is that what is left over from previous funds is transferred to subsequent funds. At the same time there has been an increase in outstanding commitments, which now stand at EUR 11 billion. At the same time the same countries are being granted development aid out of EU budget funds, to the tune of approximately EUR 700 million in 2002, for example. These funds are managed in accordance with the EU’s Financial Regulation. They are made available during the budget procedure, the Commission is responsible for how they are used, and the financial statements come under scrutiny during the discharge procedure. It is important for EU development cooperation and in the interests of the ACP countries that the management of the European Development Fund can be simplified and made to work more efficiently. That is why the Commission’s initiative to integrate the EDF into the EU budget is right. That way administration would be simplified and made to work more efficiently, the funding procedure would be stabilised, and future financing via the EU would be harmonised as one whole process. For that reason, the Committee on Budgets supports the Commission proposal on this matter."@en1

Named graphs describing this resource:

The resource appears as object in 2 triples

Context graph