DECISION No 4/2005 OF THE ACP-EC COUNCIL OF MINISTERS

of 13 April 2005

on the use of the reserve of the long-term development envelope of the ninth European Development Fund

(2005/460/EC)

THE ACP-EC COUNCIL OF MINISTERS,

Having regard to the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000, and in particular paragraph 8 of Annex I,

Whereas:

(1) Funds for the Joint Parliamentary Assembly under the ninth European Development Fund (EDF) long-term development envelope and for regional cooperation and integration are exhausted.

(2) To ensure continued implementation for the purposes referred to in Article 17 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement (Joint Parliamentary Assembly), it is appropriate to allocate supplementary resources to this effect.

(3) To ensure contributions to efforts of capacity building in environmental management and implementation of multilateral environmental agreements, the establishment of an ACP-EU Action Plan for forest law enforcement, governance and trade (FLEGT), and the strengthening of fisheries management in the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, it is appropriate to allocate supplementary resources to this effect.

(4) To ensure support for producers in the most commodity-dependent ACP countries, to improve competitiveness and reduce vulnerability, and to promote information and communication technologies in the ACP countries, it is appropriate to allocate supplementary resources to this effect.

(5) To ensure methodological support and capacity building in the field of migration and regional cooperation, focusing on south-south migration, it is appropriate to allocate supplementary resources to this effect.

(6) To ensure closer cooperation with those UN organisations whose mandate and capacities match ACP-EC development policy priorities, in particular in the areas of governance and post-conflict situations, and to improve the impact of intra-ACP activities, it is appropriate to allocate supplementary resources to this effect,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Joint Parliamentary Assembly

An amount of EUR 2 million shall be transferred from the reserve of the long-term development envelope of the ninth EDF to the Joint Parliamentary Assembly allocation under the long-term development envelope, in accordance with the purposes stated in Article 17 and Protocol 1 to the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement.

Article 2

Intra-ACP cooperation under the regional cooperation envelope

An amount of EUR 170 million shall be transferred from the reserve of the long-term development envelope of the ninth EDF to the allocation for intra-ACP cooperation under the regional cooperation and integration envelope, in accordance with the purposes stated in Articles 28, 29 and 30 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement. This amount may be used for the following purposes:

(a) natural resources (EUR 60 million), for actions in the field of environment and natural resources (including fisheries, scientific and technical assessment, control and surveillance);

(b) private sector support and information and communication technologies (EUR 65 million), for actions to support producers in the most commodity-dependent ACP countries and to promote information and communication technologies in the ACP countries;

inter alia

, the setting-up of an intra-ACP migration capacity building facility;

(d) strategic partnership with the UN and support for the implementation of intra-ACP programmes (EUR 20 million), for the strengthening of cooperation with UN organisations closest to ACP-EC development policy priorities, in particular in the areas of governance and post-conflict situations, and new needs to improve the impact of intra-ACP activities.

Article 3

Entry into force

The Chief Authorising Officer of the EDF is requested to take the measures necessary to give effect to this Decision, which shall enter into force on the day of its adoption.

Done at Brussels, 13 April 2005.

The Chairman of the ACP-EC Committee of Ambassadors by delegation, for the ACP-EC Council of Ministers

F. J. WAHNON FERREIRA