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European Development Fund (EDF)
Cooperation between
African, Caribbean, Pacific (ACP)
countries; Overseas Countries &
Territories (OCTs) and Overseas Regions
(OR)
Marc Debois (DEVCO - Planning ACP) &
Theo Saramandis (DEVCO - Taskforce OCT)
EuropeAid
ACP, OCTs and ORs
26 Overseas Countries & Territories (OCTs)
o OCT status created under the Treaty of Rome in 1957
o EU citizenship but EU law does not apply (not EU territory) : no access to
structural funds
o Eligible to EDF-OCT funds + EIB loans + programmes & Instruments under EU
General Budget
With special links to 4 EU MS: FR, NL, UK, DK
9 EU regions are Outermost Regions (OR)
o EU territory/EU laws apply : eligible to structural funds + programmes, policies
& Instruments under EU General Budget
o Belonging to 3 EU MS: FR, ES, PT
79 African Caribbean Pacific (ACP) states – 6
regions
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Legal Bases & State of play negotiations
• Cotonou agreement (ACP), Overseas Association
Decision (OCTs), Structural Funds (OR)
o ACP  Cotonou Agreement (runs until 2020) + TFEU (art. 208)
o OCTs Part IV TFEU (article 199 to 203) + 2001 OAD (expires in 2013,
proposal currently negotiated within ACP WG)
o OR  Art. 349 TFEU + Structural Funds Regulations (post 2013
package under negotiation)
• MS Internal Agreement on EDF (ACP + OCTs)
o Fixes the amount and the various financial envelopes, the contribution
keys and the voting rights in the EDF Committee
o Final negotiations with MS in 2013 after decision on MFF/EDF11
o Ratification process by Member States (2 years)
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Legal Bases & State of play negotiations
• Internal agreement 11th EDF – OCTs


34, 3 billion € for ACP (27, 7 bn for countries/regions)(COM proposal)
343.4 million € (COM proposal) shall be allocated to the OCTs
 338.4 million to finance territorial and regional programmes
 5 million in the form of an allocation to the EIB to finance interest
subsidies and technical assistance
• Implementing Regulations
Defines the general framework for programming and implementation of
the 11th EDF as well as the monitoring, reporting and evaluation
requirements
 for EDF – ACP (hopefully adopted beginning of 2013)
 for EDF – OCTs (hopefully adopted last quarter of 2013)
• EDF Financial Regulation
o
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To be adopted in 2013
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ACP Provisions on Regional Cooperation
• Revised Cotonou agreement: art. 28 on the
importance of regional cooperation among ACP
States, OCTs and OR.
"Under the condition set out in Article 58, cooperation shall support interregional and intra ACP cooperation such as involving
(a) one or several ACP regional organisations, including at continental
level;
(b) European Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) and outermost
regions
(c) non-ACP developing countries"
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Scope of the regional cooperation (Cotonou Agreement,
art. 6 Annex IV)
Regional cooperation shall cover operations benefiting and involving:
• a) At least 2 ACP States + any non-ACP countries
• b) A regional body with at least 2 ACP States + non-ACP countries
 Regional cooperation can also involve OCTs and OR regions. The
funding to enable participation of these territories shall be additional to
funds allocated to the ACP States.
Conditions to participation to regional programmes :
• the centre of gravity remains in an ACP country;
• equivalent provisions exist in the framework of the Community's
financial instruments;
• the principle of proportionality is respected.
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11th EDF-ACP draft Implementation Regulation
Participation by a third country or region
Commission may decide that are eligible for EDF funding:
• non-ACP developing countries and regional integration bodies
with ACP participation that promote regional cooperation and
integration
• OCTs eligible for Union assistance and the Union's OR where
the project or programme concerned is of a regional or crossborder nature and complies with Article 6 of Annex IV to the
Cotonou Agreement.
 Provision for these funds have to be made in the strategy papers,
Multiannual Indicative Programmes, Action Programmes
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Programming for ACP countries
• Programming at national/regional/intra ACP level
• Ownership of beneficiaries
• Partnership: EU+ACP Joint decision for programming
• Alignment (where possible) to partner countries poverty reduction
strategy
• Focus: 3 Priority sectors /areas
• MS involvement in programming process
• Consultation with other donors, development actors, civil society, local
authorities
• Programming instructions, strategies, programmes
• Timing of programming: 2013
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OAD provisions on regional cooperation
• OCTs: Proposal for an Overseas Association
Decision (OAD) : Art. 87 Eligibility for regional
financing which defines eligibility criteria but
also provides that:
"Appropriate measures will allow for matching of funding of credits from
the EDF and the Union budget to finance cooperation projects between the
OCTs, the ACP Countries, the outermost regions as well as other
countries, in particular simplified mechanisms for joint management of
such projects"
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Regional cooperation (OAD proposal)
1. A regional allocation shall be used for operations benefiting and involving:
• one or more OCTs and one or more outermost regions referred to in Article 349
of the Treaty;
• one or more OCTs, one or more outermost regions and one or more ACP and/or
non-ACP States;
• one or more OCTs and regional bodies of which OCTs, ACP States or one or
more of the outermost regions are members;
• the OCTs and the Union as a whole.
2. The funding to enable participation of the ACP States, outermost regions and other
countries shall be additional to funds allocated to the OCTs under this Decision.
Conditions to participation to regional programmes :
3. The participation of ACP States, outermost regions and other countries to
programmes established pursuant to this Decision shall be envisaged only to the
extent that:
(a)
the centre of gravity of the projects and programmes funded under the multi
annual financial framework of cooperation remains in an OCT;
(b)
equivalent provisions exist in the framework of the EU's financial instruments;
(c)
the principle of proportionality is respected.
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Programming for OCTs
• aid shall be based on a programming document and should focus on one
single sector
• [105] million € to be allocated to support regional cooperation and
integration through consultation via the instances of the EU-OCT
partnership.
• It shall seek coordination with other Union financial instruments,
cooperation between the OCTs and the outermost regions.
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How to foster regional integration?
•
Consultation of OCTs/ACP on the draft ERDF Programmes prior
to submission to European Commisison
•
Definition of role of OCTs/ACP in the context of the ERDF
Programmes in terms of financial management, programming,
monitoring, evaluation and control and participation in ERDF
monitoring committees
•
Improved information sharing
•
Establishment of concertation mechanisms (OCTs/OR/ACP)
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