The Secretariat of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States

PRESS RELEASE - MEETING OF THE ACP MINISTERIAL COMMITTEE ON DEVELOPMENT FINANCE COOPERATION

Brussels 5 December 2005  

The ACP Ministerial Committee on Development Finance Cooperation met at ACP House, Brussels , on Monday 5 December 2005 , under the chairmanship of Hon. Raymond Tshibanda, Deputy Minister of Planning of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

After listening to the report from the Chairman of the Authorised Representatives, the Committee discussed the har monisation of the rules and procedures of the European Development Fund (EDF) with those of the general budget of the European Communities, and held an exchange of views on the end-of-term reviews of national and regional cooperation.

As regards the harmonisation of the rules and procedures, the M inisterial Committee examined the European proposal for the incorporation of the EDF rules and procedures into those applied to the general budget of the European Union. The Committee noted that the proposal anticipates a decision on EDF budgetisation, an issue on which discussions are ongoing within the EU Member States. Furthermore, the Committee felt the issue needed to be examined in more detail, bearing in mind its potential impact on the award of contracts, the provision of grants and the execution of contracts. The ACP Ministerial Committee on Development Finance Cooperation will recommend that the Council of Ministers mandate the Committee of Ambassadors to begin negotiations with the European Commission and ensure their conclusion before the revised Cotonou Agreement comes into force.

The Committee also felt that it was important for National and Regional Authorising Officers to be effectively involved in the end-of-term reviews of national and regional cooperation, so as to ensure that the evaluation criteria of needs and performance are acceptable to both Parties concerned. The Ministers further indicated that the National and Regional Authorising Officers should also ensure the identification of objective criteria accepted by the two Parties for the evaluation of needs and performance, in order to prevent conflict or misunderstandings at the time of presentation of the reports or the re-allocation of resources.

CORE MEMBERS OF THE ACP DFC COMMITTEE

( 1 February 2005 to 31 January 2006 )