51998PC0331

Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Decision establishing the Community action programme for youth (98/C 311/06) (Text with EEA relevance) COM(1998) 331 final - 98/0197(COD)

(Submitted by the Commission on 28 August 1998)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community and in particular Article 126 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee,

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions,

Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 189b of the Treaty,

(1) Whereas the Treaty establishing the European Community stipulates that the latter's action shall, inter alia, contribute to the development of quality education and training; whereas this was resolutely reiterated by the Treaty of Amsterdam signed on 2 October 1997 which states that the Community's objective is also to promote the highest possible level of knowledge for its peoples through wide access to education and through a continuous updating of knowledge;

(2) Whereas, by their Decision No 818/95/EC (1), the European Parliament and the Council set up an action programme regarding cooperation in the field of youth; whereas it is appropriate, on the basis of the experience acquired from that programme, to pursue and strengthen cooperation and Community action in that field;

(3) Whereas the extraordinary European Council on Employment held in Luxembourg on 20 and 21 November 1997 adopted a coordinated employment strategy in which lifelong education and training have a fundamental role to play in implementing guidelines (2) for the Member States' employment policies in order to enhance employability, adaptability, and the culture of entrepreneurship (3) and to promote equal opportunities;

(4) Whereas the Commission in its communication 'Towards a Europe of knowledge` (4) set out guidelines on the creation of a European education area capable of achieving the objective of lifelong education and training, defining six types of measures to be developed at Community level, focusing on transnational cooperation and designed to bring added-value to the action taken by the Member States in full respect of the principle of subsidiarity, in a context of simplified procedures;

(5) Whereas the White Paper: 'Teaching and learning - towards the learning society` (5) states that the emergence of the learning society entails encouraging the acquisition of new knowledge and to this end providing motivation to learn at every opportunity; and whereas the Green Paper 'Education, training, research: the obstacles to transnational mobility` (6) highlighted the advantages mobility brings to people and competitiveness in the Union;

(6) Whereas there is a need to promote active citizenship, to strengthen the links between measures pursued under this programme, and to step up the fight against exclusion in all its forms, including racism and xenophobia; whereas special attention should be focused on removing all forms of inequality and on promoting equal opportunities for women and men;

(7) Whereas the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union have established Community action programmes for the education and training fields, which contribute together with the youth programme to implementing a knowledge policy;

(8) Whereas it is necessary, in order to reinforce the added-value of Community action to ensure, at all levels, a coherence and a complementarity between the actions implemented in the framework of this Decision and the Community interventions, in particular in the domains of culture (7), audiovisual media, the completion of the single market, the environment, consumer protection, the information society, SMEs, social policies, employment and public health;

(9) Whereas the Commission's proposals for reforming the Structural Funds (8), particularly the European Social Fund, and the Community initiatives stemming therefrom, are based on objectives designed to support the adaptation and modernisation of policies and systems relating to education, training and employment;

(10) Whereas the European Councils of Essen (9 and 10 December 1994) and Cannes (26 and 27 June 1995) stressed the need for further action to enhance the social and vocational integration of young people in Europe; whereas the conclusions of the European Council of Florence (21 and 22 June 1996) emphasised the importance of making it easier for young people to enter the labour force; whereas the European Council meeting in Amsterdam (15 and 17 June 1997) expressed its support for non-profit making activities; whereas the European Parliament and Council have adopted Decision No 1686/98/EC (9) establishing a Community action programme 'European voluntary service for young people`;

(11) Whereas provision should be made to open up this programme to participation by the associated Central and East European countries, in accordance with the conditions established in the relevant agreements, notably the association agreements, to Cyprus on the same terms as those applied to the EFTA/EEA countries as well as to Turkey and Malta according to the procedures to be agreed with those countries;

(12) Whereas this programme should be monitored and continually assessed in cooperation between the Commission and the Member States in order to allow for readjustments, particularly in the priorities for implementing the measures;

(13) Whereas, in accordance with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality as defined in Article 3b of the Treaty, the objectives of the proposed action concerning the development and strengthening of a cooperation policy in the youth field, including the European voluntary service and youth exchanges both within the Community and with the non-member countries, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States because of the complexity and diversity of the youth field and can therefore be better achieved by the Community thanks to the transnational dimension of Community actions and measures; whereas this Decision does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve these objectives;

(14) Whereas this Decision lays down, for the entire duration of the programme, a financial framework offering the budgetary authority the principal point of reference, within the meaning of point 1 of the Joint Declaration by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission of 6 March 1995 (10), during the annual budgetary procedure;

(15) Whereas an agreement was reached on 20 December 1994 on a modus vivendi (11) between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission concerning the implementing measures for acts adopted pursuant to the procedure referred to in Article 189b of the Treaty,

HAVE DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Establishment of the programme

1. This Decision establishes the Community action programme for youth, hereinafter referred to as 'this programme`, concerning the cooperation policy in the youth field, including the European Voluntary Service and youth exchanges both within the Community and with non-member countries.

2. This programme shall be implemented in the period starting on 1 January 2000 and ending on 31 December 2004.

3. This programme shall contribute to the Europe of knowledge through the implementation of a European education area fostering the development of lifelong education and training. It shall permit the development of the knowledge and skills conducive to the full exercise of citizenship.

4. This programme shall support and supplement action taken by and in the Member States, while fully respecting their cultural and linguistic diversity.

Article 2

Aims of the programme

1. In order to allow young people to acquire knowledge and skills, and to exercise responsible citizenship so as to become an active part of society, notably by promoting the role of young women, the objectives of this programme are as follows:

(a) to strengthen their sense of solidarity through more extensive participation by young people living legally in a Member State in transnational Community-service activities within the Community or in non-member countries, in particular those with which the Community has concluded cooperation agreements;

(b) to promote an active contribution by young people to the building of Europe through their participation in transnational exchanges within the Community or with non-member countries, by means of which they may discover the true nature of Europe in all its diversity and become more aware of other environments, thus helping to combat racism, anti-Semitism and xenophobia;

(c) to encourage young peoples' sense of initiative, enterprise and creativity so that they may play an active role in society while at the same time stimulating recognition of the value of informal education acquired within a European context.

2. In implementing these objectives, the Commission and the Member States shall ensure that action under this programme is consistent with the Community's other actions and policies, particularly with regard to employment, to the removal of inequality, to equal opportunities for women and men, and to social policy.

Article 3

Community actions

1. The aims of this programme shall be pursued by means of the following actions, the operational content and the application procedures of which are described in the Annex to this Decision:

(a) European voluntary service;

(b) Youth for Europe;

(c) Opportunity for youth;

(d) joint actions;

(e) support measures.

2. The actions shall be implemented through the following types of measures, in the form of operations which may use several of them in combination:

(a) support for the mobility of young people;

(b) promotion of virtual mobility;

(c) support for the development of European level cooperation networks permitting mutual exchange of experience and good practice;

(d) promotion of language skills and understanding of different cultures;

(e) support for innovatory pilot projects based on transnational partnerships designed to develop innovation;

(f) the constant improvement of the Community terms of references with regard to youth systems and policies.

Article 4

Access to the programme

1. This programme is aimed at young people, in principle between the ages of 15 and 25, who are legal residents of a Member States, as well as those involved in youth work.

2. The Commission and Member States shall ensure that all young people, without discrimination, have access to the activities of this programme.

3. The Commission and Member States shall ensure that special efforts are made to assist young people who, for cultural, social, physical, economical or geographical reasons, find it more difficult to participate in existing action programmes at Community, national, regional or local level and shall accordingly take account of the difficulties faced by this target group.

Article 5

Implementation of the programme and cooperation with the Member States

1. The Commission shall ensure the implementation of the Community actions covered by this programme in accordance with the Annex.

2. In conjunction with the Member States, the Commission shall take the steps described in the Annex (action 5.3) in order to make the best use of what has been achieved through Community cooperative action in the field of youth.

3. The Commission and Member States shall take appropriate action to develop structures established at Community and national level to achieve the objectives of the programme, to facilitate access to the programme for young people and other partners at local level, to evaluate and monitor actions called for under the programme and to apply consultation and selection arrangements. The Commission and the Member States shall ensure that they take measures designed adequately to inform and raise the awareness of young people moving to another country, in particular briefing volunteers on their rights and obligations at European, national and local level. The Member States shall ensure that appropriate information and publicity is provided on actions supported by the programme.

4. Each Member State shall endeavour to take the necessary steps to ensure the efficient running of the programme and to take appropriate measures to remove any obstacles in gaining access to this programme.

5. The Commission, in cooperation with the Member States, shall ensure the transition between those actions developed in the framework of the previous community programmes in the field of youth (Youth for Europe III and European voluntary service) and the actions that will be implemented in the framework of the present programme.

Article 6

Joint actions

As part of the process of building up a Europe of knowledge, the measures of this programme may be implemented as joint actions with other Community actions forming part of the knowledge policy, particularly Community programmes in the area of education and training.

Article 7

Committee

1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee composed of the representatives of the Member States and chaired by the representative of the Commission.

2. The representative of the Commission shall submit to the committee a draft of the measures to be taken as regards:

(a) the arrangements for implementing this programme, including where appropriate the annual plan of work for the implementation of the programme's actions;

(b) the criteria applicable for establishing the indicative breakdown of funds among the Member States for the purpose of the actions to be managed on a decentralised basis;

(c) the arrangements for assessing the programme.

3. The committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft within a time limit which the Chairman may lay down according to the urgency of the matter. The opinion shall be delivered by the majority laid down in Article 148(2) of the Treaty in the case of decisions which the Council is required to adopt on a proposal from the Commission. The votes of the representatives of the Member States within the committee shall be weighted in the manner set out in that Article. The Chairman shall not vote.

4. The Commission shall adopt measures which shall apply immediately. However, if these measures are not in accordance with the opinion of the committee, they shall be communicated by the Commission to the Council forthwith.

In that event:

- the Commission may defer application of the measures which it has decided for a period of up to one month from the date of the communication;

- the Council, acting by a qualified majority, may take a different decision within the time limit referred to in the first indent.

5. The Commission may consult the committee on any other matter concerning implementation of the programme.

In that event, the Commission representative shall submit to the Committee a draft of the measures to be taken. The committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft within a time limit which the Chairman may lay down according to the urgency of the matter, if necessary by taking a vote.

The opinion shall be recorded in the minutes; in addition, each Member State shall have the right to ask to have its position recorded in the minutes.

The Commission shall take the utmost account of the opinion delivered by the committee. It shall inform the Committee of the manner in which its opinion has been taken into account.

Article 8

Funding

1. The financial resources for the implementation of this programme for the period specified in Article 1 shall be set at ECU 600 million.

2. The annual appropriations shall be authorised by the budgetary authority within the limits of the financial perspectives.

Article 9

Consistency and complementarity

1. The Commission shall, in cooperation with the Member States, ensure the overall consistency with other Community activities. Coordination shall be ensured in particular between the activities of this programmes and the other Community actions in particular those covered by the knowledge policy.

The Commission shall ensure in cooperation with the Member States consistency between the implementation of this programme and the other Community actions relating to youth in the area of culture and the audiovisual sector, the completion of the internal market, the information society, environment, consumer protection, SMEs, social policies, employment, and public health.

The Commission shall ensure an efficient link-up between this programme and the programmes and actions in the area of youth undertaken as part of the Community's external relations.

2. The Commission and the Member States shall ensure that the measures of this programme will, as part of the implementation of the coordinated employment strategy, be consistent with the orientations established annually for the employment guidelines and in conjunction with the other actions contributing to the implementation of the action plans to be drawn up in this context.

3. The Commission and the Member States shall ensure consistency and complementarity between action undertaken under this programme and Community action under the Structural Funds.

Article 10

Participation of the associated Central and East European countries, Cyprus, Turkey and Malta

1. This programme shall be open to the participation of the associated Central and East European countries (CEECs) in accordance with the conditions fixed in the Europe agreements or in existing or anticipated additional protocols governing the participation of these countries in Community programmes. This programme shall also be open to the participation, funded by additional appropriations, of Cyprus under the same rules as those applied to the countries of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) which belong to the European Economic Area (EEA) according to the procedures to be agreed with this country. This programme is also open to participation by Turkey according to the procedures to be established with that country.

2. This programme shall also be open to participation by Malta according to the procedures to be agreed with that country.

Article 11

International cooperation

The Commission shall strengthen its cooperation with non-Community countries and the relevant international organisations, particularly the Council of Europe.

Article 12

Monitoring and assessment

1. The Commission shall continually monitor this programme in cooperation with the Member States.

This monitoring shall be effected through the reports referred to in paragraph 3 and through specific activities.

2. The Commission shall evaluate this programme periodically in cooperation with the Member States. The evaluation shall seek to appraise the effectiveness of the actions implemented, by reference to the objectives set out in Article 2.

The evaluation shall also examine the complementarity between action under this programme and that pursued under other Community programmes, particularly action supported by the European Social Fund.

There shall be regular external evaluations of the results of the Community actions in accordance with criteria established using the procedure under Article 7(2).

3. Member States shall submit to the Commission by 31 December 2002 and 30 June 2005 respectively reports on the implementation and the impact of this programme.

4. The Commission shall submit to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions

- an interim report on the implementation of this programme no later than 30 June 2003,

- no later than 31 December 2005, a final report on the implementation of this programme.

Article 13

Entry into force

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

(1) OJ L 87, 20.4.1995, p. 1.

(2) OJ C 30, 28.1.1998, p. 1.

(3) Communication from the Commission to the Council 'Fostering entrepreneurship in Europe: priorities for the future` (COM(1998) 222 final/2, 21.4.1998).

(4) Communication from the Commission to the Council, European Parliament, Economic and Social Committee and Committee of the Regions, COM(97) 563 final of 12 November 1997.

(5) Commission's White Paper: 'Education and training - teaching and learning - towards the learning society`, Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, Luxembourg, 1996.

(6) Commission's Green Paper: 'Education, training, research: the obstacles to transnational mobility`, COM(96) 462 final, 2 October 1996.

(7) Proposal for a Parliament and Council Decision establishing a single financing and programming instrument for cultural cooperation (2000) (OJ C 211, 7.7.1998, p. 18).

(8) Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) laying down general provisions on the Structural Funds (OJ C 176, 9.6.1998, p. 1).

(9) OJ L 214, 31.7.1998, p. 1.

(10) OJ C 102, 4.4.1996, p. 4.

(11) OJ C 102, 4.4.1996, p. 1.

ANNEX

Funding approved under this programme shall respect the principles of co-financing and additionality. In accordance with Article 4(3) of the Decision, efforts must be made to facilitate access to the programme for young people who face difficulties of a cultural, social, economic, physical, mental or geographical nature. The committee referred to in Article 7 of this Decision shall lay down the specific form these efforts should take. Community funding is to be distributed in such a way as to take account of the need to ensure that there is a balance in the mobility actions undertaken and that the young people of every Member State have an equal opportunity of participation.

In order to achieve the objectives of this programme, five categories of action are to be implemented on the basis of the measures described in Article 3 of the Decision:

- Action 1: European voluntary service

- Action 2: Youth for Europe

- Action 3: Opportunity for youth

- Action 4: joint actions

- Action 5: support measures

ACTION 1 - EUROPEAN VOLUNTARY SERVICE

For the purposes of this programme, 'young volunteer` is taken to be a person between the ages of 18 and 25 who is a legal resident of a Member State of the European Community.

The young volunteer shall undertake, as an active citizen, to carry out an activity which gives tangible form to solidarity, with the aim of acquiring social and personal skills and establishing the basis for a future career while at the same time contributing to society as a whole. To this end, the young volunteer shall participate, in a Member State other than the one in which he is living, or in a non-member country, in a non-profit-making and unpaid activity which is of value to the community and lasts for a limited period (maximum of 12 months) as part of a project recognised by the Member State and by the Community. Full board and the supervision of a tutor shall be provided. The voluntary service project shall ensure that the young volunteer is covered by sickness insurance and by any other appropriate insurance. The young volunteer shall receive a small remuneration/sum as pocket money.

In accordance with the provisions relating to the programme committee referred to in Article 7, a certificate, issued by the Commission, shall confirm the young volunteers' participation in the European voluntary service and set out the experience and skills they have acquired during this period.

Action 1.1. Intra-Community European voluntary service

The Community shall support transnational projects (for a limited period ranging in principle from three weeks to one year) which involve young people, actively and personally, in activities designed to help meet the needs of society in a wide range of fields (social, sociocultural, environmental, cultural, etc.). These projects are designed to bring young people into contact with other cultures and other languages, exposing them to new ideas and projects within a multicultural civilian context.

The Community may support schemes, particularly those with a linguistic or intercultural element, which aim at preparing young volunteers for their departure and easing their integration during these activities as well as when they have completed their period of European voluntary service. These schemes may take the form of mentor arrangements for the young person.

Action 1.2. European voluntary service with non-member countries

The Community shall support transnational projects with non-member countries (for a limited period ranging in principle from three weeks to one year) which involve young people, actively and personally, in activities designed to help meet the needs of society in a wide range of fields (social, sociocultural, environmental, cultural, etc.). These projects are designed to bring young people into contact with other cultures and other languages, exposing them to new ideas and projects within a multicultural civilian context.

Support may be given to action laying or consolidating the necessary foundations for developing transnational European voluntary service projects with non-member countries.

The Community may support schemes, particularly those with a linguistic or intercultural element, which aim at preparing young volunteers for their departure and easing their integration during these activities as well as when they have completed their period of European voluntary service. These schemes may take the form of mentor arrangements for the young person.

ACTION 2 - YOUTH FOR EUROPE

Action 2.1. Intra-Community exchanges for young people

The Community shall support mobility activities for young people provided these last at least one week, are carried out on the basis of joint projects within the Community and involve groups of young people aged in principle between 15 and 25 years and legally resident in a Member State.

These activities, based on transnational partnerships between groups of young people shall involve their active participation and be designed to make it possible for them to discover and become aware of different social and cultural realities and to encourage them to participate in, or initiate, other activities at European level. Particular attention is to be paid to participation by young people for whom it is their first European activity and to small-scale or local groups without experience at European level.

After a launch period expected to last some two years, Community support shall be focused primarily on multilateral group-mobility activities. Bilateral group mobility will receive funding only if this is justified in terms of the target group or a specific educational approach.

Activities designed to strengthen the active involvement of young people in group mobility projects may receive funding under this action, particularly in the form of activities to give these young people linguistic and intercultural preparation before their departure.

Action 2.2. Exchanges of young people with non-member countries

The Community shall support mobility activities for young people provided these last at least one week, are carried out on the basis of joint projects and involve groups of young people aged in principle between 15 and 25 years and legally resident in a Member State or in a non-member country. These mobility activities shall involve at least two Member States.

These activities, based on transnational partnerships between groups of young people shall involve their active participation and be designed to make it possible for them to discover and become aware of different social and cultural realities and to encourage them to participate in, or initiate, other activities at European level. Moreover, these projects shall make it possible for partners in the non-member countries to gain experience of this kind of activity in the field of informal education and to contribute to the development of youth clubs and associations and of youth work in these countries.

Activities designed to strengthen the active involvement of young people in group mobility projects may receive funding, particularly in the form of activities to give these young people linguistic and intercultural preparation before their departure.

ACTION 3 - OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUTH

In order to encourage initiative and creativity among young people, the Community shall support projects in which young people actively and directly participate in innovative and creative schemes and in those which focus on the social commitment of young people at local, regional, national or European level. These projects allow young people to develop their initiative and to put into practice activities they have themselves devised and in which they play the key roles.

The Community shall support initiatives designed to help young volunteers to make the best possible use of the experience they have gained during their period of voluntary service and to encourage their active integration into society. These initiatives taken by young people on completing their European voluntary service will allow them to launch and promote activities of a social, cultural, sociocultural and economic nature and/or to participate in supplementary educational activities. Priority access will be given to those young people most in need.

Initiatives designed to encourage tolerance and the acceptance of differences, as well as measures combating all forms of exclusion, should be given specific encouragement and stimulation.

The Community shall be receptive to initiatives involving cultural and sporting activities as a vital form of communication between young people at Community level.

Support for 'Youth initiatives` shall encourage extension of these projects to include similar initiatives conducted in other Member States in order to strengthen their transnational nature and greatly expand exchanges of experience and cooperation between young people. This aid may include organising meetings of young promoters of Europe-wide initiatives. Financial aid may be granted towards the effective establishment of stable partnerships designed to enhance the impact and permanence of transnational youth initiatives.

ACTION 4 - JOINT ACTIONS

For the actions referred to in Article 6 of the present Decision, Community aid may qualify for support for activities to be undertaken jointly with other Community schemes in the field of knowledge policy, in particular Community programmes in the field of education and vocational training.

Coordination between programmes may be implemented by means of calls for joint projects. The Commission intends in particular to develop a common system of information and observation concerning good practice in the field of knowledge, alongside joint actions with regard to multimedia for educational and training purposes. These projects may cover a range of schemes from a number of different sectors including youth. They may be funded in a complementary manner by a number of different Community programmes.

Appropriate measures, including in particular the creation of 'European knowledge points`, may be adopted to provide, at regional and local level, contact and interaction between those participating in the present programme and in programmes dealing with vocational training and education.

ACTION 5 - SUPPORT MEASURES

Action 5.1. Training and cooperation in relaties to these involved in youth policy

Funding shall be granted to:

1. Activities designed to give further training to persons who are involved in youth work, particularly European Voluntary Service instructors, youth workers, those running European projects and youth initiative counsellors, in schemes, directly involving young people, of the kind described in Sections I, II and III of the present programme; the aim being to ensure such schemes are of an appropriately high quality. Particular attention shall be paid to activities seeking to encourage the participation of those young people who find it most difficult to participate in Community actions.

2. Activities designed to develop European modules fulfilling the requirements for transnational cooperation.

3. Activities, such as study visits, feasibility studies, seminars, work-experience, which focus particularly on exchanges of experience and good practice with relation to joint actions or issues of common interest, or which are designed to facilitate and to promote the establishment of lasting transnational partnerships and/or multilateral networks between those active in the field of youth work.

4. Experimental activities which comprise a source of innovation and enrichment of youth policy through the implementation of new approaches and new forms of cooperation, as well as through the shared efforts of participants from differing backgrounds.

5. Community support may also be awarded to conferences and seminars which seek to promote cooperation and the exchange of good practice in the field of youth, as well as other promotion and dissemination measures regarding the results of the projects and activities supported in the framework of the Community actions related to youth.

Activities associated with these measures may be solely intra-Community in nature or involve non-member countries. Particular attention shall be paid to those who work with youth at a regional or local level and who have no or little experience of, or scope for, contacts at European level, as well as to activities in which young people play the key roles.

Action 5.2. Information for young people and youth studies

1. In line with the objectives of the programme, and in particular to improve access for all young people and to enhance their initiative and active participation in society, the Commission shall encourage those active in the field of youth work to become involved in informing young people at European level, as well as boosting cooperation between the information and communication systems for young people established in the Member States and at Community level. In this context, particular stress is to be laid on broadening cooperation to include the fields of education and training as well as on the dialogue between and with young people.

2. Accordingly, funding shall be provided for initiatives involving:

- the acquisition of the necessary experience and skills to carry out youth information projects based on transnational cooperation and projects which provide information and, in particular, advisory services for young people,

- cooperative projects focusing on information dissemination, enhancing the awareness among young people of the field covered by the programme and giving young people access to all necessary information to achieve the objectives of the programme,

- the implementation, as part of transnational cooperation projects, of mechanisms permitting dialogue between and with young people, particularly through the use of youth-oriented media and new technologies.

3. With regard to the youth studies associated with the programme objectives, the Community shall support studies focusing on the impact of measures taken on behalf of young people and, in particular, measures that seek to promote cooperation in this field. This research may take the form of case studies.

Action 5.3. Support measures

1. National agencies

Community assistance may be provided to support the activities of the structures set up by Member States, in accordance with Article 5 of the Decision.

2. Technical assistance and operational support

In carrying out the programme, the Commission can have recourse to technical assistance organisations the financing of which may be provided for within the overall envelope for the programme. It can, under the same conditions, have recourse to experts. Furthermore, the Commission will be able to undertake evaluation studies, organise seminars, colloquia or other meetings of experts, likely to facilitate the implementation of the programme. The Commission can also take forward information, publication and dissemination actions.