1. Overview

The MEDA programme is the principal financial instrument of the European Union for the implementation of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership. The programme offers technical and financial support measures to accompany the reform of economic and social structures in the Mediterranean partners.

The MEDA programme provides financial support to the Union's Mediterranean policy as defined in the Barcelona Declaration of 1995. The main aims are to support economic transition, to develop better socio-economic balance, to foster regional integration and to gradually create a euro-Mediterranean free trade area. Going far beyond traditional development aid, MEDA is comparable to the PHARE and TACIS programmes in that it makes economic transition and free trade the central issue of EU financial cooperation with the Mediterranean region.

For the period 1995-1999 MEDA accounted for €3,435 million of the €4,422 million of budgetary resources allocated for financial cooperation between the EU and its Mediterranean Partners. For 2000-2006 MEDA is endowed with €5,350 million. In 2000 committed MEDA funds amounted to €879 million (in addition, €8.8 million were carried over to 2001).

These grants from the Community budget are accompanied by substantial lending from the European Investment Bank (EIB). For 1995-99, the EIB loans totalled €4,808 million; for 2000-2007, the EIB’s Euromed II lending mandate is €6,400 million. The Bank committed itself to contribute a further €1,000 million from its own resources and at its own risk over the same period for transnational projects.

During the period 1995-1999, some 86 % of the resources allocated to MEDA were channelled bilaterally to the partners (this relates to Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey and the Palestinian Authority). The other 12 % of the resources were devoted to regional activities: all 12 Mediterranean Partners and the 15 EU Member States (together called the 27 Euro-Mediterranean partners) are eligible to benefit from these activities. Two percent were set aside for technical assistance offices.

For the period 1995-1999, financial commitments went to four main types of operations:

• Support to structural adjustment: 15 % of total commitments;
   
• Support to economic transition and private sector development: 30 % of total;
   
• Classical development projects (mainly education, health, the environment, rural development): 41 % of total;
   
• Regional projects: 14 % of total (including 2 % technical assistance).

3. The MEDA System

The legal basis of the MEDA Programme is the 1996 MEDA Regulation (Council Regulation no EC/1488/96). This Regulation was amended in November 2000 and is usually call MEDA II. The main areas of intervention and objectives are directly derived from those of the 1995 Barcelona Declaration. It established the MED Committee to allow EU Member States to advise the European Commission in implementing the MEDA Programme. The Committee gives its opinion on the programming documents.

MEDA resources are subject to programming: Strategy papers covering the period 2000-2006 are established at national and regional level. Based on these papers, three-year national indicative programmes (NIPs) are drawn up jointly for the bilateral channel, and a regional indicative programme (RIP) covers the multilateral activities. The indicative programmes follow the 1996 Council guidelines. Annually adopted financing plans are derived from the NIPs and the RIP. The strategy papers, NIPs and the RIP are established in liaison with the European Investment Bank.

The Commission’s External Relations Directorate-General is responsible for drawing up the strategy papers and the three-year indicative programmes. Based on this input, the Commission's EuropeAid Co-operation Office establishes the annual financing plans and manages the projects and programmes from the identification to the evaluation phase.

For Turkey, the Enlargement Directorate-General both plans and implements the co-operation activities. MEDA-funded interest-rate subsidies on loans for environmental projects as well as risk capital actions are managed by the European Investment Bank.

The annual appropriations for financial commitments and payments of the MEDA line in the EU budget are authorised by the budgetary authority (EU Council and European Parliament) on a proposal from the Commission within the limits of the financial perspective.

The priorities for MEDA resources at the bilateral level are:

• support to economic transition: the aim is to prepare for the implementation of free trade through increasing competitiveness with a view to achieving sustainable economic growth, in particular through development of the private sector;
   
• strengthening the socio-economic balance: the aim is to alleviate the short-term costs of economic transition through appropriate measures in the field of social policy.

Examples of projects financed by MEDA are: structural adjustment programmes in Morocco, Tunisia and Jordan; Syrian-Europe Business Centre; the social fund for employment creation in Egypt; rehabilitation of the public administration in Lebanon; rural development in Morocco; basic education in Turkey.

Examples of loans signed by the EIB are: projects to improve waste water treatment and management of water resources in Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and Morocco; measures to reduce pollution and modernisation of traffic control systems at airports in Algeria; renovation of a train line in Tunisia; reconstruction of infrastructures and industry in Turkey following the 1999 earthquake.

Regional and multilateral co-operation complements and reinforces the bilateral approach. Regional programmes operate in all three domains of the Barcelona Declaration, namely the political and security dimension; the economic and financial dimension; the social, cultural and human dimension. Regional activities are open to all 27 partners.

Examples of projects financed are the EuroMeSCo network of foreign policy institutes, the Femise network of economic research institutes, the SMAP environmental programme, the Euromed Heritage programme and the Euromed Audiovisual programme. More information.

Regional and multilateral co-operation reflects the progress made in the framework of the Barcelona Process in taking action at a multilateral level on issues of common concern, as laid down in the agreed declaration, and strengthening activities in support of decentralised co-operation. The regional programmes cover the three domains of the Barcelona Declaration.

The beneficiaries of support measures may include not only the 27 partners but also local authorities, regional organisations, public agencies, local or traditional communities, organisations supporting business, private operators, cooperatives, mutual societies, associations, foundations and non-governmental organisations.

EuropeAid regularly publishes information on tender forecasts, notices and awards for service, supply and works contracts as well as calls for proposals for projects to be subsidised: see tender opportunities site

• "From MEDA I to MEDA II: What’s New?"
  Euromed Special Feature N° 21, 3 May 2001
   

• Annual report of the Meda programme 2000
   

• Annual Reports on the implementation of the MEDA Programme 1999

• Evaluation report on the MEDA Regulation (1999)
   

• "EC External Cooperation with the Mediterranean and Middle East" Chapter from the Report "The European Community External Cooperation Programs. Policies, Management & Distribution"
   

• Evaluation reports on cooperation with the Mediterranean region
   

• EIB operations outside the European Union (including the Mediterranean region): 2000, 1999, 1998

In order to take part in the tenders and calls for proposals, please consult the web-site :
http://europa.eu.int/comm/europeaid/tender/index_en.htm