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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 99-02-09
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
MIDDAY EXPRESS
News from the Spokesman's midday briefing
Nouvelles du rendez-vous de midi du Porte-Paroleb
09/02/99
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] Spending more wisely : Commission adopts the Annual Evaluation Review
and Evaluation Programme for 1999
[02] Information financière : la Commission propose d'adapter la définition
des petites et moyennes entreprises
[03] Commission clears merger between two Finnish companies, Valmet and
Rauma
[04] Classement des régions de l'UE selon le PIB par habitant
[05] Resumption of the international ivory trade : CITES Standing Committee
to decide
[06] Bolivia : Commission makes available humanitarian aid worth 500,000
euro for floods victims
[01] Spending more wisely : Commission adopts the Annual Evaluation Review
and Evaluation Programme for 1999
The European Commission has adopted its Annual Evaluation Review and the
Annual Evaluation Programme for 1999. The Annual Review presents an
inventory of evaluation projects carried out on European Union (EU) actions
and programmes in 1998 and their results. Its purpose is to provide a
public source of information in order to enhance accountability and
transparency of EU spending. The Programme lists the evaluations scheduled
by Commission departments for 1999. In 1998 a total of 133 evaluations
were completed or under way. For 1999 the number of planned evaluations is
97. The reports on evaluation show that substantial progress has been
made. Most policy areas have a well established evaluation function by now
and programme management has been markedly improved. However, the
Commission concludes that the state of the evaluation function still varies
between services and that some need to step up their efforts further. The
Commission also gives a number of general recommendations in order to
ensure a useful input from evaluations into decision-making.
[02] Information financière : la Commission propose d'adapter la définition
des petites et moyennes entreprises
La Commission européenne a présenté une proposition de Directive portant
adaptation des seuils financiers dans la définition des petites et moyennes
entreprises (PME) dans le cadre des directives comptables européennes.
Cette proposition permettrait aux Etats membres d'accorder des dérogations
en matière d'information financière obligatoire à davantage de PME, dont le
marché unique compte plus de trois millions. Cette adaptation consisterait
à relever (de 25%) les seuils (relatifs au chiffre d'affaires net et au
total du bilan) sur la base desquels se définissent les "petites" et les
"moyennes" entreprises dans les quatrième et septième Directives concernant
les comptes annuels et les comptes consolidés de certaines formes de
sociétés.
[03] Commission clears merger between two Finnish companies, Valmet and
Rauma
The European Commission has decided to accept the full merger between
Valmet Corporation (Valmet) and Rauma Corporation (Rauma). The new company
will be called Valmet-Rauma Corporation (Valmet-Rauma). Valmet is engaged
in the design, manufacture and servicing of pulp, paper board and tissue
production processes and machinery, process automation and mechanical power
transmission equipment. The group operations also include the assembly of
automobiles. Rauma is active in the design, assembly and sale of logging
machinery, fibre-processing technologies and systems, rock crushing
equipment and industrial valves.
[04] Classement des régions de l'UE selon le PIB par habitant
(! embargo 12h !) Un rapport d'Eurostat, l'Office statistique des
Communautés européennes à Luxembourg indique quelles régions de l'Union
européenne (UE) ont le PIB par habitant le plus élevé ou le plus faible.
La région du centre de Londres (Inner London) occupe à présent le premier
rang du classement, suivie par celle de Hambourg. Les données les plus
récentes (moyennes pour 1994-1996) montrent que les 208 régions de niveau
NUTS 2 que compte l'UE se situent dans une fourchette allant de 43% de la
moyenne de l'UE15 (Épire en Grèce) à 222% de cette moyenne (centre de
Londres). Le centre de Londres se trouve à présent nettement en tête du
classement à la suite de modifications de la classification des régions
dans certains pays ; auparavant, cette région était comprise dans le Grand
Londres (Greater London) et occupait un rang quelque peu inférieur. Sa
rivale la plus proche est Hambourg (194%) qui était classée première
auparavant. Selon le rapport d'aujourd'hui, 50 régions se classent à un
niveau inférieur à 75% du chiffre moyen de l'UE. Dix régions ont un PIB
par habitant approchant ou dépassant 150% de la moyenne de l'UE. En dehors
du centre de Londres, les seules d'entre elles qui ne soient pas situées en
Allemagne sont Bruxelles (n°4 à 172% du chiffre de l'UE), Luxembourg (n°5 à
170%), Vienne (n°6 à 165%) et l'Ile de France (n°7 à 163%). Ces
comparaisons sont exprimées en PPA (parités de pouvoir d'achat). Il s'agit
d'une monnaie artificielle qui reflète le pouvoir d'achat réel dans chaque
pays. Le PIB par habitant n'équivaut pas au revenu disponible.
[05] Resumption of the international ivory trade : CITES Standing Committee
to decide
A decision about whether to reopen international trade in raw African
elephant ivory is a technical one that rests solely with the appropriate
body of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
Fauna and Flora (CITES). The 1997 meeting of the Conference of the Parties
to CITES cleared the way in principle for a limited resumption of trade
between Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe and Japan. Although not directly
affected, the European Union has implemented this decision. However, a
number of conditions need to be complied with before the physical
resumption of trade can commence and the responsibility for making sure
that these are fulfilled was delegated to the CITES Standing Committee.
This Committee will be meeting in Geneva between 8-12 February to decide
the issue. The CITES Standing Committee is the principal inter-sessional
decision-making forum for the Convention. It is comprised largely of
representatives from the regions of the world, selected at the Conference
of the Parties. Whilst the Standing Committee members are expected to
consult CITES Parties in their region from time to time, they have been
given a mandate to act as they think fit. The decisions to be taken about
the resumption of ivory trade therefore rest entirely with them and not
with any outside persons or bodies.
[06] Bolivia : Commission makes available humanitarian aid worth 500,000
euro for floods victims
The European Commission is making available humanitarian aid worth 500,000
euro for Bolivia affected by torrential storms causing exceptional floods.
The aid, managed by the European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO), is
for peasants families victims of these floods in the department of Tarija,
southern Bolivia. Road infrastructure, bridges, potable water systems as
well as irrigation systems have been seriously damaged. More than 1,200
families are reported to have been affected. The funding will cover
essential humanitarian aid, water and sanitation and a component of
agricultural rehabilitation. The aid will enable the non-governmental
organisation (Nuova Frontiera) on the spot to carry out humanitarian
actions.
MIDDAY EXPRESS
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
© ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996
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