CHAPTER I — Subject matter and definitions
Subject matter
This Regulation lays down specific rules establishing uniform conditions for implementing Regulation (EU) No 231/2014 and detailed rules implementing Regulation (EU) No 236/2014 with regards to methods of implementation, financial management, monitoring, evaluation and reporting, transparency and visibility of IPA II assistance as well as specific rules for cross-border cooperation in the policy area ‘regional and territorial cooperation’ and assistance under rural development programmes in the policy area ‘agriculture and rural development’.
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall apply:
(a)
‘IPA II beneficiary’ means one of the beneficiaries listed in Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 231/2014;
(b)
‘programme’ means an action programme, individual, special or support measures provided for in Articles 2 and 3 of Regulation (EU) No 236/2014;
(c)
‘framework agreement’ means an arrangement concluded between the Commission and an IPA II beneficiary applying to all IPA II policy areas and laying down the principles of the financial cooperation between the IPA II beneficiary and the Commission under this Regulation;
(d)
‘sectoral agreement’ means an arrangement concluded between the Commission and an IPA II beneficiary relating to a specific IPA II policy area or programme, setting out the rules and procedures to be respected which are not contained in the framework agreement or financing agreements;
(e)
‘policy area(s)’ means the main areas of cooperation addressed by actions funded by IPA II assistance, as provided for in Article 3(1) of Regulation (EU) No 231/2014;
(f)
‘authorities’ means public entities or bodies of an IPA II beneficiary or a Member State at national, regional or local level;
(g)
‘major project’ means a project comprising of a series of works, activities or services which is intended, in itself, to accomplish a definite and indivisible task of a precise economic or technical nature, which has clearly identified goals and whose total cost exceeds that which is specified in the Framework Agreement;
(h)
‘participating countries’ means the IPA II beneficiaries alone or the IPA II beneficiaries together with the Member State(s) or with the countries falling within the scope of the European Neighbourhood Instrument participating in a multi-annual programme for cross-border cooperation jointly drawn up by the participating countries;
(i)
‘financing agreement’ means an annual or multi-annual agreement concluded between the Commission and an IPA II beneficiary, for implementing the Union's financial assistance through an action falling within the scope of this Regulation.
CHAPTER II — General Framework for Implementation of IPA II Assistance
Principles of Union financing
1. IPA II assistance shall support the implementation of the IPA II beneficiaries' reform efforts as referred to in Article 1 of Regulation (EU) No 231/2014. Specific programmes and stand-alone actions may require both IPA II beneficiary and Union financial contributions.
2. An expenditure item financed under Regulation (EU) No 231/2014 shall not be subject to any other financing under the Union budget.
Principle of ownership
1. The ownership of the programming and implementation of IPA II assistance lays primarily with the IPA II beneficiary.
2. The IPA II beneficiary shall appoint a National IPA Coordinator (NIPAC), who shall be the main counterpart of the Commission for the overall process of: strategic planning, coordination of programming, monitoring of implementation, evaluation and reporting of IPA II assistance.
The NIPAC shall:
(a)
ensure coordination within the IPA II beneficiary's administration and with other donors and a close link between the use of IPA II assistance and the general accession process;
(b)
coordinate the participation of IPA II beneficiaries in the relevant territorial cooperation programmes, in particular cross-border cooperation programmes referred to in points (a) to (c) of Article 27 and, if appropriate, transnational or interregional cooperation programmes established and implemented under Regulation (EU) No 1299/2013. The NIPAC may delegate this coordination task to a territorial cooperation coordinator or operating structure as appropriate;
(c)
ensure that the objectives set out in the actions or programmes proposed by the IPA II beneficiaries are coherent with the objectives in the Country Strategy Papers and take due account of the relevant macro-regional and sea basin strategies;
(d)
endeavour that the IPA II beneficiary's administration takes all necessary steps to facilitate the implementation of the related programmes.
The NIPAC shall be a high-ranking representative of the government or the national administration of the IPA II beneficiary with the appropriate authority.
3. To provide a strengthened basis for the management of pre-accession assistance and national funds, the Commission and the IPA II beneficiary shall engage in a dialogue on public financial management. In this respect, the Commission shall assess the level of compliance of the administration of the IPA II beneficiary with the principles of an open and orderly public financial management system. Where the administration complies with those requirements only in part, the IPA II beneficiary and the authorising officer responsible shall agree on the necessary measures to address the identified deficiencies.
Framework agreements and sectoral agreements
1. The Commission and the IPA II beneficiary shall conclude a framework agreement setting out specific arrangements for the management, control, supervision, monitoring, evaluation, reporting and audit of IPA II assistance committing the IPA II beneficiary to transpose into its legal order the relevant Union regulatory requirements. The framework agreement may be complemented by sectoral agreements setting out specific provisions for the management and implementation of IPA II assistance in specific policy areas or programmes.
2. IPA II assistance shall only be granted to the IPA II beneficiary after the framework agreement referred to in paragraph 1 has entered into force. Where sectoral agreements are concluded, IPA II assistance under the policy area or programme concerned shall be granted after the entry into force of both the framework agreement and the applicable sectoral agreement.
3. The framework agreement shall apply to all financing agreements referred to in Article 6. Sectoral agreements, where relevant, shall apply to all financing agreements concluded in relation to the policy area or programme covered by the sectoral agreement.
4. The framework agreement and, where relevant, sectoral agreements shall lay down, in particular, detailed provisions concerning:
(a)
the structures and authorities needed for the management, control, supervision, monitoring, evaluation, reporting and audit of IPA II assistance, as well as their functions and responsibilities;
(b)
conditions and control requirements for:
(i)
the establishment of the required structures and authorities by the IPA II beneficiary in order to allow for entrusting budget implementation tasks of IPA II assistance;
(ii)
the monitoring, suspension or termination of the budget implementation tasks entrusted;
(c)
programming and implementation of IPA II assistance and in particular provisions concerning aid intensities, rates of Union contribution and eligibility;
(d)
procurement, grant and other award procedures, in accordance with Articles 1(3), 8 and 10 of Regulation (EU) No 236/2014;
(e)
rules on taxes, customs duties and other fiscal charges in accordance with Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 236/2014;
(f)
requirements for payments, examination and acceptance of accounts and financial corrections procedures and de-commitment of unused funds;
(g)
protection of the financial interests of the Union, as provided for in Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 236/2014, and provisions on the reporting of fraud and other irregularities;
(h)
transparency, visibility, information and publicity requirements.
Financing decisions and financing agreements
1. The Commission decisions adopting programmes shall meet the requirements necessary to constitute financing decisions in accordance with Article 84(3) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 and Article 94 of Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/2012.
2. Where such decisions adopt multi-annual action programmes with split commitments for the policy areas referred to in points (a) to (c) of Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 231/2014 the programmes shall, where appropriate, include an indicative list of major projects. The Commission shall adopt a decision on the approval of the financial contribution to the selected major project.
3. Financing agreements shall provide, inter alia, the terms on which the IPA II assistance shall be managed, including the applicable methods of implementation, aid intensities, implementation deadlines, as well as rules on the eligibility of expenditure. Where programmes are implemented under indirect management by an IPA II beneficiary, the financing agreement shall include the required provisions of Article 40 of Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/2012.
4. Financing agreements for cross-border cooperation programmes as referred to in Title VI, Chapter II may also be signed by the Member State hosting the managing authority of the relevant programme. A single financing agreement for cross-border cooperation programmes as referred to in Title VI, Chapter III, may be signed by all the participating countries in a particular programme.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
