Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 718/1999 is replaced by the following:
‘Article 8
Without prejudice to Article 3(5), any Member State may take measures in particular to:
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make it easier for inland waterway carriers leaving the industry to obtain an early retirement pension or to transfer to another economic activity, inter alia, by providing comprehensive information,
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organise vocational training or retraining schemes for crew members, including workers and owner-operators, leaving the industry and provide appropriate information about those schemes,
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improve skills in inland navigation and knowledge of logistics in order to safeguard the development and future of the profession,
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encourage owner-operators to join trade associations and strengthen the organisations representing inland waterway transport at Union level,
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encourage adaptation of vessels to technical progress in order to improve working conditions, including health protection, and promote safety,
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encourage innovation in respect of vessels and their adaptation to technical progress as regards the environment, including environmentally-friendly vessels,
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encourage ways of leveraging the use of the reserve funds in conjunction with available financial instruments, including, where appropriate, under Horizon 2020 and the Connecting Europe Facility, and with financing instruments from the European Investment Bank.’.